Monogram Mug

On one of my Pinteresting expeditions, I came upon this fun project:

DIY Monogram Mugs. I am a fan of cheap, easy, fun crafts, especially when they make good gifts. Extra bonus, I made this project even cheaper and easier than in the tutorial. Her supply list includes scissors, pen, tape, graphite transfer paper, Black Pebeo Porcelaine Pen in Fine Point ($4 at Michaels, also available here) and a print out with the family’s initials. My supply list includes:

1. Black oil-based Sharpie
2. Dry erase pen

Bam. That’s a short list. The project started off with a bang when in an attempt to improve Thatcher’s scream attack, I walked across the parking lot from Five Guys where we had dinner, over to Michaels. I intended to get the pen she used, but after 15 minutes of wandering around the store looking for either the pen or an employee, I was told by the sole person working there that they were out of such pens. Fortunately, this particular 15 year old Michaels employee happened to be well versed in the art of mug drawing and told me that a oil based Sharpie should do the same thing (meaning it can write on porcelain and won’t wash off). Done. I picked out my pen (I used black, medium tip size) and headed up to the register where I then stood in line for another 15 minutes (while trying to jiggle my fussy child into submission…I’m only halfway joking). At one point I honestly considered shoplifting the pen.

Finally they allowed me to pay for the pen ($3.99), and I woke my by-that-time-sleeping-baby back up by putting him in his carseat. He then proceeded to scream the rest of the way home. But that’s a different story.

I was planning on just free handing a letter onto a mug that I had purchased at Goodwill for $0.49. There’s no way I’m paying money for transfer paper and going through the hassle of printing and cutting out letters. Silly. Another bonus of using the Sharpie instead of the suggested pen is that once you write it, it’s permanent. No baking of the glassware is necessary. Before I started working, I realized that even better than free handing, I could just draw out my letter with a fine-tip try erase pen that was in the kitchen drawer before drawing the final letter with the Sharpie. Worked perfectly.

Obviously, there are a million different font styles you could copy, and a billion different things you could put on there. Pictures. Song lyrics. Names. Etc. This first mug I made to give to my sister, with her initial as well as a Bible verse that I know is meaningful to her. I have a second mug to do, but I’m not sure what to put on it yet. I really like how they did a collection of different sizes and shaped mugs to make a whole set. For $0.49 per mug, and the pen already purchased, there’s not a whole lot to loose. I think they will make cute little “Thank You” gifts, or whatnot. Score another point for Pinterest.