Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Richmond upon Thames · London
Alcove Units in Richmond
Cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast, for homes in Richmond. We measure, design and quote first, then make it in our workshop and fit it.
- Alcoves that aren’t square
- A place for a small desk
- Old alcove cupboards that have seen better days
Ask about alcove units in Richmond
Alcove units for homes in Richmond
Some alcoves suit a full-height unit, with doors from floor to ceiling. In a bedroom, it can become a small wardrobe or a linen cupboard, while in a dining room it can keep china, glass and table linen. At the design visit we ask what you plan to keep there, and set out the shelves and rails around it. We make alcove units from moisture-resistant MDF and strong birch plywood, with a painted finish, and the things people most often want solved are shelving for books and records and units that sit well with original features.
Victorian and Edwardian houses were built with solid brick outside walls, while the walls inside can be brick or lath and plaster. With so many homes around Richmond built before 1919, the wall type is checked before any fixing for alcove units is chosen. Lath and plaster needs a lighter touch and the right fixings, especially behind loaded shelves.
Our quotes are written in plain words. You’ll see what will be made, the boards used and the finish.
- Where
- Richmond (TW9, TW1, TW10)
- Borough
- Richmond upon Thames
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Where it’s made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Boards and paint
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- When we fit
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Enquiries
- Send us a message
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Fitting day, step by step
Period rooms often have skirting boards, picture rails, cornices or coving for the furniture to meet. We cut and scribe the furniture around them on site. How long the fitting takes depends on the size and number of units, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. Parking on terraced streets can be tight, particularly in a controlled parking zone, so details of permits, bays and any loading restrictions help. Unloading is kept short, with sections taken straight inside. Saturdays are possible by prior arrangement.
- You get in touch about alcove units and the room they’re for.
- We visit to measure the alcoves and go through the design, including the paint finish. You can choose a spray-painted finish from our workshop or a hand-painted one done in your home.
- A quote in writing follows, with the finish written in alongside the design and materials.
- We make the units in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF, which takes paint well, and birch plywood.
- We fit the units in your home and scribe them to the walls; a hand-painted finish is done on site after fitting and is easy to touch up later.
- Paint needs time to cure, so go gently with the new units at first.
How to prepare
- Make sure pets are kept safely away
- Move furniture and belongings away from the wall
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
How to get a quote
You do not need exact measurements to get started. Everything is measured properly when we visit. To get started, tell us about the room on our contact form and tell us about the room. You receive a quote in writing after the visit.
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Neighbourhoods near Richmond
Other services in Richmond
Practical tips
Most of what helps is simple. Here’s what we suggest:
- Make a rough list of what the cupboards need to hold
- Talk to your electrician early if you want new sockets
- Sort out damp patches before fitting
- Tell us about parking and access at the design visit
Do not let stored things block the chimney breast vent, even when the cupboards fill up. Air moving through the chimney helps keep damp away, which protects the units too.
If a damp patch appears near a unit, look into it early. The cause is a job for the right trade, not something paint will hide.
The problems alcove units solve
Sometimes it’s the clutter of a busy living room. Toys, games, paperwork and gadgets need somewhere to go, and cupboards with doors keep them out of sight. Open shelves above are left for the things you like to see.
People usually get in touch with us about things like these:
- Clutter with nowhere to go
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
- Somewhere to keep books and records
- Room to work in an alcove
The wider area includes historic houses like Pembroke Lodge, about 1 mile south. For a period home anywhere nearby, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at.
What to check before you book
- Whether the quote follows a visit to your home
- How the doors are hung and adjusted
- Whether you’ll get a quote in writing, not just a figure
- Who does any electrics, plumbing or gas work
When is bespoke worth it?
What you pay for with bespoke is mainly the fit: edges scribed to the wall, a level base on a sloping floor and a neat line where the furniture meets the ceiling. Off-the-shelf furniture can’t normally do that in an older room.
If you’re handy, a simple shelf or a standard wardrobe in a square room is a reasonable DIY job. Sloping ceilings, uneven floors and lath-and-plaster walls make it harder, where scribing and fixings that suit the wall are important.
