ENTER THE IDYLLIC countryside workshop of ceramic restorer Roger Hawkins and the mind boggles. Neatly arranged on shelf after shelf are so many commissions; all different shapes and sizes, different styles, from the sublime to the slightly ridiculous, from all corners of the globe.

Working alongside Roger is wife Sally, who takes shattered, broken, dirty, chipped and tired, looking ceramics, and work miracles.

Born in Mill Hill where he later worked as an antiques dealer specializing in ceramics, Roger attended a course in restoration and found an affinity for it, accepting more and more commissions over time. He has 30 years experience as a restorer and tutor in the UK and USA.

Moving to his Newark antiques workshop 20 years ago, he traded quite successfully but experienced a 'big break' in antiques showbiz on the BBC TV programme Restoration Roadshow.

Roger's commissions come from both dealers and private collectors in the UK and abroad. Some items have a great value but are being restored commercially for dealers, whilst others have little intrinsic value but are important sentimentally.

Restorations cost from £50-£2,000 and the value of the items themselves vary as much as the origin and range from old oriental pieces and early 18th to late 19th century pieces from the UK. The most popular era for UK ceramics was from 1750 onwards, with the potteries in Staffordshire establishing themselves because of the happy abundance of both coal and clay, and Wedgwood-financed railways which would bring clay to the potteries from places such as Cornwall.

Each commission is different, and may require hours, or months work. Practically anything is possible, but repair estimates are usually accepted or rejected on the basis of the item's value - both monetary or sentimental.

The first stage is a thorough cleaning, the exact process for which varies according to the material.

"It's during cleaning that an over-zealous restorer can do the most damage." says Roger. "Each material is different and requires a slightly different means of cleaning." The ravages of age pale into insignificance compared to damage a clumsy repair job can do.

Consequently, Roger's next job is to dissolve glue from poorly repaired and old repaired pieces, then join remaining pieces with the appropriate material, and using a filler, which is then rubbed down to once more create a complete piece.

"If we are conserving, rather than repair, that's where we'd leave it." says Roger. "But we can then paint over the join and create an invisible finish with most pieces." he says.

Mostly, he works to reattach heads and chipped pieces. For missing pieces - legs of animals, handles etc - Roger either works freehand to create replacements, or uses a clever method of latex casting to make an exact duplicate.

In any case the results are impressive. Whilst some pieces are sentimental rather than monetarily valuable, each repair is brilliantly executed, and when intended to do so, looks invisible.

A true master of his craft, Roger has a great sense of humour but remains utterly professional in his skill and knowledge.

"It's really important to me that each repair is conducted appropriately." says Roger, who works on between 10 and 20 jobs at a time, and has a waiting list for new work. "A good reputation carries you a long way in the antiques trade, and a passion for doing something well is always respected.