Mexicocina: The Spirit and Style of the Mexican Kitchen

Book Description

In the tradition of Chronicle Book's best-selling Mexicolor and Mexicasa, Mexicocina showcases over forty kitchens throughout Mexico. Melba Levick's stunning photographs and Betsy McNair's informative text and exciting recipes reveal the blend of native tradition, Old World ornamentation, and contemporary innovation that is the Mexican kitchen.

Mexicocina takes you behind the doors of private homes, museums, resorts, and cooking schools for an insider's tour of the kitchens of Mexico. Awash in bright colors and bold designs, each kitchen features traditional Mexican artistry flavored with the owners' distinctive style. Here, stainless steel meets colorful talavera tile, and the humble comal grill is as essential as a sleek appliance. Priceless collections of ceramics sit side-by-side with everyday dishware. And San Pasqual Bail n, the patron saint of cooks and kitchens, blesses every last handmade copper kettle, clay pot, and wooden spoon.

Inspiration abounds in these kitchens. Whether you're decorating a kitchen, planning a trip, or just dreaming of the rich aroma of caf de olla, Mexicocina takes you into the heart of the Mexican home, la cocina. And Mexicocina tantalizes more than just the eyes, featuring mouth-watering recipes for innovative Mexican dishes, from guacamole with fresh fruit to chile-scented chocolate truffles.

Customer Reviews:

Richly hued kitchens and cheerful decoraction.......2007-10-06

If you have a Spanish style home, or are merely interested in decoration, this is simply a wonderful book. The kitchens are all brilliant with color and festive with decoration. Lots of tile, alcoves, and sunny spaces captivate the eye. This is happy book, and full of inspiring ideas.

Another beautiful book in this great series.......2007-08-11

I'm addicted to Mexican style, colors, and design aesthetics. This newest book in the "Mexi-" series focuses entirely on kitchens. The photos are profuse with color, light, and (if you love this stuff the way I do) decorating ideas!

As a bonus, if you own all the books in this series (Mexicolor, Mexicasa, In a Mexican Garden, and Mexicocina), they themselves become a terrific Mexican-style design accent placed together on your bookshelf. :-)

Wonderfully Informative, 'Ole!.......2007-04-05

I ordered Mexicocina because I was looking for decorating ideas for my kitchen. But, I found so much more! This book is not only equipped with beautiful Mexican kitchens, but also the history behind the kitchens, and tasty recipes. Me and my husband's favorite country to visit is Mexico. This book gave us some great information on bed and breakfasts in different areas of Mexico.

This is a great coffee table book too!

Thank you,
Adrianna

A Functional Coffee Table Book !.......2007-01-11

My husband and I are building a new home in Mexico and wanted to make sure we kept it as authentic as possible, thus the book orders. This particular book is filled with spectacular photos of Mexican kitchens ranging from the most spectacular to the more common. Each page is filled with building ideas as well as decorating inspirations. Who would have thought of collecting beautifully carved wooden spoons for a wall display ! The authors include much narrative explaining background of the kitchens and various decorations/selections, as well as history. Everyone will enjoy the brilliant colors and artwork as each page is turned.

A Fascinating Tour of the Kitchens of Mexico.......2007-01-10

The pictures are glorious and the text is very well written, concise and informative. I have travelled to many of these kitchens with Betsy McNair and it's like taking the tour all over again. There's no better guide to Mexico than Ms. McNair. She really knows the history and the people. If you can't go with her in person then the book is the next best thing.

Average customer rating:

Awesome
Fresh, lively ideas for creating beautiful living spaces
African adaptability
in love with this book.
Beautiful and practical

African Style: down to the details
Sharne Algotsson
Manufacturer: Clarkson Potter
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Crafts & Hobbies | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Style | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0609605321
Release Date: 2000-10-24

Amazon.com

Brimming over with vibrant photography and inspiring projects, African Style sheds light on traditional textiles, colors, and materials used in a variety of African cultures and ways of adapting them to modern living. From the basic importance of paint to the fine details of accessories, author Sharne Algotsson (Spirit of African Design) and photographer George Ross have brought together a fabulous blend of creative inspiration, geographical and historical information, and easy projects that will have readers itching to add new style to their homes.

