Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Barnet · London
Alcove units in Totteridge, Barnet
Cupboards and shelves built into the alcoves beside a chimney breast, for homes in Totteridge. Every piece is made at our workshop and fitted in your home.
- Bare alcoves beside the fireplace
- A place for a small desk
- Everyday clutter left on show
Alcove units designed for your room
Common questions about alcove units
Is parking a problem for fitting in Totteridge?
It can be, depending on whether your street is in a controlled parking zone. A van may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a parking bay suspension, which the council arranges, often with notice. Let us know what parking is near you during the design visit, so we can plan the day around it.
Is Totteridge in the area you cover for alcove units?
Yes. We cover all of Barnet and the rest of London, and Totteridge is part of that. The first step is a design visit, where we measure and talk through the design, and then we send a quote.
What happens when you come to measure?
We measure the space and discuss the design, materials and finish. We look at the walls, floors and anything the furniture has to work around, then send a quote in writing.
Does fitted furniture need planning permission?
Normally not. Inside a house, fitted furniture doesn’t normally need planning permission. Listed buildings can require listed building consent for works that affect their character, so check with the council first.
Do I need to be at home on fitting day?
We need access, so someone has to let us in. You don’t need to watch us work, though we like to go over the furniture with you at the end.
Are alcove units spray painted or hand painted?
Either a spray-painted or a hand-painted finish. Spray painting gives a smooth, factory-like finish. We’ll help you choose at the design visit.
Alcove units in Totteridge: what you get
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. We ask what you want to store before we plan the inside, so shelves and rails go where they’re needed. If your home has clutter with nowhere to go and tired cupboards in the alcoves, alcove units made from birch ply and moisture-resistant MDF, painted by hand or sprayed can solve it.
If you live in one of the interwar houses or semis around Totteridge, the main room is often well proportioned, with a bay, a chimney breast and not many other recesses. Alcove units can fill the alcoves, run the length of a wall or frame the chimney breast, depending on how you use the room. The carcasses are made from moisture-resistant MDF or birch plywood, painted in a colour agreed with you.
A written quote follows the design visit. It describes the design we discussed, the materials and the finish, so you know exactly what you’re getting.
- Place
- Totteridge (N20, EN5)
- Borough
- Barnet
- Price
- Quoted for your room
- To begin
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Where it is made
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Boards and paint
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Working days
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Get in touch
- Our contact form
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
Living-room carpentry in Totteridge: local notes
Homes built between 1919 and 1939 make up about 30% of the housing in the neighbourhood around Totteridge, with about 30% built between 1945 and 1972, on the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax figures for 2025. We take that into account at the design visit, since older and newer walls take different fixings. Entries on the National Heritage List near the centre of Totteridge include The Priory (Grade II), less than half a mile south, and Totteridge House (Grade II), under half a mile south-west. Listing covers the inside of a building as well as the outside, so works that affect a listed home’s character, like removing original joinery, can require listed building consent. Check with the council’s conservation officer first. London’s red routes are run by TfL, and stopping on them is tightly controlled. If your home is on or just off a main road, it helps to mention it. We can then plan where the van will stop.
For a family home near The Totteridge Academy, alcove units can be planned with low cupboards for toys and higher shelves for everything else. If you live in a flat close to Oakleigh Park station, it helps to book the lift and tell the concierge before fitting day. If you live in a period home close to St Andrew's Church, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at.
Totteridge is in the London Borough of Barnet, about 3 miles south of Finchley. Homes in Totteridge are part of the area we cover for alcove units. We cover places right across Barnet.
We make alcove units across the N20 and EN5 postcode area for alcove units. Our area takes in homes on streets like Barnet Lane, Grange Avenue and Chestnut Lane, along with the roads around them, whether you want alcove units or another piece made for the room. We also cover the places around Totteridge: Hadley (1 mile north), High Barnet (1 mile north), Arkley (2 miles north-west), Mill Hill (2 miles south-west) and Rowley Green (2 miles north-west). We also make alcove units in nearby places like Finchley (3 miles south), Burnt Oak (3 miles south-west), East Finchley (3 miles south), Hendon (4 miles south), Edgware (3 miles west) and Friern Barnet (3 miles south-east).
