STREET artists have placed winter scenes made of fabric on post boxes to bring Christmas cheer to south Essex.

Members of the Benfleet-based Craft Club have left “yarnbombs” – public displays of colourful crocheted scenes – on top of six post boxes in Leigh, Rayleigh, Befleet, Chalkwell and Ashingdon.

The yarn covers have surprised and amused children posting letters to Father Christmas and busy commuters, as three of the post boxes are outside train stations.

Member Gabby Atkins, 38, from Thundersley, said: “It’s about nothing more than spreading a bit of Christmas joy and light-hearted fun.

“It’s nice to get publicity, but it’s more important that people post photographs and say what they enjoyed about them online.”

The group, which is made up of five staff from the Appleton School, Benfleet, fitted the yarnbombs under cover of darkness on Sunday, November 30, and lay in wait to see the reaction of the first people to see them.

Mrs Atkins, a PE and dance teacher, said; “We went out in the dark. We didn’t want to be spotted and we like the impact of them being revealed the following morning.

“It was quite fun. We sat in wait for the first people to see them. It’s like an exciting adventure.

“A lot of people know who we are now, but we kept our identity quite secret.”

The yarnbombs are on post boxes outside stations in Chalkwell, Leigh and Rayleigh, Leigh Broadway, Church Road, Thundersley, and the main post office in Ashingdon.

Echo:

The group, which includes school administrators and data analysts, started the Craft Club about 18 months ago as way to socialise.

They crocheted their first yarnbomb last winter for the post box outside Essex Countryside in Leigh Broadway.

Without being asked, the estate agents took the cover in after Christmas and dutifully replaced it this winter.

The Craft Club then made a seasidethemed yarnbomb, with seagulls, rock and paint brushes, at Chalkwell station for Southend Arts Festival this summer.

They also smashed the world record for the number of crocheted items displayed together, raising cash for Havens Hospices last summer and organised a swap of crocheted snowmen to raise awareness of World Aids Day at the start of this month.