Design Ideas for Bespoke Media Units

Design Ideas for Bespoke Media Units

As a central part of our homes, living rooms and kitchens are places where we gather, spend time and connect with our friends and families – sometimes around a movie, or warming our feet on a beautifully cosy fire.

One of the in-demand projects for the Pinnacle Works team this season has been designing bespoke media units, incorporating quality carpentry and exceptional finishes to bring a unique design feature to your most-used spaces.

Let us present some of the popular designs we’ve worked on and explore the advantages of making the most of your space with an attractive centrepiece that is highly functional.

The Benefits of Commissioning a Bespoke Media Unit

TV screens are slimmer, bigger and more technologically advanced than ever – but many of our clients don’t find their appliances the most aesthetic of units to hang on the wall.

A tailored media unit is a fantastic way to:

  • Construct a sophisticated system that incorporates shelving, storage, your TV unit, gaming consoles, routers, and streaming boxes.
  • Hide unsightly cables with in-built plug ports and invisible wiring.
  • Create the perfect ambience with niche lighting embedded into nooks and recesses in your media unit.

Whether you’re keen on a realistic electric fireplace or wish to reconfigure a dated mantelpiece, a range of modern materials, stunning hardwood timbers, and skilled carpentry can achieve any style aspiration.

Design Inspiration for Media Centres and Built-in Fires

There are countless options from sleek, Scandinavian pale wood, gloss finishes, textured shelving or ultra-modern lighting systems. Pinnacle projects have involved creating statement entertainment walls as a home cinema system or building slimline cabinets to free up extra floor space.

Some of our favourite media centre concepts include:

  • Scandi designs using bright finishes, minimalistic white and cream shades for simplicity and functionality.
  • Repurposing false chimney breasts to create dedicated entertainment units with built-in electric fires using a previously empty part of the wall.
  • Refined fireplaces, with a faux or electrical fire encased in traditional timbers, in a period style to replicate the heritage appeal of an older property.

Many contemporary TV units are wall-mounted, but the trailing wires, bulky edges and contrasting plastic can look out of place in an otherwise elegantly decorated room.

With a vast range of colours, designs and styles, your media centre can incorporate sharp edges and clean lines, sweeping curves and classic wood, or be a style statement in crisp metallics and subtle LED lighting.

Selecting Materials and Finishes for Your Home Entertainment Centre

As a team of capable carpenters and joiners, we delight in creating fitted furniture with only the finest quality materials, always finished and installed by our professional craftspeople. The materials we use follow a consultation, where you can select from any aesthetic you would like, be that solid varnished wood or a painted pop of colour.

Finishes are just as important as the durability of the underlying material, with options to hand paint your units with outstanding interior paint, spray coat, or apply hard lacquer to ensure your bespoke furniture is suitable for a lifetime of use. Bespoke units are made to your precise specifications, in tune with your decor and architecture, utilising an existing chimney or building a media centre against a blank canvas.

Incorporating a Fireplace Into a Media Unit

Why combine a fireplace and TV within a media wall unit? The key is to ensure you have a combined focal point, adding dimension and character to an otherwise plain living space.

Both fireplaces and TVs tend to form central areas around which we position our furniture and furnishings, so combining both into one bespoke unit makes a living room feel organised and decluttered. Stud wall frameworks or false chimney frontages can conceal all of your cables and wiring while making a display piece from a contemporary electric fire, all within one streamlined unit.

If you’re unsure where you would like your media wall or how to integrate your fire, consider:

  • The size of your TV screen and where you’d like it positioned. This factor is important, so it’s best to test different angles where the screen is visible from every seating area without craning your neck.
  • Whether you’d like your unit built into a recessed wall – often with the TV fitted flush with the outside of your furniture and a pull-out bracket to move the screen outwards into a comfortable viewing position.
  • Additional devices include games consoles, speaker systems, and set-top boxes. These can be incorporated into hidden shelving, behind soft-touch doors or built into drawer systems for easy access, but without being on display.

Finally, we can showcase a range of gorgeous electrical fires with incredible warmth and ambience, yet as a safe heating appliance that you can incorporate into your media unit without a fire hazard.

Popular options include creating a smooth, white chimney breast with the TV screen and fire frontage flush with the wall as an individual unit that looks highly cultivated.

