Wardrobe and continuous under-stairs storage — South Woodford, E18

A combined run of fitted wardrobe and under-stairs storage in the entrance hall of a South Woodford Edwardian semi, designed to read as a single architectural feature rather than as two separate cupboards.

Location

South Woodford, London E18

Work type

fitted wardrobes, built in storage

On site

5 days

The problem

The hall had two separate storage briefs — a full coat-and-shoe cupboard for the family, plus the under-stairs cavity that was being used as a chaotic dumping ground for everything else. The client wanted both solved but didn't want the hallway to feel boxed-in by two separate cupboards on the same wall.

The solution

One continuous run of joinery from the front door wall through to the under-stairs zone. The first section is full-height wardrobe-style storage (coats, shoes, bags); the under-stairs section transitions to lower pull-out drawers as the ceiling slopes. Door style, paint and handles are uniform across the whole run so it reads as one piece — but the interior is configured for the different storage uses.

Materials & finish

18mm Egger MFC carcass; MDF shaker doors painted Farrow & Ball Cromarty (No. 285); under-stairs pull-out units on Blum TANDEM full-extension runners; Blum CLIP top BLUMOTION hinges; brushed-steel cup pulls.

Outcome

One continuous wall of joinery, two completely different storage uses inside. Hallway feels wider because the wall isn't broken up by two separate cupboard doors at different heights.

One wall of joinery doing two jobs — coat cupboard at the front, under-stairs pull-out storage to the rear — with uniform doors so it reads as a single architectural feature.