Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Islington · London
Alcove units in St Luke's, Islington
Cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast, designed for your room in St Luke's. We measure, design and quote first, then make it in our workshop and fit it.
- Tired cupboards in the alcoves
- Furniture that does not fit the alcove
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
Alcove units in St Luke's
Common questions about alcove units
Can you make alcove units for a home in St Luke's?
Yes, St Luke's is within the area we cover, which takes in all of Islington and the rest of London. We start with a design visit to measure the room and talk through what you need, followed by a quote.
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in St Luke's?
It can be: much of inner London is covered by 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. It’s useful to tell us about parking at the measuring visit, so we can plan the day around it.
Do I need permission in a conservation area?
Not normally. Conservation area controls are largely about how buildings look from outside, and furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need it. Listed buildings are different: check with the council’s conservation officer first.
What happens when you come to measure?
It is a chance to measure properly and talk through what you’d like. We also check the walls and floors and note radiators, sockets and other things in the way, and the written quote comes afterwards.
How is the price worked out?
Each room is quoted on its own: size, internal fittings, the finish and how awkward the walls are all play a part. The written quote follows the design visit.
How do I get started?
Simply drop us a line using the contact form. It’s useful to send rough measurements and a few photos, and we’ll arrange a design visit.
How we make alcove units for St Luke's
Alcove units are made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, each used where it works best. MDF suits doors and panels because it paints so evenly, while birch plywood is strong and holds screws well. You can have a spray-painted finish from the workshop or a hand-painted one done on site, in a colour agreed with you. If your home has clutter with nowhere to go and storage that suits a period room, alcove units made from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, spray-painted or hand-painted can solve it.
Homes built since 2000 are often open-plan, with the kitchen, dining and living space in one room, and around St Luke's many homes date from those years. In a room like that, alcove units can help separate the sitting area from the kitchen, without putting up a wall. Floors are protected throughout, as newer finishes mark easily.
A written quote is the clearest record of what we have agreed. It sets out the alcove unit designed for your room, what it is made from and how it’s finished, and the workshop works from it.
- Where
- St Luke's (N1, EC1V, EC2A)
- Area
- Islington
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- How it starts
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Made
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Boards and paint
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- When we fit
- Monday to Friday; Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Enquiries
- Send us a message
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Also near St Luke's
Other services in St Luke's
What happens on fitting day
On the morning of the fitting, the first job is covering the floors and protecting the way in from the front door. Next, we carry in the sections made at our workshop. The time the fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and we confirm the fitting days in your quote. Newer blocks often have concierge desks, entry systems and rules on lift booking, so check them with the managing agent before fitting day. Alcove units are made in sections sized for the lift and doors.
- To begin, tell us about the room on our contact form; a brief note on the alcoves is plenty, and mention if you live in a flat or up a few flights of stairs.
- At the design visit we measure the alcoves and also the way in: the front door, the hall and any stair turns. Parking is worth mentioning too, since a van often needs a permit or a paid bay in London.
- We then send a written quote for the units.
- In our workshop we build the units from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, sized so each piece gets up the stairs and round the corners.
- On fitting day the sections come in, are joined in place and scribed to the walls. A spray-painted finish arrives done; a hand-painted one is applied once the units are in.
How to prepare
- If you live in a block, book the lift and tell the building manager
- Empty the space we will be working in
- Tell us about any meters, fuse boards or boilers in the area
How to get a quote
We quote once we have seen the room. We measure the space, check the walls and floors and discuss what you’d like, and the written quote comes after. There’s no price list: each design is priced in writing after we’ve seen the space. To arrange a visit, tell us about the room on our contact form.
Related advice
How we price alcove units
The price reflects the time and materials the job needs. The main factors are:
- Tricky walls, sloping ceilings and uneven floors
- What goes inside: rails, shelves, drawers and dividers
- Parking and unloading on your street
- Access to the room, like stairs, lifts and narrow halls
We quote each job for the room it’s going into, after the design visit. A larger piece means more material and more time, so size is the starting point. Doors, drawers, internal fittings and the finish make up most of the rest.
