Room of the Week: A Loft Kitchen in a Converted Chocolate Factory
An open-plan kitchen in a converted chocolate factory finds its sweet spot with a medley of warm greys
Georgia Madden
22 October 2018
In a Q&A format, we talk to the designers – and examine the creative thinking – behind some of Houzz’s most loveable rooms.
Images by Derek Swalwell
Answers by Albert Mo, director at Architects EAT
Who lives here: A professional couple
Location: Fitzroy, Victoria
Room purpose and size: An open-plan kitchen, living room and dining area measuring around 70 square metres
Answers by Albert Mo, director at Architects EAT
Who lives here: A professional couple
Location: Fitzroy, Victoria
Room purpose and size: An open-plan kitchen, living room and dining area measuring around 70 square metres
Brief
The clients wanted a sophisticated space with a cosy, homely feel where they could entertain.
The clients wanted a sophisticated space with a cosy, homely feel where they could entertain.
They also wanted an outdoor space so they could bring a sense of nature inside and make their home feel less like an apartment.
Starting point
Being an old factory, the clients wanted us to express the loftiness and history of the space.
Being an old factory, the clients wanted us to express the loftiness and history of the space.
New floor plan
Key design aspects
Colour palette: Warm grey, black, white and a lime-wash finish.
Materials palette: V-groove lining board painted in Dulux Silkwort, white concrete floor with a light trowel finish, honed- Calacatta marble splashback and benchtops, and leather cabinetry-door pulls.
Colour palette: Warm grey, black, white and a lime-wash finish.
Materials palette: V-groove lining board painted in Dulux Silkwort, white concrete floor with a light trowel finish, honed- Calacatta marble splashback and benchtops, and leather cabinetry-door pulls.
Key pieces of furniture/fittings: Custom kitchen joinery and steel windows, Zeitraum 1.3 bar stools from Cafe Culture + Insitu, B&B Italia Solo sofa and Fat-Fat coffee tables from Space Furniture, Paulistano armchair and Atticus dining table from Hub Furniture, Splinter dining chairs by Nendo from Apato.
Challenges you worked around
The apartment is located in a landmark building – the 125-year-old MacRobertson chocolate factory – which is listed in the Victorian Heritage Register. During the planning permit process, the council heritage advisor had issues with us opening up the roof facing the street to create the outdoor courtyard, citing that it undermined the integrity of the building.
The apartment is located in a landmark building – the 125-year-old MacRobertson chocolate factory – which is listed in the Victorian Heritage Register. During the planning permit process, the council heritage advisor had issues with us opening up the roof facing the street to create the outdoor courtyard, citing that it undermined the integrity of the building.
We resisted the advice to move the north-facing courtyard to the south and instead provided an expanded metal mesh in place of the roof. The mesh is from Locker Group and it allowed the roofline to remain intact from the street view, and meant that light and air could flow freely into the courtyard. Rain is also allowed to fall through it and the drainage is the same as is used on a balcony.
The lawn is Astroturf as it wasn’t feasible to have real grass because a) structural reasons and b) the owner wasn’t too keen on mowing.
The lawn is Astroturf as it wasn’t feasible to have real grass because a) structural reasons and b) the owner wasn’t too keen on mowing.
Why do you think this room works?
Being connected to the outdoors was an important part of the brief, which has been achieved with the addition of the courtyard and the large expanses of steel windows that flood the kitchen and living area with natural light.
The low ceiling, which is normally seen as unfavourable, works well here to bring the space to human scale. At the same time, it contrasts against the voluminous voids of the original factory roofs.
Being connected to the outdoors was an important part of the brief, which has been achieved with the addition of the courtyard and the large expanses of steel windows that flood the kitchen and living area with natural light.
The low ceiling, which is normally seen as unfavourable, works well here to bring the space to human scale. At the same time, it contrasts against the voluminous voids of the original factory roofs.
Tell us
What do you love about this space? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to save your favourite images, bookmark the story, and join the conversation.
More
See last week’s Room of the Week: A Kitchen in Serene Green and Spotted Gum
What do you love about this space? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to save your favourite images, bookmark the story, and join the conversation.
More
See last week’s Room of the Week: A Kitchen in Serene Green and Spotted Gum
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The mesh roof cover is an inspired solution to the problem of retaining the exterior roof line! Clever! But no plastic grass please. Surely some beautiful paving and clever planting would have served the purpose of providing an easily maintained outdoor space?
every day i look out to a lawned courtyard and when unable to push the mower i will not hesitate to install plastic grass..the soft floor underfoot is so much cooler and more relaxed than the paving that used to be there
Heaven help anything stepping onto plastic grass on a hot day. Rubber and plastic and bare feet or thin soled shoes do not mix. Not a good choice in my opinion. Would have been much better to pave sitting areas, and paths, then plant native grasses, mosses, slow-growing lichens, maybe a shallow solar pumped spring, with some native fish. Anything other than boiling rubber and plastic….