2017 Awards Judge: Rita Konig

If you’ve ever stared at a “before” photo and thought, this room is fine… I guess… and then seen the “after” and immediately wanted to
move in, you already understand the basic job description of a great decorator: turning “fine” into “how did they do that?” Rita Konig is one of
those decoratorsand in the 2017 Remodelista + Gardenista Considered Design Awards, she was also one of the people tasked with
deciding which projects deserved finalist glory.

This article breaks down what “2017 Awards Judge” actually meant in practice, who Rita Konig is (beyond “has better lamps than the rest of us”),
and how her design point of view can help you spot (or create) award-worthy workwhether you’re remodeling a bathroom, rethinking a kitchen, or
making your curb appeal say “welcome” instead of “we tried.”

What “2017 Awards Judge” Meant (and What It Didn’t)

The Considered Design Awards weren’t a velvet-rope industry gala where everyone pretends to love canapé spoons. They were a structured, public-facing
design contest run by Remodelista (home interiors) and Gardenista (outdoor spaces). People submitted real projectsamateur and professionalacross
a wide range of categories, then editors and guest judges selected finalists, and readers voted on winners in most categories.

In other words: being a 2017 Awards Judge meant looking at hundreds (thousands) of project photos and descriptions, comparing wildly
different budgets and constraints, and still being able to say, “Yes, this is the one that nailed it.” It’s less “Judge Judy,” more
“design detective with a deadline.”

Meet Rita Konig: Designer, Writer, Professional Human With Opinions About Walls

Rita Konig is a London-based interior designer and design writer whose career has spanned both the UK and the US. She’s designed homes on both sides
of the Atlantic, and her background in editorial work shows up in how she communicates about design: clear, specific, and refreshingly honest.

Remodelista’s own introduction to her as a 2017 guest judge highlights the “two-hats” credibility that makes her perfect for awards judging:
she’s actively designing projects, and she also knows how to explain why they workwithout hiding behind vague phrases like “a dialogue between
texture and soul.” (Although, to be fair, texture does deserve rights.)

Her design personality can be summarized as: comfortable, layered, personal, and practical. Not “museum house,” not “trend cosplay.”
The rooms are meant to be lived inby actual humans with actual habits, like sitting down, eating dinner, and occasionally leaving a book open
because the chapter ended on a rude cliffhanger.

Why She Makes Sense as a 2017 Considered Design Awards Judge

Design awards judging gets messy fast because projects aren’t judged in a vacuum. A tiny rental kitchen refresh might be more impressive than a giant
new build if it solves harder constraints and does more with less. Rita Konig’s approach to designstarting with how a room will be usedhelps
level that playing field.

She’s repeatedly described her process as a kind of “detective work”: understanding who lives there, how they live, and how they want to feel in
the space. That mindset is exactly what the “Considered” ethos is about: thoughtful choices, not random shopping.

The Rita Konig Judging Lens: What Tends to Win Her Over

Judges don’t publish a literal scorecard, but Rita’s public advice and design philosophy give you strong clues about what she values when looking at
a project submission.

1) A layout that’s smarter than the room’s original plan

A beautiful room that functions badly is basically a sports car with no steering wheel. Rita emphasizes starting with plans and layoutsfiguring out
flow, scale, and how people will actually move and live in the space before getting hypnotized by fabric samples.

In awards terms, this often shows up as: “We fixed the circulation,” “We made seating make sense,” “We stopped ignoring the window just because the
fireplace was being dramatic,” or “We finally made the dining area work for real meals, not just fantasy dinner parties.”

2) Comfort you can feel through the screen

Her rooms aim for a lived-in easedeep seating, good cushions, the sense that someone can actually relax there. This doesn’t mean sloppy; it means
human. Submissions that show comfort, warmth, and real-life usability tend to align with her worldview.

