INTRODUCTION:

The Nashville Design Collective Design Awards published by Sophisticated Living will span the categories of architecture, interior design, homebuilding, remodeling and landscape design.  Entrants can be based in the southeast region of the United States OR the project must have a Tennessee address. Projects can range from a single room to an entire home. 

OVERALL CRITERIA:

• Who is eligible:
  • Designers, builders, and architects who have an office within the southeast region which includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, or Virginia. Projects for this requirement can be located anywhere in the world.
  • OR designers, builders, and architects who have an office outside of the southeast region BUT, the project being submitted has a Tennessee state address.
• Projects must have been completed in 2024 or 2025.
• Entries must only be of a private, residential space. 
• Firms/Individuals may enter in as many categories as applicable; each category submission requires a separate entry on the Nashville Design Collective website.
• Firms/Individuals may only submit one project per category.
• Firms/Individuals creating the submission must have the approval of all parties with legal ownership of the project.
• Rising Star Requirements: An interior designer who has worked 100% independently (not under the guidance of another designer) for 5 years or less. The project being submitted can include a single room, multiple rooms, or an entire home.  
• Entry deadline is Monday, 8/15/2026 at 11:59 PM CST.
• Contest entries must be submitted online at nashvilledesigncollective.com/design-awards/categories-and-submissions

JURY PROCESS:

• All votes and decision of the panel are final.
• Submissions are identified by project name only and there shall be no identifying information that would indicate the firm, architect, builder, or designer.
• The judges have full authority to choose a winner for each category. 
• If submissions do not meet the expected level of excellence as deemed so by the judges, certain categories may go unfilled.
• Judges have the right to move a project from one category to another category as deemed necessary.
• Winners will be selected based on
  • The seven design principles:
    • Balance
    • Harmony
    • Rhythm
    • Proportion and Scale
    • Emphasis
    • Contrast
    • Details
  •  Craftmanship and Quality of Work.
• Finalists will be notified by 9/1/2026.

PUBLICATION OF WINNING ENTRIEs

• Winning entries will be published in Sophisticated Living
• Sophisticated Living will be given full usage rights to all photos of each winning project. 

ELIGIBILITY and ENTRY REQUIREMENTS:

• Employees and immediate family members of the Nashville Design Collective and it’s Tenants are not eligible to directly apply.
• The individual or firm making the submission must have permission to use all photography and/or printed material contained with the submission.  The Nashville Design Collective reserves the right to use photos from winning submissions in future print and digital media for promotional purposes.
• The individual or firm making the submission must provide contact information for the photographer so Dotdash Meredith can secure usage rights at no additional cost. Photographer will be given credit for work in the publication in which it appears.
• The individual or firm making the submission must have the written approval -- and be able to produce such written approval if asked -- of all those with legal ownership of the project and /or its design: including the client/homeowner, builder, architect/designer of record, and/or developer.
• Mail-in entries will not be accepted.
• Neither the entrant’s, nor his or her firm’s name, should appear on any narratives, photographs, or files. 
• Incomplete entries will be automatically disqualified.
• Entries must be of a private, residential space only.  Showroom, retail, commercial, hospitality, public recreational, educational, and other non-residential environments are not eligible. 
• Entries must include a minimum of 3, maximum of 10, color photographs of the completed design.
• All photos must be in jpeg form.  
• High resolution (300dpi minimum) images of winners must be provided to Sophisticated Living if requested and in a timely manner. Inability to do so may result in the project not being published.
• Professional grade photography is required for all entries.
• For each project submitted, include 3 to 5 bullet points of why the submitted project is worthy of being named the winner of said category.
• CONTEST RULES MAY BE CHANGED AND UPDATED WITHOUT NOTICE.  ENTRANTS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR CHECKING THE CONTEST WEBPAGE FOR CHANGES AND SHOULD REVIEW THE RULES PRIOR TO EACH SUMBISSION.  IN NO EVENT WILL SPONSOR, ITS AFFILIATES, ASSIGNEES, OR THEIR AGENTS OR EMPLOYEES, BE RESOPNSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, ARISING FROM ACCESS TO, OR USE OF, THIS WEBISTE, ELECTRONIC OR COMPUTER MALFUNCTIONS, OR ENTRANT PARTICIIPATION ON THIS CONTEST, EVEN IF SPONSOR HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. 
• Winning entries will only receive ONE award plaque per category.