Algottson's suggestion of creating a color board when creating a new look for a room is invaluable. With a simple 11 x 17 sheet of art board, you can combine color chips and fabric scraps to achieve just the right look before making the more permanent commitment of painting the walls and buying new window coverings. Detailed explanations of color--indigo, orange, deep brown, red--will have you ready to take some risks and use those flamboyant shades in your home, while at the same time educate you on the cultural meanings behind some colors. Accompanying all these unique ideas and fascinating information are some truly stunning photographs captured with a playful eye. Ross uses a variety of unusual angles and lighting in his work that capture these glorious interiors in a fresh manner that will encourage you to beautify everything from the walls of your bedroom to the legs of your creaky old footstool. Patterns from Zulu baskets, Ewe cloth, Ashanti Adinkra symbols, and Asoke textiles are used with flair in every corner. Specific suggestions are included for recovering seat cushions, painting small pieces of furniture, and upholstering a headboard--all surprisingly simple projects that require little more than a paintbrush, a staple gun, and an artistic vision. --Jill Lightner

Book Description

"Today more and more of us are striving to bring personal meaning and beauty into our lives and homes. African style is the perfect way to express that joy in living, whether your look is formal, traditional, minimal, casual country, or eclectic," writes Sharne Algotsson in her stunning new book, African Style: Down to the Details. Following on the success of her first book, The Spirit of African Design, written with Denys Davis, Sharne now offers a gorgeous, hands-on guide to decorating any home with the richness of Africa.

Bursting with hundreds of full-color photographs, African Style: Down to the Details looks at a full range of home decorating options, with chapters on Color, Paint, and Pattern; Textiles; Furniture; Accessories and Display; and The Mix, which reveals how to coordinate all the elements to create a harmonious whole. Sharne offers a number of simple, inexpensive but exciting how-to projects that can revitalize a room, such as an African-Style Padded Window Cornice, as well as dramatic before-and-after photographs of quick makeovers for chairs, tables, mantels, and more.

Written by the leading expert in the field, this book is a treasure trove of practical advice, decorating tips, and insider shortcuts for incorporating the vibrant beauty of Africa into any home, on any budget. In addition, an extensive resources section makes it easy for readers to locate hard-to-find specialty stores and suppliers of textiles, furniture, and accessories. Whether you want to redecorate your entire home or simply add a few fresh accents, African Style: Down to the Details is a dazzling celebration of the continent's unparalleled aesthetic.

Customer Reviews:

Awesome.......2006-08-22

I was given this book as a gift...inspiration in my quest to add African design to my new home. Initially, I presumed it was a book of templates I could use in my home. Not at all! This author teaches you how to design and consistently encourages you to "interpret Africa in your own way". She expounds on the differing design styles in north, south, east and west Africa and the influences that explain the wide variety of styles. Should this author publish another home design book, I will purchase it. Guests in my home are in awe of the beautiful African designs!!!

Fresh, lively ideas for creating beautiful living spaces.......2002-03-16

I love this book and have already re-done my bedroom and study "African style". I bought this with "Spirit of African Design" and together they have given me new ideas on how to use color, fabric and paint to create beautiful living spaces. I had gotten so bored with the standard decorating ideas, and this has opened a whole new world to me. I cannot wait to do more!

African adaptability.......2001-05-22

I purchased African Style hoping it would help me decorate my Master Bathroom in an African theme. Although there is not a decorated bathroom in this book, that didn't matter. I was able to adapt all of the elements I admired into this room. Therefore , I find the book to be highly adaptable for any room in anyone's home.

The listed resources and contacts remind the reader that there is a real, tangible person on the other end who is willing to help!

in love with this book........2001-04-09

Hats off to Sharne Algotsson. I love This second book. The color palettes are breathtaking, the design ideas are easily digestble anf the text was clear and to the point. What a great book.

Beautiful and practical.......2001-03-20

Sharne Algotsson has managed the feat of writing a book that is both a coffee table book, thanks to the beautiful color palettes and G. Ross' magnificent photography, as well a a useful how-to book. This book will be attractive to anyone who would like to beautify their interior, even if they are not specifically searching for "Africanness": the color combinations are so elegant and warm, any home will benefit!

