Western Living Magazine
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Photos: The Western Living Design 25 Finalists Party
These 100 finalists are in the running to be named one of our WL Design 25 award winners—with entries from bedroom design and furniture to office spaces and sustainable craftsmanship.
After a record year of entries, this is the big reveal: the top 100 finalists up for our 2026 Western Living Design 25 awards.
We revealed these all-stars to a packed crowd at Varsa Windows and Doors on the night of October 22—and will reveal the big winners in February (and in the pages of our March/April 2026 issue).
And in the meantime, here’s where you step in: Our WL People’s Choice Awards are now live! It’s time to vote for your favourite product and your favourite room. Peruse our finalists below, and then head on over to our voting page to have your say.
And a huge congratulations to each of these finalists—it was great to celebrate with you all, and we look forward to more celebrations to come when we announce the WL Design 25!
The L’Abri table, with its hand-built base rising in a Fibonacci spiral, is a sculptural work that unites ancient ceramic techniques with contemporary design.
The walnut tabletop sits atop three asymmetrical blackened steel legs, adding a sense of visual interest and levity to this striking piece.
Built to commercial standards, this bench is designed to withstand even the highest of traffic areas, with customization available for both legs and top.
The handmade verre églomisé reverse-gilded mirror is a contemporary and abstract work of art, featuring bronze-coloured metal leaf, brass, gold and silver.
Carve Bowls are clean with quiet lines: pure hardwood milled away from a block to reveal shapes that reflect light and expose hidden grain deep within the material.
Squish’s softly curved silhouette is playful, but its slim components keep up conversation with the most minimalist interior landscapes.
The floating armoire is designed with the family in mind: the hooks and shelves sit at different heights in order to allow even little ones to reach and hang their items.
This playful, sustainable take on the classic lightbulb is available in a variety of sizes, woods and finishes; its paper shade casts a warm and inviting glow.
This inbuilt, slide-out wardrobe hides behind a mirror or artwork, offering a seamless way to utilise the odd room under the stairs or replace folding-door closets.
With a tabletop that hovers over a floating base assembly, the clever form creates a striking balance between weight and airiness.
Balancing bold geometry with softened curves, this hand-crafted resin coffee table uses interlocking components that fit together, tool-free; its beauty is enhanced by a matte, frosted finish that diffuses light and emphasizes the material’s soft translucency.
Wooden treads float on tensioned wires giving an anti-gravity feel to these stairs, which beam with embedded lighting in steel supports; the illusion of balance is supported both by materials and the stairs’ modular elements.
A 10×10 wall of concrete displaces 98 percent of base materials using a patented process that allows for concrete structures to be one-eighth to one-32nd of an inch.
A delicate interplay of balanced forms and proportions, the Ben lamp has a hand-carved, solid stone base and a blown glass globe.
Mounted over a hardwired flush-mount light, this 10″ four-panelled sconce boasts muted tones and a textured glaze, and appears to be hovering slighting away from the wall allowing light to glow in a diffused halo.
A collection of clay vessels are decorated by the artists’ firing method: raw textures, surface variation and tonal gradients from deep charcoal to soft grey are painted by a hand-built kiln—natural patterns that record the unpredictable movement of flame and smoke.
This sculptural light design draws inspiration from the winged maple seed: brass screens break and diffuse the light in wooden seed-like pendants that hang from the chandelier.
Wheel-thrown plates, bowls, drinking vessels and sculptural vases are unified through clean silhouettes and precise proportion in warm brown stoneware in three natural and muted custom glaze colours.
These sculptural pendant lights use softly diffused illumination at the end of a warm, geometric-relief carved walnut hardwood.
A heavy-duty brass faucet, with a swivelling neck, mounts onto walls using a matching slotted brass block in a clean and modern design.
Hand-cut, sanded, oiled wall hooks in a leaf-like cut out highlights the warm grain and character of reclaimed wood.
This blocky bench fuses architectural remnants, craftsmanship and precise joinery, transforming repurposed hemlock off-cuts into a functional, sculptural bench.
A former horse stable transforms into an inviting entry foyer with a lounge and bar balanced by both industrial concept and rustic nostalgia.
