Tag: Days out

A Fitting Backdrop for a Grim Reaper Beastie! N Depping/CrawCrafts Beasties

Grim Reaper Beastie Gets Away From It All

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Beastie Family, Knitted Beasties

Hey there everybody!

It’s been a while since I last received word from a globetrotting Beastie, so you can probably imagine how delighted I was when Grim Reaper Beastie got in touch earlier this week! As it happens, he’s been to Hawaii… but of course he had very little interest in going to a luau or hanging out on the beach in a brightly-coloured shirt (hilarious as that would be). I think you’ll agree that he looks much more in his element here…
A Fitting Backdrop for a Grim Reaper Beastie! N Depping/CrawCrafts Beasties… Because as we all know, the Hawaiian islands are a (literal!) hotbed of volcanic activity. And it seems that Grim Reaper Beastie is quite the amateur volcanologist – here he is again, scrambling around among the lava fields around Kilauea on Big Island!
Grim Reaper Beastie in Hawaii - N Depping/CrawCrafts BeastiesI think he looks right at home here, don’t you? However, not all of the rocks were suitable for such up-close inspection… For starters, there’s quite a lot of red hot liquid lava around.
Lava at Kilauea, Hawaii - N Depping/CrawCrafts BeastiesAnd if you think that’s awesome, you should see it after dark!
Lava in the Dark - N Depping/CrawCrafts BeastiesIt also helps to get a bird’s eye view… If you look really closely in the bottom third of this photo, you can see a few fine orange specks where the lava is meeting the sea – and the clouds of steam this produces!
Where the Volcano Meets the Sea - N Depping/CrawCrafts BeastiesFortunately, the lava around here moves pretty slowly, so Grim Reaper Beastie could watch it bubble up from the centre of the earth without having to worry about getting his toes burnt. Here, have a look for yourself!

Can anyone else see a monster face appearing in the hot lava towards the end of the video, or is that just me?!

But not every volcano in this area of Big Island is active. Grim Reaper Beastie finished up his tour at Devastation Trail, which was last affected by the eruption of Kilauea Iki in 1959. Here, shrubs and flowering plants have gradually started to recolonise this stark landscape of stones and cinders!
Grim Reaper Beastie at Devastation Trail - N Depping/CrawCrafts BeastiesA perfect end to a perfect day of exploration!

Thanks to Nicole for letting Grim Reaper Beastie stow away in her suitcase, and for sending me his holiday snaps – it looks like you had a super trip! And be sure to join us again on Tuesday to meet some new Beasties, then next Friday we’ll be sharing more Beastie adventures abroad! See you then!

Explorer Beastie at Niki Collier's Studio

A Bit of Local Colour

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Crafting, Explorer Beastie's Dublin

Explorer Beastie With Some Felt Gems - CrawCrafts BeastiesWith Paddy and Plunkett enjoying some well-earned rest after their last round of travels, it’s been left to me and Explorer Beastie to come up with an adventure to share with you this week! Fortunately, we didn’t have to go too far to find something interesting… In fact, we barely had to leave our own neighbourhood!

My friend and fellow craftsperson Niki Collier (who I featured recently in my guest post for craft magazine Olann And’s blog) recently relocated to a new studio space, and she decided it was high time she had a “studio-warming” gathering to celebrate her move. So of course Explorer Beastie and I had to go for a nosey!

The first thing that caught our eye was the impressive Wall of Tools – look at all those scissors! I promise I only experienced a little bit of craft den envy!
Explorer Beastie and the Wall of Scissors - CrawCrafts BeastiesThere are also plenty of Niki’s finished pieces dotted around the studio. That meant there was lots to keep a curious Beastie entertained…
All The Felt - CrawCrafts Beasties…While the grown-ups talked out the angles of a future collaborative project! Can any of you guess who this Beastie might be?
A Beastie in the Making - CrawCrafts BeastiesOne of my favourite pieces in the studio was this little tree.
The Felting Tree - CrawCrafts BeastiesNiki made this when she started felting. Each leaf was contributed by another crafter, and has notes on the back about the properties of the wool used to make it – what breed of sheep it came from, the length of the fibres – as well as the name of the person who donated it. What a great way to learn!

