Kitchen Centric puts a new spin on the typical kitchen design book by offering readers a book that is part art book, part fantasy, and part field guide. Internationally known kitchen designer Mick De Giulio takes readers on a guided tour through eighteen of his favorite kitchen projects in urban lofts, suburban homes, manor houses, mountain retreats, and an early twentieth-century barn. Delicious photographs roll through these kitchens, one after the next, like short films. Words are few, but critical if a bit quirky, like excerpts from De Giulio's own designer's journal. He takes his audience behind the scenes, explaining his challenges, his thinking, his choices, his process, and ultimately, his belief that kitchens are more central to American homes than ever before.
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Editorial Reviews
Review
"Every once in a while a home design book comes along that perfectly illustrates an achievable ideal that is based in reality as much as it is in dreams. "Kitchen Centric" (Balcony Press, 2010), by local kitchen design maestro Mick De Giulio and former Chicago Tribune reporter Karen Klages Grace, is just such a book. It explains not only 'how to do it,' but why we want to, in lavish style...page through this gorgeous 5-pound coffee table book and you'll be ready to move right in to one of De Giulio's 18 gorgeous creations."
- Chicago Tribune, Ultimate Address, February 2011
"Designing heart-of-the-home kitchens is De Giulio's forte, and here the kitchen guru shares his artful approach to creating functional and magical "kitchens that sing."
- Amy Elbert, Traditional Home, October 2010
"Master kitchen designer Mick De Giulio's new book is part manifesto, part career retrospective, 100 percent inspiring."
- Jan Parr, Chicago Home & Garden, November/December 2010
"As the place where you often entertain your guests, kitchens are important parts of the home. Peer through many inspiring and inventive designs in Kitchen Centric by Mick De Giulio and Karen Klages Grace for ideas that will blow you away."
- Melissa Sundardas, Dolce Vita, Fall 2010
- Chicago Tribune, Ultimate Address, February 2011
"Designing heart-of-the-home kitchens is De Giulio's forte, and here the kitchen guru shares his artful approach to creating functional and magical "kitchens that sing."
- Amy Elbert, Traditional Home, October 2010
"Master kitchen designer Mick De Giulio's new book is part manifesto, part career retrospective, 100 percent inspiring."
- Jan Parr, Chicago Home & Garden, November/December 2010
"As the place where you often entertain your guests, kitchens are important parts of the home. Peer through many inspiring and inventive designs in Kitchen Centric by Mick De Giulio and Karen Klages Grace for ideas that will blow you away."
- Melissa Sundardas, Dolce Vita, Fall 2010
From the Author
When I look at the kitchens in this book, I see my clients before anything else. Clients design their own kitchen, whether they know it or not. People feed me clues, and they may be as tangible as a photograph or as vague as a word or feeling. One client told me she wanted her kitchen to be breezy and elegant, like the feeling she had at Villa D'Este on Lake Como in Italy, where men dress up for breakfast. Another client showed me a bowl she bought in Positano, Italy. She loved the colors and the feel of it.
With that data and some measurements, my design process begins, and it can be similarly amorphous. I do not believe in hard-and-fast rules (other than the law of function, because a kitchen has to work), just as I do not believe in following stylistic trends. The best kitchens defy labels and have their own personality and are beautiful no matter what the style.
What I do keep in my mind's eye are certain guiding principles - or tenets - of good design. Over the years, I have established seven of them, seven overriding ideas that I have found to be important to this process of creating something very special.
- Mick De Giulio
With that data and some measurements, my design process begins, and it can be similarly amorphous. I do not believe in hard-and-fast rules (other than the law of function, because a kitchen has to work), just as I do not believe in following stylistic trends. The best kitchens defy labels and have their own personality and are beautiful no matter what the style.
What I do keep in my mind's eye are certain guiding principles - or tenets - of good design. Over the years, I have established seven of them, seven overriding ideas that I have found to be important to this process of creating something very special.
