WOW!

If there’s one upside to the Corona-catastrophe of 2020, it’s that Australia’s finest designers had some time to reflect on the value of entering industry awards, and – wowsers! – they brought the goods.

We closed our competition on Monday, 1 June, and have just finished tallying the numbers. (This is a tough task to get through quickly – too much eye candy for a design-lover!)

Following is a wrap up of the most exciting stats in our BEST-YEAR-EVER Awards program.

• Victoria has long held the record for the highest number of entries, but this year they were met with some serious competition from New South Wales. The two states accounted for 60% of entries (30% each). Queenslanders were the next in line, making up 18% of this year’s count.
• Large Kitchens is traditionally our biggest category, but this year Australia’s finest designers have been churning out some spectacular small bathrooms, it would seem! The Small Bathroom category accounted for 22% of all entries. Kitchens Plus took second place with 17% of submissions, and Large Kitchens came in at third place with 14% of entries.
• And the most impressive statistic of all: a whopping 40% of entrants are newbies in the KBDi Designer Awards program. Our First Time Entrants award is going to be HUGE this year!

A record-breaking year is brilliant for KBDi, but even better for our broader design community. Why? Well, there’s this:

And then there is the value the entrants get in putting themselves through the process of entering. This quote by a first time entrant sums it up pretty succinctly, and reminds us that we’re doing good:

Can’t wait to see all the amazing entries. It’s been a great learning experience thus far, so I feel like we have already won!

Huge thanks to all of those who entered this year. We wish you the best of luck, and can’t wait to celebrate your success.

LET THE JUDGING BEGIN!

As we count down to the closing date (1 June 2020), we thought we’d share some of the questions we’ve fielded from entrants in the last few weeks.

My photographer hasn’t been able to get to site. What if I can’t have images by the Awards closing date?

Getting access to projects for professional photography may continue to be challenging for a few weeks. While we’ve typically insisted on premium pics (for obvious reasons), we will be allowing late submission of professional photographs this year. (We will need your BEST images for features like the ones you can see here, so don’t let this fall off your radar.) We’ve set out some tips for DIY photography here, and confirm the following deadlines:

• Award Entries (powerpoints, entry forms, low res images, etc.) must be submitted by 12 noon on Monday, 1 June.
• Professional photographs (for all entrants) must be submitted by 12 noon on Tuesday, 30 June.

Can I enter a project that was completed last year?

We get that you may need to ‘dig back a little deeper’ to find a project that’s made it to 100% completion. Accordingly, we’ve extended the project completion dates as follows:

​All designs submitted must be for projects undertaken within the Commonwealth of Australian and completed during the period of 1 January 2018 to 1 June 2020. 

(Of course, you can’t enter a project that you’ve already entered into our program – no double dipping or second chances here!)

My plans are all hand-drawn. Does this mean I won’t stand a chance?

Ah, absolutely NOT. Your method of drafting is not being judged; it’s the clarity and consistency of your work that’s under the microscope. If your hand-drawn drawings accurately represent your design intent (i.e. the judges can see precisely what you were aiming to achieve), you’re most definitely in with a chance.

I don’t have a flash 3D rendering program. Will I lose points for this?

Again, that’s a big, fat no. You’ll note that our judging criteria (found in the Entry Pack) includes the following:

Concept presentation (i.e. computer-generated 3-D view, hand-drawn sketch and/or mood boards with rendered elevations) successfully communicates design intent.

The highlighted section of this statement is what we’re looking for. Our judges want to see how you communicated your ideas to your client. Over the years, we’ve seen some fabulous computer-generated 3Ds, and some equally impressive hand-drawn perspectives. We’ve seen quirkily-styled sketches and carefully rendered elevations, and beautiful mood boards, too. If you’ve developed a style in presenting that wows your clients AND gets the information across, we would love to see it.

As always, if you’ve any queries, please don’t hesitate to contact our office (1300 253 223). Alternatively, add your question to the comments below and we’ll get back to you.