Tuesday, October 2, 2012

Sharpie Mug: FAIL

I've been seeing this project pop up all over Pinterest - draw on a white ceramic mug with Sharpie, bake in the oven for half an hour, drink smugly out of your newly decorated mug.  Though I generally prefer going to a Paint Your Own Pottery type place, I decided to try this project when decorating a mug as a gift for my brother.

I started with a white mug from Target and Sharpie markers...


I drew on a bike...


...baked in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, then took it out and let it cool overnight.  Everything looked good!  I tried smudging it with my finger and the Sharpie stayed put.  But I figured I should try washing it before I gave it as a gift and just gentle one swipe of the sponge resulted in this:


Bummer!  Maybe using a different type of mug would work (though this seems to be the EXACT mug featured in the most popular tutorial on Pinterest.  From here on out, I will be sticking to painting ceramics at a studio instead of Sharpie-ing them at home.  Anybody else try something like this?  Let me know and stay homey!

28 comments:

  1. http://pinstrosity.blogspot.com/2012/07/mug-shot.html

    You are not alone...

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    Replies
    1. Haha, thanks for sharing. And my mug seemed to fare a little better than hers did. The original "Pin" on this seems too good to be true for sure.

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    2. You need to use oil-based Sharpies. They're specific vs. normal sharpies

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  2. I did this exact same thing on a plate! (Seriously with a bike and everything, as a present for Simon after our Italy bike trip!) AND had the same results. Then I learned that you actually need a porcelain marker not a sharpie! Re-did it with the porc marker and it stayed!

    Try it again!

    http://www.amazon.com/Pebeo-Porcelaine-Bullet-Marker-Anthracite/dp/B005KOH1OY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1349475707&sr=8-1&keywords=porcelain+markers

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    1. Nice!! Thanks, I will give it a whirl - and let me know how your bike plate turns out! So funny!

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    2. I tried this with a porcelain pen and it chipped when I rubbed my finger on it. Sarah Gudernatch do you have any tips with how you did yours that I may try to keep these from being a total waste.

      Thanks

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    3. I tried this with a porcelain pen and it chipped when I rubbed my finger on it. Sarah Gudernatch do you have any tips with how you did yours that I may try to keep these from being a total waste.

      Thanks

      Delete
  3. I dont know where the rumor got started that a sharpie works but Ive seen the pinterest tutorials and knew they couldn't possible work.

    Its easy enough to get the ceramic pen and it works very well.

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    1. you need to use oil-based sharpies. they're different than regular sharpies.

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  4. I know, I know... and for such a Sharpie enthusiast, you'd think I would have been smart about it, too. Too good to be true! I am definitely getting a ceramic pen for next time!

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  5. Sharpie actually makes an oil based marker which works well for these sort of ceramic projects. http://www.sharpie.com/enNZ/Products/Pages/ProductDetails.aspx?pid=SharpieOil-BasedPaintMarkerFine(Sharpie%20Catalog)

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  6. Definitely just did this the other day and had a total fail, too!! www.markandkassie.com

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  7. oil based sharpies!

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  8. Your results are going to depend on the glaze on your cup. Some will work better than others but don't ask me which is better. I tried the 350 degrees/30 mins and wile most was still there after hand washing (I used colors)some faded awfully bad. Orange turned into a rust color. Black works great on all tests. Tested it by diswasher cleaning. DON'T! *L* Then I tried 450 degrees/30 and it worked much better. I also left them in the oven after 30 mins. to cool. Thre was some fading but I reapplied over the faded areas and did ther 450/30 and it was fine with hand washing. Next I am going to try and use Polyurethane spray which means the cup can't be used in the microwave but that's ok with me.

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  9. My sister made me a cute his & hers set for Christmas and the same thing happened... at least I got to save the hers one from being erased!

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  10. I have made several. I baked them at 425 degrees for 30 minutes and then let them cool in oven. I have been drinking out of the original mug every morning and then give it a hand wash, no sponge or cloth. It has not faded or rubbed off at all!! I have used both Sharpie and BIC permanent markers. I actually like the BIC colors better. They stay truer than Sharpie! I get my mugs from Dollar Tree and Walmart.

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  11. 450 degrees at 45 minutes and sharpie works excellent on dollar ceramic mugs, etc

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  12. you can also spray them with a clear coat glaze after baking. i do that and it works. so the sharpie art does work, you just have to tweak it a bit :)

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  13. Use oil based sharpies , not the regular permanent sharpies !!!!! you can find them on Amazon and on EBay , but no luck at the Sharpie web sight .

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  14. I used oil based Sharpies. I drew my design, put the mugs in the cold oven and set the temperature to 230C. Once is reached that temperature, I set my timer for 45 minutes. After the time was up, I left the mugs in the oven until morning. In the morning in SCRUBBED them -just to be sure- and scratched them with my fingernails and my design didn't budge. Completely permanent.

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  15. Regular Sharpies WILL work. Increase the heat to 425-430 F, 30 mins. I'm drinking out of mine I made a week ago and have washed it daily. Still looks good as new! Cheap Dollar Store cup ;)

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  16. Hey girls! I would love to feature this fail in my upcoming CraftFail book -- could you email me so I can give you more details? I couldn't find a contact email on your site.

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  17. I did it and it worked, I gave them as gifts and months later saw them and they still looked good. I am an artist that paints on glass and these would be my tips: First wipe clean with rubbing alcohol to take any soap residue, dirt etc. off cup. 2nd - put into cold oven, begin timing 30 minutes when your oven hits 350 degrees, then turn oven off and leave in oven until cooled. Usually I do it overnight.

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  18. I did this 425/30 etc....and had major fading with a regular red sharpie. I've reapplied the marker and yet to put it back in the oven. My mug was from Pier1.

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  19. I did 160 degrees and 90 minutes, it worked

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  20. Tried this with a bone China mug, perhaps I didn't bake for long enough or the glaze on the mug meant it wouldn't stick but it rubbed off straight away. Gonna have another go but leaving it in the oven a bit longer

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  21. you can use regular sharpies but it's a bit trickier. draw on your mug something simple, just lines, no coloring. wait 1 hour to make it dry completely. then, go over the drawing again. wait another hour. then cook for 45 min at 430 degrees F (220 celsius).
    I highly recommend to put the mug in the oven when it is cool, wait until it reaches temperature and then start counting time. then don't touch it and leave it inside until the oven is cool. this is not about the sharpie working or not, it's because the immediate change of temperature can crack your mug.
    the less the mug is glazed, the better it will work. i bough mine at ikea.
    it's perfectly fine in the dish washer. if you wash it by hand, just avoid to use the scratchy part of the sponge on the drawing.
    I was thinking to try cooking twice, one after the firs drawing and a second time after going over the lines again. I bet it works even better.
    obviously; I'm sure the oil based sharpies or the ceramic markers work better and are easier. this is just if you can't find any (unfortunately I didn't)

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  22. I had the same problem, wish I knew about the oil based sharpies before I spent money on the regular ones! Thanks for all the information, I'm going to try it again with my grandkids!

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Thank you so much for taking the time to comment!