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Early in the present century the method generally adopted for polishing furniture was by rubbing with beeswax and turpentine or with linseed-oil. That process, however, was never considered to be very satisfactory, which fact probably led to experiments being made for the discovery of an improvement. The first intimation of success in this direction appeared in the Mechanic's Magazine of November 22, 1823, and ran as follows: "The Parisians have now introduced an entirely new mode of polishing, which is called plaque, and is to wood precisely what plating is to metal. The wood by some process is made to resemble marble, and has all the beauty of that article with much of its solidity. It is even asserted by persons who have made trial of the new mode that water may be spilled upon it without staining it." Such was the announcement of an invention which was destined ultimately to become a new industry.

This book takes your to the heart of this ancient craft with all the many recipies for creating the different effects.

124 pages (48 free)          PRICE £4.99

A Mystery tale set in the early days of the Film Industry with two young girls with aspirations to become film stars find themselves embroiled in a web of mystery and deceit whilst fighting to  lift themselves from poverty.

Pages 202          PRICE FREE

Complete Guide to French Polishing

Moving Picture Girls

                                                       A classic tale by Oscar Wilde ,the search for eternal youth, while the portrait remains unchanged all is well with our playboy

366 pages            PRICE FREE.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

This book is intended to give the reader an account of the origin and history of Hallowe'en, how it absorbed some customs belonging to other days in the year,-such as May Day, Midsummer, and Christmas. The context is illustrated by selections from ancient and modern poetry and prose, related to Hallowe'en ideas.

182 pages (28 free)      PRICE    £3.00

The Book of Halloween

Our Friend the Dog

Our friend the dog is a tale of one mans dog and their relationship. It is a short story by Maurice Maeterlinck and is well illustrated by Cecil Aldin. The story is quite poignant, so perhaps a little hanky near to hand?

32 pages       PRICE FREE