Once we’d seen everything there was to see in Niki’s studio, it was time for us to go and inflict ourselves on the people who occupy the other half of this building!
In The Leatherworkers' Studio - CrawCrafts BeastiesThis is the home of RJ Mooney Leathers, and their workshop is incredibly cool! Explorer Beastie had fun checking out all the different leathers…
Explorer Beastie Checks Out the Goods - CrawCrafts Beasties… And look at the machinery! Talk about a vintage-lover’s paradise!
Vintage Singer Sewing Machines - CrawCrafts BeastiesApparently they are all still in perfect working order, too! I’d love to come back and see them in action on a proper work day!

Tour completed, there was time for a quick cup of tea before we headed for home. Since the sun was out, we decided to stroll back along the canal – a great end to a super afternoon!
Walking Home Along the Canal - CrawCrafts BeastiesThis weekend we’ll be heading to The Grand Social on Liffey Street for the Ha’Penny Market – hope you’ll join us there if you’re in town! Otherwise we’ll see you again on Tuesday, when I hope to have new Beasties to share (AT LAST!)…

Paddy at Ballintoy Harbour - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties

Paddy and Plunkett, Home Again… (Almost!)

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Beastie Family, Paddy and Plunkett

It’s been quite a summer for Paddy and Plunkett! They’ve spent a glorious couple of months seeing all there is to see in Sussex and Kent, from white cliffs and lighthouses…
Paddy and Plunkett Reach Beachy Head - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties… To fantastic castles!
Paddy, Plunkett and Dover Castle - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesBut it’s hard to get out of the way of travelling once you get started, so after the briefest of stopovers at home, they were back on the road again! This time, their wandering paws took them somewhere a little closer to home…
Paddy at Ballintoy Harbour - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesFirst stop, Ballintoy Harbour! This picturesque little town, situated a bit east of the famous Giant’s Causeway, may not ring a bell with all of you, but fans of “Game of Thrones” may find this place more than a little familiar. Careful, Paddy and Plunkett… You’ve ended up on the Iron Islands! And look, here come some of the locals!
Plunkett and the Iron-Born - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesWell, it turns out that only a couple of them were bona fide Iron-Born… the rest are visitors to the area, taking one of the many “Game of Thrones”-themed tours that have sprung up in the wake of the HBO series’ success. The use of out-of-the-way places in Northern Ireland as locations for Game of Thrones has been a huge lift to tourism in these places… and in the country as a whole. For the first time, people are getting out and exploring the natural beauty of Northern Ireland, rather than focusing on our troubled past… and I reckon that’s something to celebrate!
Game of Thrones Tour - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesHere’s Paddy posing with some of that spectacular coastline, to give you a taster…
Paddy on the North Coast - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties…And check out this amazing natural stone arch!
Paddy with the Stone Arch - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesBack in Ballintoy, Plunkett’s well-publicised love of unusual architecture led him to seek out a local landmark!
Bendhu House, BallintoyThis is Bendhu House, and it was the lifelong project of Newton Penprase, a lecturer from the Belfast College of Art. He started it in 1936, and he continued to add to it over the next few decades, earning the building a reputation locally as “the house that was never finished”. The fact that he taught fine art has really left its mark – each window perfectly frames a view, and apparently Penprase brought his students up here to teach them about composition. He was also responsible for the sculptures you can see on the exterior, which add to its unique look!
Sculptures at Bendhu House - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesPenprase died in 1978, and his house was sold and subsequently fell into disrepair. However, in the early 90s, it was bought by its present owners, who have made it their mission to sympathetically restore this incredible, one-of-a-kind home.

