What counts as bespoke joinery?
Anything made specifically for your space rather than bought and assembled. In practice that is media walls, alcove units, window seats, panelling, boiler covers, bathroom furniture, shop and office fittings and the one-off pieces people describe by pointing at a wall. If you can describe it and it can be built out of timber and board, it is worth asking about.
How does a bespoke job start?
With a visit and a measure up. We talk through what the piece has to do, what it has to hold and how you want it to look, and from that come sketches and a price. Nothing gets made until you have agreed the design, the materials and the finish, because bespoke work is far cheaper to change on paper than in the workshop.
Can you work from a picture I have seen?
Yes, and most jobs start that way. Bring the photo, whether it is from a magazine, a showroom or a friend's house, and we will tell you what it would take to build it in your room, what would have to change to make it fit and roughly what that means for the price. It is a much better starting point than a description, and it saves a conversation going round in circles.
Do you do wall panelling?
Yes. Panelling is a regular request, from simple shaker panelling on a hallway or bedroom wall through to full height panelled walls and decorative panels around a media unit. It has to be set out carefully so the panels line up with sockets, switches and door openings, which is the part that separates a panelled wall that looks designed from one that looks stuck on.
Will a bespoke piece cost more than buying furniture?
Usually more than flat-pack and often less than good quality freestanding furniture, and it does something neither can, which is fit the space exactly and use every inch of it. Where a bespoke piece really pays is in awkward rooms, because the alternative is a bought unit that leaves dead space either side of it. We will give you an honest price and you can compare.
Do you take on commercial work?
Yes. Shop fittings, counters, display units, office storage and reception furniture are all within what the workshop does, and we have made for commercial customers alongside domestic work for years. Commercial jobs usually come with a deadline and out of hours access, and both are worth mentioning at the first conversation so we can programme it properly.