Delicate pendant lights drop down a two-storey Douglas Fir timber curtain wall, steeled-in-place by black steel structured beams against a warm palette of natural materials.
Sensuous colour drenches this commercial space as curves guide movement, vinyl surfaces provide minimal yet dramatic gestures with bold red accents against custom millworked walls and islands.
This dual-purpose office-library’s focal point is a restored antique fireplace mantle; colour-drenched in a moody sage green, fully saturated walls and custom millwork cleverly conceal storage to allow a cozy, character-rich retreat.
Heritage design meets modern convenience in this kitchen redesign” a custom brick hood fan surrounds a stove, while a generous island topped in marble reflects light from vintage-inspired pendant lights.
Swathed in moody saturation, this dining room’s coffered wood ceiling meets Mallorca black tile as a blown glass pendant chandelier by Bocce hovers over a custom 12-person dining table.
In this “controlled chaos” basement bathroom, powder blue tiles clad the walls, clashing against a custom oval mirror around a circular sconce, a soft geometry that balances the room’s boldest feature: a Calacatta Viola marble with deep burgundy veins bleeding into a creamy expanse.
A cozy hideaway is tucked behind a cleverly concealed millwork panel in the hall: a dramatic monochromatic, emerald-toned escape features coffered, pistachio-coloured ceiling and verdant, painted cabinetry and patterned wallpaper.
A custom upholstered wall in soft velvet green anchors this primary bedroom retreat as well as its integrated bed frame, complete with a bespoke make-up area extending from the millwork, framed by floor-to-ceiling mirrors and vertical LED lighting.
Rich, vibrant blue-stained oak clads the feature walls and shelving of this local cheese shop, as brass and aged bronze hardware signal opulence, while butcher block counters at the tasting bar reference traditional cheesemaking and butchery.
A lived-in ambiance permeates this 1920s kitchen: a clear sightline to a French Lacanche grounds the space, with counters made from Vancouver Island marble, natural woods in honeyed tones, as well as antique brass and nostalgic wallpaper patterns.
This West Coast modern ski chalet blends natural materials (locally sourced basalt and hemlock) and sleek lines with a vaulted ceiling that makes for an airy space; floor-to-ceiling windows maximize natural light, harmonizing with its natural surroundings.
This repurposed barn structure settles around a 22-person long table: added electrical service and re-used clapboard siding salvaged from the adjoining home is flipped inside-out to reveal its naturally varied white tones, giving way to a beautifully weathered character that feels both rustic and timeless.
Custom dark oak millwork brings warmth and depth to this combination laundry and mud room, with refined dark countertops and a lake-inspired blue zellige tile creating a space that’s both functional and expressive.
This lush, textured, pattern-happy restaurant is multi-faceted: black-and-white tile floors contrast against vines that drape down from the ceiling mimicking the greenery of the Amazon rainforest with jaguar motifs peeking out from the wallpaper.
Built entirely without fasteners or waste, in/tension is a temporary bar and bench installation using stacked lumber, entirely held together with ratchet straps and relying on the inherent friction of the wood surface to create structural stability.
Designed as an outdoor communal space, this Open Air Kitchen is both a place of gathering and a place of shared living, defined by an integrated board-formed concrete fireplace and countertop.
The Stand Alone Bath’s design centres on a clawfoot tub left outside to naturally patina, positioned before expansive bifolding doors, and an indoor-outdoor shower exposed to forest air, rain and light to create a sense of the convergence of indoors and nature.
Designed for a young family, the foyer and staircase embody a refined balance of elegance, function, and warmth—blending European sensibility with a distinctly modern attitude.
The living room began as an exercise in editing and refocusing sight lines. The fireplace is geometrically defined by the golden mean and curves inwards like a conch shell; finished in salmon-coloured Renaissance plaster with a cast-in-place exposed aggregate hearth, this feature serves as the social centre around which the household can gather.
This laundry room is an exercise in small design details: to enhance the ergonomics of doing laundry, the team elevated the washer and dryer to a comfortable working height. A pull-out shelf simplifies loading and unloading while also providing additional space for folding, and a sink cover offers even more surface area to stack and sort laundry set against a backsplash of glazed, artisanal porcelain tile.
