Chawton Open Sideboard/Bookshelf

The materials: oak

Oak’s sense of tradition together with its distinctive (but not too knotty) grain makes it our go-to timber. Our wood is durable when it comes to knocks, but we’ve further protected it from spills with a Dark Vintage Oak IsoGuard finish – our natural, VOC-free, oil-based formula that doesn’t mask the timber’s character.

The materials: tulipwood

We use tulipwood because it’s strong, smooth and has very few knots, which is the ideal surface for painting. But when it comes to the application, we know that not all furniture and every colour needs the same method, so that’s why we vary the number of coats and use hand-finishing techniques specific to each piece.

Design detail

In this base cabinet, we’ve used a shelf along the width to maximise storage space – this is also adjustable, reversible and has cut-outs so you can run cables in either direction. And, we’ve included a removable and reversible base shelf which conceals three cut-outs for your cables to go through and be neatly tucked out of sight – this is especially useful if you have our TV cabinet on top. 

Old houses can often have uneven floors, but the Chawton cabinet has this issue covered. Simply use the hidden height adjustable feet on the bottom of the base to add stability.

Doing the right thing

This long-lasting piece is created with wood from the Appalachian Mountains, a region where for every tree harvested or decaying, 2.4 naturally grow back in its place which contributes to forest regeneration. 

The wood then goes to our production house, where a dedicated team is leading us towards becoming the most sustainable home and lifestyle brand by 2030. Not only is the production house powered by highly energy-efficient heat pumps, it also reuses and recycles as many by-products as possible to reduce waste and thereby, do what we can to take some of the pressure off our planet.

As well as the wood, our paints are made with both people and planet in mind, too. They're water-based, extremely low in VOCs (Volatile Organic Compounds, which release harmful chemicals and unpleasant odours), are suitable for plant-based lifestyles, and they've never been tested on animals. Each pot is made in the UK by our trusted partners who have been mixing paint since 1740.

Chawton's design story

Inspired by the age-old concept of full-wall libraries, the Chawton has been on quite a design journey, all of which you can read about on our journal. Once you’ve discovered Chawton’s story, take a peek at the rest of the collection, or if you’d like advice on how to create a configuration that suits you, just pop into one of our stores to speak to a member of our friendly, well-informed team. You can find your nearest here.

Free delivery for all orders over £100 (or €100 in Ireland). 

• For orders under £100 (or €100 in Ireland), it’s £6.95 (or €18 in Ireland).
• If your order is available now for UK mainland delivery, we’ll deliver it within 7 days. Otherwise, it’ll arrive in the estimated time frame stated above and at checkout. We’ll be in touch nearer the time to confirm your delivery date.  
• The Chawton collection is delivered using our white glove service. Our two-man delivery team will unbox and position your items, fit the pieces to the wall (if necessary) and take away the packaging for recycling.
• If you’re ordering outside mainland UK or Northern Ireland, items will be sent through our international delivery partners. 

For our full delivery policy, please click here.

Returns

We’ll happily take back most pieces within 28 days of delivery.

• For designs in a made-to-measure fabric or non-standard colour, and fitted pieces like kitchen and bathroom cabinets, we can only refund 80% of the amount you paid.
• A £29.95 collection charge applies to all furniture returns delivered with our white glove service.
• If you cancel your order within 24 hours, we can refund the full amount.

These terms don’t affect your statutory rights. For our full returns policy, please click here. 

Need to know

Chawton’s freestanding design means that you can easily add or take away sections yourself. However, if you have a full-height Chawton (with a base and top), we recommend you attach it to the wall – you may want a professional to do this to be on the safe side. One of our experts would be happy to help with this as part of our delivery service.   Natural timber will expand and shrink as the temperature and humidity in your home changes, but there are specialist joinery techniques that can help to counteract the movement. And that’s exactly what we do, so although you might see a little movement in the timber over the seasons, it won’t change drastically.   The colours you see here are as close to the real thing as we can get them, but it’s always a good idea to try a sample first if you’re looking to get the colour spot on. If you decide to add top cabinets to your sideboard in the future, you’ll just need to swap out the work surface top for a dresser-ready one. These have holes in them, so you can bolt the extra cabinets on. Everything you’ll need to add to your sideboard will be included when you buy the extra pieces, from the bolts and wall brackets to the Allen key.