Harry Potter Sharpie Mugs

Have you ever made a craft you were so in love with, you just couldn’t stop staring at it?! That’s how I feel about these mugs! I love LOVE love them- and love that I made them. I have done many DIY projects where I’ve thought they’ve turned out “eh”- but I really love how these Harry Potter sharpie mugs turned out, and they were they first time I’ve ever made them too! So if you’re a lover of the boy who lived, then read on to find out how you can drink your coffee with him every morning!

Sharpie mugs are all over the internet and the sky is the limit when it comes to designing them. The possibilities are endless! I had never made any before but have been wanting to for some time. There are a variety of techniques out there and after doing some research, I seem to have found a method that will produce beautiful mugs that will last and that are hand washable.

To make these mugs, you’ll need:

white ceramic mugs (these are from Target)

oil-based sharpie markers (not regular!)

rubbing alcohol 

If you are going to transfer the words, you’ll need:

paper

pencil

painter tape

access to a printer

The consensus seems clear that it’s best to use oil based sharpie markers, not regular ones. They are more durable and will with stand hand washing. I got mine at the craft store, but they have them on Amazon too.

I did two kinds of mugs: two hand drawn and two that I transferred the words. For any kind of mug, you will want to clean it first with rubbing alcohol before you draw or transfer any words. Transferring the words onto a mug is actually very easy! First you’ll need to print out the words you want in a Harry Potter font. I wrote “Accio Coffee!” and “Espresso Patronum!” in a free font I found online and printed them out in a size 60. Then cut out around the words.

Flip over the paper and shade the backs with pencil and then use painter’s tape to tape it onto your mug.

To transfer an imprint of the words onto the mug, use a pencil and trace the words. That will transfer over a light imprint on the mug where the words go!

Ta-da! Easy, right? Now your letters will be perfectly wizardly without the fuss. Now, just use a thinner marker and outline the words and fill them in. Take your time doing this and remember that even the “thin” markers are not that thin, so leave yourself extra space for the middle of letters like e’s, o’s or p’s.

As you can see on my first “e” in coffee, I didn’t quite leave enough space and it filled in more than I would have liked, but it still looks nice.

The Harry Potter silhouette and “always” with the deathly hallows, I hand drew. I used a pencil first to lightly draw what I wanted and then traced over it with my marker, just like the other mugs. To make the marker permanent, you will want to bake them. To do that, place them in a cool oven and set it for 250 degrees. Allow the mugs to warm up with the oven so they don’t crack and once they are preheated, set the timer and bake them for 2 hours. After 2 hours, turn the oven off and let them completely cool down in the oven, again to prevent cracking.

Adorable, right? I am totally in love with how these mugs turned out. They are so fun and really were easy to make, it just took a little patience to write the words so I didn’t mess them up. I really love these and now have become inspired to make MORE mugs or bowls or whatever!

Are you a Harry Potter fan like me? What do you think of these adorable mugs?