Estes Park, CO – Owned and operated Lois H. Smith – Stoneware by Deneen Pottery

We are now in our second year of working with the Baldpate Inn and we are just into the heart of the busy season. Thing are going well… Really well actually:

“HELP!  The mugs are flying off the shelves!  We can barely use them in the restaurant we have sold so many!!!   Can we get another order ASAP?  I think you have already sent all I had on my January Pack & Ship order.”

“I guess I should have realized these would sell so great, but just didn’t anticipate the demand” wrote Lois in a second email after her next order of 350 handmade custom mugs was approved.

What can you do except make more and get it out as quick as we can! Finding the perfect place, and the perfect season, and then the right people is how we are growing our family business. When more and more products are made outside of our country, with fossil fuels burned to get them here, we feel like we are doing our small part to make the world a better place.

Glazing the plates, one-by-one, is the founder, president, Peter Deneen… The gizmo that he is using is a pending a patent, and is affectionelly called the Glaze-A Whirl. It is just one of the many machines, and processes that we invented in our pursuit to create the finest handmade stoneware.

Creating functional, durable, American Made Stoneware is what we do – It’s who we are as a family!

If you have any questions just give us a call, or send an email using the ‘Contact Us’ button on the left.

Thank for reading our blog -

Niles Deneen VP, Marketing – Deneen Pottery

I’ve been waiting to find the next Innkeeper to interview and after hearing from Katherine Brown of Bloomsbury located in Camden, SC earlier this week I knew she would be perfect. In October of lat year we first talked about her property and our mugs and a few weeks later we combined a photograph of her property, and a drawing, by Randall Peterson, into this beautiful creation by Teena our Art Director.

At the start of the week I received a sorta tap-on-the-shoulder email that, more or less, hit me over the head and prompted me to see if Katherine would want to be the second official participant of  our Innkeeper Q&A.

“Good morning Niles – this is where you can share a ‘great laugh’ with everyone at Deneen Pottery!  When we ordered mugs a few short months ago, it was primarily because I like them–I wanted to try them on our breakfast table.

As it would never have occurred to me to buy a mug (with some logo) when I was traveling — I rather dismissed when you said how well they sell.   OK – I need to place an order.   Quit laughing and tell me what you need.”

I don’t mind being dismissed especially when I get to hear about it – That’s why this statement is also on our testimonials page… It helps to look back at positive statements when you are having a rough day – And I figure if I keep stacking up the positive things that have been said, more will KNOW that we ARE the best at making Custom Stoneware Coffee Mugs!

Enough of the blog blabbing here – Time to get to the Questions and Answers.

Q.) Where did you first hear about Deneen Pottery? Deneen Pottery mugs have been around the B&B industry for years.  I do not really recall when or where I first heard about them…most likely from an innkeeper when Bruce and I were visiting an inn who featured the mug.  We love upscale B&Bs — upscale B&Bs are where travelers find the mugs.  So, we have encountered them often in our travels (CO to VA, TX to NH)…long before we decided to be innkeepers…long before we decided to feature Deneen Pottery at Bloomsbury.

Q. Do you use the mugs to serve coffee and/or tea? Yes, we use them for both coffee and tea…primarily for coffee.  We use them in our Bloomsbury gourmet breakfast service and whenever a guest requests a hot drink when not a breakfast.

Q.) What is your favorite thing about your mugs? This is not a fair question…there is no one favorite thing:  Favorite things:  great size with great handle size, beautiful glaze options and wonderful branding of Bloomsbury, keeps hot drinks hot, dishwasher friendly, and our guests love them!

