Welcome to the

IIDA Northern California Honor Awards
2026 Submission Portal

Thank you for participating in IIDA Northern California's celebration of achievement in interior design!

The IIDA Northern California Chapter Honor Awards aims to encourage new ideas and techniques in the design and furnishing of interior spaces while recognizing and honoring outstanding interior design completed in the Northern California Chapter.

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Eligibility

IIDA Northern California Chapter Honor Awards is open to design firms of all sizes, focus, and interest practicing in the IIDA Northern California region of Northern California. For entries from firms with multiple offices, there must be substantial participation* by the regional office. There are no restrictions on square footage, no limit to the number of projects that can be entered and projects can be located anywhere in the world. Individual projects can only be entered once in any one year. Non-awarded projects submitted in previous years may be reentered as long as they still meet all other requirements. Projects must have been completed after January 1, 2021. 

*Substantial participation is constituted by 85 percent of the project team being located within the IIDA Northern California Chapter territory.

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Awards Categories

HEAL | Where we flourish
hospitals, medical facilities, clinics, assisted living, laboratories

LEARN | Where we discover and grow
classrooms, campuses, and creative learning spaces.

LIVE | Anyplace we call home
homes, condominiums, townhouses, apartments, mobile homes or houseboats (full or partial renovations acceptable)

PLAY | Where we entertain ourselves
hotels, restaurants, theaters, spas, casinos, stores, showrooms, malls, tasting rooms, sports arenas

• BOUTIQUE | Projects under 5,000 usable square feet. Smaller-scale experiential destinations designed for focused, curated, or high-touch interactions.

• GRAND | Projects over 5,000 usable square feet. Large-scale experiential environments built for higher capacity, broader programming, or immersive engagement.

GATHER | Where we meet
public spaces, libraries, schools, non-office government facilities, transportation centers, places of worship, museums

WORK | Where we work
corporate workplace environments

• SMALL | Projects under 20,000 usable square feet.

• MEDIUM | Projects over 20,000 usable square feet and under 75,000 usable square feet.

• LARGE | Projects over 75,000 usable square feet.

Supplemental Categories

For each of the following supplemental categories, the project MUST be entered twice - selecting the most appropriate category above for one (paid) entry and selecting the supplemental category for the second (complementary) entry. Additional information will be required for selected supplemental categories.

LONG VIEW | Achievement in Sustainable Design
The award honors long-lasting, sustainable designs and projects with minimal environmental impact. Include applicable information about the extraordinary solutions (beyond code requirements) that encourage reuse, avoid landfills, and improve environmental wellbeing.

CRAFT | Achievement in Custom Design
This award recognizes an outstanding creative collaboration between the designer and craftsperson/fabricator. Entrees may include but are not limited to such functional or decorative elements as ceilings, stairways, wall treatments, work settings, furniture and lighting. 

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Submission Requirements

• Project Statement: Include client objectives, design program, square footage, and any other information the design team feels is relevant to the solution.
• Client Statement (optional): Optional statement from the client discussing the client’s perspective on their experience with the design team as well as the success of the process.
• Project Team: List all design team and other contributors that helped make the project a success. (All A&D individuals who contributed to the project must be given proper credit at the time of submission. Information must be accurate and complete. The entrant is solely responsible for any errors or omissions in the information on this form. All references to project teams in IIDA NC publicity, presentations or awards will be based solely on the following information. In the spirit of honoring the whole team, we strongly encourage that this be filled out as completely as applicable.)
• Project Images: Provide a minimum of three and a maximum of ten digital images. Multi-image, collage photos are prohibited.
• Floor Plan(s): With each image keyed to the plan.

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Judging Criteria

Submissions will be judged for suitability to the award category, project challenge, originality of the design solution, and the successful integration of interior forms, finishes and furnishings. From the qualifying entries, one Honor Award will be awarded in each category.

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Use of Submittals

The project materials become the property of the IIDA NC Chapter. IIDA NC will use images from all submitted projects in multimedia presentations at the Honor Award event, IIDA NC's website & social media sites. IIDA NC reserves the rights to use the submissions for publicity and public relations.

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Entry Fees

IIDA Members: $525
Non-IIDA Members: $825

Save $100 with our Early Bird discount (before Dec 6)
IIDA Members: $425
Non-IIDA Members: $725

All entries will receive 2 balcony seats to the main event on March 12th at the Masonic!