Create Your Bespoke Media Unit and Fireplace With Expert Craftsmanship From Pinnacle Works

Every unit we construct is built to your exact requirements, with our in-house team of talented craftspeople, installers and carpenters. We love the challenge of bringing a concept to life and working on a wide array of media centres, from classic hardwoods for heritage homes to contemporary finishes for updated renovations.

Many of our clients prefer to conceal media equipment and fireplaces to improve the feel of their living spaces, bring the family together, and keep wiring out of sight – and out of the reach of curious fingers and pets, as an added way to childproof your property. The benefit of built-in furniture is that it’s made specifically to fit your home, with exacting attention to detail. Every angle, join, curve and handle fit perfectly, combining the best style and functionality.

Please get in touch for any further information about the possibilities for your bespoke media centre or to access our gallery of past projects for some valuable design inspiration.

 

 

Bespoke Joinery and Carpentry – Customise Your Home Interiors

Bespoke Joinery and Carpentry – Customise Your Home Interiors

If you dread the thought of yet another flat pack assembly project or are tired of replacing cheap MDF furniture every couple of years, you’re not alone!

Today’s homeowners are increasingly focused on the quality and sustainability of their interiors – looking for real value for money and units that will last for decades, not months.

Whether you’re interested in designing a unique handcrafted TV unit, a bespoke kitchen that reflects your style, or a beautiful custom bed that will stand the test of time, we’re on hand to help. With our highly experienced team of master joiners and carpenters, Pinnacle Works is delighted to explain how bespoke joinery and carpentry works and why it’s an excellent investment in your home.

The Nuts and Bolts of Bespoke Joinery

Many clients approach us with an idea or a non-standard project where an off the shelf product just isn’t going to cut it.

There are lots of substantial benefits to having custom joinery (which we’ll explore shortly!). Still, one of the primary advantages is that if you decide to commission a personally crafted piece of furniture, you have absolute creative control over the finished result.

That might be:

  • A whole-home refurbishment, including new staircases.
  • Creating a customised kitchen with bespoke units.
  • Designing unique storage furniture to fit into your tightest corners.
  • Making the most of unusual height or size rooms.

If you’re unsure where to start, not to worry – our professional carpenters can help with everything, from selecting the best materials, creating a digital design, and showcasing some of the many finishes and styles available. Bespoke joinery isn’t solely for period properties, either. Fresh, bright kitchens and custom dining spaces are ideal for modern conversions or contemporary homes looking for something a little special.

In short, bespoke carpentry is the antidote to throw away furniture, and the perfect way to have ownership over the style and quality of your home furnishings, whether that’s a small but beautiful storage cabinet or a gloriously luxurious four-poster bed.

Benefits of Custom Carpentry

We’ve talked about the unique nature of every bespoke joinery project – but the advantages go far beyond the ability to select the exact colour, shape, style and size of your furnishings.

  • Custom carpentry is made to match. It is suited to any property style, blending with existing decor and furnishings perfectly (something that’s all but impossible to achieve with pre-made furniture).
  • There are no sacrifices between functionality and form; beautiful carpentry is as joyful to use as it is to look at.
  • The quality of a custom made unit is unbeatable. Trade experts craft each unit, shelf, cupboard or panel, meaning your bespoke furniture will remain in outstanding condition for years and years.

Individualised joinery from Pinnacle Works may be slightly more costly than a flat-pack click and collect unit but is sure to last substantially longer than any generic kitchen or shop-bought furniture.

Cost-Savings of Bespoke Joinery Projects

Contrary to common misconceptions about the costs of custom carpentry, this investment into your home typically provides a saving over the long term. For example, a bespoke kitchen includes all the finishing touches, with excellent quality installations that are professionally fitted to ensure they are perfectly crafted to the shape and texture of your walls and floor.

This attention to detail prevents many maintenance costs, often due to heavy furniture being inadequately fitted or poor finishes around areas such as skirting that will require replacement in the near future. You can also pick and choose a unique design to refresh a room or corner of your home without needing to rip out the existing units and start over.

It is often more cost-effective to replace tired furniture with a unique unit built to match your other pieces, rather than incurring unnecessary costs where some of your existing fittings are worth preserving.