The main floor of this 1975 house became a gallery for the client’s art collection, set on a soft, warm palette that references a sandy beach. The soul and history of the house were embraced throughout the design process, salvaging incredible honey-hued Onyx stones to reuse on a new fireplace.
A Bocci 118 installation beckons from the primary bedroom entry, while a curved wall—clad in custom colour Kaufmann Keramik tile—houses the shower on one side while serving as a striking architectural feature as you enter.
Warm and minimal, the suite is designed to incorporate environmentally-safer materials. Key features include handmade recycled tile, carbon-neutral wall cladding and countertops, and custom white-oak lighting.
The powder room was designed to be a showstopper: dark, moody and unforgettable with bold, butterfly-inspired wallpaper that creates instant drama and mirrored cabinetry which amplifies the effect.
The vision for this music room was to craft a space that embodied warmth, rhythm, and meaningful connection—with the designer’s own family piano at the heart.
Designed for a young urban family, the home balances sophistication with everyday comfort, drawing on clean architectural lines, abundant natural light, and a refined palette that highlights texture and warmth.
The design of this great room draws inspiration from Parisian style—cool, classic and effortlessly timeless—with old-world elements (think dentil mouldings, ceiling medallions and custom millwork) alongside contemporary materials.
A mix of walnut-stained oak and deep blue millwork brings warmth and tonal contrast, evoking the moody elegance found throughout the rest of the home.
Set on the waterfront of Granville Island, this office balances the raw character of its industrial setting with the warmth, comfort, and sophistication of a private residence.
Anchored by a built-in grill, generous prep space, and casual bar seating—along with a soaring ceiling—this outdoor kitchen encourages both everyday family use and effortless entertaining.
With cozy library and reading area, as well as a lounge designed for board games and casual gatherings, this well-designed room turns an under-utilized area into a fun family room.
A once cramped and dated space gets a fresh update with a well-designed shower room and Verdi Alpi marble, the highlight of the bathroom—its deep green tones echoing the kitchen’s millwork.
This hardworking mud room and laundry space blends function and charm through rich green millwork, durable checkerboard tile flooring, and thoughtful storage solutions.
Designed as a hardworking yet refined extension of the main kitchen, this pantry combines functionality with a rich, moody palette: cabinetry finished in a deep moody green, accented by lacquered brass hardware that adds warmth and elegance.
The living room’s design honours the home’s original architecture, its generous proportions, traditional mouldings and luminous bay windows, while introducing a contemporary sensibility through curated furnishings and art.
Each element in this great room was chosen or designed to harmonize with the home’s modern West Coast setting, creating a space that feels curated, enduring, and deeply connected to place.
Originally built as a cozy hideaway for the kids, the loft served as both a sleeping nook and a quiet perch to eavesdrop on the adults’ stories and guitar playing below.
The palette of this ensuite envelops you with olive walls and rust tiles, but it’s the details that leave a lasting impression, from the repurposed furniture to the quirky accessories.
The millwork makes this space sing: Custom storage cabinetry features a built-in display niche and a glass-enclosed wine cabinet that accommodates up to 55 bottles, combining functionality with elegant design.
This powder room is a jewel-box moment within the home: moody, glamorous, and finely detailed with nods to the mid-century style that the clients adore.
In this lovely space, everyday use dishes are exposed on a floating shelf above the main counter, and the pantry is just a walk around the corner where all can be concealed out of sight but still readily accessible, including a sexy full height wine fridge.
The design of the living room plays with the balance of line, texture and colour and a great example of arriving at a final outcome that feels both harmonious and intentional
This primary ensuite has all kinds of delightful features: the free standing tub is encased in a shroud of wood paneling, jeweled with a single offset pendant, and the make-up table is the cutest corner to get ready for that special evening.
A formerly dark and uninviting space is now a bright, inviting primary suite that suits their needs, from lounging by the window to enjoying the beautifully crafted storage solutions.
The renovated kitchen in this Russel Hollingsworth home now anchors the house both spatially and socially. Once peripheral, it has been repositioned as the true centre — a gathering space where light, structure, and daily ritual intersect.
Designed for a young family, this design transforms the utilitarian mudroom into a sculpted experience where function and poetics coexist.
