Example photo by Pete Alexopoulos on Unsplash, not our project
Islington · London
Tufnell Park Alcove Units
We make alcove units for homes in Tufnell Park, designed around the room you have. We design your alcove unit at a visit to your home, make it in our workshop and fit it.
- Empty alcoves either side of the chimney breast
- Walls too uneven for standard furniture
- A desk that tucks into an alcove
Ask about alcove units in Tufnell Park
About our alcove units in Tufnell Park
We work across London, including Tufnell Park. The first step is a design visit to measure the alcoves and agree the layout. After that we send a written quote; the units are then made in our workshop and fitted in your home. If you’re living with tired cupboards in the alcoves and cupboards in keeping with an older house, alcove units made from birch ply and moisture-resistant MDF, painted by hand or sprayed can solve it.
In a house from the Victorian or Edwardian years, the front room usually keeps its chimney breast even where the fireplace has gone. That matters around Tufnell Park, as a large share of the homes there were built before 1919. The recesses either side take alcove units scribed to the plaster and cut around the skirting, so they sit as if they came with the house.
Where other trades are needed, for example an electrician to move a socket, we point that out. The quote itself covers our work, from the design to the materials and finish.
- Location
- Tufnell Park (NW5, N19, N7)
- Borough
- Islington
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- We visit, measure, then quote
- Made
- Workshop-made, then fitted
- Materials and finish
- MDF and birch plywood, painted
- When we fit
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Enquiries
- Our contact form
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Bespoke or off-the-shelf?
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 easy to buy.
The real difference is in 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.
How fitting day works
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, so it looks as though it was always there. The time the fitting takes depends on how many alcoves there are and how tall the units go, and your quote sets out the fitting days. Scribing is done on site, which means some cutting in the room or close by, so a clear area to work in near the room helps. We keep dust down and tidy as we go. Hand painting, if that is your finish, can follow the fitting.
- You get in touch with a short description of the alcoves and your ideas, even if the design is only a rough idea so far.
- We visit to measure, look at how the walls run and note the skirting, picture rail and any vent.
- We send a quote in writing setting out the layout, materials and 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. The finish is sprayed in our workshop or hand-painted on site, as agreed.
Before fitting day
- Clear the hallway and stairs so the sections can come through
- Keep pets out of the room and the hallway
- Empty the space we’ll be working in
Arranging a design visit
Rough measurements are fine at the start. We measure everything properly at the design visit, along with the walls, floor and ceiling. To get started, send us a few details through our contact form. You receive a quote in writing after the visit.
Read more
Tips worth knowing
These points come up often when people plan alcove units. They’re worth knowing before and after fitting:
- Plan any new sockets with your electrician before fitting
- Note any vent or air brick on the chimney breast
- Note the sizes of large things you want to store
- Let us know about parking and access at the measuring visit
Make a note of the paint colour used for future touch-ups. Small marks on a hand-painted finish are easy to touch up, and it helps to keep a little of the paint.
Keep heaters and very hot lamps from standing right against the paintwork.
Neighbourhoods near Tufnell Park
Also in Tufnell Park
Flats, blocks and rented homes
In a managed block, the building manager or concierge may need notice before we arrive. If there’s a lift, it may need booking, and its size matters when we plan the sections. Mention it when you get in touch.
Many London terraces have been converted into flats, and that often means a shared hallway and a tight turn on the stairs. We plan the size of each section around it, once we have measured the way in.
Living-room carpentry in Tufnell Park: local notes
Homes built before 1919 make up about 56% of the housing in the area around Tufnell Park, with about 15% built between 1973 and 1999, 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 National Heritage List has 38 entries within half a mile of the centre of Tufnell Park. Older homes nearby may have original joinery, shutters or panelling worth keeping, and the furniture can be designed around them rather than over them. On TfL’s red routes, the rules on stopping and loading are strict. If your home is on or just off a main road, it helps to mention it. That way we can plan where to load and unload.
If your home is as old as some of the listed buildings nearby, such as Church of St Mary Brookfield, original features like shutters, panelling and fireplaces are worth designing around. For a listed home, fixing into original features may need listed building consent. The wider area includes historic houses such as Witanhurst, about 1.2 miles north-west. If your own home is a period one, picture rails and cornices give alcove units a line to finish at.
Tufnell Park is about 2 miles east of Highbury, in the London Borough of Islington. From period terraces to newer flats in Tufnell Park, the furniture is designed around the room as we find it. In Islington, Tufnell Park is one of the places we cover.
We cover every part of NW5, N19 and N7 for alcove units. You will find streets here like Hugo Road, Ward Road and Anson Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for alcove units. Other places close to Tufnell Park include Dartmouth Park (1 mile west), Upper Holloway (1 mile north), Gospel Oak (1 mile west), Lissenden Gardens (1 mile west) and Holloway (1 mile east). Across the rest of Islington, our area takes in Highbury (2 miles east), Farringdon (3 miles south-east), Clerkenwell (3 miles south-east), Finsbury (3 miles south-east), St Luke's (3 miles south-east) and Islington (2 miles south-east).
Near you in Tufnell Park
In Tufnell Park, that includes homes near Acland Burghley School, The Boston Arms Public House and Musical Theatre Academy, among other places. The nearest railway station is Upper Holloway station, roughly 0.5 miles north-east of the centre. Well-known places in the area include Arsenal Football Club Museum (1.1 miles east) and Royal Northern Hospital (0.5 miles north-east). For a walk, there is Dartmouth Park Hill and Gillespie Park.
Questions from Tufnell Park
Can you make alcove units for a home in Tufnell Park?
Yes. Tufnell Park is one of the places we work, along with the rest of Islington and London. To get started, you can get in touch through our contact form with a few details.
Is parking a problem for fitting in Tufnell Park?
It can be, as controlled parking zones cover much of inner London. 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 design visit, and we’ll plan around it.
Can an alcove unit include a desk?
Yes. You can have a desk in one alcove and cupboards in the other. The desk is planned around the way you work.
What if the wall is cold or damp?
An outside wall can be colder and damper than an inside one, so ventilation behind and inside the furniture helps, which helps avoid condensation and mould. Any damp needs sorting by the right specialist before fitting.
What happens when you come to measure?
We take full measurements, look at the walls and floors and work through the design together. We will also ask about access and parking, and afterwards we send a written quote.
Do alcove units need to reach the ceiling?
That depends on the room and what you’d like to store. Units can stop just under the picture rail or run up to the cornice. The height is settled during the design visit.
Is it time for alcove units?
Many people ask about alcove units because the alcoves are the most obvious wasted space they have. Standard furniture seldom fits an alcove, leaving gaps at the sides and above. Built-in units use the whole recess up to the ceiling if you want.
If any of these sound familiar, it’s worth getting in touch:
- A place for a small desk
- Alcoves that are not square
- Worn or badly fitted alcove units
- Storage that suits a period room
If you live near Whittington Park, alcove units can be planned to frame a window with a view rather than block it.
Before you hire any carpenter
- Who does any electrics, plumbing or gas work
- How the furniture will be finished, and where
- Whether the route into your home has been checked
- Can you see real work of theirs?