Among this year's many creative entries, 14 projects stood out from the rest and received top honors in the 2000 Design Portfolio Awards competition.

The top winners are as follows: "Residential Furniture," Industrial Design Form Corp., Miami, FL; "Commercial/Institutional Furniture" and "Kitchen/Bath Cabinets," Swanson Woodwork, Boston, MA; "Architectural Millwork," Accu-Trim Custom Woodworking Inc., Cooleemee, NC; "Laminate Casework," E.P.W. Fine Woodworking, Loomis, CA; and "Specialty Products," I.A. Keer -- The Art of Furniture, Minneapolis, MN.

Swanson Woodwork is the first company ever to win in two separate categories in one competition, while E.P.W. Fine Woodworking becomes the first company to take top honors in the Laminate Casework category. The overall winner of the competition, receiving the highest score among all entries, was Industrial Design Form, for its Great Buffet (Wave) piece. In addition, eight entrants were chosen to receive Honorable Mentions.

CWB congratulates all winners on their achievements. Their work serves as a standard of excellence and an example of the impressive talent that exists in the custom woodworking industry.

If you would like information on being a part of next year's competition, e-mail Editor in Chief Helen Kuhl.

Judging the CWB Design Portfolio Awards competition involves looking over hundreds of slides and photographs, reading entry forms and debating the intricacies of the projects entered. CWB gives a heartfelt thanks to the four judges who took on the difficult job of selecting the best among this year's 36 entries.

This year's panel represents a variety of viewpoints from within the custom woodworking industry. They are:
* Gerald Finch is Instructor of Wood Technics at Fox Valley Technical College in Oshkosh, WI. The school offers a one-year vocational diploma in Wood Technics designed to prepare graduates to be shop-level woodworkers. Finch developed the department's curriculum and has been its head for 17 years. He was selected as 1996 "Educator of the Year" by the Woodworking Machinery Industry Assn. (WMIA).
* Tom Gleason is co-founder of Bailey & Gleason Cabinetmakers in Chicago. He is also vice president for programs of the Chicago chapter of the Architectural Woodwork Institute (AWI). Gleason is also a project manager for Highland Park Millwork in Highland Park, IL, and has been a contributing editor to CWB.
* Jane Irvine is an interior designer who has had her own business, Jane Irvine Interior Design, in Killdeer, IL, since 1987. Irvine is a professional member of ASID and a registered designer in the state of Illinois. She serves both the residential and commercial markets.
* Robert Kleeman has been a full-time woodworker since 1975, beginning as an apprentice in a violin shop. He is co-founder of the Workshop of Barrington, which focuses on historic reproductions, adaptations and the conservation of antique furniture.