Interviews with Frankie Leung

House of Forme is an unconventional design practice. We provide a full-service design approach, focusing on storytelling across different disciplines for brands of all shapes and sizes.

Design is not only how things look or feel. It's how things work.

Recently objects, furniture and lighting design, something that feels foreign yet closely knit to what I normally do. Every object is an opportunity to tell a story.

Branding a resort destination in Bali.

Brass. I love materials that age beautifully with time. Patina of brass just has so much soul and characteristics.

When I’m travelling. I feel like a sponge. Absorbing the culture, the nature and everything I see.

The human experience. How it works.

Curiosity, strategic thinking, empathy, experimental mindset.

Beyond completing clients’ asks, it achieves some one-of-a-kind experience.

As designers, we’re cautious of the environment, from paper usage to material selections. We’re always trying to be careful about how our design is impacting the environment.

AI is definitely the future, but the value for human craft will also evolve.

We had a furniture show at Design Shenzhen 2025. No plans on next exhibition yet.

Inspiration comes from daily life and research. Everything we do is heavily embedded in research, to understand the past and inform a better future.

Storytelling is our style.

I live in Hong Kong. A very eclectic mix of different cultures. It has lots of offerings, very vibrant, lots of stimulus. People here are known to be judgmental. I guess that shapes my multicultural background, I can always pull inspirations from my life. I am also extremely critical with my work.

With companies or individuals, the most important part is to understand and empathize with clients’ situations. If you’re too full force on pushing personal styles, it’s not gonna end well.

Trust the designer. The process needs to be collaborative. See potential from their past work and character instead of asking for free pitches. It's not how it works.

Research, research, research.

A print made from scraps from London streets pressed into paper. A side table by Menu. A bespoke designed light I designed at the entrance.

Wake up, have a cup of espresso, check emails, work, tons of meetings, practice golf, a bit of reading, and repeat.

Listen first.

The positives are that you do what you love and make a living out of it. You’re constantly inspired by the people you work with, the projects you get, every day is challenging. The downside is when you first start off it’s going to be difficult, especially in a place like Hong Kong. But it will get better as people start to respect you for what you do.

How does it make you feel is more important than how does it look. More importantly, it's how it works.

Empathy and curiosity.

I love collecting old things - prints, watches, objects, books. They all have their own story.

Set deadlines, work efficiently, have a good team to support me.

It depends.

"How long does it take?"

All my experiences are equally important. It helped shaped who I am today.

We work with small startups to Fortune 500 companies, including Marriott, HongKong Land, Hong Kong Jockey Club and many more.

Full service design work as we can craft a consistent story.

Hopefully more international exposure, more challenging and rewarding projects.

I work as a team.

We are designing an entire office building in Hong Kong, to some luxury residential homes, all the way to hospitality brands in Niseko, Paris, which I am very excited about.

Contact my company through our website www.houseofforme.com/

Make sure to follow us on Instagram @houseofforme.

The snake is a powerful figure, yet we were deliberate about avoiding anything overtly threatening. Instead, the sharp features of the snake are embedded subtly within each seasonal blossom, functioning as hidden quirks.The design strategy is restraint. Details don't appear all at once. This layered approach ensures the composition doesn't overwhelm. Research is heavily done from how the snake becomes a secret language within the florals, powerful precisely. They are all connected.

Red packets are traditionally single-use objects, thus we wanted to challenge that. Subtle design cues and refined aesthetics encourage owners to hold onto them, to reuse them year after year. We used FSC-certified recyclable paper throughout. It is of a higher cost, but environmentally responsible. However, sustainability isn't only about green materials. A well-crafted object naturally encourages people to keep it. That longevity becomes sustainability. The materials are made to withstand time and reuse. In that sense, the cost is justified, for you're not buying something disposable.

Our goal with the Year of the Snake set was to move away from literal zodiac clichés and treat the red packet as a high-concept piece of functional art. To bring this to life tactically, we engineered a slide-out case inspired by a snake shedding its skin. Pulling it open reveals an "M-fold" structure that mimics a snake’s winding movement, displaying all the designs at once. By combining iridescent with rich foil accents, we transformed a traditionally disposable festive envelope into an enduring narrative piece.

A strong printing partner was essential to execute the work at the required quality. Beyond production, our deep studio understanding of print mechanics informed every user experience decision. We knew what the format could hold, what the material could express, and how each choice would land in someone's hands.The packaging had to work. We compressed different layers of messaging into a small format, creating a visual and tactile language where every detail carries weight. Typography, paper texture, color, the physical unfolding, each element whispers the same narrative, building meaning through layers that reveal themselves gradually.

Self-initiated work means complete control: budget decisions and quantity choices rest entirely with the studio. We use it to showcase another side of the agency. Our personal branding, taste, and full capability without compromise.When there's no external client setting parameters, the studio becomes its own most demanding client. We challenge ourselves harder than any external constraint would. The result is work that reveals who we are, what we believe in, and what we're capable of when creativity isn't negotiated.

