Example photo by Franco Debartolo on Unsplash, not our project
Westminster · London
Window Seats in Little Venice
We make window seats for homes in Little Venice, designed around the room you have. We design your window seat at a visit to your home, make it in our workshop and fit it.
- No comfortable place to sit in the light
- Wanting new furniture to sit well in an older room
- Standard furniture leaving gaps in a bay
Window seats for your home in Little Venice
Fitted storage in Little Venice
About 47% of the homes in the streets around Little Venice went up before 1919, and about 16% between 1945 and 1972, according to Valuation Office Agency council tax figures (2025). For carpentry, the era of a house is a useful clue to how square its rooms are and what its walls are made of. Little Venice is partly covered by the Maida Vale Conservation Area, according to Historic England’s records. Conservation area controls are mostly concerned with the outside of buildings, and fitted furniture inside a house doesn’t normally need planning permission. The council can confirm if you’re not sure. More than a third of the homes in the streets around Little Venice (about 47%) were built before 1919, in the VOA’s 2025 council tax stock figures. Bays and sash windows in period houses suit a seat with drawers or a lift-up lid.
Living in a block of flats near London Paddington station? Then check any building rules on lifts and working hours early, and the sections will be sized for the way in. Near listed buildings like Catholic Apostolic Church and Church House, less than half a mile north-east of the centre of Little Venice, older homes may keep original joinery that window seats can be designed around. For a listed home, fixing into original features can require listed building consent.
Little Venice is about 1 mile east of City of Westminster, part of the City of Westminster. We can visit homes in Little Venice on weekdays, or on a Saturday by prior arrangement. In Westminster, Little Venice is one of the places we cover, and the borough has 29 places on our list.
In W2, W9 and NW8, the process is the same as anywhere else in London. Streets in the area include Harrow Road, Alfred Road and Newton Road, and homes on each of them are within our area for window seats. Little Venice sits close to the A5 and A40. Neighbouring places we cover for window seats include Westbourne Green (1 mile west), Paddington Green (1 mile east), Paddington (1 mile south-east), Maida Vale (1 mile north-west) and Lisson Grove (1 mile north-east). Across the rest of Westminster, our area takes in Marylebone (2 miles east), Soho (2 miles east), Chinatown (2 miles east), St James's (2 miles east), Covent Garden (3 miles east) and Mayfair (2 miles south-east).
What’s near Little Venice
Around Little Venice, we cover homes near The Bridge House, Royal Society of Medicine Library and International Community School. Little Venice has its own railway station: London Paddington station. Well-known places in the area include Maida Vale Hospital for Nervous Diseases (within half a mile north) and Kensington Arcade (1.5 miles south). Not far away are Campden Hill and The Long Water.
How we make window seats for Little Venice
Many windows have a radiator beneath them. A seat built over a radiator needs a grille or an open front, so the heat is not trapped. The front of the seat includes a grille, with space left around the radiator. We will look at your radiator at the measuring visit in Little Venice. Typical reasons to get in touch are no space for toys and games and a radiator that makes the space hard to use; the furniture is made from MDF made to resist moisture and birch plywood, then spray-painted or hand-painted.
Older homes like many around Little Venice have floors and ceilings that slope, and a large share of the homes around Little Venice date from then. Each piece is scribed and levelled on site so it looks straight in a room that is not. Picture rails, skirting and cornices are worked around rather than removed.
The furniture is made at our workshop after you have had the quote and decided to go ahead. The quote sets out the agreed design, materials and finish, so every detail can be checked first.
- Place
- Little Venice (W2, W9, NW8)
- Borough
- Westminster
- Cost
- Quoted for your room
- First step
- Design visit, then a written quote
- Making
- In our workshop, then fitted in your home
- Made from
- Painted MDF and birch ply
- When we fit
- Monday to Friday; Saturdays by prior arrangement
- Enquiries
- Send us a message
- Last updated
- 27 October 2026
Fitting day, step by step
When we arrive on fitting day, we start by protecting your floors and the route from the front door to the room. Next, we carry in the sections made in our workshop. The time the fitting takes depends on whether the seat has drawers, a lift-up lid or a radiator grille, and the fitting days are agreed in your quote. Hallways in period houses are often narrow, and the stairs turn sharply, so the furniture comes in sections sized for the route in. Floors and stair carpets are protected on the way in and out.
- It starts when you get in touch about a window seat. Say how you’d like to use it, if you know.
