Lockdown 2020. With work on hold and overwhelmed by the joys of home schooling, interior and textile designer Jessica Preston turned to clay for some light (and squidgy) relief. Drawing on her design skills, and with a large amount of trial and error, a range of tableware and household ceramics gradually emerged.

Inspired by the combination of pottery and the often intriguing idioms, phrases and puns in our everyday language, Jessica began exploring the possibilities of delicately inlaid slip on tactile, porcelain pieces. Stamping each handcrafted piece using vintage letterpress with a classic British typeface, a functional, utilityware aesthetic developed, and with a firm tongue in cheek, Wordplay Clay came to be.

Four years on and clay has proved addictive, Jessica’s creations continue to evolve and maintain their talent for stating the bleedin’ obvious.