the mugs were swapppppped

Cuppa Kim hosted an amazing Mug Swap in August.Let's all take a moment to give a round of applause to Kim.I mean, she organized it all. Assigning partners, spreading the word, making sure everyone got their partners blog, instagram and mailing address. That is a lot of work!THANK YOU KIM!
I was so excited to open my package from sweet Christie. She sent me this beautiful mug

along with some TAZO teas, some Starbucks VIA and a cute little notebook. AND what was even cuter was she used a coffee cuff to package it in. So creative.
I have declared this my new favorite mug. My old favorite mug broke a few weeks ago so I am happy to have a replacement. I adore the design and it's just perfect for me. I am very particular about my mugs. Really, I am.
To see the mugs I sent off visitJulie and Stephanie, they should be posting pictures of their hand drawn mugs.I have never used porcelain pens before. I was really scared how they would turn out, but after I got the hang of drawing on a mug I ended up having a lot of fun with them. 

sneak peek of one of the mugs I drew

I found plain, white mugs with no texture. I washed and dried them, and used Porcelaine brand pens to draw on the mugs. I found my pens at Michael's on clearance too! I followed the directions (gasp, I hate directions) and allowed the paint to dry for 24 hours, then baked the mugs at 350 for like 45 minutes. After they cooled I washed and dried them again (and to be honest I was scared the paint might come off). I really want to get some more dishes and maybe a platter to draw on. They would make great inexpensive, handmade gifts.
Did you participate in the Mug Swap? Have you ever used porcelain pens?