ABOUT MAKER OF THE YEAR 2025

ENTRIES OPEN 19 FEBRUARY 2025

The Maker of the Year Awards, presented by Carbatec, are back! With a prize pool valued at more than $19,000, we're looking for the most talented, creative and innovative woodworkers from Australia and around the world. Will you make the Top 100 in 2025?

Maker of the Year opens for entries 19 February 2025 and closes Thursday 4 September 2025. Winners, Runners Up and Top 100 entries will be announced in Wood Review magazine's December 2025 edition. Winners and Runners-Up will also be announced at www.woodreview.com.au. Award winners will also be individually notified by email.

Each year, the Top 100 entries from Maker of the Year are published in a special issue of Wood Review. Click the image above to see the Top 100 entries from Maker of the Year 2023.

WHO CAN ENTER?

Entry is open to amateur, professional and student woodworkers from around the world.

The ‘Student’ category is only open to those enrolled in secondary or tertiary education or private school classes in 2024/2025. When you enter, please indicate if you are a Secondary or Tertiary student and the school you attend.

WHAT CAN YOU ENTER?

Your entry must be made mainly from wood, however other materials may be incorporated.

Projects submitted for the Awards must have been completed after 30 June 2022.

Entries submitted in previous year’s competitions (Maker of the Year Awards 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024) may not be entered in this year's competition (Maker of the Year Awards 2025).

You may enter as many times, and in as many categories, as you like. You may also enter the same piece in different categories if you wish.

PRICING AND DEADLINES

The Maker of the Year Awards are open until Thursday 4 September 2025 (11:59pm, AEDT). Note that the entry price increases throughout the program to encourage people to enter earlier.

EARLY BIRD (19 February to Sunday 26 April 2025)
$30 ($20 Student)

STANDARD (27 April to Sunday 10 August 2025)
$39 ($25 Student)

LAST MINUTE (11 August to Thursday 4 September 2025)
$49 ($30 Student)

Price is per entry (includes five images per project). All prices are in Australian dollars (AUD). (AUD$30 is approximately US$20, €20 or £16.)

FURNITURE CATEGORY

The Furniture category is for tables, chairs, desks, cabinets, chests and other furniture items. This category is open to local and international makers.

Two winner prizes and two Runner-Up prizes will be awarded in this category:

Furniture Winner (Australian)
Australian Winner will receive a $1,500 voucher from Carbatec, plus a Felder prize pack valued at $1,000.

Furniture Winner (International)
International Winner will receive A$2,500 cash.

Furniture Runner-Up (Australian)
Australian Runner-Up will receive a $1,000 voucher from Carbatec, plus a Whittle Waxes prize pack valued at $500.

Furniture Runner-Up (International)
International Runner-Up will win A$1,000 cash.

Entrants in the Furniture, Arts & Objects and Student categories category will also be considered for the Jan Pennell Woodturning Award (A$1,500 prize) and the Recycled & Rescued Award (A$1,000 prize).

ART & OBJECTS CATEGORY

The Art & Objects category is for non-furniture entries. It includes jewellery and document boxes, lighting, lamps, musical instruments, sculptures and hand tools. Kitchen- and tableware such as serving boards, bowls, spoons and other utensils are also included. This category is open to local and international makers.

Two winner prizes and two Runner-Up prizes will be awarded in this category:

Art & Objects Winner (Australian)
Australian Winner will receive a $1,500 voucher from Carbatec, plus a $1,000 Fides Australia pack.

Art & Objects Winner (International)
International Winner will receive A$2,500 cash.

Art & Objects Runner-Up (Australian)
Australian Runner-Up will receive a $1,000 voucher from Carbatec, plus a Whittle Waxes prize pack valued at $500.

Art & Objects Runner-Up (International)
International Runner-Up will win A$1,000 cash.

STUDENT CATEGORY

This is an open-themed category open to high school and tertiary students enrolled in full- or part-time study in 2024/2025. When you enter, please indicate if you are a Secondary or Tertiary student and the school you attend. This category is open to local and international student makers.

Two prizes will be awarded in this category:

Winner, Tertiary Student
Tertiary Student Winner will receive A$1,000 cash.

Winner Secondary Student
Secondary Student Winner will receive A$1,000 cash.

JAN PENNELL WOODTURNING AWARD

The Jan Pennell Award will be made to an entry that displays outstanding woodturning. This entry will be selected from the Top 100 shortlisted entries across all Maker of the Year categories including Furniture, Arts & Objects and Student. Local and international makers are eligible to win this award. This prize is awarded in memory of Jan Pennell. Prize: A$1,500.

RECYCLED & RESCUED AWARD

The Recycled & Rescued Award will be made to an entry that displays outstanding use of Recycled and Reused materials. This entry will be selected from the Top 100 shortlisted entries across all Maker of the Year categories including Furniture, Arts & Objects and Student. Local and international makers are eligible to win this award. Prize: A$1,000

ENTRY PREPARATION

Quality images will best showcase your piece – good lighting and focus are important; look for simple backgrounds. Your entry images should include at least one overview image that shows the entire work, and closeups that show key details. Collages of multiple images are not invited. The judges will also look at your entry description – describe your design concept, materials and techniques in 200 words or so.

For each category you must submit 5 images of one final project.
Image format: Images should be in JPEG (.jpg), PNG (.png) or GIF (.gif) format. Please note, we recommend JPEG format which offers the best image quality at a smaller file size. GIF images may be useful to show animated sequences, however the quality for still images tends to be lower. PNG files may be used, though the file size tends to be around twice that of a comparable JPG, for the same quality.
Image dimensions: Ideally images should be 2500px, or more, on the longest edge.
Image file size: Individual image file size must be no larger than 5MB.
Images should not include watermarks, branding or text.
You may enter multiple categories, if eligible, and/or the same category multiple times.

OPTIONAL VIDEO LINK

Entrants have the option to submit a link to a video/reel “tour” of their entry, suggested length is no longer than 45 seconds. Send links via DM (direct message) to Wood Review's Instagram or Facebook pages (preferred), or email to moty@woodreview.com.au. Content should be unbranded, without text or graphic overlays. Videos will not be used in the judging process, but may be used to showcase a particular entry on woodreview.com.au or Wood Review’s Facebook or Instagram pages. Submitting a video link is optional and not required to enter Maker of the Year.

JUDGES

Maker of the Year will be judged by a panel of leading woodworkers and designers. Judges will be announced in July 2025.

RECOGNITION

Category Winners and Runners-Up, along with the Top 100 finalists, will be recognised in the December 2025 issue of Australian Wood Review magazine. A parallel announcement, naming Winners and Runners-Up will be made at www.woodreview.com.au at the end of November 2025.

In December 2025, award winners, including Commended entries, will be notified via e-mail, confirming their placing (Participation, Commended, Highly Commended, Top 100, runners-up and category winners) in the competition. Award winners will also receive an digital certificate, like the one pictured, showing their result in the competition.

MADE A MISTAKE?

Don't worry. If you've uploaded the incorrect image, entered the wrong category, or you're just not sure what to do, drop us an e-mail explaining the problem and we'll get back to you as soon as we can.