Frances Fraser’s Wellington based practice, Honour Creative, is built on creating spaces that foster belonging, joy and everyday ease.
ABOVE Frances Fraser is the founder and design director of Wellington interiors practice Honour Creative.
Frances Fraser is a Wellingtonian through and through. It’s where her interior design practice, Honour Creative, is based, and where the majority of her residential projects take shape. “There’s a groundedness to the people here that I appreciate,” she says, “and the hills and coastline I would struggle not to be near.” That sense of place — of belonging in Whanganui-a-Tara — reflects Frances’ design approach. At Honour Creative, it’s all about how people inhabit and connect with the spaces they call home. “One of the shared features across the residential and commercial projects we take on is creating or building a sense of belonging,” says Frances. “This means we start with understanding the people who use the space.”
Frances established Honour Creative in 2011, after a career pivot from marketing saw her return to Massey University to study design. Her role as founder and design director combines creative work with business leadership. “I see my role as a leader and take responsibility for running the business, but when it comes to client work, we are very collaborative,” she says.
Working from a shared Wellington studio, Honour Creative operates as a small, close-knit team, with Frances remaining hands-on in the early direction of every project. Much of the studio’s work is centred on renovations rather than new builds, reflecting Wellington’s older housing stock and its often compact or complex layouts. “We love a planning challenge and are good at delivering on, ‘I would never have thought of that’,” she says, noting that projects frequently involve improving light, flow or storage in ways that significantly change how a home is used.
A bedroom in this Wadestown renovation reflects Honour Creative's confident use of colour.
Before material decisions are made, Honour Creative develops a ‘design vision’ that sets the direction of a project. “There is a gap between what a client comes to us with and the information required to jump into designing something specific,” she says. “This step fills that gap.” The process provides clarity, alignment and a reference point for decision-making as the project develops. Then materiality comes into focus. Timber is a constant presence across projects, chosen for its “warmth, versatility and connection to nature”, but otherwise the palette is responsive rather than prescribed. “Whether it is a piece of natural stone or something more humble, there is always beauty in how it is used,” she says. Frances says the through-line in Honour Creative’s portfolio is “classic contemporary. Our clients are always seeking something with a level of sophistication, even if specifically not wanting fussy or showy.”
A warm and textural kitchen renovation looks perfectly at home in its countryside Ōhāriu Valley setting.
A recent kitchen renovation in Ōhāriu Valley demonstrates this approach, transforming a previously underused space into a warm, light-filled family hub with ample storage and organic textures that reflect its countryside setting. Frances says a recent photo captures the project’s success in “better supporting how people live”, with the client’s daughter sitting on a banquette seat reading, fully at ease in the new layout.
A traditional Wadestown house underwent a comprehensive renovation that balanced sophistication and playfulness. Drawing on a bold palette of rusty reds, soft blues and greens, Honour Creative used colour, spatial planning and improved storage to unify previously awkward spaces while creating a home that feels warm yet confident.
Collaboration is central to the studio’s process. When it comes to clients, Frances often begins with a simple question: What would make this a successful project for you? “Trust, mutual respect, professionalism, and a shared love of good design,” are key to a successful client/designer relationship, she says. “I say that I only work with nice people, which sounds glib but really means there is a good fit.”
Looking ahead, Honour Creative continues to refine its process while taking on increasingly complex residential work. But the focus remains consistent across all projects: creating a feeling of “joy”.
ON MY RADAR...
Mother Nature and our clients are my biggest sources of inspiration when it comes to design.
My most treasured homeware items are a tough call between my collection of blue ceramic bowls, hand-woven rugs and our blush pink sofa.
I can confess to a bit of ‘maker envy’ when I see craftspeople working with their hands and that tactile experience of creating.
For inspiring stories, I’ve enjoyed both Abstract on Netflix and Design Matters, the podcast hosted by Debbie Millman. They’re excellent at sharing the backstory behind incredibly creative and courageous people, and hearing those stories makes me want to be more of both.