And speaking of home, Paddy and Plunkett are off to put their paws up for a while! I think they’ve earned some down-time, don’t you? Of course, please feel free to share your own weekend plans in the comments – you might just inspire them to start planning their next day away!

Paddy and Plunkett on the Beach - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties

Paddy and Plunkett – Last Day of the Holidays

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Beastie Family, Paddy and Plunkett

Is it just me, or is there a whiff of change in the air? The sun, when it finally makes it out from behind the clouds, is shining with a more mellow light, and the breezes feel a little cooler than they did this time last week. It seems like summer is coming to an end – although how I’m able to notice this when it never really got started is anyone’s guess! But with the shops filling up with “back to school” supplies, and the evenings starting a little earlier each day, it’s time for a pair of adventurous little woolly monsters to think about heading for home.

But not before they’ve hit the beach one last time! This one looks nice – but where are Paddy and Plunkett?
The Beach At Dungeness - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesI suppose these pebbles would provide perfect camouflage for them. Helllooooooo?

Oh, wait… there they are!
Paddy and Plunkett at Dungeness Beach - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesThey really couldn’t have asked for better weather on their last day – look at that sky, reflected in the perfectly still water behind them!
Beautiful Weather Today, Paddy! H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesUnfortunately, at this stage their budget has pretty much completely run out, so the boys will be foraging for lunch.
Mmm, lunch! H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesIs that sea kale? Let’s hope so! Sea kale actually did enjoy a brief spell of culinary popularity in the early 1800s, when a lot of people started growing it in their gardens. Although it’s easy to cultivate, it bruises easily and is best eaten soon after cutting, which is why you’re unlikely to see it in your local supermarket. Still, that doesn’t affect Paddy and Plunkett, who will be tucking in straight away!

And after lunch, perhaps it might be nice to snooze in the sun for a while…
Paddy and Plunkett Catch Some Rays - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties“Hey Paddy, what’s that noise in the background?”

“Ah, don’t worry about it, Plunkett…”
Paddy, Plunkett and the Nuclear Power Station - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties“…It’s just the Dungeness B nuclear reactor.”

“WHAAAAAAAT?!”

Hmmm, how DO they end up in these places? Paddy spent the rest of the day trying to keep Plunkett away from the internet, so he couldn’t read about the many setbacks this power station experienced, both during its construction and ongoing maintenance! By the end of the day, both of them were all tuckered out…
Night-night! H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties…So they thought it was best to get an early night.

I wonder where they’ll be off to next? And how will you be spending the last days of summer (or winter, for those of you in the southern hemisphere)? Let us know in the comments!

Paddy and Plunkett Check out the Defences - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties

Paddy and Plunkett, Over in Dover Again!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Paddy and Plunkett

Well, it looks like Paddy and Plunkett are still rambling their way around the English southeast! I wonder whose rather elaborate doorstep they’ve landed on today?

Paddy, Plunkett and Dover Castle - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesThis is Dover Castle, the largest castle in England. Most of this massive sprawling fortress was commissioned by Henry II, who probably hoped it would impress the many European pilgrims who passed through Dover on their way to Canterbury.

In keeping with this royal connection, Dover Castle holds replicas of what the crown jewels would have looked like at that time…Crown Jewels at Dover Castle - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesOooooh! Sparkly… Although probably a couple of sizes too big for our heroes’ heads.
One Size Fits None - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesThe Castle also boasts some truly beautiful stained glass windows…
Paddy Admires the Stained Glass Windows - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties…And a reassuring quantity of cannons.
Paddy and Plunkett Check out the Defences - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesBut not all of the castle is above ground! The cliffs under the castle are riddled with a network of underground tunnels, the earliest ones dating back to the Napoleonic Wars. They were originally designed so that a large number of soldiers could get from the castle to the beaches below quickly and easily in case of invasion.

