Macclesfield is an ancient Cheshire town that stands beneath the sprawling & beautiful Peak District. It is Cheshires furthest outpost before taking the road into Derbyshire & many years ago entered the Industrial Revolution in a more genteel manner perhaps by becoming a silk town. Here all manner of silk items were manufactured such as the narrowest ribbons & the best of silks & satins. It is the perfect place to explore Macclesfield Forest & the Cheshire Peak District but the town itself has plenty to offer including the Heritage Centre with its museums & tea room. Paul Hurley has carefully selected modern & old views to paint a nostalgic historical portrait so enjoy this pictorial tour of the town & see what is here now & compare it to what was here many years ago. ...

A treasure trove of adventures Macedonia is emerging as a top new tourist destination. With unspoilt mountains lakes & spas traces of old communism & friendly hospitality at rural boutique hotels its not hard to see why. The wines are rich the history steeped & the culture varied. This remains the only standalone English-language guide to the country & the author shares her love of the country with expanded coverage of eastern Macedonia & its hot springs rock art & megalithic observatory. For travellers with special interests there is coverage of the World War I battlefields new eco-tourism lodges food & hiking routes. ...

The death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC threw the Macedonians into confusion; there was no capable heir & no clear successor among the senior figures in Alexanders circle. Initial attempts to preserve the unity of Alexanders conquests gave way to a period of bloody & prolonged warfare. For well over a century the largely mercenary armies of Alexanders successors imposed their influence over the whole of the Near East while absorbing local military practices. After Romes decisive defeat of Carthage in 202 BC Macedonia came under increasing pressure from the Romans. Three wars between the two powers culminated in the Roman victory at Pydna in 168 BC which laid Alexanders empire to rest & established Roman hegemony in the Near East. Drawing upon a wide array of archaeological & written sources & written by a noted authority on the Hellenistic period this survey of the organization battle history & appearance of the armies of Alexanders successors is lavishly illustrated with specially commissioned full-colour artwork. ...

Spend Christmas with Nora Roberts. Daniel Mac Gregor is the clan patriarch. Hes powerful rich
- & determined to see his three career-minded
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Machiavellis New Modes & Orders" is the only full-length interpretive study on Machiavellis controversial & ambiguous work " Discourses on Livy." These discourses considered by some to be Machiavellis most important work are thoroughly explained in a chapter-by-chapter commentary by Harvey C. Mansfield one of the worlds foremost interpreters of this remarkable philosopher. Mansfields aim is to discern Machiavellis intention in writing the book: he argues that Machiavelli wanted to introduce new modes & orders in political philosophy in order to make himself the founder of modern politics. Mansfield maintains that Machiavelli deliberately concealed part of his intentions so that only the most perceptive reader could see beneath the surface of the text & understand the whole of his book. Previously out of print Mansfields penetrating study brings to light the hidden thoughts lurking in the details of the " Discourses on Livy" to inform & challenge its readers at every step along the way." ...

Building on the success of her previous books Alison Holt shows you how to produce incredible seascapes using various combinations of just two simple machine stitches. The techniques are broken down into clear step-by-step instructions & there are five stunning projects as well as many examples of Alisons original & exquisite work to delight & inspire you. Alison paints her threads on to h&-coloured backgrounds blending her stitches & achieving stunning results. The raised effects of the embroidery produce a beautiful three-dimensional look & her clever use of perspective is effective & easily achieved. This book covers everything including the materials required; how to compose a picture from photographs that have inspired you; painting backgrounds; & all the basic stitch techniques you need to know. Detailed instructions explain how to create realistic scenes from the sunlit glow of the Mediterranean to the drama of a stormy windswept beach in winter. Alison also introduces a new technique that combines paper fabric & stitch to produce embroideries with a more abstract feel. This is an inspirational book for artists embroiderers & textile artists alike & a must-have instructional book for anyone interested in learning about free-motion machine embroidery. ...

Embroider leathers silks synthetics & chiffons successfully every time! When you love to machine embroider you cant wait to add your special touch to clothing accessories & decorative items. For many fabrics your tried-&-true methods work fine. But what about those other fabrics? You know the ones that pucker & run...buckle & stretch...break your thread...or bury your embroidery in mounds of plush pile? With the expert advice in Machine Embroidery on Difficult Materials you can embroider even the most challenging materials with consistently beautiful results. Deborah Jones has embroidered it all from slippery synthetic sheers to the thickest velvet. In this authoritative reference she unlocks the secrets to embroidering on 18 of the most tempting yet challenging

Materials: Unstable fabrics: Lightweight knits stretch knits bulky knits gauze Densely woven fabrics: Lightweight nylon coarse nylon polyester satin & acetate silk charmeuse Pile & napped fabrics: Velvet terry fleece faux fur Sheers: Natural-fiber & synthetic Unfabrics": Vinyl faux suede leather This complete reference puts everything you need at your fingertips: Which needles stabilizers marking & hooping methods work best for each fabric Clear empowering explanations so youll know why these challenging fabrics behave (and misbehave) the way they do 18 beautiful projects (how many embroidery designs & how many projects) Bonus CD-ROM with more than 20 fabric-specific project designs in 12 file formats"

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' Some bright kid's got a gun & 2000 rounds of live ammo. & that gun's no peashooter. It'll go through a brick wall at a quarter of a mile.' Chas Mc Gill has the second-best collection of war souvenirs in Garmouth & he desperately wants it to be the best. When he stumbles across the remains of a German bomber crashed in the woods
- its shiny black machine-gun still intact
- he grabs his chance. Soon he's masterminding his own war effort with dangerous & unexpected results......not just the best book so far written for children about the Second World War but also a metaphor for now."
- Aidan Chambers " Times Literary Supplement"."


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Machine Embroidery is hugely exciting in terms of its potential as a creative medium & is part of a flourishing creative industry both in design & production. MMU hosts a specialist embroidery department which has been instrumental in artistic & educational innovations in this area since the 1960s. The lecturers graduates & students have remarkable expertise in machine embroidery & MMU is home to a rich & unique archive of machines samples & artwork both historical & contemporary. This book will celebrate this archive as well as providing the only definitive record (and exploring the potential) of the huge number of machines currently in use from the traditional Irish Embroidery machine to the new generation of computerised sewing machines. The book will demonstrate how key machines can be applied to the artistic industrial & domestic practice & shows machine embroiderers how to combine techniques & develop their ideas using machine embroidery. Each contributor gives their own individual perspective on machine stitch. ...

' You talk as if a god had made the Machine cried the other. I believe that you pray to it when you are unhappy. Men made it do not forget that.' E.M. Forster is best known for his exquisite novels but these two affecting short stories brilliantly combine the fantastical with the allegorical. In The Machine Stops" humanity has isolated itself beneath the ground enmeshed in automated comforts & in " The Celestial Omnibus" a young boy takes a trip his parents believe impossible. This book contains " The Machine Stops" & "A Celestial Omnibus"." ...