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From Home Furnishing Business
Katie Stout Wins ‘Ellen’s Design Challenge’
March 4,
2015 by in Designer Weekly 
A 26-year-old furniture designer from Brooklyn, N.Y., was crowned the first winner of HGTV’s “Ellen’s Design Challenge.”
Katie Stout will receive a $100,000 cash prize along with the title. The monetary award is funded by HGTV and Wayfair.
“Throughout the competition, Katie’s innovative, dynamic and exuberant pieces were beyond creative,” Ellen Degeneres said. “She constantly challenged herself and her final piece blew our minds.”
Stout’s final design was a console featuring unexpected materials and veneers and included a sliding side table and two stools of purpleheart wood.
“I competed on a national televised show with the best of the best and came out on top,” Stout said. “I see my future so differently now… and winning 'Ellen’s Design Challenge' is a life changer.”
The inaugural six-episode series, featured six competitors as they tackled ingenious challenges to sketch, design and build extraordinary furniture. The show required contestants to create inventive furniture designs to avoid elimination.