One of the coolest things about the tunnels is how you get into them in the first place! If you look closely, you’ll see that this spiral staircase is actually a double helix, meaning that there are two separate staircases here, instead of just one. Architecture buff Plunkett found this fascinating, and wanted to share this photo with you all.
Double Helix Spiral Staircase at Dover Castle - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesAnd Dover Castle’s history doesn’t stop there. The Castle and its tunnels were pressed back into service during the Second World War, initially as an air raid shelter, but later as a military command centre, telephone exchange and hospital. Some of the tunnels are even meant to be used as nuclear bunkers! Evidence of this more recent military involvement is there for any Beastie to see… and to climb over.
Paddy and Plunkett with a Modern Cannon - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesYikes! Look at that thing! It’s lucky Plunkett is driving this time – who knows what would happen if Paddy commandeered the wheel?
Plunkett Drives the Cannon - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesPaddy and Plunkett will be back next Friday – assuming they aren’t held for questioning by the local police – and don’t forget to tune in on Tuesday to meet some more new Beasties!

(Or, if you happen to be in Dublin tomorrow, you can meet them in person! We’ll be at the Ha’Penny Market in The Grand Social, Liffey Street, from 12-6!)

Monster Highway in the Forest! CrawCrafts Beasties

More From The Fairy Forest!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie, Knitted Beasties

Explorer Beastie, Away With the Fairies - CrawCrafts BeastiesRegular BeastieBlog readers will know that Explorer Beastie and I were literally away with the fairies a couple of weeks ago! But as I was tidying up the photo files from our trip away, I saw that there were loads of other non-fairy photos that I hadn’t had a chance to use. Away from the hubbub of Fairyville, there was a whole forest for Explorer Beastie to investigate – let’s join him, shall we?
Explorer Beastie Tackles the Undergrowth - CrawCrafts BeastiesHere we go! The undergrowth was pretty dense in some places…

…But elsewhere we found shortcuts better suited to little short Beastie legs!
Monster Highway in the Forest! CrawCrafts BeastiesSoft mossy patches also make the perfect place to stop for a quick nap…
Time for a Rest! CrawCrafts Beasties… And we even found a natural paddling pool in a tree stump!
A Natural Beastie-Sized Paddling Pool - CrawCrafts BeastiesThere was also plenty of clover growing in the forest – surely ONE of these is the lucky four-leafed kind?
Explorer Beastie With Lucky Clover - CrawCrafts BeastiesExplorer Beastie also found somewhere to test his Christmas Fairy skills!
Christmas? Already?! CrawCrafts BeastiesHmmm… there might be room for you at the top of the tree this year…

That said, Explorer Beastie will climb pretty much any tree he can find!
Climbing Trees - CrawCrafts BeastiesBut just when we thought we’d gone through the whole fairy forest without meeting a single magical creature… we caught a glimpse of these through the trees!
Fairies in the Forest! CrawCrafts BeastiesWooooah! REAL FAIRIES!

It’s going to be hard to top this on our next day trip!

Have you had a brush with the magical or mysterious lately? Let us know in the comments!

Plunkett at Samphire Hoe - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties

White Cliffs and Teeny Trains

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Beastie Family, Knitted Beasties, Paddy and Plunkett

White Cliffs at Samphire Hoe - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesPaddy and Plunkett’s tour of the southeast of England continues! Today they’re down by the famous White Cliffs of Dover, which are shining brightly in the sunshine. In fact, Plunkett seems to be quite dazzled by them!
Plunkett at Samphire Hoe - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesWhile they were here, the boys decided to have a look around Samphire Hoe Country Park. It’s a relatively new attraction in these parts – when work on the Channel Tunnel began in the 1980s, this area was given the (questionable) honour of being the dumping ground for all the chalk they dug out of the sea bed. The soil was used to reclaim 30 hectares of land from the sea, and a wall was built offshore to create an artificial lagoon. Then Mother Nature was left to recolonise the park as she saw fit!
Habitats at Samphire Hoe - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesThere are a variety of different habitats to explore, and the lads even met a sunbathing adder on their travels – unfortunately they just weren’t quick enough with the camera to get a picture!

