Built for Home 2026 Awards: Our Favorite Interior Design and Finishing Products

Kerf Design creates custom plywood cabinetry and storage systems that treat construction as part of the design. Built in Seattle, its cabinets feature exposed plywood edges, visible joinery, integrated hand notches, wood veneers, and colorful laminate fronts rather than concealing how the pieces are made. Each project is built to order around the room, the objects being stored, and the way the space will be used. Kerf’s designers develop custom layouts for kitchens, bathrooms, home offices, shelving, and built-ins, while its modular Kerf Wall system extends that same approach to adjustable wall storage. For architects and interior designers, the result is cabinetry that functions as both storage and a defining material element within contemporary residential interiors.

Virginia Sin is the Brooklyn-based multidisciplinary designer and creative force behind SIN, a home goods brand rooted in timeless form and functional beauty. The brand’s work spans handcrafted wall sconces, pendants, table lamps, shelving, hooks, mirrors, tabletop pieces, and decorative objects, combining sculptural forms with the visible character of hand-finished clay and other materials. For architects and interior designers, the appeal is in the balance between craft and specification flexibility. Selected lighting is available in hardwired and damp-rated configurations, while collections such as FIELD use interchangeable ceramic backplates, diffuser shades, and hardware finishes to create a wide range of combinations within a consistent architectural form. The result is lighting and decorative detail that brings a distinctly handmade material quality into contemporary interiors without sacrificing the practical requirements of residential specification.

Richlite manufactures paper composite architectural surfaces in Tacoma using layers of paper infused with thermosetting resin and compressed under heat and pressure. The result is a dense, durable material with the warmth of a natural surface and the machinability needed for countertops, furniture, casework, wall panels, and other custom applications. Sustainability is built into both the material and manufacturing approach. Richlite’s Northwest collection is made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper, while its collections use FSC-certified paper from responsibly managed sources. The company also diverts manufacturing trim for reuse as fuel and offers products with certifications and disclosures including HPD, GREENGUARD, Declare, and NSF. For architects, interior designers, and fabricators, Richlite offers an alternative to stone and conventional solid-surface materials that can be cut, routed, drilled, and shaped into detailed architectural forms while maintaining a distinctive matte, tactile appearance.

Copper is rethinking residential electrification with Charlie, a full-size 30-inch induction range with an integrated battery. Instead of requiring the 240-volt circuit typically needed for a high-powered electric range, Charlie plugs into a standard 120-volt outlet and uses its onboard 5 kWh battery to provide additional power when cooking demands it. That approach can simplify gas-to-induction conversions in existing homes, apartments, and multifamily projects where rewiring or upgrading electrical service would add cost, permitting, or construction complexity. Charlie also delivers the performance advantages of induction, with Copper reporting that it can boil water and preheat the oven 3–4 times faster than gas. Its integrated battery can also keep the range operating during a power outage. For architects, kitchen designers, remodelers, and developers, Charlie offers an unusual combination: the performance and control of induction cooking with an installation strategy designed around existing residential electrical infrastructure.

Nexus 21 manufactures motorized TV lifts, moving wall mounts, projector lifts, and concealment systems that allow technology to become part of the architecture instead of dominating it. Its mechanisms can raise televisions from custom cabinetry, lower them from ceilings, reposition screens for viewing, or conceal equipment when it is not in use. For architects, interior designers, cabinetmakers, and AV integrators, the value extends beyond concealment. Nexus 21 products can integrate with home control platforms including Control4, Crestron, Lutron, Savant, and others, allowing screen movement to become part of a broader automated environment. Systems can also be controlled through IR, IP, RF, or contact closure depending on the application. That combination of architectural integration and control-system compatibility gives project teams more freedom to place technology where it works best without making the screen the permanent focal point of the room.

Accurate Lock and Hardware manufactures architectural locks and door hardware designed around how people across ages actually use doors. Its Aging in Place solutions include low-resistance sliding door systems, low-force push paddles, reduced-rotation latches, high-visibility hardware, and pocket door sets developed to make doors easier and safer to operate for people with limited strength, mobility, or vision. That problem-solving approach extends across a much broader architectural hardware line. Accurate produces mortise and tubular locks, pocket and sliding door systems, narrow-backset locks, flush and edge pulls, hinges, electrified hardware, and SmartEntry locks that integrate smartphone access without exposing electronics on the door. For architects, builders, and hardware specifiers, the range helps address everything from accessibility and constrained door geometry to concealed sliding doors, security, and coordinated finish details. The result is hardware that can solve highly specific functional requirements while maintaining the visual standards expected in custom residential interiors.

Earthaus Plaster creates lime-based plasters and mineral finishes designed around natural materials, breathability, and material transparency. Its interior finishes use ingredients such as hydrated lime, pumice, cellulose binders, and mineral pigments to create surfaces ranging from smooth and polished to coarse and matte. Several of its core plaster products are made from 100% natural materials with zero VOCs or chemical additives. For architects and interior designers, the wellness story extends beyond what is left out of the formulation. Lime finishes are naturally breathable and help manage moisture, while products such as Marble and Base Plaster are described as mold-resistant. Earthaus also provides Healthy Product Declarations for its primary plaster systems, giving project teams greater visibility into material composition when specifying healthier interiors. The range includes Tadelakt, Marble, Stone, Sand, and Base plasters, along with limewash, lime slurry, and exterior lime stucco, allowing the same mineral-based material language to carry across walls, ceilings, fireplaces, wet areas, and other architectural surfaces.

Chasing Paper makes it easier to bring pattern, color, and personality into a space with removable peel-and-stick wallpaper designed for straightforward installation and removal. Its self-adhesive material can be installed without paste, while pre-cut panels and installation guidance help simplify measuring, alignment, and application. The brand extends well beyond temporary wallcoverings. Chasing Paper also offers traditional nonwoven wallpaper, faux grasscloth, matte performance vinyl, murals, fabrics, and peel-and-stick tile decals, giving architects and interior designers multiple material options for different levels of permanence, durability, and project use. Its Type II faux grasscloth and matte vinyl products are designed for higher-traffic residential and commercial environments, while custom colors, prints, and sizes are available through its trade program. For professionals, the result is a broad decorative surface collection that can move from easily changeable residential installations to more permanent, specification-driven applications while maintaining a consistent design language.

Challenge Program Furniture builds handcrafted hardwood furniture while creating paid training and employment opportunities for young adults facing barriers to employment. The Wilmington workshop operates as a social enterprise of The Challenge Program, combining high-end furniture production with workforce development. All proceeds from furniture sales are reinvested into the nonprofit program. For architects and interior designers, the appeal extends well beyond the mission. The shop produces dining tables, desks, credenzas, benches, coffee tables, built-ins, and other custom pieces using premium domestic hardwoods, traditional joinery, and project-specific dimensions and finishes. Locally sourced, sustainably harvested, and reclaimed wood is used when possible, while selected apprentices work alongside experienced furniture makers through the full process from material selection and milling to joinery and finishing. The result is furniture with a clear design and craftsmanship story, backed by a business model that turns each project into an investment in skills, employment, and long-term opportunity.