What's the difference between carpentry and joinery?

I know from our market research that many customers are unsure if their job needs a carpenter or a joiner. There are lots of ways to define the differences but my belief is that carpenters and joiners are pretty much the same thing. We both work with wood in all sorts of forms and we both can create furniture, storage or structures from scratch.

The majority of carpenters will focus on some of the 'heavier' woodwork jobs, otherwise known as 1st fix - things like roof cutting, joist laying and building foundation structures - as well as broader finishing jobs like laying floors and building custom storage solutions. While joiners will be more focused on projects with more intricacy - bespoke cabinets using specialist joints or creating ornate doors from scratch. Another easy way to tell the difference is that carpenters tend to work onsite while joiners build offsite in a workshop.

Here at Delapp Carpentry Service, we see ourselves as being somewhere in between. We have extensive experience in big builds including side and loft extensions and the 1st and 2nd fix tasks that come with that. But we're also happy to build bespoke designs for our customers; the examples below include a custom TV unit, a rustic shelving unit and a children's playhouse for the garden.

Hope that helps clear up any confusion. As always, get in touch if you're like to discuss more about a project you have in mind.