Then in the afternoon, it was time for something completely different!
At the Model Railway - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesOooh, look at that lovely old train! But all is not as it seems…
Paddy Watches the Trains Go By - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesWelcome to New Romney station, on the Romney, Hythe and Dimchurch heritage railway line – home of Britain’s largest model railway! Even Paddy and Plunkett felt like giants among these miniature landscapes!
At the New Romney Model Railway - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesThey especially liked this part – well, who wouldn’t want to enjoy a monster day out for all the family?
Triassic Park! H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesBut what really got Paddy’s attention was waiting just outside – real trains, scaled down to one third their usual size! Perfect for a little woolly monster… Let’s just hope Plunkett managed to stop him from taking one for a test drive!
Paddy Plans to Borrow a Train - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesWe’ll be back on Tuesday with more monster antics! In the meantime, have a super weekend… and please get in touch immediately if a small green monster in an Aran sweater careens past you in what looks like a stolen miniature train!

Visting the Oak Fairy - CrawCrafts Beasties

Explorer Beastie’s Holiday!

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Explorer Beastie, Knitted Beasties

As some of you might already know, Explorer Beastie and I took a couple of days off last week and escaped to the countryside! And we really couldn’t have timed it better, since our trip coincided with another brief guest appearance from the ever-elusive Irish Summer.

Explorer Beastie couldn’t wait to get outside…

We're on HOLIDAAAAY! CrawCrafts Beasties…And he was soon on the lookout for the perfect sunbathing spot. Check out that view behind him!

Explorer Beastie Chooses A Sunny Spot - CrawCrafts BeastiesAaaah, just right!
Explorer Beastie Catches Some Rays - CrawCrafts BeastiesBut it’s not in Explorer Beastie’s nature to spend an entire day sitting around. It was only a matter of time before his thirst for adventure got the better of him… Fortunately, we found the perfect place for him to explore! What’s down that path, I wonder?
Where are you going, Explorer Beastie? CrawCrafts BeastiesOoooh, interesting! Let’s check this out!

First we had to walk through the woven willow tunnel…
The Gateway to the Fairy Forest - CrawCrafts Beasties…And look what we found on the other side!
The First Fairy House - CrawCrafts BeastiesA fairy house! At first, we thought this was a one-off… But then we spotted more!
It's a Fairy Town! CrawCrafts BeastiesWe’d stumbled on an entire fairy town in the forest! Some of the houses were easier to reach than others…
Visting the Oak Fairy - CrawCrafts Beasties…But Explorer Beastie enjoyed lunch at the Dew Drop Inn, and a quick browse in the bookstore afterwards.
Lunch and Shopping - CrawCrafts BeastiesHe also had fun taking pictures with our new friend Izzy! Here she is helping us to set up a photo beside a perfectly Beastie-size house. Thanks, Izzy!
Explorer Beastie and New Buddy - CrawCrafts BeastiesWe never did find the owner of “The Giant’s Lair”… although I think he must have been at home recently!
Explorer Beastie and the Giant's Teacups - CrawCrafts BeastiesClearly he shares my love of doing the dishes!

After our forest walk, we stopped in the courtyard for human-sized food before heading for home. Explorer Beastie waited for us in the herb garden!
Explorer Beastie Hanging Out in the Courtyard - CrawCrafts BeastiesWhat are you all up to this weekend? If you find yourself in Slieve Gullion Forest Park, don’t forget to say hi to our fairy friends in the forest!

The Beastie’s Tale

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Beastie Family, Paddy and Plunkett

Paddy and Plunkett, Wandering Beasties - CrawCrafts Beasties

“Yes, we’re still on holiday! See if you can guess where we are today…”

Paddy and Plunkett started their tour by getting lost in this Beastie-sized lavender labyrinth. Mazes like these used to be laid out in tiles in front of the city’s cathedrals, and walking the paths supposedly helped you to rack up extra “pilgrim points”,  which would fast-track you to the good parts of heaven.
A Pilgrim's Labyrinth - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesThis place really was a hotspot for pilgrims back in the day… people came from all over Britain, and even further afield, to visit the shrine of Thomas Becket. In fact, although it’s is now one of England’s smallest cities, in pre-Plague times it fell just inside the top ten largest, and was known throughout Europe as the “home town” of a number of recently-canonised saints of the era. The flood of pilgrims making this journey even inspired one of the earliest examples of real English literature, at a time when most literary works were in French or Latin.