Race and Ethnicity: Across Time, Space and Discipline (Studies in Critical Social Sciences)

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Race and Ethnicity: Across Time, Space and Discipline (Studies in Critical Social Sciences)

Manufacturer: Brill Academic Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

African-American & Black | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Biographies & Memoirs | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Home & Garden | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Nonfiction | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books

Professional | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 9004139915

Bringing Tuscany Home: Sensuous Style From the Heart of Italy

Average customer rating:

How can a Frances Mayes book be anything but fabulous??
Great photos
Really Let Down by this book.
terrific service
Enough already!!

Bringing Tuscany Home: Sensuous Style From the Heart of Italy
Frances Mayes , and Edward Mayes
Manufacturer: Broadway
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Style | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Essays & Travelogues | Reference & Tips | Travel | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0767917464
Release Date: 2004-10-05

Book Description

I always imagine each of the signoras who lived in this house—where she shelled peas, rocked the grandchild, placed a vase of the pink roses. Now I would like to take one of these women back to my house in California to show her how Bramasole traveled to America and took root, how the doors there are open to the breeze from San Pablo bay and to the distant view of Mount Tamalpais, how the table has expanded and the garden has burgeoned…

The “bard of Tuscany” (New York Times) now offers a lavishly illustrated book for everyone who dreams of integrating the Tuscan lifestyle—from home decoration and cooking, to eating and drinking, to gardening, socializing, and celebrating—into their own lives.

When Frances Mayes fell in love with Tuscany and Bramasole, millions of readers basked in the experience through her three bestselling memoirs. Now Frances and her husband, In Tuscany coauthor Edward, share the essence of Tuscan life as they have lived it, with specific ideas and inspiration for readers stateside to bring the beauty and spirit of Tuscany into their own home decor, meals, gardens, entertaining and, most important, outlook on life. In her inimitable warm and evocative tone, Frances helps readers develop an eye for authentic Tuscan style, with advice on how to:

• Choose a Tuscan color palette for the home, from earthy apricot tones to invigorating shades of antique blue.

• Personalize a room with fanciful door frames, unique painted furniture, and fresco murals.

• Cultivate a Tuscan garden, adding fountains, vine-covered pergolas, and terra-cotta urns among the herbs and flowers

• Select the best Italian vino. (Frances describes lunches at regional vineyards and imparts tips for pairing food and wine.)

• Create an atmosphere of irresistible, anytime hospitality—a casa aperta (open home).

• Make primo finds at local antiques markets. (And to help truly bring Tuscany home, shipping advice and market days for several Tuscan towns are included.)

• Set an imaginative Tuscan table using majolica and vintage linens.

• Enjoy the abundant flavors and easy simplicity of the Tuscan kitchen, with details on everything from olive oil and vino santo to pici and gnocchi, plus special homegrown menus and recipes.

• Make the most of a trip to Tuscany, visiting Frances’s favorite hill towns, restaurants, small museums, and other soothing places.

With more than 100 photos by acclaimed photographer Steven Rothfeld (including several of the Mayes’s California home and its Tuscan accents), twenty-five all-new recipes, and lists of resources for travelers and shoppers, Bringing Tuscany Home is a treasure trove of practical advice and memorable images.

Customer Reviews:

How can a Frances Mayes book be anything but fabulous??.......2006-03-28

Francis Mayes does such an incredible job of bringing Tuscany to the rest of the world. This book includes fun recipes and beautiful photos...a joy to read!
--Vicki Landes, author of "Europe for the Senses - A Photographic Journal"

Great photos.......2006-01-15

This a wonderful exploration into Italian design. Loved it. Highly recommended for the designer or homeowner.

Really Let Down by this book........2005-12-06

I was so excited when I ordered this book and so let down after getting it and looking it over. The cover is VERY deceptive. This is NOT a style/decorating book. This is the story of a couple renovating a wonderful old home in Tuscany. It is well written and at times charming and warm. It is also often quite boring reading about what stone to pick for the house and who they visited and what wine they drank. It almost seems as if the author were forcing another book out for publication!! There are VERY FEW photos...barely any really in the book. The photos present are of wine, friends, a few of the house and a few of home decor/furniture layout, and food. The photos are very striking and pretty....if you enjoy seeing their friends and not really getting any basic decorating ideas. There are about 30 recipes and photos of the food, as I said above. Some recipes are nice but I really didn't see anything new and inspiring. A good Italian cookbook would be a better investment. As for the cover....it is very deceptive to say the least since it focuses on a very pretty vignette: furniture, art, pottery and style of arrangement. This is most definitely NOT what this book is about. In fact: I found the cover to be the best part of the book. I decided to return it and look for a better book really focusing on design. The author clearly loves Tuscany and if you want a nicely written and warm hearted book to read about hers and her husband's story of renovation, friends and their love of food, wine and Tuscany then you will like this book. It is not a picture book at all but rather a reading book with a story that seems rather forced and often VERY VERY boring and drawn out for the purpose of publication.

