2020 Chief Architect Design of the Year Contest Finalists


Design of the Year 2020 Graphic

Profile image of Danielle Schroeder By Danielle Schroeder

Chief Architect holds monthly design contests for customers to show off their work throughout the year. Designers with different backgrounds and design styles go head-to-head in the Kitchen/Bath & Interiors, Remodel/Additions, and Residential categories.

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Build Small, Live Large with Larry Singleton Designs


Micro living house with 3 stories and deck over carport.

Larry Singleton, a micro living residential designer from Georgia, won 1st place in the Residential Design Contest. His focus on small spaces gained large interest.

After the 2008 recession collapsed his 20-year Design Build Business, Larry Singleton started his encore career as an Architectural Design teacher. Now in his retirement, he is pursuing a passion for building “micro homes.” The pocket neighborhoods battle the continued struggle for affordable housing and encourage a minimalist lifestyle embraced by newer generations. He used Chief Architect from 2001 to 2009 for his Design/Build business and has benefitted again from Chief Architect Software as a designer since 2019.

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Catalog Partner Program Brings Brands to your Fingertips


a grid of brand logos indicating those that are downloadable from Chief Architect's 3D Library

Author's portrait By Adrean Stephenson

At some point, your ideas and designs will become a reality. When things get real, you’ll be collecting part numbers and prices, then putting in orders, and finally seeing all of your visions come to fruition.

Life can be a lot easier when the goods you plan to purchase are plucked directly from your favorite brands’ digital catalogs and then placed into your Chief Architect and Home Designer projects.

One goal of our Content Development team is to make this process easy and accessible. We work with many brand partners to curate digital catalogs that are specifically compatible with the Chief Architect family of software. Our hosting tool for these brand catalogs, and an array of other downloadable content for enhancing your work, is the 3D Library.

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Winning Designs – September/October’s Kitchen, Bath, and Interiors Design Contest


Warm modern kitchen design with large windows and gold cabinet hardware.

Designing with a Purpose


Bedroom Rendering

Profile image of Danielle Schroeder by Danielle Schroeder

Savanna’s purpose is not only to create beautiful designs but to also promote independence in the workplace while giving a portion of her proceeds to the Down Syndrome Association.

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Living the Van Life


The Pedersens van, a 2001 Ford E350 extended body Sportsmobile with penthouse pop top and a Quigley 4X4 conversion.

Author, Kerry Hansen By Kerry Hansen

With adventurous spirits, and the feeling of excitement that spontaneity brings, the Pedersens answer the call of the open road.

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Award-Winning Residential Construction Designer from the Philippines


Asian-style home design in the Philippines.

Author's Portrait By Kendra Dorosh

Are you fascinated by the different architectural styles around the world? Travel with us to Laguna, Philippines as we uncover the source of Rodante Bernabe’s seemingly endless array of extremely detailed, beautiful designs… many of which have been featured in a Chief Architect Design Contest and won.

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Winning Designs – August’s Remodel/Addition Design Contest


Two- story residential home with white siding and brown accents.

A Designer’s Journey from Hand-Drafting to Design Software


Modern farmhouse style home with black windows, white siding, and a standing seam metal roof.

Author's Portrait By Kendra Dorosh

Have you spent hours laboring over a drafting table? Remodel/ Addition Design Contest winner Sandra Lukas can relate.


Black and white image of a woman with short hair and large sunglasses.

Sandra’s winning design in the Chief Architect Remodel/ Addition Design Contest caught our attention and inspired us to learn more about her story. It turns out that she hand-drafted designs for high-end spec homes for years before making the jump to Chief Architect’s Home Designer Professional software. Follow along as she takes us on a trip down memory lane from her days of hand drafting to how she discovered and fell in love with design software.

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Winning Designs – July’s Residential Design Contest


Micro-living home with a vaulted living area and a front porch.