Dolce Dominique and Coco Republic: The Collaboration Behind Highett Common's Live Now Apartments

Most new apartments ask you to imagine the life you'll eventually build in them. The furniture you'll choose, the art you'll hang, the slow process of turning somewhere new into somewhere yours. Highett Common's Live Now package skips that entirely.

At Highett Common, a select collection of fully furnished 2 and 3-bedroom Bayside apartments are ready to move into right now. No waiting, no design guesswork, keys in your hand, ready to move in.

To make each home feel truly yours, and add an extra layer of comfort, Highett Common has partnered with two collaborators. Melbourne travel photographer Dominique Gauci, whose artwork hangs on every wall, and Coco Republic, whose furnishings and interiors run throughout.

Dominique Gauci and the Dolce Dominique Collection

Dom Gauci, has spent the last 10 years building a global reputation, first through her trend-setting geometric prints, and now through Dolce Dominique, an evolution of her practice into travel photography. The collection brings the best of the world home: refined destination scenes shot across the USA, from Los Angeles and Palm Springs to Miami, and New York, each image made with the eye of someone who knows these places not as a tourist but as a traveller with roots. It's a collection built, as she puts it, for people who want to "do their wander lusting out loud."

Why Dolce Dominique at Highett Common?

Highett Common sits moments from the bay, and Dolce Dominique is a collection built around coastlines and open water.

When the collaboration came together, the alignment was clear. Dom's images already speak the language of this place: the salt air, the unhurried pace, the sense that the water is always close. "It only made sense to bring that coastal theme back in," she says.

Drawing from a collection of over 60 prints, she curated specific pieces for each room of the display apartment, working in close dialogue with Coco Republic's interior designers. The result is artwork that feels less like a curation and more like a natural extension of where you are.

Inside the Apartments: A Room-by-Room Vision

The display apartment at Highett Common offers a snapshot of how Dom's images work within a fully considered interior.

Above the bed in the primary bedroom hangs a photograph from Bronte Beach in Sydney. "It's super important what you put above your bed," Dom says. "For me, being a travel photographer, it's amazing because I get to always go to sleep remembering my favourite holidays and planning the next one."

In the study sits her personal favourite, a large format shot from Palm Beach, Florida, "one of the most beautiful places I've ever been in the world." In a room that can easily become functional and flat, it operates less like wall art and more like a window.

Even the hallway gets a moment: a vivid, colour-drenched shot from South Beach, Miami, chosen to "give some life to an area that's often overlooked."

Coco Republic and the Furnishing Package

There's a reason Coco Republic was chosen to furnish the Live Now apartments. For decades, they've been the name behind some of Australia's most considered interiors, and here, that expertise is fully installed and waiting before you even get the keys.

Natalie, one of Coco Republic's interior designers, walked us through the display apartment at Highett Common, the same space where Dom's artwork hangs, to show how the rooms were approached. In the living room, a large-scale rug pulls every furniture piece into one anchored, cohesive layout.

Above the dining table, a pendant light defines the eating zone within the open-plan floor plan and shifts the quality of light in the room entirely once evening hits. This is the thinking behind every furnishing decision in the Live Now apartments at Highett Common, and below, Natalie takes us through, room by room.

How the Spaces Were Designed: Tips and Tricks from an Interior Designer

1. Add your personal touch

When choosing pieces for a living room, Natalie's advice is to start with something personal, a colour, a texture, or a single piece you love, and build the room around it. In the display apartment, that starting point is a caramel tone, carried through the rug, the cushions, the side table, and an occasional chair. "We can sort of build the room around that," she says.

2. It’s all about the layering

For bedrooms, Natalie's advice is to stay within a neutral palette and layer different textures; the variety in texture creates visual interest without the colours competing with each other.

In the display apartment, that translates to creams and whites mixed across a waffle weave, pinstripe linen, and a soft top sheet, tones that sit comfortably alongside the timber accents in the space. "Adding contrast to your bed linen creates a really nice focal point," she says, making the bed a feature of the room rather than just furniture in it.

3. Take inspiration from what’s around you

For living areas, she suggests looking to your surroundings for a colour cue. At Highett Common, the Coco Republic team drew directly from the building's exterior - the warm tones, natural textures, and greenery just outside.

"If you look outside, you'll see all of those beautiful warm tones and natural textures," Natalie says, "and we really wanted to bring that into the space." In the display apartment, terracotta and caramel accents through the rug, cushions, and occasional pieces carry that connection indoors.

