My mother has always had a tradition of going out to eat and opening gifts with her mom and two sisters every Christmas…it was a time for them to bond and hang out before the holiday got way too hectic with kids, in laws and husbands! Ever since my granny passed away about 7 years ago, my mom and her sisters stopped getting together.  So two years ago my sisters and I decided to start our OWN tradition with our mom AND we included my aunt Amy since she has no daughters and lives close. So before Christmas, but still in the month of December, we get together and do a cooking class at Central Market and exchange gifts.  It’s a TON of fun and we can be talkative and let loose and we don’t have to worry about anything else (well, except to not catch on fire or burn the food ;)!) This year I wanted to make my gifts to my sisters and mom really special so I decided to make at least one of the presents I gave to them.  I actually came across glittered mugs on Etsy BUT at $21 a pop, I was OUT and knew my crafty self could figure out how to do it myself.  I found blogs and different How-tos and even went out and bought different decal paper to try to make the mugs.  The glitter part was the easy part, it was the cute little sayings or art on the mugs that seemed difficult to do.  I started out thinking I could use oil based paint pens that were made for ceramics and draw what I wanted on the mugs.  That was a flop; I don’t have a steady hand! So then there was the whole carbon paper thing: basically you put it on the mug and put the design you want over the carbon paper.  Then you trace it with a pencil and then fill it in…that just didn’t work at all.  I even bought the decal paper men use for their model cars but it seemed too difficult and time consuming.  Now, right off the bat I had thought to use my Cricut Expressions 2 machine but I immediately dismissed it because I didn’t want to buy more cartridges (and I wanted to use my OWN designs or ones I came up with) and I didn’t think vinyl would stay on the mug through washings.  BUT soon after I tried all these different things, a friend on Facebook said she makes permanent decals! I asked her a bazillion questions and finally sent her my designs and colors.  SHE DID A PERFECT JOB! When I went to pick them up, I asked her if she had a Silhouette (I had heard of them but never used one) and sure enough that’s exactly how she cut my designs! I am now wanting one and need to sell my cruddy, money hungry Cricut (that is a whole other post!).  Below I have the step by step instructions on how to make your own glittered vinyl decorated mugs that should stand up to at least hand washing!

So the first thing I did was buy the supplies! Here’s what you’ll need:

Martha Stewart’s Craft Decoupage in Durable Gloss Finish

Glitter (your color of choice)

Thin electrical tape (more workable around mugs vs. blue painter’s tape)

white mugs (I  bought mine from Dollar Tree)

Oracle Decal Paper 651 in the colors you want

design program (I like Rhonna on my iPhone or Canva.com on my computer)

Silhouette cutter or Cricut Explore

So here is how I achieved my final products! They can totally be done different ways I’m sure, but this was the easiest way I could find!

Glittered portion:

I taped off the part of the mug I wanted to decoupage with glitter (the bottom half).  I then used a paint brush and put the first layer of decoupage on the bottom part of the mug.  I then sprinkled a good layer of glitter on it.

I let it dry for about an hour and then added another layer of decoupage and glitter.  I did this at least three times. When you are happy with the amount of glitter, add another layer of decoupage to the top and let dry (I usually take the tape off right before my final layer of decoupage).

Note: If you don’t plan on putting any designs on it then let it sit for at least three days prior to using.  However, it will need a full 28 days of curing before being able to dish wash (I believe it says that on the Martha Stewart bottle).

        

Design portion:

I used my Rhonna app to create cute sayings and designs and then saved them and emailed them to myself (so I could pull them up on my computer).  I have a friend who has a Silhouette…I have a Cricut Expressions 2 and I feel like I totally wasted my money! I had no knowledge of the Silhouette machine AND the Cricut Explore (very much like the Silhouette) just came out. Anyways, my friend can cut ANYTHING on her machine which is quite fabulous! So I sent her the designs singly…the ones that have multiple colors I had to send each one in a separate jpg (background in one color and then the letters in another color).  She used her decal paper in the colors I needed and cut them out for me perfectly! Oh and I knew my area to work with on my mug was about 3inX3in so she made sure to cut them that size!

You do need a pretty steady hand to put them on, and I found using a credit card to smooth out the bubbles helps a lot! But I just put them on one layer at a time!

And although it does seem like the decal paper won’t hold up when you first put it on, just know that it takes like 24-48 hours for it to cure and really stick!
        

If you have any questions, just let me know! I may not have an answer but can help find one! 😉