Woman for Harleston makes Armed Forces Day postbox topper

Bev Mayhew, who lives in Harleston, has spent three weeks making a postbox topper that represents the three forces - the Royal Air Force (RAF), the British Army and the Royal Navy.

“I had an idea of what I wanted it to look like and would spend about three hours every evening for three weeks making it,” the 57-year-old said.

“They’re quite intricate little men – they’re quite fiddly and have lots of little bits and the base of the topper took about a week to do.”

Bev's Armed Forces Day topper (Image: PA)

Mrs Mayhew’s husband Steve has a link to the forces as he was in the RAF for 12 years.

"I wanted to do this to highlight the importance of remembering (members of the armed forces) and thank them for what they’ve done and what they are doing,” she said.

“They should never be forgotten and I wanted to encourage people to support them.”

Mrs Mayhew said the most enjoyable part of the process was seeing the topper on the postbox.

“You stand back and think: ‘I made that’, and it gives you quite a buzz,” she said.

One of Bev's previous creations (Image: PA)

“And just the process of getting it all together and planning and thinking: ‘Oh, I can add this’ – I enjoy lots of different things about it.”

The seamstress is not the only one who is a fan of postbox toppers, with many leaving comments on Facebook about Mrs Mayhew’s other crocheted creations, which include a spring scene which features bumble bees, flowers and butterflies.

For postbox topper enthusiasts, Mrs Mayhew’s advice would be: “Just go be creative.

“You don’t have to stick to any rules, just make it yours, that’s the big thing – and add your own personal touch to it.”