Former soldier Lee's art turns heads

Lee Millar was medically discharged from the army in 2013 after 10 years’ service, which included two operational tours in Iraq.

Despite leaving the service with many skills, he found it difficult to find work, but began creating some pieces from off-cuts and waste materials. He has since found work on a Borders farm estate and is now turning out superb sculptures from scrap which would otherwise end up in landfill.

He told us: “Leaving the army with lots of transferable skills and new qualifications I gained during the process of leaving, I really struggled to get a job or find work locally or further afield.

"But I really enjoyed the concept of making beautiful things from others’ idea of waste.”

However, four years ago, he found a steady job at Scraesburgh farm near Jedburgh, and the owner allowed him to share her workshop to make lifesize sculptures of animals from fencing wire.

Lee said: “I decided to bend and twist bits together to try sculpt some sort or shape. This went well and I made a highland cow first, Next a life-size giraffe, a horse head, a 12ft eagle and my latest creation, a 10ft tall stag, has been a firm favourite amongst my followers on social media.

He’s now made contact with several local fencing contractors who are willing to give him any scrap wire for future projects, and he's in talks with local gardening centres to try to sell them, to help bring his dream of running a smallholding come true.

Find Lee on Instgram (@goingselfsufficientlee) if you would like to purchase a piece.