This self-initiated project serves as both a proof of concept and a demonstration of House of Forme's full-service capability. More importantly, it communicates our core beliefs to clients: that eco-friendly practices and thoughtful recycling are foundational to how we work.The Year of the Snake red packets showcase our design philosophy and sustainability ethos through a single object. The framework we developed to embed symbolism into familiar formats, encouraging reuse through beauty, making sustainability inseparable from craft is transferable. It is a methodology for reimagining traditional gifting formats beyond red packets.

Paper selection required juggling multiple demands: it needed to evoke snake patterns and texture, meet sustainability criteria, and suit the red packet folding requirements. We chose pearlescent papers based on narrative logic. The sheen directly references snake scales, while the luminosity captures the energy of the season. Form and concept merge in material choice. Foiling is applied strategically to highlight illustration detail, drawing the eye to the symbolic elements we embedded, and elevating the premium register of the collection. Every material decision carried the story forward.

To us, user experience is woven throughout, from the stock, the fold, to the reveal sequence. The packaging tells the story so the recipient fully understands the narrative.The M-fold sections progressively reveal written descriptions of each packet. As recipients engage with the object layer by layer, they're rewarded with deeper understanding. Packaging becomes an experience that unfolds over time, not just a container.

Thorough research is non-negotiable for any project, any culture. It all comes down to understanding, even for the smallest details, the flowers, the objects. Before any visual execution begins, the designer must immerse themselves in the context.This is fundamental to House of Forme's methodology. Every design decision we make comes from research. We don't begin designing until we understand the story we're telling.

We create immersive retail spaces where customers don't simply purchase products, they engage with a story. Through authentic storytelling and thoughtfully designed environments, we foster genuine connections that spark conversation, leave lasting impressions, and transform the shopping experience into something meaningful.

Opting for raw, tactile surfaces over slick, artificial veneers represents a deliberate cultural stance. In modern retail, it is increasingly dominated by cold, clinical, or highly synthetic environments. The intentional use of earth, unpolished stone, and textured concrete reintroduces a sense of humanity.By encouraging physical touch and creating a stillness amidst a bustling city, the space shifts the consumer experience from a passive, fleeting transaction to an authentic, grounded connection. It reminds us that true luxury is an enduring, patient craft born directly from the natural world.

We prioritized function first: operational requirements, then zoning, then materials per zone. Small spaces demand this sequencing. Every decision must serve multiple purposes and resarch. The materials were selected to synergize across zones, creating visual cohesion. The result proves that constraint doesn't limit design storytelling; it focuses it and should be implemented. It proves that thoughtful design works in small spaces too.

We faced a small, confined space with a low ceiling, which are two constraints that could have led us to partition or subdivide. We kept the space open and curated moments across all sides, treating the limitation as a creative opportunity rather than something to hide from. Concerning that the lighting and air conditioning all needed to be concealed in the ceiling, our solution was counterintuitive. We made the ceiling a feature central light that draws focus downward to the monolithic island. This creates an environment that feels far larger than its footprint. The open zoning, the strategic lighting, the concealed services, together they reimagine the space

We worked closely with the client to bring their vision to life. They value the timely geological process that leads to the production of diamonds and gold. Therefore, we exaggerate the organic qualities of natural stones and jewels. We embedded that idea into our design thinking. Once that concept was clear, we decomposed it into distinct design moments. The facade lighting signals the geological narrative immediately. Inside, organic curves and spatial details continue that language of formation and time. The rammed earth walls evoke the mud and pressure of geological creation. Each moment reinforces the same story.

House of Forme doesn't follow social trends. Instead, we believe in crafting individual stories guided by nature, using the Earth's narrative as our anchor point. Nature and narrative form our core methodology. Authentic storytelling is our guiding principle, and it informs every decision from concept to execution. What makes this approach powerful is its transferability. It's not tied to a moment or a trend. Whether we're designing a jewelry retail space or reimagining a different brand context entirely, the methodology remains constant: ground the work in genuine narrative in which we believe is vital.

The rammed earth wall is a collaboration with a local artisan. Every layer, every color variation is hand-plastered. It functions as both the visual anchor of the space and a living showcase of human craftsmanship. The wall itself is a testament to the methodology we believe in both authenticity and skill.

Despite the height constraints, we executed the ceiling according to design intent. The solution required hand-plastering to achieve the undulating forms we envisioned. The result is a ceiling that emits a moon-like glow, creating an ethereal atmosphere that sets the mood for the entire space. However the design isn't purely poetic. The warm, strategic lighting serves a dual purpose. This establishes emotional resonance while ensuring the jewelry looks luminous on display and when taken out for viewing.

The facade draws visitors in through enlarged merchandising and organic details. We choreographed an anti-clockwise flow: entry and reception, center island display, left corner consultation, then the full collection before exit. Visitors encounter the island first, experience intimate moments, then see the breadth of the collection. Each moment creates a journey that feels inevitable.