Belgard® Hardscapes Adds Style and Function To House Beautiful 5th Annual Kitchen of the Year Outdoor Living Area

Belgard® Hardscapes are laying the groundwork for this year’s House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year with donations of pavers, wall products and fire features that add style and function to the outdoor cooking and living space under construction in New York City’s Rockefeller Plaza.

The 2012 Kitchen of the Year event runs July 16-20, and the outdoor living area and fully functioning kitchen showcase the latest in hardscape trends, including large scale slab pavers, the creation of livable outdoor spaces for year-round use, and the natural transition of indoor-to-outdoor living.

“The outdoor kitchen has become a staple for the American home, and this year’s House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year gives great ideas for creating the ultimate outdoor space for cooking and socializing,” said Lou Mangiaracina, vice president of sales for Belgard Hardscapes/Anchor.

Designed by one of the very best kitchen designers in the industry Mick De Giulio, House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year’s outdoor kitchen and living areas feature oversized Medina Slab™ from Belgard that provides increased area coverage with fewer pieces, giving spaces grand appearances for a sleek, contemporary style with modern durability and design innovation. The Medina Slab is a brand new, limited availability product; Belgard plans to expand production in 2013.

Belgard’s Weston Stone®, which features a natural stone appearance, is used in the garden walls of the outdoor space. In the kitchen area, visitors to Kitchen of the Year will see two custom-made Belgard Elements Bristol fire tables in Cotswold Mist with

Brookstone Slate accents; the fire tables show homeowners how they can extend their outdoor living season with warmth and ambiance. The Belgard Elements custom-made kitchen cabinets and bar are made from Weston Stone in Cotswold Mist to complement the garden walls; the kitchen cabinetry and bar feature Urbana Stone banding in Brookstone Slate and a natural bluestone thermal-finish countertop.

Finally, the House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year outdoor kitchen features an Etna Grande brick oven from Chicago Brick Oven, with an insulating design that creates a heating envelope so the oven heats fast to high temperatures and remains cool on the outside for year-round enjoyment.

“Belgard Elements modular pieces are a great place to start when designing an outdoor kitchen,” Mangiaracina said. “They are cost effective and easy to install, and you never have to worry about how they will handle the heat of the kitchen. Belgard products are built to withstand sun, rain, fire and general wear and tear and will look beautiful for years to come.”

For more information on House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year and tips from designer Mick De Giulio, click here. To follow Belgard’s installation at Kitchen of the Year, visit www.facebook.com/BelgardHardscapes. For a full list of the week’s events, please visit www.facebook.com/HouseBeautiful.

About House Beautiful
House Beautiful is the leading authority on American home design and decoration, reaching more than seven million readers every month. Founded in 1896, House Beautiful is the oldest continuously published shelter magazine in the United States. In May 2012, House Beautiful won the American Society of Magazine Editors award for General Excellence in the Lifestyle Magazines category. In addition to its U.S. flagship, House Beautiful publishes two editions abroad. Readers also can interact with the brand digitally on House Beautiful mobile (m.housebeautiful.com) and through e-editions on Zinio, iPad, B&N Nook and Kindle Fire. House Beautiful is published by Hearst Magazines, the largest publisher of monthly magazines in the U.S. (ABC 2011), which reaches 82 million adults each month (Spring 2012 MRI). Follow House Beautiful on Twitter at @housebeautiful.

About de Giulio kitchen design
de Giulio kitchen design has two Chicago area showrooms, including one at LuxeHome in Chicago’s Merchandise Mart. The company was founded by Mick De Giulio over 25 years ago and is internationally recognized for innovative interior architecture and product design for kitchens. In addition to designing an extensive array of signature products under the de Giulio Collection label, Mick De Giulio has designed several best-selling product lines for the German kitchen cabinet manufacturer SieMatic, and a collection of sinks for Kallista (a Kohler company) which includes the Multiere, named Best of Year 2011 by Interior Design magazine.  Mick is a frequent speaker at industry events, his work has been extensively published both nationally and internationally, and in 2010, his first book, Kitchen Centric was released by Balcony Press. For more information on de Giulio kitchen design, visit www.degiuliodesign.com.
 
About Tishman Speyer
Tishman Speyer is the co-owner and manager of Rockefeller Center, the world-famous real estate, shopping and dining complex in the heart of midtown Manhattan.  Rockefeller Center is the site of numerous public exhibits and events, including large-scale installations of public art by world-renowned artists including Takashi Murakami, Jeff Koons and Jonathan Borofsky. Tishman Speyer has earned a worldwide reputation for innovative utilization of public art in its signature commercial properties, which include Rockefeller Center and Chrysler Center.  Tishman Speyer is committed to the preservation and restoration of Rockefeller Center and the historic Top of the Rock Observation Deck at Rockefeller Center, one of New York’s top attractions.  Each day an estimated 350,000 people visit the Rockefeller Plaza complex, which during the holidays is home to the most famous Christmas Tree in the world.

About Belgard Hardscapes
Since 1995, Oldcastle® has set the standard for innovative outdoor hardscapes with the Belgard® collection of paver and wall products. Offering a versatile range of styles - in antiqued, classic, and natural textures - premium Belgard products are found in America's finest homes and dream homes. When quality matters - Choose Belgard. 1-877-Belgard (235-4273). For additional information and product offerings from Belgard Hardscapes by Oldcastle, visit www.belgard.biz.