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How to Make Personalized Sharpie Mugs

If you’ve ever used pinterest, then chances are you’ve seen these “sharpie mugs”. The idea is that you buy a cheap plain mug, personalize it with a sharpie, and voila! Crazy easy personalized coffee cups. Now, I’ve been DIYing for a while now and I can tell you one thing for sure…if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. (You can actually apply that to life in general, not just DIY.) I mean, sharpies are great and all, but they’re not magic. They may be nearly impossible to get off a couch, wall, or clothing, but there is no way you can write on a glazed mug with one and expect to stay put, even when you wash it. NO WAY.

I spent some time reading through websites that had tried and failed at this in an attempt to come up with a method that actually worked. I found a few that had success stories and combined them all the make a mug that is indestructible.teacher gift idea

Materials –

 

First, I bought some plain white coffee mugs (they were about $3 a pop at WalMart)

plain white coffee mugs

 

Then I cleaned the cups with alcohol, taped off the top (because I didn’t want any marker where you mouth touches) and added some scrapbooking letters.

sharpie mug prep

Next it was time to make the design. For this I used an OIL BASED sharpie paint pen. The oil based part is key here, if your paint pen is water based it will not work.

oil based gold sharpie

Then I let the kids go to town and make mugs for each of their teachers.

sharpie mugs as teacher gifts

Ack, they’re just so cute, right? Levi is grinning away while sporting some sweet bed head, and Elijah is over there acting like he is painting the Mona Lisa.

how to make personalized coffee cups

After they were finished I peeled off the scrapbook letters with a pair of tweezers let them dry for a day before baking. Also, I learned a little too late that if you have any mess ups you can fix them with some rubbing alcohol and q-tips before they dry. We definitely has some bleeding under the letters. Oh well, it adds to the “made by a preschooler” effect, which is an integral part of this gift.

Next, I baked the mugs by putting them in a COLD oven, setting it to 400 for an hour, then letting them cool completely before taking them out. This worked great for setting them…except that it turned the paint from a beautiful gold to a brownish bronze color. Bummer.

baking sharpie mugs

And then, since I was combining ALL the things that people said had worked, I taped them off again and sprayed the painted part with clear sealer.

clear coat on sharpie mugs

BAM…personalized, indestructible mugs for the boys teachers.

How to sucessfully make a personalized sharpie mug

I even scrubbed them before taking that pictures (by hand) and nothing budged. Which is good, because I would have pretty disappointed if it had.

teacher gift idea

I can’t even believe I made it through that post without mentioning the elephant in the room. It’s such a huge elephant I can barely see to type around it. So here we go, let’s just get it out in the open.

Today is my 30th birthday.

30. 30! I’m not quite sure when that happened, but here I am…30. I was tempted to be bummed about it for a while, but then I realized that I’ve been acting like I’m in my 30’s for about a decade now. I’m been married for over ten years, have (nearly) three children, joyfully drive a nerdy minivan, and the thought of going out past about 8pm exhausts me. I was meant to be in my 30’s.

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25 Comments

  1. happy dirty 30 Ashley!! :) It’s not as painful as it sounds. :) Thanks for the giveaway!! I can tell you for a fact that if I win I will absolutely be waiting till after the holidays are over to use it – I went to WalMart earlier today to get bread and milk and I kid you not, from parking my car (in the very last spot in the very last row) to getting back to it, it took me an hour and a half because it was so busy. An hour and a half. FOR BREAD AND MILK. Lesson learned.

  2. Happy birthday, bloggy friend! :) You are so very young. I am 48 with a stepdaughter who just turned 30. It beats the alternative, that’s what I say!

    Those sharpie mugs are super cute! Your sons’ teachers are lucky with those lovely gift collections. I’ve been looking for ideas for preschoolers to make for gifts this year. This is the one I finally chose: http://squashblossombabies.com/2012/01/19/toddler-scribble-art/

    Cheers!

  3. Happy 30th Birthday! I’m getting close to twice that young girl! 30 bothered me the most until this one
    coming up. I love your cup ideas and the fact most of the photos said Ms. Deb made me smile more!
    You are so talented!

  4. Happy birthday sweet girl! Trust me, 30 isn’t the end . . .lol, I am coming close to 50 and I wouldn’t go back. Have a wonderful birthday and thanks for sharing the way to do sharpie mugs that actually works!

  5. Happy 30th YOUNGSTER!! from someone who will be 67…yikes!!…next month! And yes I agree, it only gets better. Who said we can’t be young and fun at any age!! My granddaughter made mugs (dollar store!) for her M&P for Christmas when she was 4. I just let her do her own thing and they turned out great! We used the porcelain pen and just followed the instructions on it. Might be a thought for her Gr. 1 teacher. Thanks for the reminder!

  6. Happy 30th Birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!
    Have a wonderful day, your 30’s are awesome and empowering. Enjoy!
    Wishing you love and happiness from Sydney
    Kaz x

  7. Happy Birthday Ashley! Oh to be in my 30’s again-it was my best decade and I hope it will be yours.(or your 40’s or 50″s)No thoughts on the 60’s yet as I am giving that decade the stink eye.

  8. Happy Birthday! And thank you for a tutorial that produces a product that will hold up after time. I hope to make a set of mugs for my husband for Christmas. :)

  9. Happy 30th!! Always try to remember that it’s only a number… Life is a continuum of moments and memories, focus on the ones that make you happy! And thanks for all the great information about paper bag flooring!

  10. Happy birthday, Ashley!!
    God bless you with a wonderful year.
    I turned 50 last month, I thought about it all year and dreaded it.
    Then it happened- the bark was worse than the bite.
    Have a wonderful Christmas.

  11. This is great! I have done a few “sharpie” projects and always notice that it scrubs off right away – a great idea but not really functional! Thanks for the tips, and this was such a cute way to get the kids involved too making elegant looking gifts. XOXO
    Sam.

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