A Family’s Loft Inside a Former Chocolate Factory Takes a Candy-Colored Turn

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Project Details:

Location: Fitzroy, Victoria, Australia

Designer: Design + Diplomacy / @designanddiplomacy

Footprint: 1,000 square feet

Builder: Blue Gum Construction

Photographer: Dylan James / @dylanjamesphoto

From the Designer: "If Steampunk and Memphis had a lovechild, it might just be The Musk Stick Apartment—a bold, brilliantly offbeat warehouse conversion by Melbourne studio Design + Diplomacy (D+D). Located in the iconic MacRobertson chocolate factory in Fitzroy, the late-1800s industrial building had been partially converted into apartments during the 1990s. When D+D took it on, they saw an opportunity to celebrate the original bones of the building—its soaring 16-foot ceilings, red steel beams, timber framing, concrete floors and exposed brickwork—while radically improving flow, light, and livability. At the center of the renovation is what D+D call the Pink Cube—a striking, sugar-sweet intervention that houses both the bathroom and laundry. Playful and unapologetically bold, it anchors the open-plan space both visually and functionally. It also nods cheekily to the apartment’s namesake—the classic Australian musk stick lolly.

"One of the most complex challenges was relocating the kitchen and dining area without disturbing the heritage steel and concrete structure. D+D solved this by creating a raised platform, delineating zones within the open plan while cleverly concealing new plumbing and electrical infrastructure. The internal balcony, which was underutilized, was reabsorbed into the kitchen footprint to maximize functionality and natural light.

"The clients are Mark and Vanessa Hartnell, who both work as medical professionals, along with their two children and their dog, Trevor. It was their permanent home until they had children and Covid hit and they moved to country Victoria. They currently rent out the apartment for holiday stays and for commercial shoots but also stay there on regular visits to Melbourne. The design walks a deliberate tightrope between heritage and contemporary irreverence. Original sliding steel doors, steel-framed windows, and era-stamped beams were retained and celebrated. At the same time, D+D embraced elements usually hidden—copper tubing, exposed fittings, even a laundry water tank—turning functional components into features. The result is industrial at heart, but playful in spirit."