January 4: Entry period opens
February 5 at 5 p.m.: Submission and entry fee deadline.  

March 8–12: Finalists notified and homes toured by 417 Home. Finalists must provide project supplier information at this time.

March 17: Winners notified by phone. Non-winners are notified by email.

June: General Excellence winners are featured and Innovation & Creativity winners are recognized in Summer 2021 issue of 417 Home.

September and November 2021, March 2022: Innovation & Creativity winners are featured in the Fall 2021, Winter 2021 and Spring 2022 issues of 417 Home.

We’ve going digital, to make submitting nominations easier and less time-consuming. And we’ve divided the contest into two sections to allow us to honor a greater variety of local design work and even more exceptional spaces. Read contest details to catch all the changes. As always, the 417 Home Design Awards is a juried competition established to recognize exceptional interior design projects. All entries will be viewed and scored by a panel of ASID judges, and all winners will be honored at the Design Awards Reception in July. 

• Submit all entries online at 417homemag.com/designawards beginning January 4, 2021.

• As you are preparing your entries, please take time to submit quality professional photographs and write a thorough description of the project, as this is what the judges use for scoring. 

• All finalists projects will be toured in person by a member of the 417 Home editorial team in March.

• General Excellence winners are featured and Innovation & Creativity winners are recognized in the Summer 2021 issue of 417 Home. Innovation & Creativity winners are featured in the Fall 2021, Winter 2021 and Spring 2022 issues of 417 Home. See category descriptions above.

• Competition is open to both firms and individuals who have completed work in the 417 area code in Missouri.

• All design work, installation and/or construction must have been completed within the past three years. 

• Projects may not have been previously featured in 417 Magazine, 417 Home or other local or regional publications. 

• A space cannot be entered into more than one category. (Exception: You may only enter one space into more than one category if the additional category is Most Creative Use of Lighting Throughout, Best Flooring Throughout or Best Use of Technology.)

• Each entry must include a completed online form, project statement, professional photographs and entry fee.

• For categories #2–15, upload a maximum of five (5) horizontal and/or vertical photos (.jpg or .png) at a maximum file size of 3MB each.

• For category #1: Whole House Interior Design, share a flash drive, CD, DVD or link to images with Krysten Muench (krysten@417mag.com, 417-883-7417, 2111 S. Eastgate Ave., Springfield, MO 65804). Submit a minimum of eight (8) images. There is no upper limit to the number of images you can provide. Photos submitted in Microsoft Word or Powerpoint documents will not be accepted.

• For category #10, you must include images of the space the fireplace is in as well as closeups of the fireplace.

• For category #13, you must include a rendering of the project.

• Please name each file to identify the image. Please make sure all photos are rotated and right-side-up. 

• Photography should be shot by a professional photographer, as these photos are what the judges use to score the space. High-resolution images should be taken with professional lighting and edited with no excessive filtering. Photographer must agree to release rights to allow submitted photos to be printed in 417 Home and/or Biz 417. 

• NOTE: If you need professional photographer references, 417 Home can connect you with professional freelance photographers (i.e. not on staff at 417) who are familiar with the contest. Any freelance fees incurred are the responsibility of the contest entrant, and 417 Home is not involved in the transaction. Contact Sarah Patton (sarah@417mag.com, 417-883-7417) for photographer recommendations.

• If you are chosen as a winner, 417 Home will reach out to obtain high-res, print-quality versions of any lower-res images submitted online.

• If you are chosen as a winner, you cannot use any photo(s) of the winning space either submitted by you or taken by 417 Home in an ad that is being featured in that same issue.

• Please upload a brief overview in paragraph form (300-word maximum) detailing the significant aspects of the project. The statement should discuss the projects design concept and the client’s goals, and it should also describe how the designer met those goals and any design challenges they overcame. Please submit this in text format, as a Microsoft Word (.doc) file or as a Portable Document Format (.pdf).

• NOTE: If you need help with your write-up, 417 Home can connect you with professional freelance writers (i.e. not on staff at 417) who are familiar with the contest. Any freelance fees incurred are the responsibility of the contest entrant, and 417 Home is not involved in the transaction. For writer recommendations, contact Krysten Muench (krysten@417mag.com, 417-883-7417).

If submitting multiple entries, complete and submit an online entry form and all accompanying entry requirements for each one. Entries cannot be combined. (But entry payments can be processed one time for the total of all entries to simplify payment.)

• Entry fees may be paid by credit card over the phone by calling Landra Bunge (417-883-7417). Visa©, MasterCard© or Discover© or by clicking the "Pay Online" link included in your invoice, which can be emailed to you.
• Entry fees will also be accepted by mailing or dropping off a check to the 417 Magazine office (417-883-7417, 2111 S. Eastgate Ave., Springfield, MO 65804). Make checks payable to 417 Magazine.

Entry materials will not be returned due to the high volume of submissions received. Failure to comply fully with contest rules may result in disqualification. Entry fee is non-refundable. 417 Home is not responsible for lost, stolen, ineligible, misdirected, damaged, mutilated or postage-due entries. Winning submissions become the property of 417 Home. Entrants should not submit photographs they do not own outright. NOTE: The property owner must agree to allow 417 Home to photograph their home.