King and Queen given spooky transformation as part of Halloween postbox topper

The King and Queen have been given a spooky transformation and the Sanderson Sisters from Hocus Pocus have been recreated in crochet form as crafters decorate postboxes for Halloween.

Jan Platt, who is part of the Studley Stitchers and is affectionately referred to as ‘the boss’ by members, said 13 people have helped to make seven knitted and crocheted Halloween toppers.

Bats, witches, giant spiders and Dracula are just some of the spooky creations adorning postboxes in Studley, Warwickshire.

“We made Camilla and Charles, which were crocheted for his Coronation – they are now Dracula and his bride,” the 66-year-old retired teacher told the PA news agency.

“We made a Little Red Riding Hood topper – the wolf is hiding behind a tree and he’s about to pounce on Little Red Riding Hood, which we thought was a different sort of idea.”

She said one of the trickiest parts is preventing the figures from falling down.

“We’ve got various methods – some have skewers down them,” she said.

She said both children and adults “love them”.

“We have so many comments from people around the village and they help to cheer everyone up,” she added.

Some comments left on social media posts of the toppers include ‘brilliant Charles and Camilla outfit” and “absolutely wonderful”.

The toppers are to be taken down on October 31 to make way for the group’s latest creations.

Disney fan Sarah Simpson, who lives in King’s Hill in the borough of Tonbridge and Malling in Kent, wanted to use Halloween as an opportunity to bring to life characters from one of her favourite movies – Hocus Pocus.

Miniature crocheted versions of the Sanderson Sisters – made up of Winifred, Sarah and Mary – with a bubbling cauldron and famous black flame candle form part of a glow-in-the-dark postbox topper in her local area.

Mrs Simpson said the glow-in-the-dark element was made possible thanks to glow-in-the-dark yarn and waterproof LED lights with a timer.

“The LED lights go on for six hours, so they start at 6.30pm, last for six hours and they’ll then turn off, and they do this every night,” the stay-at-home mother, 38, told PA.

“Also, some of the yarn used on the cauldron and the black flame candle is glow-in-the-dark yarn, which generates during the day, so it helps the items glow at night.”

The cauldron was the first item made and contains a giant polystyrene ball, to keep its structure, with the witches next on the list.

“For Winnie, I made these giant buck teeth I tried to stitch on to her, which looked ridiculous so left that off,” she joked.

“I went online and used picture references to make her and her sisters and get the details of their outfits correct.”

The candle, pumpkins, spider webs and spiders were made next, with Mrs Simpson getting some help with the spiders from her best friend’s daughter.

Mrs Simpson said many people have commented on how “amazing” the topper looks and said they were “glad” it was made since they are also fans of the Disney movie.

Brenda Fowler, who lives in Chessington, has got into the Halloween mood by making a topper with the words ‘Trick or Treat’ on it and covered with an array of knitted figures including a black cat, mummy and a pumpkin with a sinister smile.

“It probably took me an evening to make each piece, except for the witch which took about two to three evenings to make because there was lots of different bits involved, like stuffing it and sewing on the features,” the retired 69-year-old told PA.

She said that many have said “how good it is” since she put it up at the start of the month.

“I make toppers throughout the year and so many people offer me wool – I’ve got stacks,” she added.

“There’s a school at the end of my road and so the children go down every morning, you can always hear them.

“Because I change mine once a month, they’re always ready for the first day of the month.

“It’s amazing how many people comment on them and enjoy the fact that they’re there.”