Did you figure it out yet?

We’re in Canterbury! Here are the boys posing in front of Canterbury Cathedral, their first port of call after Plunkett managed to extract Paddy from the maze…
Paddy and Plunkett at Canterbury Cathedral - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesCanterbury Cathedral was founded in 597, and is now part of a UNESCO World Heritage site. The city itself dates right back to Paelolithic times, and contains landmarks left behind by a pick’n’mix of past residents – it seems like everyone from the Romans to the Normans made their mark on Canterbury!

While the cathedral is mostly a hive of activity, where a pair of Beasties risk getting trampled underfoot, there are quiet spots nearby where they can spend time exploring and posing for the camera. This shady herb garden has been planted in the old dormitory of the Cathedral – perfect for a picnic lunch!
Paddy and Plunkett in the Cathedral Herb Garden - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesAnd then they took a stroll to help settle down their hearty meal of… salad leaves. Well, if you want to spend the entire summer travelling, it’s important to save money where you can!

Plunkett spotted eight of these incredible lumpy plane trees as they wandered around the city.
Plane Tree in Canterbury - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesHe wanted to photograph all of them, but someone kept getting in the way…
Paddy Photobombs - AGAIN! H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesNow boys, no fighting please!

Hopefully they’ll be back next Friday, with the next instalment of their magical monster mystery tour. And I’ll have more new Beasties to share on Tuesday too!

Enjoy your weekend!

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Paddy and Plunkett have a Picnic - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties

A Quiet Stroll in the Countryside… Or is it?

Posted on by crawcraftsbeasties in Beastie Family, Paddy and Plunkett

Paddy, Plunkett and some late Bluebells - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesAt last! The sun has broken through the clouds and it feels like summer again! Not that it matters to Paddy and Plunkett, whose extended holiday is still ongoing… let’s find out where they are today!
Paddy Admires the View - H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesIt certainly seems nice and peaceful, anyway. And look, Paddy’s spotted some distant Beastie relatives – well, they are all made of wool, right?
Proto-Beasties? H Crawford/CrawCrafts BeastiesBut all is not as it seems!

“Hey Plunkett, what’s that building up there?”
Paddy and Plunkett Catch a Glimpse of English History - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties“Glad you asked, Paddy – I’ve been reading up on this! That’s part of the remains of Battle Abbey. Can you believe that we’re standing on what is believed to be the site of the Battle of Hastings? Look, there’s a stone slab here to mark the spot where the English leader King Harold is supposed to have fallen!”
Professor Plunkett Takes a History Lesson - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties“Yikes! What happened to King Harold?”

“Arrow through the eye, apparently – the famous Bayeux Tapestry captured the whole thing…”

The Death of King Harold at the Battle of Hastings - Photo from historytoday.com
The Death of King Harold at the Battle of Hastings – Photo from historytoday.com

“In fact, Paddy, forget what you’ve been seeing on Game of Thrones lately… The Battle of Hastings was a pretty gruesome episode in English history! Casualties on both sides were so numerous that the leader of the victorious invading Norman army, who later became known as William the Conqueror, was ordered by Pope Alexander II to atone for this immense loss of life. So he built a church here – it was finished in around 1094.  Then in the late 13th century, it was remodelled into Battle Abbey.”

“Wow, that’s some history! How on earth do we follow that?”

“How about some lunch?”

“Good thinking, Plunkett!”
Paddy and Plunkett have a Picnic - H Crawford/CrawCrafts Beasties

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