2021 Design Competition Winners: Kitchen

Winning kitchens in the 2021 Design Competition were all about casual, comfortable gatherings, but kept the vibe decidedly contemporary, with sleek surfaces, warm woods and colorful accents.

There were two stages of judging, first for the “WOW” factor, and then those finalists moved onto the second round, which evaluated aesthetics, graphic and presentation standards, creativity, safety and ergonomics, elements and principles of design and planning and adherence to NKBA Guidelines and Standards.

NKBA received hundreds of entries for the 2020-2021 competition, which was sponsored by design software firm 2020 Spaces, Beko Appliances and House of Rohl. (To see the 2021 Awards show on demand, go here.)

Here is a look at the top kitchen winners in last year’s competition:

TRADITIONAL KITCHEN (LARGE), More than 250 square feet

First place and BEST OVERALL KITCHEN
Summer Thornton, Summer Thornton Design Inc., Chicago
Co-designer: Whitney Mersman
Photos: Werner Straube for Summer Thornton Design

To enter this year’s NKBA Design Competition, click here.

TRADITIONAL KITCHEN (LARGE)

Second Place: Jennifer Stoner, Jennifer Stoner Interiors, Richmond, Va.
Virginia State Chapter
Co-designer: Keith Scott, Rosney & Company Architects
Photos: Gordon Gregory Photography

TRADITIONAL KITCHEN (LARGE)

Third Place: Mark Cayen, Empire Kitchen and Bath, Calgary, Alberta
Prairie Provinces Chapter
Co-designers: Kevin Mullen, Empire; Holly Ogden and Patty Burdick, Wiseman & Gale Interiors
Photos: Eymeric Widling

TRADITIONAL KITCHEN (SMALL), Under 250 square feet

First-place: Tanya Woods AKBD, CLIPP, X-Styles Bath+More, Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
Michigan State Chapter
Co-designer: Jeff Woods, CLIPP
Photos: Beth Singer, Beth Singer Photography

TRADITIONAL KITCHEN (SMALL)

Second Place: Tiffany Waugh, Tiffany Waugh Interiors, San Francisco
Northern California Chapter
Photos: David Livingston, David Duncan Livingston Photography

TRADITIONAL KITCHEN (SMALL)

Third Place: Reisa Pollard, Beyond Interior Design, North Vancouver, British Columbia
British Columbia Chapter
Photos: Amanda Oster & Stephen Li, Provoke Studios

CONTEMPORARY KITCHEN (Large), Over 250 square feet

First Place: Madeleine Sloback, Madeline Design Group, Vancouver, British Columbia
British Columbia Chapter
Photos: Ema Peter, Ema Peter Photography

CONTEMPORARY KITCHEN (Large)

Second Place: Blue Arnold, CMKBD, Kitchens By Request, Jarrettsville, Md.
Baltimore/Washington Chapter
Co-designers: Jay Brown, Levin-Brown Architects, and Kelli Nemer, Kelli Nemer Art & Design
Photos: Alan Gilbert, Alan Gilbert Photography