Thursday, April 19, 2012

Mugs, mugs, mugs--which are good, which are bad?

I always suffer from stationery envy when people post such great photos of their incoming and outgoing mail. But sometimes we forget—at least I do—that letter writing is more than simply stationery, envelopes, paper, stamps, and pens. For example, I very rarely write a letter without a cuppa beside me; it helps set the mood. I'm sure lots of letter writers out there feel and do the same. So I thought I should write a blog post celebrating the unsung heroes of letter writing: tea and the mugs that hold lovely tea goodness.  

It would be incorrect to say that I'm a collector of mugs; rather, I'm an acquirer of mugs. I have a rather large number of mugs, and I use certain groups of mugs for different purposes. For example, I have 4-5 mugs I use just for cuppas with my husband; mugs for my morning coffee/tea; mugs for water; and even a mug for when I have tea by myself. And I never mix the mugs up for different purposes. For instance, I would never use a morning coffee mug for water—what am I, a heathen?!! When I buy a new one, I replace an older mug and take it out of purpose "rotation." I know, I even frighten myself with this anal weirdness...

There is no trouble so great or grave that cannot be much diminished by a nice cup of tea.
 -Bernard-Paul Heroux

You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me.
- C. S. Lewis

Anyway, here are some of my favourite mugs, the ones that provide comfort and help set the mood for when I write my letters:

DISCLAIMER: Please click away right now if seeing great mugs or tea tins makes you go insane, to the point where you consider selling your kidney for more mugs and tea. Just me? Oh... awkward.....

Here are some of my favourite cuppa mugs:




Here are my favourite mugs for water:


BLISTERING BARNACLES!!!

I LOVE Tintin.


Oh wait.... what's this in my green mug...?
SURPRISE!

Here are my favourite morning coffee/tea mugs:



 And my latest acquisition: His and Hers mugs!


They have words on the other side that only become a sentence when you put the two mugs together:

My husband keeps giving me the HIS mug. I'm not sure if that's just an accident or he's trying to tell me something. I mean, I might have a tiny bit of hair on my upper lip, but that does not make me a man! It's just... mannish. There's a vast difference.

And last but not least, here are a few photos of my tea collection:




Being attacked by tea tins every time you open the cupboard is a real danger in my house.

What about you, lovely letter writers? Do you like to acquire mugs? What is your favourite mug to use or your favourite tea to drink while writing your letters?

10 comments:

  1. My giant Tigger mug is my favorite mug to drink coffee and black teas out of. But most of the time I like drinking green teas, my favorite is a mint green tea.

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  2. Okay, I realized you said you're obsessed with tea but Woah! haha :D

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  3. Oh my goodness! That's a lot of cuppas! I don't drink much tea, but I do drink coffee. I'm a bit neurotic about my coffee. It is said Beethoven counted out exactly 60 coffee beans for a cup of coffee. I weigh, on a very sensitive scale, exactly 22 grams of coffee beans, hand grind them, and brew with water at exactly 200 degrees F. I can't play the piano.

    On the subject of fancy mail ... I've been a mail enthusiast for nigh on 30 years and in recent years I've noticed much more emphasis on the appearance of the mail itself. I don't object to it, but it does make for a bit of performance anxiety. Beautiful stationery, penmanship, embellished envelopes do indeed add to a letter, but do not a good letter make. That is not to say that most of the gorgeous mail I do receive is not good mail! I've just noticed the focus on pretty mail in recent years. And I thank you, Laura, for highlighting one unseen aspect of letter writing.

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    1. I also have a special tea kettle that boils the water to the perfect temperature for that particular tea. So from one neurotic beverage drinker to another, I tip my hat to you...

      I'm a relatively new mail enthusiast, but I certainly feel that performance anxiety as well! Particularly regarding penmanship and stamps as some of my letters appear as though a cow scratched it out using its hoof and I don't know where to get great stamps in my city. But like you, I'd rather get a heartfelt reply without any embellishments than a beautiful envelope that holds a rather superficial letter. I'm very appreciative of pretty mail, but I cherish the message much more than the vehicle it came in.

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    2. Oh I agree with you both! Beautiful mail is lovely, but not if the letter itself is shallow. I'll always choose a fun letter over a pretty envelope!

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  4. Wow! Your mugs are fun, Laura! But I'm the opposite of you. I only have one mug that I like and it's the only one I'll use - for anything (juice and smoothies mostly). I got it in Mexico in 1999 and it was handmade. I should take a picture for you!

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    1. Oh yes, please! I want to see this great handmade mug from Mexico that seems to have magically stood the test of time (or 13 years, whichever comes first...). My mugs seem to get really stained after a couple of years, but that's probably all the tea and coffee.

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    2. I love this post ! And I love that flamingo mug ! My mom had a tea set similar to your cow udder mug . My most grabbed for mug is white with red polka dots :)

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  5. ooooh ♥♥ love ♥♥ the Tardis one !
    And your tea collection :D
    I'm not being attacked by tea tins (or boxes in my case) these days but I sometimes get attaced by mugs or baking items ;)

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