Designing Your Unique Storage Units

Pinnacle Works joinery projects vary widely from full kitchen designs to one-off window frame replacements, but storage is one of the most popular applications. Every home requires storage, whether that’s to house your TV and associated devices or expand the use of a narrow room or hallway area.

The outstanding feature of individualised carpentry is that it makes the absolute most of the spaces in your home, providing a solution for unusual sized houses with bespoke furniture made to measure. Timber-framed media centres are among the most frequent requests, with custom handmade cabinets ideal for creating a slick, stylish unit and discretely tidying away unsightly wires.

Choosing a Skilled Joiner or Carpenter

While joinery and carpentry go hand in hand, a joiner creates incredible detail and aesthetically beautiful work, each piece a masterpiece in its own right. Joinery is more skilled than general carpentry and is essential if you’re considering a complex project such as a new kitchen, replacement window panels, or a new staircase. It’s also ideal for crafting custom pieces or fittings for listed homes or where you’d like to capture a specific style that commands a higher level of detail.

Our craftspeople at Pinnacle Works offer outstanding levels of experience and professionalism, ensuring that every made-to-measure piece doesn’t just fit properly and look stunning – but that it’s fitted perfectly, prolonging the durability of the wood. We take care of the drawings and plans, with the full support of our joinery team, to create an authentically unique design – and never just a close match for the colour or appearance you’re looking for.

With decades of experience, we take a considerable amount of pride in the quality of our work and ensure that a lasting finish that exceeds your expectations is the norm. If you’re unsure whether you need a simple wooden unit designed to fit into a specific nook or require a team of joiners to create something more intricate, give us a call, and we’ll be happy to have a chat about the best options.

Alternatively, please check out our website for more information about the bespoke joinery and carpentry services we provide or to request a quick quote for your project!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Customise Your Own Home Bar – Indoors or Out!

Customise Your Own Home Bar – Indoors or Out!

Over the last year, we’ve all spent a lot more time at home than usual. Among all the challenges, it’s also been an opportunity to make the most of the sanctuaries that we call our homes. The Pinnacle Works carpentry teams have been hard at work creating bespoke timber creations for properties across West Sussex. Our number one requested design? Home bars!

Here we’ll run through some of our favourite ideas, and inspirations for unique home bars that bring a sense of fun and family to any property.

For help with bringing your imagination to life, or designing a bar that reflects the style and decor of your house or apartment, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!

A Social Summer Is Coming!

As the weather slowly warms, and the first green shoots of spring appear, the promise of a glorious summer is on the horizon.

Nobody yet knows quite what that will look like this year; but with hopes of pandemic restrictions lifting, we’re all anticipating social occasions, warm hugs and laid back BBQ days enjoying the sunshine, friends and family. Garden projects have increased by almost 50% during the pandemic!

Now is a great time to think about new planting, and restoring joy to your outdoor spaces after a long, cold winter. Along with cleaning off the grill, dusting off the paddling pool and getting the lawn back into great shape, installing a high quality, timber bar will transform your home into an entertainment venue like no other.

  • Outdoor home bars can be as large or small as you like, with tailored designs to fit neatly into any unused corners of your outdoor space and give it fresh purpose.
  • Customised finishes mean that, if you can visualise it, we can create it!
  • High-quality carpentry creates home bars to withstand the elements.
  • Bring an injection of colour, style and energy to empty patios – think twinkling lights, Hawaiian leis, or slick, pared-back contemporary city styling.

Staying in is the new going out; and whether you’re thinking of colour blocks and martini glasses or an all-out summertime fiesta, the skilled Pinnacle Works carpentry team can build it.

Lighting Solutions for Outdoor Home Bars

When you’ve got an idea about your bar’s theme and position, the next consideration is lighting. We have a range of suggestions from previous designs!

There are limitless options, and it’s well worth looking at other home bars since well-placed lighting can add ambience, fun, mood and atmosphere – and mean you’ll be out enjoying the fresh air long after the sun has set.

  • Fairy lights are a traditional outdoor bar lighting option, with a calming effect and multiple battery-operated options.
  • Wired light bulbs bring a sense of cool loft lighting, and can be bright and welcoming or dimmed and relaxing depending on your event.
  • Outdoor LED lights are an excellent solution for eco-friendliness and require very little installation time or running costs.
  • Hardwired lighting is available through the Pinnacle team, creating a long-term outdoor lighting solution suitable for year-round use.

