Bespoke, hand built, fitted library bookcases
16 Jan 2024
We recently built a fabulous bespoke fitted library for a client who owns a lovely old stone cottage in Somerset. He loves books and has a fantastic collection, hence wanting us to create a library in one of the rooms in his home.
Part of the joy of an old stone cottage is the quirky nature of the building, including the uneven walls, ceilings and floors. This same quirkiness also provides challenges when building and installing fitted units and bookshelves.
The brief was very specific, to have the bookshelves running the length of the room, incorporating cupboards at their base for storing photographic equipment out of sight.
All new joinery needed to exactly match the style and the horizontal line of existing features in the room, such as the panels under the window seat and the door. Finally, paintwork on the bookcase needed to exactly match the colours used on the walls.
Attention to detail and careful preparation
Our experienced and highly skilled joiners understand the challenges of this sort of project and took detailed measurements of the space where the shelves and cabinets were to be built.
Their meticulous preparation helped ensure the wood could be cut to exactly match and mirror the shape it was to be fitted to, with new moulded beading perfectly aligned to follow on from existing joinery. The units incorporated heavy chamfer pelmets which exactly mirrored the beams in the ceiling above. Finally the wooden shelves were hand painted to colour-match the walls.
We worked in very close collaboration with our client throughout the project, ensuring everything met with his approval at each stage.
He particularly enjoyed being involved in exploring and selecting the most suitable mechanism for the cupboard doors which neatly slide open back into the underside of the cabinet top, so that they do not take up space – a very neat and convenient solution.
The finished bookshelves look superb and our client is delighted with the end result.