What’s near Totteridge
Our area takes in the homes around St Andrew's CofE Voluntary Aided Primary School, Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library and Museum and Susi Earnshaw Theatre School, among other places. The nearest railway station is Oakleigh Park station, about 1.5 miles east of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Francis Skaryna Belarusian Library and Museum (1.5 miles south-east) and Spires Shopping Centre (1.4 miles north). Open spaces near Totteridge include Totteridge Green and Darland's Lake.
From workshop to your room
You are welcome to ask questions while we work. The design, materials and finish were settled before anything was made, so fitting day is about putting it in place carefully and leaving the room tidy. How long fitting takes depends on the size of the alcoves and what goes in them, and the fitting days are set out in your quote. In a 1920s or 1930s house, the hall and stairs are typically simple, but the route in is still measured, not just the room. The furniture comes in sections and is put together where it is going, with floors protected throughout.
- You get in touch with a short description of the alcoves and your ideas.
- We visit to measure, look at how the walls run and note the skirting, picture rail and any vent. We also talk through heights, doors and shelves.
- You receive a quote with the design, the materials and the paint finish. If anything needs changing, just tell us.
- The cupboards and shelves are then built in our workshop.
- We fit the units, scribe them to the walls and set them level.
Getting ready for fitting day
- Keep pets in another room while we work
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
- Let us know if your street is in a controlled parking zone
Getting a quote
To make a start, use our contact form and let us know which room you have in mind. We then arrange a design visit to measure and go through the design, and a written quote follows.
Related advice
Where other trades come in
We’d rather be clear about where our work stops:
- Redecorating, which is for your decorator
- Electrical work, like new sockets or switches, which is for your electrician
- Making good damaged walls before fitting
If in doubt, you can message us from the contact page and describe the room. How a job runs, step by step.
What goes into it
- Spray-painted finish
- Scribed side panels
- Birch plywood
- Panelled or flat doors
- Moisture-resistant MDF
- Hand-painted finish
- Adjustable shelves
What affects the cost of alcove units
There’s no set price, because there is no set room. What affects it comes down to:
- How easy it is to get the furniture into the room
- How big the furniture is
- Whether you choose a spray or hand-painted finish
- How square the room is
In London, parking can affect the price. Much of London is covered by controlled parking zones, so we may need a visitor permit, a paid bay or a suspended bay. It helps to talk about parking during the design visit.
What we need to know
Ahead of the design visit, we’ll normally ask about:
- What you’d like to store or use the space for
- Radiators, sockets, pipes or meters on or near the wall
- The type of home and how the room is reached
- A few pictures of the space, taken from the doorway and from each corner
For a quote for alcove units in Totteridge, send us a few details through our contact form. Let us know the room and the rough idea, plus any rough sizes. Next comes a design visit, followed by a quote in writing.
Flats, conversions and lettings
We also make and fit furniture for landlords furnishing a let, as it makes good use of an awkward room. It’s made from the same moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood as any of our work.
In a managed block, the building manager or concierge may need notice before we arrive. Lifts sometimes need to be booked, and the lift size helps decide how big each section can be. Mention it when you get in touch.
Made for the room, or bought in a box?
Bought units stop at standard heights, which normally leaves a gap above. A bespoke unit can run up to the ceiling or finish just under the picture rail, depending on the room. Ready-made units come in standard depths that rarely suit every space, so they can stick out too far or waste space behind. Fitted furniture is made to the depth the space can take.
Rooms that are not square take more work: uneven walls, sloping floors and angled ceilings all add scribing and cutting on site. That is reflected in the quote, which we write after seeing the room.
What you get with us
- Made in our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Designed for the room you have
- Moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood
- Scribed to uneven walls
Take a look at how bespoke compares with ready-made and what to look for in a quote.