Indoor Home Bar Designs

Of course, your entertaining doesn’t have to be reserved for the garden; and we’re all well aware that the British summer doesn’t make a lot of guarantees regarding the weather…

Through our established team of joiners and carpenters, Pinnacle can design home bars for kitchen and living areas as well as the outdoors. There are lots of great benefits to opting for a home bar design:

  • Space-saving entertainment area, which can slot into even tiny places.
  • Make the most of the footprint of your home by utilising every corner.
  • A cost-effective option, and suitable for kitchens, living rooms, conservatories and outdoor spaces.
  • Bespoke designs create a bar that aligns with the decor and theme of your home.

Our recommendations for the highest quality materials, finishes and construction methods are always adapted to the type of bar you would like, and where in your home this is to be fitted.

Bringing the Outside In

When you think of a home bar, it’s essential to understand that this doesn’t have to be a typical open top, rectangular construction.

Timber is a versatile, natural material with few limitations!

  • Covered bars can be used year-round as a dynamic outdoor space.
  • Weatherproof roofing protects your bar area whatever the weather.
  • Adding fire pits, seating areas, grills or an outdoor kitchen makes an outdoor bar so much more than an occasional entertaining space!
  • You can use trellises to encourage climbers to grow, blending your outdoor bar in with your landscaping.

We have created timber outdoor home bars with multiple functionalities; from outdoor games spaces for kids to relaxing lounge areas to sit down with a good book and enjoy the fresh air.

Canopies and roofs are an excellent idea if you’re looking for a cost-effective home bar that will add value to your quality of living, and allow you to spend time outside, even in the rain. Adding quality lighting, soft furnishings and perhaps even an outdoor music system truly creates a new living space – that can increase your garden’s usability and improve the saleable value of your property.

Outdoor Home Bar Design

There are all sorts of ways to adapt your outdoor home bar to your home:

  • Bars on wheels are a convenient storage option and can be easily packed away in the shed or garage when not in use.
  • Plant stands on bars add shelving for all of your barware and provide plenty of room to decorate your bar with some greenery to tie in with your garden.
  • Buffet stands or tiled bars are long-wearing and perfect for entertaining.
  • Using blackboards or blackboard paint is an excellent way of creating a unique bar menu for special occasions or themed family evenings.
  • Building a bar into a deck area can transform its uses, and be a fantastic spot for summer evening dinners.

If you’re considering an outdoor home bar, aren’t sure of the design options to fit into your space, or need some style inspiration to capture the right mood, get in touch with the Pinnacle Works team for everything from design tips to construction solutions.

Let’s make it a summer to remember!

Breathe Life into Your Hallway with a Staircase Renovation

Breathe Life into Your Hallway with a Staircase Renovation

Our staircases are often overlooked when it comes to designing a fresh interior. However, staircase renovation is a deceptively simple construction project that can make an astonishing difference!

There are so many reasons why building a new staircase can make a substantial difference to how your property feels:

  • Your stairs are a focal point, often immediately visible when entering a property.
  • They define the style, flow of energy and feel of a home.
  • Elegant staircases and bespoke balustrades can completely transform your aesthetic.
  • Using innovative building materials and creative design can turn an old, tired staircase into a style statement.
  • Staircases can be cleverly reconfigured to improve your layout or open up more space and light.

While your staircase might be a practical way to move from one floor to the other, it is so much more than a place to sling your jacket after a long day – it is an integral part of your interior, and a modest budget goes a long way!

How to Update an Old Staircase

For a lot of homeowners, the idea of ripping out an old staircase and building something new sounds daunting; surely that’s a massive project! The reality is, working with an experienced renovation team such as Pinnacle Works makes updating an old staircase a breeze.

What matters most is the quality of the joinery, and having input into the design process, so you know exactly what finish, materials, and style your new stairs will incorporate.

You will find a multitude of ways to update an old staircase, ranging from a complete staircase renovation through to some gentle design upgrades that will make all the difference:

  1. Replacing timber balustrades with sleek contemporary glass panels brings a modern and scandi chic vibe.
  2. Swapping out rigid lines for sweeping curves creates a softer, gentler feeling that makes a property feel more relaxed.
  3. Changing your risers can give a staircase a total facelift; think about wood, textures, carpets, or something less traditional such as steel, glass or polished concrete.
  4. Updating newel posts or bannisters with something fresh and new will change the look of your whole staircase, with minimal work.

