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How to Make Custom Mugs at Home

Perhaps you want to make a cool custom gift for someone special. Maybe you’re interested in creating one-of-a-kind items to sell online as a side hustle. Or maybe you’re just looking for a fun craft project to try at home. Either way, making your own mugs is a super way to start.

This guide will show you how to make custom mugs with ease.

How to Make Custom Mugs at Home

How to Make Custom Mugs with Markers and Paint Pens

If you want to know how to make custom mugs as simply and cheaply as possible, this is the method for you. It doesn’t require any fancy equipment or expensive supplies. All you need is a blank mug to customize and some oil-based markers or paint pens to draw on your design.

Cute little girl printed on chameleon cup isolated on white background
  1. Clean your mug to start off, getting rid of any dust, oil, or marks from the surface.
  2. Use your markers or paint pens to draw on a design of your choice. You could do something simple or complex, depending on your artistic abilities and imagination.
  3. Give the mug a little time to dry and then add any little touch-ups you feel are necessary.
  4. Once your design is finalized, bake your mugs in the oven for around 20-30 minutes at around 300 degrees Fahrenheit. This will allow the paint to set, so it won’t wash away when cleaning your mugs in the future.

How to Make Custom Mugs with Mod Podge

Another terrific way to make mugs at home is with the aid of Mod Podge. For those unfamiliar with this product, it’s basically like a glue, sealant, and varnish all rolled into one. It’s fantastic to use for making mugs, as it allows you to stick and seal paper designs onto them.

That means you can draw your own design onto paper, or even cut out bits of napkins that you love. You can then assemble a collage on the surface of your mug, using the Mod Podge to stick everything in place. Plus, with a dishwasher-friendly Mod Podge, your design won’t wash away.

Here’s how to make custom mugs this way:

  1. Decide on the design you want to use. It could be some napkin cutouts, paper pictures, or other paper-based design. Mod Podge also works with glitter, too.
  2. (Optional) Add a base layer of paint to your mug. You can use acrylic paint or oil-based markers.
  3. Brush on a layer of Mod Podge.
  4. Place your design onto the sticky surface, layering more Mod Podge over the top to seal it in place.
  5. Continue with additional layers of paper, napkins, and even glitter.
  6. With your design complete, add a top coat of Mod Podge and let it dry for an hour.
  7. Then, repeat that process, adding a total of three layers of Mod Podge to the top and letting each one dry. This will create a strong, thick seal to protect your design.
Close-up mothers day mug

How to Make Custom Mugs with Vinyl

If you want to know how to make custom mugs just like the pros, adhesive vinyl is a great method to learn. It’s strong and permanent, with bold colors and lots of customization potential. Plus, this method is versatile and will also work with things like tumblers, cups, and so on.

Here’s how to make custom mugs with sticky vinyl:

  1. Prepare your design using your favorite design app.
  2. Print your chosen design onto the vinyl sheets.
  3. Use a craft knife and scissors to carefully cut out your design shapes. Alternatively, if you have a Cricut machine, you can feed the vinyl into it and then use it to cut the shapes for you.
  4. Cut a piece of transfer paper roughly the same size as your design.
  5. Peel away the backing layer of your transfer paper and carefully stick it onto the vinyl design.
  6. Press and rub the transfer paper onto the vinyl, and use a scraper tool to make sure it sticks completely. This will transfer your design over to the tape.
  7. Make sure your mug is clean, then take your transfer paper and stick it firmly onto the mug’s surface. Smooth it down to transfer the design over, then peel away the tape.
  8. At this stage, it’s also a good idea to coat your new decal with Mod Podge to seal it. Add three layers of Mod Podge and give each layer an hour to dry.
Mockup of two white ceramic coffee mug

How to Make Custom Mugs with Custom Cups Now

We’ve covered several ways of making custom mugs, but they all involve quite a lot of time and effort. Perhaps you want to know how to make custom mugs and cups quickly, conveniently, and with minimal hassle? In that case, you need Custom Cups Now.

Custom Cups Now is a custom cup site where you can create customized products in seconds! You can pick from lots of different sizes, colors, and styles, upload your own art, add your own text, and more, with top quality products shipped directly to your door on a date of your choosing.

White containers with animal designs

Here’s how it’s done.

  1. Head to the Custom Cups Now website.
  2. Select a style of cup from the many options available, including simple cold drink cups and hot drink options.
  3. Decide on the ideal size for your cup and pick a printing method that works for you, like one-color or two-color imprint.
  4. Upload your artwork or add a custom message to your design.
  5. Choose a guaranteed delivery date and confirm your order.

That’s it! It’s so easy to make quality custom drinks containers at Custom Cups Now. And with the best prices and widest range of products, there really is no better place to bring your custom mug and cup ideas to life.

If you’re interested in how to make custom mugs but don’t want to deal with the hassle of printing out transfers or drawing your own designs, try Custom Cups Now. With just a few simple steps, you can have awesome custom cups delivered to your door.

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