Garden & Gun reveals 'the best of Southern craftsmanship' with the 2012 Made in the South Winners

CHARLESTON, S.C., Nov. 15, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- If there is anything that this year's Made in the South Award winners proves, it is that craftsmanship is alive and well in Dixie. The editors for Garden & Gun announced the winners today and the list ranges from a traditional-with-a-twist rocking chair to a nutty raw-milk farmstead cheese to old-school marquee signage and duck calls.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121115/CL10975)

The awards were created to shine a light on the sophisticated design coming from the South and to celebrate the spirit of entrepreneurialism. This year, G&G editor-in-chief, David DiBenedetto, invited a who's-who list to help in the judging.  Categories include Home, Style/Design, Food and Outdoor. 

Judges included:

• Mike Lata, James Beard Award-winning chef, FIG Charleston
• Carrie & Matt Eddmenson, owners of the retail store, Imogene + Willie, Nashville
• Susan Hable Smith, Katharine Hable Sweeney, owners of Hable Construction
• T. Edward Nickens, G&G contributor, expert sportsman, and author of The Total Outdoorsman Manual

"The South has always been driven by artisans and craftsmen with talent and passion, and the record setting number of entrants in this year's Made in the South Awards continue to prove that. We're delighted to provide a platform for these entrepreneurs and share their work with the readers of G&G," says DiBenedetto.

The overall winner for the Made in the South Awards is Wood Studio for its Lookout Mountain Rocker – a signature piece that is hand-made with native woods such as walnut and cherry.  The frame of the rocker has minimalist lines that evoke both the old and the new and is covered in hand-stretched vegetable-dyed leather.  Randy Cochran and his two sons, Dylan and Keith, out of Arley, Alabama, run Wood Studio.

Category winners also included: Nature's Harmony Farm's Farmstead Cheese, Elberton, GA (Food), Sideshow Sign Co.'s Marquee Signs, Nashville, TN (Style/Design), and Kinney Legacy's Duck Calls, Ridgeland, MS (Outdoors.) Each of these winners will be featured along with runners-up items in the new issue of Garden & Gun (December/January 2013) on newsstands November 20^th.  For more information, please visit gardenandgun.com. 

About Garden & Gun   Garden & Gun is an award-winning national lifestyle magazine that covers the best of the South, including the sporting culture, the food, the music, the art, the literature, the people and their ideas.  Reaching a national audience of over 700,000 passionate and engaged readers, the magazine has won numerous awards for its journalism, design, and overall excellence. www.gardenandgun.com

Contact:
Sterling Eason
Director of Corporate Communications
Garden & Gun
[email protected]
(843) 737-9107 (office)
(843) 300-8879 (cell)
Twitter: @GardenandGunPR

SOURCE Garden & Gun