Kimball Home Collection A Pinnacle Award Finalist

Furniture World Magazine

Maple Creek by Kimball Home was one of four collections chosen as finalists for the American Society of Furniture Designers (ASFD) 1998 Pinnacle Design Achievement Award. The collection's designer-Ron Stilwell of Stilwell Associates, Inc., Lenoir, NC-was honored at the ASFD's Market Dinner and Presentation Program held in High Point on October 16, 1998. The purpose of the prestigious award is "to promote better design quality and encourage the recognition of furniture designers within the retail home furnishings industry." Finalists were chosen by a panel of eleven industry experts. Criteria for judging included value (defined as visual appearance combined with function) as well as efficient use of materials and production technology. Maple Creek was a finalist in the "Major Collections" category. (Alexander Julian won the award in this category for his Patterns collection for Universal Furniture Ltd.) Maple Creek features 38 solid maple living room, dining room and occasional items. Generous in scale, this furniture is enhanced with a rich maple finish which has been burnished, antiqued and distressed. Decorative rosettes, lion's paw feet, reeded legs and bun feet, broken pediment arches, chamfered corners and antiqued brass hardware are a few of the unifying design details. A very textural collection, Maple Creek uses "cool" materials---g lass shelves and tabletops, cultured marble insets, elements of wrought steel-to contrast with the warmth of the solid wood. The collection was introduced at the April 1998 International Home Furnishings Market in High Point. "I am thrilled that Maple Creek was a Pinnacle Award finalist!" exclaims Stilwell. "It's a tremendous honor. Our goal was to give this furniture a lot of richness and detail while maintaining Kimball's trademark emphasis on function. Being a finalist tells me we succeeded. Best of all, Maple Creek is already making waves in the marketplace- retailers love it and we can't wait to see consumer reaction!"