That’s right – We are offering a ‘New Customer’ special for the month of August giving a $75.00 discount on the First Time Set-Up fee! This was just approved by our President Peter Deneen, and is available for the whole month of August!!! I was formerly under the impression that the discount was going to be less, but now it turns out that the First Time Set-Up is HALF OFF (regular price is $150.00).

To take advantage of this you need to place your first order of 50 signature mugs (or more) in the next 30 days – Delivery will be about 12 weeks, because of our production levels, so mugs will be ready to ship in October or November perfect for the Foliage Season!!!

Any questions that you have can be answered by calling us toll free at 888-646-0238.

Here is the snappy graphic that also goes over everything and can be printed out:

Like all specials there is some fine print – Offer not valid with any other offer, subject to refusal and may change without notice. Honestly, we just want to work with a few more new customers that have been on the fence, and just need a small nudge to jump in!!! The water is great and we look forward to hearing from you!!!

We are best known for our Signature Coffee mugs, but have over 55 different items all made by hand. Working from photos, or camera ready art, we create designs that are cut into clay with our “Glaze-Engraved™” process. Pictured below are 3 of our 10 styles of mugs – We have over 180 different glaze combinations!

Each mug is hand-thrown on a potter’s wheel by a master potter at our studio in St. Paul, MN. While each piece is almost identical, no two are exactly the same – And that is just one aspect that makes our stoneware so collectable.

If you found this page by clicking through from the Museum Store Marketplace – Welcome. Mention this blog and we’ll give you $50 off your first order.

For more information on our stoneware and the $50 coupon email niles@deneenpottery.com with your contact info and we’ll send you a catalog with the coupon and a sample mug, if you’d like. You can also call us, we like talking about our stoneware: 888-646-0238

To explore our website you can click here www.deneenpottery.com, or you can use the navigation bar to your left.

We look forward to hearing from you!

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

We’ve been proudly making mugs for PAII and their Innkeeping Show since 1992, when JoAnn Bell first sent out a form letter seeking a ‘handmade mug supplier’ to provide an item to commemorate PAII’s second biennial event. There is much more to this story that I will be reporting on in the weeks to come.

We have been honored to produce a collectable mug for each conference since 1992 and are ready to unveil the tentative mock up for this years show in Austin, Texas. Working with Pat Hardy and JoAnn Bell was a joy for my father, Peter Deneen, and I an just as pleased to be working with the President and CEO of PAII today, Jay Karen.

If you are an innkeeper and are curious about PAII, and the Innkeeping Show click here: www.innkeepingshow.com

Now for a brief introduction – This new mug style, which is being designed just for PAII, is going to be called the Small Abby. Still in the design phase the Small Abby will hold approximetly 10 oz. and will be about 4 inches tall. The color that we will be using for this inaugural run will be solid chocolate, a perfect western color. The image here pictures the mug in one of our other 33 solid glazes – Fieldstone.

Thank you for reading our blog – Stay warm and savor a warm mug in your hands when you can.

Hope to see you at the PAII conference!

Niles Deneen, VP-Marketing

Because we are having some difficulties in sending Tammie’s ‘Art Approval’ to her I’ve decided to post it here, on our blog. Nice to tackle the small problems first thing on a Monday morning.

Also it is kinda neat to show what a design looks like before we make it into clay… The logo that we are using can also been seen on Tammie’s new website that is days away from launching – You can see the homepage here: www.poteaucoffeecup.com

We got a few inches of fresh snow last night, can’t wait to get my x-country skis on this afternoon!

Thanks for reading our blog!

Niles Deneen – VP, Marketing

Option 1 - An classic example of 'backfill'

Option 2 - A traditional design.

We apologize for this miscommunication and failure to send you our catalog.

The problems have been fixed and the “Catalog Request” page is now working. We promise to send one to you if you’ll request one again. Click here to request another one.

Sincerely,                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Niles Deneen VP, Marketing                                                                                                                                                                                            Deneen Pottery