- Mick De Giulio
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More About the Author
Since founding de Giulio kitchen design in 1984, Mick De Giulio has been creating kitchens for distinctive residences throughout the United States and abroad. In 2003, he was named a Kitchen and Bath Design Leader by Interior Design magazine and in 2005 was recognized by Kitchen and Bath Business magazine as one of the 50 most influential people in the kitchen and bath industry over the last 50 years. He has designed best-selling collections for high-end German kitchen manufacturer SieMatic Corporation, including the BeauxArts Collection; he was commissioned by Kallista (a Kohler company) to design a collection of sinks that was launched in April 2011 and named Best of Year by Interior Design magazine in December 2011; and he designed the Kitchen of the Year for House Beautiful magazine -- showcased in New York's Rockefeller Center in July 2012. www.degiuliodesign.com
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 15 people found the following review helpful
By Rose
Format:Hardcover
I love this book!
I'm passionate about architecture and design, and for years have been collecting ideas for my "dream house". This book has sticky notes on more pages than I care to count. The concept of KItchen Centric is that today's kitchens are the hub of the home, the physical center of family life. That's certainly true for my family. To that end, DeGiulio showcases kitchens that are unique to the people that live in them. Admittedly these kitchens are very high end! And clearly beyond my budget. However I think many of the ideas could be interpreted at a price I can afford. But more importantly, I am totally jazzed about the way this book gets you to think about space and how you live in it. Furthermore, some of DeGiulio's "tenets" would apply to any area in your home, as he speaks about proportion, texture, light, function, etc. This book takes kitchen design to a whole new level! I can't imagine designing a kitchen, or a house, without it!
.
I'm passionate about architecture and design, and for years have been collecting ideas for my "dream house". This book has sticky notes on more pages than I care to count. The concept of KItchen Centric is that today's kitchens are the hub of the home, the physical center of family life. That's certainly true for my family. To that end, DeGiulio showcases kitchens that are unique to the people that live in them. Admittedly these kitchens are very high end! And clearly beyond my budget. However I think many of the ideas could be interpreted at a price I can afford. But more importantly, I am totally jazzed about the way this book gets you to think about space and how you live in it. Furthermore, some of DeGiulio's "tenets" would apply to any area in your home, as he speaks about proportion, texture, light, function, etc. This book takes kitchen design to a whole new level! I can't imagine designing a kitchen, or a house, without it!
.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
By Alain
Format:Hardcover
I am currently working on a new construction home and have purchased a ton of magazines looking for ideas. I had seen some of this author's kitchens in those magazines so I did a google search on him. I bought this book and I have found dozens of ideas in the photos. The first time through the book it is a bit overwhelming and all you see is the luxury. You have to look at the photos one kitchen at a time in order to get the ideas. That's when you start to see the design and detail. The magazines I bought were not long enough to get inspired. This book is not gonna change your life, but your family and friends may end up more spending more time with you in your new space. If you are remodeling a home or building from scratch this book will definitely give you some inspiration on building a comfortable meeting spot. I will definitely use this book as an inspiration guide throughout the build process.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
By Julia Dennis
Format:Hardcover
Its gorgeous and after receiving it, I couldn't wait to sit somewhere quiet and browse through it. The book is very well done with spectacular photography, and well written commentary on each kitchen design and how Mick De Giuilio brought his concepts to completion. It is full of great ideas for classy kitchen planning. Loved it.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best kitchen book
This book embodies all the relevant attributes that the finest and most liveable kitchens should possess. Read more
Published 14 months ago by lynne
1.0 out of 5 stars
Kitchen Boring
When I want to pick up a book about kitchens, I expect to see more pictures then words. Not the case with this book. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Jaime
5.0 out of 5 stars
Spectacular book
I bought this book with my interior decorator. Not a normal purchase for me as I tend to buy more home magazines and tear out ideas. Read more
Published on February 27, 2011 by afshan ahmed
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great!
My review is short: it's a great book. Inspirering of course. Informative. But most of all Mick de Giulio shows a new standard in kitchen design. Read more
Published on December 6, 2010 by Gejus van Diggele
5.0 out of 5 stars
Kitchen Centric
Exceptional book for professionals, as well as, individuals just interested in Kitchen Design. Beautiful presentation in photographs and clearly written. Read more
Published on August 30, 2010 by SCC
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