- At the design visit, we look at the window, the radiator and what you need.
- A written quote follows, with the fitting days agreed. Read it through and ask if anything is unclear.
- We make the seat, the lids or drawers and any grille in our workshop, from moisture-resistant MDF and birch plywood.
- We fit it in your home and leave it ready to use.
How to prepare
- Book any lift and let the concierge or building manager know
- Mention any parking restrictions on your street
- Point out meters, boilers and fuse boards near the furniture
Getting a quote
To make a start, drop us a line using the contact form and tell us a little about the room and roughly what you’d like. From there, we arrange a design visit to measure up and talk through your ideas, and send you a quote in writing afterwards.
Read more
Why people ask for window seats in Little Venice
In a period home, a window seat can suit the character of the room. Painted to match the woodwork, it can look as though it has always been there. That appeals to people restoring or updating an older home.
Here are some of the needs we’re asked about most:
- A ready-made bench that does not fit the bay
- A bay window that’s hard to furnish
- No comfortable place to sit in the light
- A sash window with space beneath it going to waste
The wider area includes historic houses such as Winfield House, about 1 mile north-east. For a period home anywhere nearby, a bay or a sash window is a natural place for a window seat.
Before you choose who makes it
- How they handle walls that are not straight
- Will they visit to measure before quoting?
- Whether the finish is set out in the quote
- Whether you will get a quote in writing, not just a figure
Nearby places to Little Venice
More for homes in Little Venice
Bespoke window seats or ready-made?
For a straight window with no radiator, a ready-made bench can do the job. A bespoke seat earns its place where there is a bay, a radiator or a need for storage. We’re happy to give an honest view during the design visit. Ready-made units stop well short of a tall period ceiling, and that space collects dust instead of storage. Fitted furniture can go all the way up.
The inside of the furniture affects the price as well: rails, shelves, drawers and dividers all add work. We’ll talk through what you need inside at the design visit, and the quote follows.
Why us?
- Every quote follows a design visit
- 300+ projects completed
- We work across all London boroughs
- Finished by spray or by hand
How we price window seats
Not every room costs the same, for these reasons:
- Hanging rails, shelves, drawers and other fittings inside
- Access to the room, such as stairs, lifts and narrow halls
- The finish: spray painted or hand painted
- The width and height of the space
No two rooms cost the same to furnish, because the size, the layout and the finish all vary. Spray painting and hand painting are different processes, which affects the cost. The figure comes in your written quote after the design visit.
Helping us understand the room
What helps most when you first contact us:
- Your postcode and the borough
- Anything fixed to the wall that the furniture needs to work around
- Whether it’s a house or a flat, and if there are stairs or a lift
- Pictures showing the full wall, from floor to ceiling
If you already have something in mind, tell us; if not, we can work it out together at the visit. The design is talked through at the visit, once we have measured, and the written quote that follows sets it out. To start, get in touch through our contact form.
Practical tips
Because fitted furniture stays put, a little upkeep goes a long way. A few pointers help:
- Check whether there is a radiator under the window
- Choose a colour that suits the room
- Move furniture away from the window so we can measure
- Tell us about parking at the design visit
We can give you the seat measurements for a cushion maker. Wait until the paint has cured before putting the cushion on, to protect both the fabric and the finish.
Condensation on the glass can drip onto the cill and the seat, so wipe it away. A little fresh air helps reduce condensation. Do not leave water sitting on the painted surface.
FAQs: window seats in Little Venice
Can parking be tricky on fitting day in Little Venice?
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. Let us know what parking is near you during the design visit.
Can you make window seats for a home in Little Venice?
Yes. We cover all of Westminster and the rest of London, and Little Venice is part of that. The first step is a design visit, where we measure and talk through the design, followed by a quote.
How is a window seat priced?
Every piece is quoted for your room after the design visit. It depends on the size and shape of the window, the storage you want and the finish. To get a quote, fill in our short enquiry form and we’ll arrange a design visit.
Do I need to be at home on fitting day?
Someone needs to let us in. It also helps to have someone around at the end, so we can go over the finished furniture together.
How long is the fitting for a window seat?
How long the fitting takes depends on whether the seat has drawers, a lift-up lid or a radiator grille, and your quote sets out the fitting days. Every part is made at our workshop before we arrive. If you’d like the fitting on a Saturday, that can be arranged.
What happens at the measuring visit?
We measure the room, check how level the walls and floors are and go through the design with you. We will also ask about access and parking.