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kwansie

Must I have built in units in my chimney alcoves???

KXD
il y a 4 ans
I am a bit reluctant to spend thousands on built in alcove units for my living room unless it is really necessary or will make a huge difference.. I have Ikea shelves in my bedroom alcoves and although they don't fit perfectly i.e there are gaps between the shelf and the wall I don't think they look bad at all.... Would it be a faux pas if I didn't he same for my living room? Then I could get some free standing units for the bottom of the shelves? Many thanks for your time.
By the way my living room is in F&b Joas White, and ceiling Wimborne white.. Any ideas for colours for shelving units for the alcoves? I am leaning towards Wimborne white.

Commentaires (28)

  • Sandy Slade
    il y a 4 ans

    Hi, Unless you are a fashion follower It is your home you can do anything you like. No one has to stick to what the magazines, sites and fashion say . I love it when someone does something totally individual. Maybe finding something to recycle /upcycle as you obviously have the talent to make it unique to you so go for it.

    KXD a remercié Sandy Slade
    Meilleure réponse
  • PRO
    OnePlan
    il y a 4 ans
    Try Jali.co.uk for custom shelving made to size that won't cost thousands !!
  • PRO
    Fine Finish Furniture net
    il y a 4 ans
    You can just hung TV on adjustable bracket that will allow you to pull tv out from alcove and underneath put a unit for other items.

    Still, the best way is to make fully fitted, nicely painted furniture

    Good luck
  • PRO
    Empatika Bespoke Fitted Furniture
    il y a 4 ans
    Dernière modification :il y a 4 ans

    If you do decide to spend thousands, do it with me! ;) https://www.empatika.uk/

    So my sensible advice is, in an office those shelves are ok. But in the living room were the look is more important, if you don't want to spend loads, just go for fitted floating shelves that look slick, clean, modern and then as you say put some free standing furniture below, at least that way you can change them in the future easily if you want to and it is so much cheaper to buy ready made freestanding units.

    Have a look how beautiful floating shelves can look: https://www.empatika.uk/shelving-gallery#foobox-1/29/Contemporary_floating_shelving_London.jpg

    Best of luck

    Tristan

  • minnie101
    il y a 4 ans

    Hi. Silly question but do you actually need shelves? Alcoves can look really good with matching consoles or cabinets etc with lamps etc and art hung on the ŵall, or lose the symmetry and add a chair etc to one. If you need shelves then I'd definitely go for floating ones, you can also look at ones that can be cut down to size. I'd paint the shelves in the ŵall colour to blend them in

  • KXD
    Auteur d'origine
    il y a 4 ans

    Thank you OnePlan and Fine Finish Joinery Ltd for your responses. Minnie101 matching consoles, art and lamps sounds very good and perhaps a place for the TV. Wondering whether placing shelving on one side alone would make the room look lopsided : -??? I will need to look through Houzz for some ideas... Many thanks all!

  • Ludo Gallagher
    il y a 4 ans

    We got fitted shelves both sides just the top of the alcoves for about 200. It's not expensive if you get the right person.

    KXD a remercié Ludo Gallagher
  • lauramcg2
    il y a 4 ans
    I would be with mini101 & think something other than shelving as rooms focus would look less cluttered & more relaxing .....keep shelving behind main focus or sitting area!
    KXD a remercié lauramcg2
  • Sandy Slade
    il y a 4 ans

    Please post a picture when you have done it though even if it takes a while to do . Thanks

    KXD a remercié Sandy Slade
  • lindalovie55
    il y a 4 ans

    big fan of glass either shelving or console tables. finish with large coloured glass vases etc

    KXD a remercié lindalovie55
  • alyper
    il y a 4 ans

    Wouldn't go for built in shelves, instead built in cupboards up to say hip height in which all uninteresting things stored away. Any competent carpenter could make these out of MDF and then painted - Wimbirne White? On top of cupboards display your favourite things, leaving walls clear. Makes the room feel so much larger. One stunning picture above fire, or mirror. Tada!! O

  • alyper
    il y a 4 ans

    Meant to add: the cost should definitely not be thousands more like a few hundred (done it myself recently, so I know!), and you would have something to be proud of, rather than 'almost fits'. Well worth it in the long run.