Of course, you can also look at a significant staircase renovation project whereby you replace the entire structure – which opens up a world of possibilities!

Think about how much floor space your staircase takes up in your ground floor.

  • Does it maximise your storage space?
  • Could you minimise the amount of your hallway that is out of use?
  • What shape and angle of stairs would fit perfectly with your style?
  • Do you find under stair areas dark, dusty and redundant?
  • Would lighting, contemporary materials, glass or a change of wood stain brighten your property?

As we can see, there are countless ways to use a staircase renovation to transform your building, so let’s look in detail at some of the most popular design projects the Pinnacle Works team delivers!

Diverse Materials to Make an Artistic Statement from your Staircase Renovation

Traditionally, staircases were wooden, from top to bottom. That’s wooden treads, bannisters, newel posts, strings, fascias – you name it!

Wood is an honest, natural, and versatile material. If you’re comfortable with the texture and feel, there is no reason not to stick with it, but perhaps look at different types, stains and colours of wood that might inject fresh energy into your living spaces.

It’s also worth checking out some more innovative materials, and how they are used to create an extension to your main rooms that turns your staircase into an asset that links the different spaces in your property.

  • Glass is ideal for minimalist staircases and avoids blocking the flow of light. It makes your home feel larger, brighter, and airier and creates a gentle reflection of lighting systems that delivers a soft ambience.
  • Contemporary glass panels can be fitted alongside contrasting soft carpeting, robust wooden finishes, and create a textural experience that clashes the sharp and the smooth to elegant effect.
  • Stainless steel and brushed metals can be utilitarian and sleek, but also bring a sense of polish and complement your joinery with bespoke curves, angles and balanced lines.
  • Polished concrete steps work wonderfully in renovations such as suites and apartments converted from warehouse and loft spaces.
  • Oak is an ideal choice for a family property, with a hardwood finish great at withstanding heavy use and being resistant to scratches and dents.

The only limitation on the materials you can use in a staircase construction project is your imagination; so don’t be afraid to consider unusual finishes that will create something truly unique!

The Benefits of Replacing Traditional Spigots with Glass Balustrades

Glass is big news in the world of modern staircase renovation, and offers a vast range of benefits that make it an excellent choice!

Safety – reinforced glass balustrades replace wooden balusters with a solid panel. This makes it excellent for family homes with young children and avoids any potential for worn balusters to break or snap under pressure.

Light – the properties of glass mean that it opens up lines of sight throughout your ground floor, creating less shadow, clearer visibility, and removes darker wood fittings to allow light to flow.

Bespoke – frameless glass panels create a stunning visual impact, without any visible fittings or fixtures to break up the harmony of a sleek, continuous glass staircase.

Reflective – as your glass reflects natural and artificial light back into your home, it makes even dim or dark hallways instantly feel warmer and more welcoming, by maximising the light sources available.

Options for a Staircase Facelift to Modernise Your Home

You can opt for a simple upgrade, swap out materials, or choose a complete staircase renovation, depending on your budget, design aspirations and preferences.

As building materials become more advanced, there is a broader choice than ever before. With options for adding storage space, using up-lighters and carefully place LEDs and spotlights, blending traditional and modern materials, creating sweeping curves, symmetrical geometrics or subtle lines, adding a new staircase to an extension or loft conversion, or replacing existing stairs, has never been so exciting!

Cladding your staircase risers is a fast, affordable design project, whereby you change the look and feel of the vertical aspect of your staircase to make an unused area into something special. Replacing your treads with new material, such as wood, metal, or even plastic, makes your stairs safer and protects your home from wear and tear.

Our homes are our castles, and by pouring some TLC and design inspiration into your staircase renovation, your property will feel brighter, fresher, and more inviting, whether you opt for a sleek, minimalist finish, or warm materials that evoke relaxation.

For help with choosing the ideal layout for your new staircase, or selecting materials that will complement your design scheme and bring your stairs up to date, get in touch with the Pinnacle Works team, or visit some of our previous renovation projects in our gallery!