Helping us understand the room
The more you can tell us at the start, the better the design visit goes. When you contact us, it helps to send:
- The type of home and how the room is reached
- Any ideas or images you have saved
- Rough measurements, even if they’re only to the nearest few centimetres
- Anything fixed to the wall that the furniture needs to work around
The design visit is where every quote starts. We measure the room properly, check how the walls and floors run and talk through the design with you. Afterwards, we send a written quote for you to look over. To book one, fill in our short enquiry form.
Could you do it yourself?
Bespoke work comes into its own in rooms that aren’t square. In period homes, walls lean, floors slope and the alcoves on each side are often different widths, which leaves standard units with gaps at the sides and top.
Off-the-shelf furniture can be a sensible choice. In a room with square walls and standard sizes, it can work well, and it is quick to buy.
Alcove units for homes in St Luke's
In the neighbourhood around St Luke's, the largest groups of homes date from the years since 2000 (about 37%) and between 1945 and 1972 (about 28%), based on the Valuation Office Agency’s 2025 council tax data. For carpentry, the era of a house is a useful clue to how square its rooms are and what its walls are made of. Part of St Luke's is in a conservation area, according to Historic England’s records. Planning controls in conservation areas are mainly concerned with the outside of buildings, so fitting furniture inside a house does not normally need permission. Your council can advise if you’re unsure. Streets close to central London are often narrow and busy, with loading bays in short supply, so carrying the sections from the van to the door takes planning, especially for larger pieces.
For a family home near St Luke's CofE Primary School, low doors that small hands can open, with books and ornaments higher up, suit a busy family room. If you live in a period home close to Jewin Welsh Presbyterian Chapel, the alcoves beside a chimney breast are the natural place for alcove units. Close to Artillery Ground? Alcove units can be planned to frame a window with a view rather than block it.
St Luke's is within the London Borough of Islington, about 2 miles north of Highbury. Design visits and fitting in St Luke's can be on a Saturday, by prior arrangement. Across Islington, we cover St Luke's and the places around it.
Postcode districts we cover here for alcove units: N1, EC1V and EC2A. We cover homes on streets such as Long Lane, City Road and Moor Lane, along with the roads around them, for alcove units and any of our other fitted furniture. The A1 and A501 runs close to St Luke's; on busy main roads, unloading alcove units takes a little planning. We also cover the places around St Luke's: Finsbury (1 mile south), Barbican Estate (1 mile south), Shoreditch (1 mile east), Hoxton (1 mile north-east) and City of London (1 mile south). Elsewhere in Islington, we also cover Highbury (2 miles north), Barnsbury (2 miles north-west), Holloway (2 miles north-west), Mildmay (2 miles north), Upper Holloway (3 miles north-west) and Nag's Head (2 miles north-west). As one of the bigger places in Islington, St Luke's is covered for alcove units and everything else we make.
Around St Luke's
We fit furniture in homes around St Mary-at-Hill, The Masque Haunt pub and Charterhouse Square School and the streets around them. There’s a railway station in St Luke's itself: Old Street station. A little further out are Gabriel's Wharf (1.3 miles south-west) and St Luke's Hospital for Lunatics (under half a mile east). For a walk, there is Barnsbury Wood and Ludgate Hill.
Materials and finishes
Birch plywood
Birch plywood is also good for drawer boxes. The edge can be painted or shown as a detail.
Shelves
Alcove shelves can be fixed or adjustable. Fixed shelves add stiffness to the unit, while adjustable ones let you change heights later.
Practical tips
Fitted furniture is part of the room, so it’s worth looking after. A few pointers help:
- Deal with any damp on the chimney breast first
- Talk to your electrician early if you want new sockets
- Let us know about stairs, parking and access early
- Decide whether the units stop at the picture rail or run to the ceiling
To clean painted units, a soft cloth that is barely damp is enough. Skip scouring pads and harsh cleaners, as they can mark the finish. Dry the surface afterwards.
Every so often, check that hinges and handles haven’t worked loose.