Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Tower Hamlets · London
Alcove Units in Stepney
We make alcove units for homes in Stepney, designed around the room you have. Your alcove unit is designed at a visit to your home and built in our workshop.
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
- Storage that suits a period room
- Shop-bought shelving that doesn’t fill the recess
Ask about alcove units in Stepney
Is bespoke worth it?
Bespoke furniture is not instant: there is a design visit, a quote and making time in the workshop. In return, the unit is planned for your alcove alone, not the nearest catalogue size. In a plain post-war room, standalone pieces stand proud of the wall with nothing to frame them, whereas fitted furniture can make its own recesses.
Tricky rooms take more time: walls that lean, floors that slope and sloping ceilings all mean more scribing and cutting. That is reflected in the quote.
Why work with us in Stepney
- Built from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood
- A design visit, then a quote in writing
- 300+ projects completed
- Made in our workshop, then fitted in your home
Read bespoke vs off-the-shelf and what a quote should include.
Alcove units in Stepney
We fit alcove units across Tower Hamlets and the rest of London. The first step is a design visit to measure the alcoves and agree the layout. After that we send a written quote, and once you’re happy the units are made in our workshop and fitted in your home. Most enquiries start with tired cupboards in the alcoves and alcoves that aren’t square; the furniture is made from birch ply and moisture-resistant MDF, painted by hand or sprayed.
Around Stepney, where many homes date from the post-war decades, the living room may be simpler in shape than a period room, with fewer mouldings to work around. That gives alcove units a clean line from floor to ceiling. Wall types can vary within one home, so we check each wall and choose fixings to suit it.
After the design visit, we send you a quote in writing. It describes the design we discussed, the materials and the finish, so you know exactly what you are getting.
- Location
- Stepney (E1, E2)
- Area
- Tower Hamlets
- Prices
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Where it’s made
- Made in our workshop and fitted on site
- Boards and paint
- MDF and plywood, painted to order
- Fitting days
- Weekdays (Saturdays if arranged)
- Enquiries
- Send us a message
- Updated
- 27 October 2026
Is it time for alcove units?
In bedrooms, the alcoves may be the only place for hanging space. Built into the alcove, a cupboard holds clothes without taking over the room.
Here’s what alcove units can help with:
- Shelving for books and records
- Alcoves that aren’t square
- Furniture that does not fit the alcove
- Tired cupboards in the alcoves
If you live in a period home close to St Peter's Church, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at.
Before you hire any carpenter
- Which materials they’ll use, named in the quote
- Where they’ll park and unload
- How they deal with uneven walls and floors
- Will they visit to measure before quoting?
FAQs: alcove units in Stepney
Do you make alcove units for homes in Stepney?
Yes. Stepney is one of the places we work, along with the rest of Tower Hamlets and London. To get started, you can get in touch through our contact form with some details.
My home in Stepney is a flat. How do you get the furniture in?
At the design visit, we measure the way in not just the room. Alcove units are built in our workshop in sections sized to fit that route, then assembled in your flat. It helps to check any building rules and your lease before fitting day.
Can the two alcove units be different?
That depends on how you use the room. The two alcoves are often slightly different sizes, so each unit is made to its own measurements. They can match in style while doing different jobs.
Can alcove units be fitted to uneven walls?
Yes. Most period alcoves are out of square in some way, so we scribe each unit to follow the wall. A plinth or adjustable feet set it level on a sloping floor.
Is an outside wall a problem for fitted furniture?
External walls can be colder and damper than internal ones, so ventilation behind and inside the furniture helps, which helps avoid condensation and mould. If there is damp, it should be sorted before anything is fitted.
Can the fitting be on a Saturday?
Yes, Saturdays are possible by prior arrangement. Let us know when you first get in touch.
Flats, blocks and rented homes
In conversions and newer blocks, many internal walls are timber or metal stud with plasterboard. We choose fixings to suit the wall, after checking the walls at the measuring visit.
We also make and fit furniture for landlords furnishing a let. It is made from the same moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood as any of our work.
From workshop to your room
Finishing comes last. If the furniture was spray painted in the workshop, we fill the fixing holes and touch up on site; if you chose hand painting, that can be done in the room once the furniture is fitted. The finish is always the one agreed in your quote. Parking near post-war estates can depend on residents’ bays and estate rules, so it’s useful to tell us during the design visit. On the day, the sections are carried in, assembled and fixed. Saturday fitting is possible by prior arrangement.
- To begin, tell us about the room on our contact form; a brief note on the room and the alcoves is enough, 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.
- Your written quote sets out the design, materials and finish.
- The units are made in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, in sections sized to come through your door.
- We carry the sections in, assemble them in the alcoves and scribe them to the walls.
Getting ready for fitting day
- Take anything hanging off the wall we are fitting to
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
- Check the building’s rules for trades and lift bookings
Arranging a design visit
You don’t need exact measurements to get started. We measure everything properly at the design visit, along with the walls, floor and ceiling. To get started, drop us a line using the contact form and tell us about the room. You receive a written quote after the visit.
Read more
Tips worth knowing
Fitted furniture is part of the room, so it’s worth looking after. A few pointers help:
- Make the alcoves easy to reach for measuring
- Have any damp looked at before the units are made
- Consider whether the units should reach the ceiling
- Mention parking and access when we visit
Make a note of the paint colour used for future touch-ups. Hand-painted finishes are the easiest to touch up in place, and it’s useful to keep a little of the paint.
If a damp patch appears near a unit, look into it early. Damp needs its cause fixing by the right trade.
Alcove units for homes in Stepney
The biggest shares of homes in the neighbourhood around Stepney were built between 1945 and 1972 (about 31%) and since 2000 (about 30%), according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). Knowing roughly when a home was built helps, because walls and fixings change from one era to the next. The centre of Stepney is within about a quarter of a mile of the Stepney Green Conservation Area. Planning controls in conservation areas are mainly concerned with the outside of buildings, so fitting furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need permission. If you are unsure, check with the council before work starts. TfL’s red routes have strict stopping rules. If your home in Stepney is on or near a main road, tell us at the design visit. That way we can plan where to load and unload.
If you live near Stepney Green Park, a room that looks out on trees deserves a design that leaves the window alone. If your children go to Redlands Primary School or a school nearby, low doors that small hands can open, with books and ornaments higher up, suit a busy family room.
Stepney is part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, about 1 mile west of Whitechapel. We cover Stepney as part of our work across Tower Hamlets, and the process is the same everywhere we work. Stepney is one of the places in Tower Hamlets where we make alcove units.
Design visits and fitting in E1 and E2 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. We cover homes on streets like Beaumont Square, Rectory Square and Carlton Square, for alcove units and any of our other fitted furniture. The A11 and B120 run close to Stepney, so if your home is on a main road, mention it when you get in touch. We also cover the places around Stepney: East End of London (1 mile south-west), Ratcliff (1 mile south), Bethnal Green (1 mile north-west), Whitechapel (1 mile west) and Limehouse (1 mile east). Other parts of Tower Hamlets we cover include Old Ford (2 miles north-east), Poplar (2 miles south-east), London Docklands (2 miles south-east), Canary Wharf (2 miles south-east), Isle of Dogs (3 miles south-east) and Leamouth (3 miles east).
Around Stepney
Our area takes in the homes around Stepney Green Mathematics and Computing College, Black Horse Public House and Bishopsgate Institute Special Collections and Archives. Stepney has its own railway station: Whitechapel station. Other landmarks nearby include Tower of London (1.4 miles south-west) and The Royal London Hospital (within half a mile west). For a walk, there’s Lavender Pond and Tower Hill.