3) Vintage and personality (not “everything from the same showroom”)

Rita is a consistent advocate for vintage and antiquesnot as precious trophies, but as the “soul” of a room. That matters in judging because it’s a
shortcut to authenticity. A space that includes older pieces, reupholstered finds, or meaningful objects often feels more timeless than a space that
looks like it was ordered in one late-night tab frenzy.

4) Pattern and color with a point (a.k.a. “layered, not loud for sport”)

She’s known for British-style layeringmixing pattern scales, textures, and colors in a way that feels collected. Importantly, it’s not one-note.
The best projects show a rhythm from room to room: quieter moments, bolder moments, and a cohesive story rather than a single pattern cranked to
maximum volume everywhere.

5) Practical upgrades that make the house feel more “real”

Some of the best design improvements are the unglamorous ones: thicker-looking door jambs, better storage, lighting that doesn’t feel like an
interrogation, and architectural details that make a space feel substantial. Rita has even called out thin walls as a pet peevebecause they can make
a home feel flimsy, like a set instead of a place.

A Quick Primer on the 2017 Considered Design Awards

The 2017 contest covered both interiors (Remodelista) and exteriors/gardens (Gardenista), with categories split between amateur and professional
entries in key areas.

Interior categories (Remodelista)

• Best Bath (Amateur + Professional)
• Best Kitchen (Amateur + Professional)
• Best Living/Dining (Amateur + Professional)
• Best UK Interior (Amateur + Professional)

Garden categories (Gardenista)

• Best Landscape (Professional)
• Best Garden (Amateur)
• Best Outdoor Living Space (Open to all)
• Best Curb Appeal (Open to all)
• Best Edible Garden (Open to all)
• Best Hardscape Project (Open to all)
• Best UK Landscape (Professional)
• Best UK Garden (Amateur)

The timeline mattered because it shaped how judging worked: submissions first, then a finalist selection phase with editors and judges, followed by
public voting for most categories, and then winner announcements.

How Finalists Were Chosen (and Why Your Project Story Matters)

If you’ve ever wondered why two projects that both look “pretty” can feel very different in impact, it usually comes down to decision-making.
In the 2017 awards structure, finalists were selected by editors alongside guest judgesmeaning your photos and your description mattered.

A strong submission doesn’t just show the final look. It communicates:

• The constraint: tiny footprint, awkward layout, limited budget, historic quirks, bad light, etc.
• The solution: what changed, and why those choices were the right ones.
• The “considered” proof: details that show thought (storage, proportions, material choices, reuse, longevity).
• The lived-in test: how the space performs day-to-day.

This aligns neatly with Rita Konig’s design process: function first, then layers, then personality. Or, to put it another way:
“Show me the life this room supports, not just the shopping list.”

What Would Rita Notice First in a Bathroom, Kitchen, or Living Space?

Bathrooms: the calm test

Award-worthy bathrooms usually do one of two things: they make a small space feel larger and smarter, or they make a larger space feel calmer and more
intentional. Judges tend to notice proportion mistakes quicklyvanities that overwhelm, lighting that flatters nobody, or storage that was clearly an
afterthought. The best submissions show a plan for both beauty and daily use.

Kitchens: function disguised as charm

Kitchens win when they’re efficient and inviting. That can look like better work zones, improved storage, or simply a layout that lets the
cook talk to humans instead of a wall. Rita has even talked about the idea of a “cook-in dining room”a reminder that how we gather matters just as
much as what cabinets we pick.

Living/Dining: seating is the truth serum

Living rooms reveal whether a space was designed for real life. If seating is awkward, the room will never feel rightno matter how great the rug is.
Rita’s emphasis on layout and comfort suggests she’d respond to submissions that show generous, flexible seating and zones that support how people
actually spend time (reading, lounging, entertaining, kids, pets, the whole circus).

Real-World Scale: What the 2017 Contest Looked Like

The 2017 awards drew thousands of photos and broad participation across regions. After finalists were selected, readers voted in large numbers, and
winners were announced afterward, category by category.