terrific service.......2005-10-03

ordered book as a gift and at the last minute. Afraid it would not arrive in time but I received it in less than a week. It was securely packaged and looked brand new. Great experience and will definitely order from vendor again

Enough already!!.......2005-08-19

In my opinion Ms. Mayes is doing for the literary world what Thomas Kincaid has done for art.

I was absolutely entranced with Italy after reading UNDER THE TUSCAN SUN.........and equally so with BELLA TUSCANY. I must admit that while I truly enjoyed the photographs contained in IN TUSCANY I was less than satisfied with the written content. I feel that the passion Ms. Mayes felt with her first book, and so openly shared with the readers, has wained with each successive book and she is nothing but commerical at this point.

I feel she has allowed celebrity and money to corrupt her art ..... much the same as Mr. Kincaid. So, when will we see the Bramasole tea towels or the Cortona coasters???

Average customer rating:

Mud Chic
Sindiwe Magona
Manufacturer: Quivertree Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Popular Culture | Social Sciences | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
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Shack Chic

ASIN: 0620353929

Book Description

In Xhosa culture the headman and elders of a tribe hold the key to all knowledge. In this compelling visual journey to the traditional dwellings and homesteads of the old Transkei, photographer Craig Fraser has elevated these rural abodes to a similar status. For the design, layout and materials used in these humble homes reveal much more than mere structure.

They reveal that dire poverty does little to dampen the irrepressible human impulse to adorn and beautify. Here the realities of daily life are manifest in no running water (some journey five times a day to collect water), no electricity and scant employment. And yet using little more than materials found in nature or sourced from the surrounding environment, the personality of each homeowner is expressed in a rich, elaborate vocabulary of symbols, geometric patterns, color and decorative detail that is uniquely individual to each.

Collectively these homes reveal the nature of society that lives according to the deep-seated values of a fast-vanishing way of life. Here life is lived in tune with nature and in cognizance of community. Here your worth-and your lifestyle-is measured by your number of cattle. Here the woman's place is at the wood pile and the man's is at the kraal. Here the headman decides where everyone lives and the ancestors dictate that one may never leave. It is here in every inch of a traditional rural dwelling that we find the ideological and decorative footprint of Xhosa culture.

Book Description

This volume, in honour of Professor Elena Lourie, focuses on various areas of interaction between Jews, Muslims and Christians in the late medieval Crown of Aragon and its environs. The articles deal with topics such as war, military campaigns, government, politics, and economics, relations between scholars of the different faiths and their sources, sexual relations and the politics of conversion, mythology and music. Other articles touch on issues such as vassalage, mercenaries, fiscal politics, communal politics and the inquisition. This book presents a mosaic of studies written by three generations of scholars who, using a broad variety of sources and methodologies, examine areas of great interest to Elena Lourie.

Style and Grace: African Americans at Home

Average customer rating:

I Absolutely Love This Book!
A must for Decorating Collectors
A gorgeous addition to the first survey to capture the spirit of African-Americans in their home design and decoration choices
A gorgeous addition to the first survey to capture the spirit of African-Americans in their home design and decoration choices
Beautiful, but missing something

Style and Grace: African Americans at Home
Mick Hales , and Michael Henry Adams
Manufacturer: Bulfinch
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Decorating | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

ASIN: 0821228471

Book Description

Known preservationist and expert on the architectural history of Harlem, Michael Henry Adams presents the stylish, elegant, and, above all, unique homes of distinguished African-American professionals and entertainers in luxurious detail. The first book of its kind, STYLE AND GRACE: AFRICAN AMERICANS AT HOME, is devoted exclusively to presenting the African-American tradition for flair and creativity in home design and decoration. This unique book celebrates the distinctive style of notable homeowners such as hip-hop entrepreneur Russell Simmons, photographer Gordon Parks, and Congressman Charles Rangel, as well as leading bankers, lawyers, artists, and other professionals who have utilized cultural elements and icons to create gorgeous home environments. Sumptuous original photography created expressly for this book by Mick Hales portrays the stunning elegance of the homes, while delightful accounts of each domain and its inhabitants will draw readers into these private worlds. This book is a rich portrait of African-American homes of style and beauty.

