Deneen Pottery
Favorite part of working at Deneen Pottery? Everything! Working alongside and inspiring our awesome staff and assisting our incredible customers. Getting to be around such a creative process and talented artists - the variety of 'opportunities' that fill my day keep me on my toes. Witnessing the transformation from proof to product.
It’s April Fool’s Day today and I haven’t played any tricks on anyone. Yet… What I have been doing today is organizing some of our archived printing and advertising projects. In a file from 2002 I found a FAQ sheet about our handmade mugs:
Realizing that none of this valuable information is posted on our website I figured that I could post it here so that it won’t languish in it’s small archived 2002 file. Unbelievably, most of the questions and answers are still the same.
Q: Are these mugs dishwasher safe?
A: Depends on who is washing your dishes… Just kidding, every piece of stoneware we make will be fine in the strongest industrial dishwasher. Just don’t drop it when you are putting them away.
Q: Will the colors fade over time?
A: None of the glaze colors will fade, even if they sit in direct sunlight for years! We have seen mugs that we made from 1984 that look like we just took them out of the kiln.
Q: If I store this pottery in the freezer will it break or crack because of the cold?
A: Our tankards along with our wine and champagne coolers are supposed to be stored in the freezer. Just be cautions of extreme changes in temperature, like from the freezer to the oven or vice versa as this expansion and shrinking are ideal for causing ceramics and even glass to crack.
Q: How do the mugs do in the oven, or micro-wave?
A: Great! Our kilns fire pottery up to 2200ºF so 350-400ºF would be fine. With heating things up in the micro-wave, especially beverages, just be sure that the stoneware mug is at least half full. This will allow even heat distribution through the piece and ensure that no cracking or breaking will occur.
Q: What is a good price to charge for one of the mugs if you are going to sell them?
A: Our Suggested Retail Price is $16.00, but it is just that a suggestion. Really it depends on what you want to get out of the mug. Some of our inns charge as much as $20.00 to make a profit, and others charge $12.00 just to make sure that their guests take one home as they cover their costs.
Q: How do these mugs work for advertising?
A: We think that the mugs are great for that subtle little reminder that actually gets used. Every time a beverage is enjoyed in one of these cups thoughts go back to the time spent at your inn. Next thing you know they want to come back for another stay.
I also found an accompanying advertising postcard, or handout, in that same file from 2002… Those same hands, that you see in the picture, are still here making pottery on a wheel! What I also find difficult to believe, is that we once used purple and grey as our branding colors?!? But then again that was before I was ‘seriously’ working for our family’s business.
If you have any other questions about our custom stoneware mugs, our our company just jot it down below and I’ll be sure to answer you back.
Thanks for reading our pottery blog!
Niles Deneen
Deneen Pottery
Favorite part of working at Deneen Pottery? Everything! Working alongside and inspiring our awesome staff and assisting our incredible customers. Getting to be around such a creative process and talented artists - the variety of 'opportunities' that fill my day keep me on my toes. Witnessing the transformation from proof to product.