You don’t need to memorize the stats to appreciate the point: judges weren’t picking from five perfect projects; they were narrowing a huge pool into
a shortlist that represented the most thoughtful solutions. That’s why a “considered” narrative and clear photography matter so much.

How to Design (and Submit) Like You Want Rita Konig to Circle Your Project

Lead with the problem you solved

Don’t bury the lede. Start your description with the obstacle: “galley kitchen with no storage,” “bathroom with no natural light,” “living room that
became a hallway,” “front yard that looked like it gave up.” Then show the fix.

Photograph function, not just finishes

If the brilliance is in the layout, prove it. Include angles that show circulation and how zones connect. A judge can’t reward a clever plan they
can’t see.

Mix old and new on purpose

A room that includes vintage pieces (or older architectural cues) often reads as more personal and more durable over time. If you reused, reworked, or
reupholstered something, say so. “Considered” isn’t just a vibe; it’s evidence.

Make comfort visible

Show cushions, throws, lamps, and layers that signal livability. The goal isn’t to stage a showroom; it’s to communicate that the room supports
a real life. (Bonus: real life tends to win popularity votes, too.)

Experiences: What a Design Awards Season Feels Like (and What Rita’s Judging Lens Teaches You)

Here’s the funny thing about entering a design awards contest: you start off thinking it’s about your space, and you end up realizing it’s about your
decisions. The process has a way of turning you into a narrator of your own work. You find yourself saying sentences like, “We moved the doorway
eight inches and it changed everything,” which is both true and also the kind of line that makes your non-design friends blink twice.

A typical awards-season experience begins with photo triage. You have 10 great shots, 30 decent ones, and 400 pictures of the dog that somehow ended
up in the folder. Picking the images forces you to ask: what’s the real story here? Is it the transformation? The layout fix? The way the kitchen now
works for actual cooking instead of sad microwave living? This is where a judge like Rita Konig becomes a helpful imaginary audience, because her
design philosophy nudges you toward the “why,” not just the “what.”

Then comes the descriptionand this is where people either shine or accidentally sabotage themselves. The strongest entries read like someone calmly
explaining a smart solution to a friend: the constraints, the choices, the trade-offs. The weaker entries read like a receipt. (“We bought X, then Y,
then Z.”) Rita’s “detective work” approach reminds you that the most interesting part of a project is the life it supports. If your living room now
seats eight people without feeling cramped, say that. If your bathroom storage stopped the daily counter explosion, say that too. The unglamorous win
is still a win.

The emotional roller coaster is real, even if you pretend you’re too cool for emotions. You submit, you refresh the page, you wonder if your “before”
photo is ugly enough to be dramatic (it is), and you start noticing that the best projects all have one thing in common: they feel specific. Not
trend-specificperson-specific. That’s the Rita Konig sweet spot. Her rooms tend to feel like they belong to someone, not to an algorithm.

Finally, there’s the post-submission clarity that hits like a gentle lamp glow: you learn what you value. Maybe you realize you care more about
comfort than perfection. Maybe you realize you’re a “layout first” person now and you’ll never look at a badly placed sofa the same way again. Maybe
you become the friend who notices thin walls and mutters, “We can fix that with a deeper jamb,” at open houses. Congratulations. You have joined the
club. Membership includes strong opinions about lighting and an inability to ignore a poorly hung picture frame.

Conclusion

Being a 2017 Awards Judge wasn’t just a title for Rita Konigit was a role that fit her strengths: evaluating design as a blend of
feeling, function, and personality. The Considered Design Awards celebrated projects that solved real problems with thoughtful choices, and her own
public “rules” (start with layout, prioritize comfort, mix vintage in, balance pattern, and make it yours) map almost perfectly onto what makes an
entry stand out.

Even if you never enter an awards contest, you can borrow the judge mindset: tell the truth about how you live, design for that truth, and then layer
in the beauty. The best rooms don’t just photograph wellthey hold up on a random Tuesday when you’re tired, hungry, and sitting exactly where the
layout intended you to sit.