Living-room carpentry in Richmond: local notes
About 54% of the homes in the streets around Richmond went up before 1919, and about 17% between 1919 and 1939, going by the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax figures. We take that into account at the measuring visit, since older and newer walls take different fixings. Part of Richmond is in the Richmond Hill Conservation Area, one of the conservation areas recorded by Historic England. Conservation area controls are mostly concerned with the outside of buildings, and fitted furniture inside a house does not normally need planning permission. If you are unsure, check with the council before work starts. The Ultra Low Emission Zone has covered all of London since it reached the outer boroughs on 29 August 2023. It applies to the vans that deliver and fit furniture in Richmond, as it does anywhere else in London. Parking and access are planned at the design visit.
Living in a block of flats near Richmond station? Then the route in is measured along with the room itself, and the sections are sized to fit it. For a family home near The Vineyard School, low doors that small hands can open, with books and ornaments higher up, suit a busy family room.
Richmond is about 2 miles west of Twickenham, part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Our work covers every London borough and the City of London, Richmond included. Our work takes in places right across Richmond upon Thames, large and small.
Postcode districts we cover here for alcove units: TW9, TW1 and TW10. If your home is on a street like Kew Road, Dee Road and Park Road, or close by, we can arrange a design visit for alcove units. Neighbouring places we cover for alcove units include Petersham (1 mile south), St Margarets (1 mile west), Eel Pie Island (1 mile south-west), Ham (1 mile south) and Isleworth (2 miles north-west). We also make alcove units in nearby places such as Twickenham (2 miles west), Teddington (2 miles south-west), Hampton (4 miles south-west), Barnes (3 miles north-east), Kew (2 miles north-east) and Hanworth (4 miles south-west). As one of the bigger places in Richmond upon Thames, Richmond is covered for alcove units and everything else we make.
Landmarks near Richmond
The streets we cover here include those near The Victoria pub, Kneller Hall Junior School and Christ's Church of England Comprehensive Secondary School, among other places. The closest station to Richmond is Richmond station, roughly 0.5 miles north of the centre. A little further out are South Middlesex Hospital (1.6 miles west) and Eel Pie Island Museum (1.2 miles south-west). Green spaces nearby include Richmond Hill and Kew Gardens Lake.
Your questions about alcove units in Richmond
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Richmond?
It depends on the street, as many London boroughs run controlled parking zones. Depending on the street, a visitor permit, a paid bay or a bay suspension through the council may be needed, and suspensions often need notice. Let us know what parking is near you at the measuring visit, so the day can be planned around it.
Will a conservation area stop me having alcove units fitted in Richmond?
Typically not: conservation area rules mainly cover the outside of buildings, and fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. If your home is listed, works inside that affect its character can require listed building consent, so check with the council first. The council’s planning or conservation team can tell you if in doubt.
Can an alcove unit include a desk?
Yes. You can have a desk in one alcove and cupboards in the other if you want the two sides to differ. We will plan the desk around how you work.
What happens at the design visit?
It’s a chance to measure properly and talk through what you’d like. We look at the walls, floors and anything the furniture has to work around, then send a quote in writing.
Can I send pictures ahead of the visit?
Yes. Pictures help us understand the room before the design visit, along with rough measurements. It helps to show radiators, sockets and anything else on the wall.
Can you come on a Saturday?
Yes, Saturdays are possible by prior arrangement. Let us know when you first get in touch, and we’ll see what we can do.
Bespoke alcove units or ready-made?
Some flat-pack shelves are thin and start to sag once they’re loaded. We size our shelves for their span and what they’ll carry, with birch plywood where it’s needed. Still, a decent off-the-shelf unit can be the sensible choice if you’re renting or moving soon. Off-the-shelf furniture is made for flat walls and level floors, which older houses rarely have, so you end up with gaps, wobbles and units that don’t meet the skirting. Fitted furniture is scribed to the wall instead.
There’s no price list: each design is priced in writing after we’ve seen the space. Size, the number of doors and drawers and the internal fittings make the biggest difference to the price.
Why choose Bespoke Carpentry in Richmond
- Scribed to uneven walls
- Built from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood
- Built around your room
- Spray painted or hand painted, in the colour you choose