Customer Reviews:

I Absolutely Love This Book!.......2007-07-03

I borrowed this book from my local library for decor inspiration and because the photographs were stunning. I then purchased my own copy because I fell in love with the wonderful stories of the homeowners and the gorgeous pictures. While the majority of the homes featured are in the New York area, there is a wide range of home design on display here. My favorites were the NY townhomes as I just love the look of the woodwork and the beautiful fireplaces. Well worth it and makes a fine addition to any library or showpiece for your coffee table.

A must for Decorating Collectors.......2007-02-07

Style and Grace: African Americans at Home is a must for anyone that is an avid collector of diverse Interior Decorating styles. Even if you are just interested in designs for creating African interiors, or decorating styles of the artistic and eclectic, this is the one book to add to your collection. African objects mixed with art deco, classical, traditional and modern styles. The Exotic and Rustic to the Modern and Streamlined are showcased-all are a mixture of what we strive to achieve in our own homes.

The rooms in this book are actual, lived in rooms of everyday homes. Nothing seems staged or fussy. Masculine or Feminine...I found all these interiors very culturally urban. Comfortable, inspirational, unique and beautiful!

A gorgeous addition to the first survey to capture the spirit of African-Americans in their home design and decoration choices.......2006-05-22

If photographer Mick Hales' work in STYLE AND GRACE: AFRICAN AMERICANS AT HOME looks familiar, that's because his work has appeared in some top national magazines, from House and Garden to Vanity Fair. When paired with architectural historian Michael Henry Adams' work, it provides a gorgeous addition to the first survey to capture the spirit of African-Americans in their home design and decoration choices. A wide range of homes receive feature here, from that of hip-hop entrepreneur Russell Simmons to Congressman Charles Rangel: each surveys the style, intentions and outlook of the homeowner as well as the designer or architect involved.

Diane C. Donovan, Editor
California Bookwatch

A gorgeous addition to the first survey to capture the spirit of African-Americans in their home design and decoration choices.......2006-05-22

Beautiful, but missing something.......2004-01-25

If you're looking for a beautiful, decorative coffee-table book to fill space in your living quarters, look no further. STYLE AND GRACE: AFRICAN AMERICANS AT HOME is a beautiful escape inside the home of African American celebrities. Showing a diversity of styles and tastes, the reader is given a glimpse of quiet elegance, sophisticated clutter, and even over-indulgent artifacts. Showcasing the houses of celebrities such as Russell Simmons and Gordon Parks to Nancy Lane and Michael McCollom, this book is resplendent, and quite an inspiration to those who can afford to hire someone else to fix up their house.

Book Description

This volume serves as a guide to all facets of China study: from advice on choosing an appropriate literary dictionary to finding the most recent yearbooks that offer statistical data about the contemporary economy. China Bibliography does not restrict itself to one particular `discipline', but considers the development of Chinese civilization as a whole, from its imperial beginnings to the present, and therefore demonstrates how one would find information about Chinese history, literature, religion, linguistics, collectanea, as well as present day PRC economic and political policies. Because this book also explains how bibliographical data on China has accumulated over the last 300 years (including within China itself), it also may help the reader understand the significance of a particular type of reference work.

African Charismatics: Current Developments Within Independent Indigenous Pentecostalism In Ghana (Studies of Religion in Africa)

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African Charismatics: Current Developments Within Independent Indigenous Pentecostalism In Ghana (Studies of Religion in Africa)
J. Kwabena Asamoah-Gyadu
Manufacturer: Brill Academic Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Ghana | Africa | History | Subjects | Books

General | Interior Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Christianity | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

All Titles | Qualifying Textbooks - Fall 2007 | Stores | Books
ASIN: 9004140891

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