  • KXD
    Auteur d'origine
    il y a 4 ans
    Many thanks all. Good ideas all round. Very helpful indeed!
  • AMB
    il y a 4 ans
    if you want wall to wall alcove shelves on the cheap you can make floating shelves out of a cheap internal flush door. (£23 from B&Q) I wanted 8 white wooden floating shelves for my alcoves and the quotes I got were between £400-800! We did it ourselves for about £100.
  • KXD
    Auteur d'origine
    il y a 4 ans
    Wow Ambirchal1985...Fantastic idea! Did you make them into floating shelves? You did not make a how-to dvd as well did you? :-))
  • KXD
    Auteur d'origine
    il y a 4 ans
    Oh just reread and note that you did say you made floating shelves....well done!
  • silyab53
    il y a 4 ans
    Dernière modification :il y a 4 ans

    So lucky to have the original floor to ceiling alcove cupboard in my Victorian house and even luckier to have rescued the same from next door when they stripped out all the original 'features' to 'modernise'!!!!! Put lower half in my small sitting room and taller half in my bedroom, which houses all of my shoes - just!

    What about different size floating shelves (IKEA are very cheap, white and easy to put up and come in a range of sizes) but randomly placed, or an old wooden ladder for your books - go mad and paint it to stand out. The shelves you have which are a bit small are a perfect opportunity for some funky bookends to keep everything in place.

    Looking forward to snaps.

  • PRO
    The London Craftsman
    il y a 4 ans
    How about using a material such as Birch ply and doubled up to make chunky shelves.
    Or even something completely different and unusual such as Osb board/sterling board.
    This would certainly make a feature and a talking point of your alcoves at a very low cost, especially if Osb board is used.
    I have used it many times to make one off display units and also used it to clad a large wall and make it a large feature wall.
    I think it's a very under rated material and looks amazing with a few coats of clear varnish.
  • PRO
    Fine Finish Furniture net
    il y a 4 ans
    This is what have made for my client in Guildford
  • alyper
    il y a 4 ans

    Good work Kwansie. The kids are right .- yellow best! - and perhaps you could use that for a rug too?

    KXD a remercié alyper
  • lindalovie55
    il y a 4 ans

    lower the family picture about5 or 6 inches will make such a difference.

    KXD a remercié lindalovie55
  • PRO
    Adam Gibbons
    il y a 4 ans

    For me there is nothing that compares to traditional fitted furniture. It makes the most of a space which is other wise hard to utilize, and adds detail to your home.

    For me contrasting light and dark colours for walls and furniture looks good. Mix it up with dark wood work and light walls!

  • PRO
    The Bespoke Interiors
    il y a 4 ans

    Hi! we would love to help you solve your problems, apply for our newletter and recieve great discounts! www.kitchenwardrobe.com/special-offers.html

  • nicola_cox6
    l'année dernière
    I currently have about 5 large boxes of books in my house and 5 “unused” alcoves so alcove shelving seems an obvious solution to me! What I’m struggling to decide is 1) How far recessed from the alcove the shelves would look best (2cm or more in an alcove that is 30cm deep?), 2) how chunky/thick (top to bottom) the shelves should be and 3) whether to pack the shelves in eg for novels without leaving much space between shelves or make a taller space on the bottom shelf for photos etc?

    Any ideas please?
  • PRO
    Fine Finish Furniture net
    l'année dernière
    Hi Nicola

    Shelves can be flush with wall but it’s a nice detail to keep them around 2cm deeper

    Thickness could be from 3.5cm to around 5cm but no more

    This shelves normally span over 80cm so make sure you have support in the middle (on floating shelves would be hidden on the wall, but if you are planning to use battens all around underneath then it’s fine)
  • PRO
    Fine Finish Furniture net
    l'année dernière
    This is how my 5cm thick floating shelves looks like
  • sam irwin
    l'année dernière
    I’ve attached a few ideas for your alcoves. I think it depends on the style you are going for in this room. My friend has the traditional cabinets in her living room as the rest of her furniture is quite traditional.
  • nicola_cox6
    l'année dernière
    Thank you for these comments and photos. I particularly like the low cabinets underneath with the varnished wood tops which are a fresh and modern twist to the Victorian alcove cupboards. My alcoves are wide (160cm or so) so I’m interested that you think they shouldn’t be more than 5cm thick even then. I will have a go installing some shelves in my TV (less formal room) and review how they will look for my living room after the mantelpiece is installed.
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