Q.) Can you think of a story or comment  to share about your mugs? My Favorite Mug As a young female lieutenant assigned to an all male Air Force Field Maintenance Unit, I chose a gracefully unique coffee cup from which to consume some of the worst coffee ever brewed (or should I say rebrewed).  Through 25 years of serving our great Nation, I followed my tradition of using a “pretty” cup.  When we opened Bloomsbury Inn in 2005, I continued to use a cup unique to all the others in the house.  Yes, cup as in cup and saucer — never a mug.   With the arrival of Deneen Pottery mugs at Bloomsbury, I decided I should try them.  Well as I write, my Royal Crown Darby cup and saucer are well-displayed in the kitchen, and my coffee sits before me in a Deneen Pottery mug. (PS…no Niles, I did not make this up as a good “story” for the interview…it is oh so true!)

Just as Katherine has served our country for the Air Force , our mugs are now serving her and the guests of Bloomsbury! I do feel sorry for the Royal Crown Darby cup and saucer, much the same as I feel for Winnie the Pooh, but new relationship has emerged and that brings me joy… Much the same way that Katherine now enjoys coffee from her handmade, hand-thrown, made in the USA  – Custom stoneware mug. While what we do may not be on the cutting edge of technology, or will save the world, we do bring a moment of peace and joy when you stop to savor your first sip of the day.

Thank you Katherine – We wish you the best of luck, this season!

Thanks for reading our blog!

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

Since Olive was about 5 months old she has been coming to work with me and has made friends with everyone that works here at Deneen Pottery! Her favorite thing to do is to jump into Julie’s lap first thing in the morning greeting her with kisses.

Yesterday Laura, one of our potters, was having a difficult time with the clay that she was using to throw pilsners… Olive and I decided to pop in and see if we could help.

After a bit of coaching Olive sat beside Laura’s wheel to watch how the next piece was thrown…

As usual Olive was able to bring a smile and lighten the mood… It’s amazing how well she can ease tensions and make the small things go a little bit easier! Olive then decided she should check on Jon to see how he was coming along with his custom mugs.

For an early afternoon tour of the throwing area Olive was quite tuckered out… Keeping an eye on everyone can be a lot of work!

So goes the life of being a shop dog…

Recently I was working with Sarah Stotts, from BedandBreakfast.com, on an article about my family’s Custom Pottery Mug business When she asked me for any new images of our handmade stoneware Jumping Rocks popped into my head. So I got on the phone and left a message for Matthew Lovette, Photographer, and Mark Smith, Photo Stylist, to give me a call. These two amazingly talented guys previously owned and operated a successful and nationally-recognized country inn, The Woolverton Inn in New Jersey before they founded Jumping Rocks Photography… Their pictures have been published and reproduced by countless publications and hospitality websites. You’ll find  them in Washingtonian Magazine, Philadelphia Magazine, Country Living, National Geographic Traveler, Forbes, among othersIt is not uncommon for our handmade mugs to ‘pop up’ in many of the distinguished properties that Jumping Rocks works with. Here are a few of the images that Matthew gave me permission to post online. I am pleased to share these images with you!

We are passionate about the work of our hands, and when photographed in the setting in which our handmade mugs are found – they look stunning! Visit these properties and enjoy the time you have, purchase a mug to remember that time… And every time you drink from that handmade coffee mug you will be able to recall the details you loved the most!

If you have a property or business that is in need of mugs just give us a call – we look forward to hearing from you! Toll Free 888-646-0238 or visit us online by clicking here!

Now for the mug shots:

Located in Blacksburg, Virginia – The Clay Corner has been a customer since 2008 and this is their second order. Last time the two colors that were chosen were Burgundy and Cinnamon… This time around Joanne Anderson (the innkeeper) changed out the cinnamon for butter (not pictured) for half of her order of custom handmade mugs, and a repeat of burgundy. Guess the burgundy was a bit more popular.

Besides the handmade mugs, we also make other useful items like pitchers! Tori McGough from the Gros Ventre RIver Ranch ordered a small quantity of our newest item the 6 oz. Pitcher. These handmade 6 oz. pitchers are perfect for cream to be served with coffee or for heating up syrup. As we fire our handmade stoneware up to 2350º F there is no risk of placing these tough little guys in a microwave to heat up the syrup. This is the first order that we’ve made for Tori and we wish them well this season!

