Mum’s lockdown DIY project far from run-of-the-mill
A MUM of three has completed the ultimate lockdown DIY project – restoring a windmill.
Jeanette McGarry, 58, even hired a cherry picker to hand-paint the five-ton sails on the 70ft, Grade II-listed Berkswell Windmill – one of the last still fully working in Britain.
The local government worker bought the run-down mill in 2005 and has spent £200,000 restoring it with the help of English Heritage.
Jeanette spent three weeks completing the work during a local lockdown this month. She and Dutch millwright Johan Vanderste worked from 7.30am to 6pm limewashing the interior and dressing the mill stones in the village of Balsall Common, West Mids. They bought 20 five-litre tins of specialist paint for £2,600 and the cherry picker cost £1,000 a day.
Built in 1826, it has been described as one of “the finest Georgian windmills in Britain” with all its original working parts and machinery.
Jeanette said: “I want to make sure the windmill is preserved so it’s here for generations to come. It’s been an ongoing labour of love. I feel like the luckiest person on the planet because it’s just such a beautiful sight.
“I marvel at how they were built. It’s like the British equivalent of the pyramids. They didn’t have cranes or precision instruments. They did a lot of things by sight. The roof can turn so the sales face the wind. It’s like a time capsule.”
It was last used in 1948 and attracts visitors from as far as the US and Taiwan. Jeannette added: “We can’t wait to have them back.”