Example photo by Franco Debartolo on Unsplash, not our project
Lewisham · London
Window seats in Lee, Lewisham
Walls in older London homes are rarely straight, so we scribe the furniture to follow them. Our work on window seats in Lee starts with a design visit, and everything is made at our workshop.
- A bay window that is hard to furnish
- No space for toys and games
- No comfortable place to sit in the light
Need window seats in Lee?
Window seats for homes in Lee
We make the seat itself, and you can source a cushion to the size we give you. That leaves the choice of fabric and style to you. We make the seat to suit the cushion you plan, with a suitable depth and height. Most enquiries start with standard furniture leaving gaps in a bay and a period room that needs furniture to suit it, and the answer is made in our workshop from MDF made to resist moisture and birch plywood, then spray-painted or hand-painted.
With a large share of homes around Lee built before 1919, the space under the stairs in a terraced house often holds the gas meter, the electricity meter or the fuse board. Those have to stay reachable, so any storage is designed around them. Sash and bay windows are common in houses of that age too, and good places for seating with storage below.
Where other trades are needed, for instance an electrician to move a socket, we point that out. Our quote covers the carpentry: the design, the materials and the finish.
- Where
- Lee (SE12, SE13, SE3)
- Borough
- Lewisham
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- A design visit: we measure and talk it through
- Where it’s made
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Materials and finish
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- Fitting days
- Weekdays; Saturdays on request
- Contact
- Our contact form
- Page updated
- 27 October 2026
How fitting works for window seats
At the end, we tidy up and take up the floor coverings. Before we go, we look over the finished furniture with you. How long fitting takes depends on the shape of the bay or recess and what goes under the seat, and the fitting days are agreed in your quote. Older London houses often have narrow hallways and tight turns on the stairs, so window seats are made in sections sized to get through. Floors, stairs and doorways are covered before anything is carried through.
- You get in touch about a window seat.
- At the design visit we agree the seat and talk about colour, with a choice of spray painting or hand painting.
- You receive a written quote for the design, materials and finish.
- We build the seat in our workshop from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, ready for the finish you chose.
- We fit it in your home, and a hand-painted finish is applied in the room.
- Fresh paint takes a while to cure, so go gently with the seat and lids at first.
Preparing the room
- Leave a clear route from the front door to the room
- Empty the space we’ll be working in
- Book any lift and let the concierge or building manager know
How to get a quote
To make a start, tell us about the room on 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
Other services in Lee
What it’s made from
Doors and drawer fronts
What shows of the seat is mainly its fronts. They can be plain or panelled, with handles chosen to suit the room. A radiator grille can be built into the front.
Pull-out drawers
Pull-out drawers bring everything into view. They’re often easier for children than a lid. We make the boxes from birch plywood for strength.
Fitted storage in Lee
About 49% of the homes in the streets around Lee went up before 1919, and about 19% between 1945 and 1972, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). It is a good starting point, though every room is still measured, as two homes of the same age rarely match. 3 conservation areas have at least part of their area within a mile of central Lee. Historic England says England has around 10,000, and the controls mainly cover the outside of buildings. More than a third of the homes in the area around Lee (about 49%) were built before 1919, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). Sash and bay windows are common in houses of that age, and they’re natural places for a window seat, with a grille where there is a radiator below.
Near listed buildings like Lee Public Library, less than half a mile north-west of the centre of Lee, older homes may keep original joinery that window seats can be designed around. If your own home is listed, check with the council before fixing into original features. For a flat near Lee station, it’s useful to book the lift and tell the concierge before fitting day. The wider area includes historic houses like Eltham Palace, about 1.7 miles east. If your own home is a period one, a radiator under the window just needs a grille in the seat front.
Lee is in the London Borough of Lewisham, about 2 miles north-west of New Cross. Design visits and fitting in Lee can be on a Saturday, by prior arrangement. We cover places right across Lewisham.
Design visits and fitting in SE12, SE13 and SE3 work the same way as everywhere else we cover. You’ll find streets here such as Old Road, Manor Lane and Mallet Road, and we cover homes on all of them for window seats. Close by, we also work in Hither Green (1 mile west), Horn Park (1 mile south-east), Lewisham (1 mile north-west), Ladywell (1 mile west) and Blackheath (1 mile north). Across the rest of Lewisham, our area takes in New Cross (2 miles north-west), St Johns (2 miles north-west), Deptford (2 miles north-west), Surrey Canal (3 miles north-west), Sydenham (3 miles south-west) and Telegraph Hill (2 miles north-west).
What’s near Lee
The streets we cover here include those near The Edmund Halley pub, Trinity Church of England School and International Academy of Greenwich. There is a railway station in Lee itself: Lee station. Other landmarks nearby include Greenwich Castle (1.8 miles north) and University Hospital Lewisham (1.1 miles west). Open spaces near Lee include Birdbrook Road Nature Reserve.
DIY, flat-pack or bespoke
It’s worth being honest about cost: flat-pack is normally cheaper to buy. Bespoke makes more sense where the room is tricky, the space is valuable or you want the furniture to look built in.
A confident DIYer can manage simple shelves or a standard wardrobe in a square room. It gets harder with sloping ceilings, out-of-level floors and lath-and-plaster walls.
Looking after your furniture
New paint needs time to cure fully, so treat it gently at first. Beyond that, these tips help:
- Decide on cushion thickness before the design visit
- Bring paint colours you like to the design visit
- Mention any parking rules on your street
- Note whether your window has working shutters
Small marks on a hand-painted finish can be touched in. Keep a note of the colour for later. A spray-painted finish is smooth and even, and small marks often wipe off with a damp cloth.
Use a step rather than standing on the seat. Standing on it can mark the paint and strain the lid. It will look better for longer with a little care.
Flats, conversions and lettings
If your flat is leasehold, check your lease before fixing furniture to the walls. A lease can require consent from the building owner for alterations, and that is best sorted before fitting day. We cannot advise on your lease.
If the property is let, we’ll need access agreed with the tenants, at times that suit them. A letting agent can arrange this on a landlord’s behalf.
Your questions about window seats in Lee
Do you cover homes near Lee station?
Yes, homes across Lewisham and the rest of London are within the area we cover. You can fill in our short enquiry form to arrange a design visit, and let us know about parking and access at the same time.
I live in a flat in Lee. How will the furniture get up the stairs?
At the design visit, we measure the way in along with the room itself. The furniture is made in sections that fit the stairs and lift, and put together in the room. It helps to check any building rules and your lease before fitting day.
What materials do you use for window seats?
Moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood, with a spray-painted or hand-painted finish. A moisture-resistant grade suits a spot by a window, where condensation can form. The materials and finish are agreed in your quote.
What finishes do you offer?
There are two options: spray painting, done in the workshop for a smooth, even finish, or hand painting, which can be done on site. Your quote sets out which you have chosen.
Do I need to be in when you fit?
Someone needs to be there to let us in. After that, you don’t need to stay in the room, though we like to go over the furniture with you at the end.
Can you fit furniture to uneven walls?
It is something we deal with all the time. The furniture is scribed to follow the walls and levelled on feet or a plinth, so it sits tight to the room.