01
Photo of the alcove + ceiling height
Snap the wall, tell us the floor-to-ceiling height, and roughly what you want to store (paperbacks, art books, a record collection). The studio generates four bookcase concepts sized to your space.
Built-in bookcases Pre-launch
Built-in bookcases that look like they belong to the wall.
Snap a photo of the alcove. Tell us how high the ceiling is. The studio designs floor-to-ceiling bookcase concepts sized to the millimetre, with provisional oak, birch, walnut, or lacquered finish directions. Free to design today; production details follow later in 2026.
The problem
Catalog bookcases are 80 cm. Your alcove is 1.14 m. Both numbers are useless to each other.
Living-room alcoves (the ones either side of a chimney breast) are the most beautiful place to put books in any home. They're also the most useless dimension. Yours is 1.14 m, or 1.64 m, or some other number IKEA doesn't make. So you buy a Billy, which is 80 cm, and it sits in the alcove with 34 cm of dead space and a wobble.
A carpenter will build floor-to-ceiling alcove bookcases for €1,800–€2,800, and they're beautiful. They also take six weeks, two site visits, and a day of dust in your living room.
Built-ins designed online from a photo should sit at roughly €900–€1,800, depending on the final production method and material spec. Same alcove-perfect fit. The studio is free today; production details follow later in 2026.
Floor-to-ceiling shelves, designed for your exact alcove.
Before-and-after comparison: Catalog bookcases are 80 cm. Your alcove is 1.14 m. Both numbers are useless to each other. 
Before Concept
How it works
Built-in bookcases, concept to cut, in three steps.
02
Choose the layout
Adjustable shelves, fixed shelves, closed lower cabinet, integrated lighting, mixed widths to suit different book sizes: all configurable. Pick a finish direction; exact substrates and suppliers are confirmed later.
03
Production details before order
Save the concept today. Before production opens later in 2026, we confirm the material spec, finish, wall fixing method, hardware, packaging, lead time, and assembly requirements.
Bookcase concepts
Bookcases for alcoves that nobody knows what to do with.
oak Concept
1.14 m × 2.64 m × 32 cm Indicative €1,200–€1,500
Chimney-breast alcove, floor-to-ceiling oak
Single chimney-breast alcove concept. Six adjustable shelves above a closed lower cabinet for board games and CDs. Oak finish direction; exact material and finish to confirm.
walnut Concept
1.64 m × 2.40 m × 38 cm Indicative €1,600–€2,000
Wider alcove with mixed shelf depths
Walnut-finish bookcase with the lower three shelves at 38 cm deep (for art books) and the upper four at 28 cm (paperbacks). Bottom drawer for storage.
oak Concept
2.84 m × 2.54 m × 32 cm Indicative €3,200–€3,800
Full-wall library with rolling ladder
Wall-to-wall oak library concept, eight shelves tall, with a brass-track rolling ladder for the top shelves. Lower cabinet for children's colouring supplies.
birch Concept
1.20 m × 2.20 m × 28 cm Indicative €800–€1,000
Single-alcove birch finish, minimal
Birch finish direction, all adjustable shelves, no cabinet, no drawers. Pared-back. Matte clear finish direction to keep the tone bright.
birch Concept
1.44 m × 2.84 m × 32 cm Indicative €1,400–€1,700
Bookcase under a sloping ceiling
Loft-conversion concept with a 42° eave. Stepped top section follows the slope; bottom four shelves are full-height. Birch and off-white finish directions.
oak Concept
2.20 m × 2.40 m × 38 cm Indicative €2,400–€2,900
Twin-alcove paired bookcases
Two matching alcove bookcases either side of a fireplace, with a continuous lower cabinet linking them across the chimney breast. Oak with brass pulls.
Materials
Material directions, not final promises.
The studio uses wood-led finish directions so concepts feel concrete. Exact substrates, suppliers, finishes, packaging, and delivery details will be confirmed before any production order opens.
Birch direction
Candidate finish family
Final substrate and supplier to confirm before ordering
Oak direction
Candidate finish family
Warm wood-led look; exact build spec still in development
Walnut direction
Candidate finish family
Darker wood-led look; exact build spec still in development
Accent direction
Candidate finish family
Accent materials will be confirmed before production opens
How we compare
Three ways to fill an alcove with books.
| Knuslabs (at launch) | Local carpenter | IKEA Billy | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sized to your alcove | To the millimetre | Yes | No: 40 or 80 cm only |
| Floor-to-ceiling | Yes | Yes | No: max 2.37 m |
| Materials | Finish direction confirmed before order | Solid wood or MDF | Particleboard with foil |
| Indicative price (1.5 m alcove) | €1,200–€1,800 | €2,200–€3,200 | €80–€200 |
| Production timing | To confirm before order | 6–10 weeks | 1 day |
Things people ask
Built-in bookcases, answered.
Still curious? Read the full FAQ →
Start with the alcove Built-in bookcases
Built-in bookcases
designed today, confirmed later.
Photograph your alcove, tell us your ceiling height, and the studio will generate four built-in bookcase concepts sized exactly to your space. Free to design now; production details follow later in 2026.
Design free today · production details follow later in 2026 · Built from Amsterdam