In pictures: Scotland's Christmas postbox toppers

Woolly postbox toppers have appeared in towns and villages across Scotland to mark the Christmas period.

Elves, snowmen and Santas are among the knitted and crocheted creations.

A postbox topper is a hat or bonnet for a postbox, designed as a tribute or to commemorate special events.

The Royal Mail shared photos on Facebook, writing: "Here are some wonderful postbox toppers we've seen around the UK! Thanks for sharing and spreading the festive spirit".

Mairi Scott, who knits and crochets full-time, was commissioned to create a crocheted postbox topper for Mearnskirk, Newton Means in East Renfrewshire.

"It didn't actually take that long," she said. "I think the planning took longer because there are about ten different sizes of postboxes.

"The topper itself probably just took about three days to make so it wasn't that bad because I crochet and knit all the time so it was quite a straightforward crochet through."

Mairi asked a woman in the community to measure the postbox for her, which was 86cm in diameter.

She added: "It was quite daunting but once you actually put your head down, it's actually just a big circle and then a toy that I would normally do.

"It's just trying work out the mechanics of how it would it stay up in Scottish weather for a decent length of time."

The community asked Mairi to create a Peter Pan topper while their statue of the lost boy is in storage during the redevelopment of a former care home.

The statue, by Sculptor Alexander Proudfoot, is expected back in Mearnskirk in 2024, when the new housing development has been built.

It was originally created in memory of Dr John A Wilson OBE, the physician superintendent of the former sanatorium from 1929 to 1946, to reflect the stories he told children on the wards.

On the postbox, the Peter Pan toy has been dressed in his winter elf outfit for the festive period.

Mairi said: "I've had emails from people saying their kids made them stop the car to say hello to Peter."

Elsewhere in Scotland, "Torphins knitted postboxes" has created multiple toppers as part of a charity fundraiser.

The creator, who wishes to remain anonymous, has been decorating postboxes since 2017 and this year covered ones in Ballater, Aboyne, Torphins and Banchory.

In South Queensferry, Pamela Macfarlane made a Santa Claus surrounded by presents for a postbox in her community.

It was photographed by her work colleague Kelly Watson.

While in Clarkston , East Renfrewshire, a winter scene on top of a postbox contains a seal, penguins and a polar bear, Christmas trees and sprigs of woollen holly.

It would seem that North Berwick also has a talented mystery crafter.

Norma Loudon has found three toppers around the town, including a meeting of snowmen and two santa scenes.

With the help of Rudolph, Santa was caught delivering presents overnight.

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