These are the kinds of decisions that come with knowing a space well, and as part of the Live Now package, every buyer receives a personalised consultation with a Coco Republic interior designer, along with a voucher to spend in-store.

The apartment arrives complete, and the Coco Republic team is there to help you make it feel entirely your own.

Live Now: Move Into Something Already Complete

For buyers who want to skip the months of decisions that usually sit between settlement and actually living somewhere, Highett Common's Live Now package is exactly that.

A limited collection of ready-to-move-in Bayside apartments, each one fully furnished and finished from day one. Dom's Dolce Dominique artwork collection is already on the walls. The Coco Republic furnishing and styling package is already installed.

Full window furnishings and a premium appliance package from Haier, Bosch, Smeg, Breville, and Dyson are already in place, a curated offering valued up to $45,000 for 2-bedroom apartments and $70,000 for 3-bedrooms.

These aren't blank canvases waiting for your vision. They're homes where the vision has already been applied - by Dom, by Natalie, and by a team that understands what it means to make somewhere feel immediately, completely yours.

For all the details on Highett Common’s Live Now packages, click here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I buy a furnished apartment in Bayside Melbourne that I can move into straight away?

Yes. Highett Common in Highett, Bayside Melbourne has a collection of fully furnished 2 and 3-bedroom apartments available for immediate occupation. The Live Now package means every apartment is complete before you get the keys - furniture, artwork, window furnishings, and appliances all installed.

What's included when you buy a Live Now apartment at Highett Common?

Each Live Now apartment at Highett Common comes with a full Coco Republic furnishing and styling package, original travel photography artwork from Dominique Gauci's Dolce Dominique collection, complete window furnishings, and a premium appliance package from Haier, Bosch, Smeg, Breville, and Dyson. The combined package is valued up to $45,000 for 2-bedroom apartments and $70,000 for 3-bedrooms.

What's the difference between buying off-the-plan and buying a completed apartment in Melbourne?

Off-the-plan means settling on a property that hasn't been built yet, often 2–4 years out. A completed apartment like those in Highett Common's Live Now collection is finished and ready now — you can inspect the actual space, know exactly what you're getting, and move in immediately after settlement with no further waiting or decision-making.

Are there new apartments for sale near Port Phillip Bay right now?

Highett Common in Highett, Bayside Melbourne has completed 2 and 3-bedroom apartments available now. The development sits close to the bay and has a select collection ready for immediate move-in through its Live Now package.

Who designed the interiors in the Highett Common Live Now apartments?

Coco Republic's interior design team furnished and styled the Live Now apartments at Highett Common. Their approach draws from the building's surroundings - warm tones, natural textures, and the coastal setting - carried through rugs, soft furnishings, and lighting throughout each space. Every Live Now buyer also receives a personalised Coco Republic design consultation and an in-store voucher.

What artwork comes with apartments at Highett Common?

The Live Now apartments at Highett Common feature original prints from Dolce Dominique, the travel photography collection by Melbourne photographer Dominique Gauci. Each room has a specific image curated for it - a Bronte Beach photograph above the primary bedroom, a large-format Palm Beach, Florida print in the study, and a South Beach, Miami shot in the hallway. Dom selected every piece in direct collaboration with the Coco Republic interior design team.

Is Highett Common finished and ready to move into?

Yes. The Live Now apartments at Highett Common are complete and available now. Unlike off-the-plan purchases, there's no construction wait - the homes are finished, furnished, and inspectable before you buy.

What do interior designers recommend for making a new apartment feel like home quickly?

Coco Republic's designers, who styled the Highett Common Live Now apartments, suggest three approaches: start with one personal piece - a colour or texture you love - and build the room around it; layer different textures within a neutral palette rather than introducing competing colours; and take cues from your immediate surroundings, the tones outside your window are usually the right ones to bring inside.

Who is Dominique Gauci and what is Dolce Dominique?

Dominique Gauci is a Melbourne-based travel photographer who spent six years known for geometric prints before evolving her practice into Dolce Dominique, a collection of destination photography shot across the USA. Her images span Los Angeles, Palm Springs, Miami, and New York, and are built around coastlines, open water, and the feeling of places known well rather than visited briefly. Her work features throughout the Live Now apartments at Highett Common in Bayside Melbourne.

What suburbs in Melbourne's south have new completed apartments with sea views or coastal access?

Highett, in Melbourne's Bayside, has completed apartments available now through Highett Common's Live Now collection. The development is close to Port Phillip Bay and offers 2 and 3-bedroom fully furnished apartments ready for immediate occupation.