What was once a patch of gravel beside a city street has been transformed into a lush, layered courtyard — a dining room without walls — where community, connection, and quiet moments coexist.
Moody velvet booths, emerald tile and vintage kung-fu posters bring layered charm to this clever reno that mixes Chinese nostalgia with Main Street cool.
A floating ceiling of Kalwall panels fills this penthouse bedroom with soft light, where sculptural millwork, warm oak and stone textures create a retreat that feels quiet, elemental and endlessly considered.
Cedar beams, a concrete hearth and a cozy hammock-net nook bring playful polish to this mid-century revival that doesn’t take itself too seriously.
A sculptural pegboard, silver elm detailing and a built-in drop zone turn this out-of-sight mudroom into one of the home’s most intentional moments.
In this quietly theatrical kitchen, slatted oak and Luxe Gold accents set the stage, while a hidden pantry and quartz-wrapped island deliver the biggest reveal.
From the slatted oak cabinetry to the soft-curve breakfast nook, this kitchen finds its flow in quiet repetition and smart restraint.
Sleek steel stairs, Muuto Dot hooks and hidden fixtures create a quietly clever moment of welcome.
A 16-foot island anchors this West Coast kitchen, where sculptural lighting and rich textures bring new life to a 1970s cedar-framed home.
Curved lines, rust-red cabinetry and oak above create a warm, modern kitchen that’s deeply grounded in its surroundings.
A high-gloss Venetian plaster ceiling mirrors the ocean below, while curves, custom textures and a central hearth soften the space into something sculptural and serene.
Soft curves and colour-blocked cabinetry turn this family kitchen into a masterclass in playful minimalism.
A vestibule wrapped in blush and curves gives way to a powder room where olive speckle and dusty rose meet in a playfully modern palette.
A velvet sofa, moody lighting and fieldstone walls turn this former dining room into a Tuscan-inspired retreat for music, wine and winding down.
A playful mix of poured copper, leafy lanterns and handcrafted resin stools gives this modern tea shop its moody glow—steeping tradition in a whole new light.
At this Calgary clinic, terracotta tones and softly sculpted walls turn checkups into spa moments.
Cork floors, terracotta cabinets and bold-veined quartzite turn this hardworking kitchen into a warm, grounded showpiece.
A once-pink ensuite gets a moody makeover with sculptural quartzite, soft drapery and spa-calibre calm.
Neutral tones, natural textures and thoughtful storage define this 575-square-foot lakeside retreat in Whistler.
Smoky millwork, dimmable lighting and a built-in vinyl nook turn this den into a moody little sanctuary.
From rattan screens to polished stone and custom lighting, this Saigon-inspired spot layers tactile materials with nostalgic nods to create an intimate yet playful bar experience.
What was once a bare concrete box is now a textural, hotel-inspired retreat: a bespoke wall of walnut wardrobes anchors the space, while boucle, brass and colour-layered textiles warm up every surface.
A blackened metal range hood and painted brick walls bring bold counterpoint to this serene, marble-wrapped space of creamy cabinetry and classic brass.
Wrapped by a sculptural staircase, this soaring two-storey steel-and-glass wine cellar takes cues from old-world European elevators.
Tucked behind a hidden millwork door, this bold jewel-box of a powder room features a floating walnut vanity, brass accents and a deep green concrete sink.
Every room in this South Vancouver heritage home is a masterclass in emotional resonance, wrapped in rusts, olives, and vintage-modern charm.
Glossy indigo tile, carmine-red corridors and a custom fir bar set the stage for charcoal-fired yakitori in this cinematic, Japanese-meets-hip-hop dining room.
A serene retreat in North Vancouver, this bedroom and ensuite pares back visual noise with organic textures, soft tones and timeless West Coast touches.
A home built for artists, bathed in shifting Nelson light—seasonally filtered through louvers, framing, and thoughtful subtraction.
A sun-drenched centrepiece wrapped in Douglas fir and copper, the Lola bar balances warmth with architectural precision.
A built-in banquette wrapped in warm millwork makes this mountain-view nook the perfect pause.
The editorial team at Western Living loves nothing more than a perfectly designed space, place or thing: and we’re here to tell you about it. Email us your pitches at [email protected].
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