Located in New York, The Coffey House has duplicated their first order of stoneware mugs in the Colonial style all in our custom Navy Blue Glaze. Although we try to suggest offering at least 2 colors, so that you guests will have a choice, not everyone sees things our same way. Ellie Coffey has a beautiful 4 room inn (www.thecoffeyhouse.com) that is furnished with antiques, high quality plush comforters and linens, and bathrobes. Next time I get to East Marion I’ll be staying with her… When I do I’ll suggest bringing in a new color on her next order.

I can’t tell you how excited I am with this order going out! Instead of saying too much I’ll just say that the innkeeper of the Romantique Lakeview Lodge, Chris Fischer, and I talked a few weeks back and these mugs might mark the beginning of something really, REALLY, good. I can say that that Fieldstone is our newest color, and a satin finish, has been getting great reviews from our customers… Pictured here in one of our most popular styles of Signature Mugs – the Round Belly Mug!

Lois Hoover from Kansas City, Missouri has been a customer since 2002! I have had the pleasure of meeting up with her on a few occasions and the last time was in Independence for the MO-KAN conference where she placed this order for more handmade stoneware mugs in a VIBRANT coral glaze. Her property is celebrating it’s ‘10th Anniversary’ this year and has an in-ground pool and movie theatre! Can’t wait to stay with her next time I pass through KC!

Another exciting order that is just about to head south to Washington, Texas… The is the first order of custom hand-thrown mugs that are just coming off the kiln for Barbara Segal and her Lilian Farms Country Estate! The picture that we used was photographed from a hot air baloon and the detail on the medallion is AMAZING!!! In her first order she selected 2 different styles of custom mugs each in their own color. As pictured above the Jr. Executive Mug in burgundy, and the other selection was the Round Belly Mug in our custom glaze – Hunter Green. Can’t wait to hear how her guests respond when she serves her first cups of coffee and tea!!!

My family (mom, dad, aunt and wifey) spent 4 days in Atlanta talking about our custom handmade stoneware mugs with some of the best innkeeping professionals in the country. We’ve been working with the Professional Association of Innkeepers International (paii), the sponsors of the conference, for over 26 years! There is a very interesting story here that is on it’s way…

For Deneen Pottery the event is a sort of family reunion with established and new customers that all find (or will find) success serving and selling the handmade custom mugs that we make. Below Julie Rolsen from the Garth Woodside Mansion, a dancing diva and highest seller of our Deneen Pottery Mugs!

Julie Rolsen with Annie and Mary Deneen

About the conference… The event allows the attendees to share time with the other professionals in the Innkeeping Industry – This is one that every innkeeper should attend. While it takes some figuring to calculate your exact ROI (return on investment) for the ideas that you learn the camaraderie and conversations that happen between the educational sessions are INVALUABLE… The surge of energy and creation of ‘flow’ that happens when you spend time with others that are doing what you do creates an environment of positivity that recharges your soul.

While you can accomplish many tasks in your day at home, spending a few hours on the Trade Show Floor listening, looking, touching and comparing the services and products is such a time saving experience… Especially when you are in our booth! Holding the different Styles of Signature Mugs and choosing the best Glaze Colors can only be done with REAL handmade mugs in your hand. Pictured below are Ray and Kristie Rosset from Lookout Point Lakeside Inn with my dad, Peter Deneen, selecting their new colors for their mug order.

The President of Paii – Jay Karen has taken the reins of the organization and is moving towardTo amuse ourselves and to keep traffic moving through the isles, tables of sweets are provided… With some special help by Lewis Sternthal, from InnStyle, a sponsored table was placed in our row on the final day of the show. When picking the right handmade mug, of the right thread count and quality of linen snacks make it easier!

Next years show is going to be held in Austin, Texas… Hope to see YOU there!

At the start of this year with all of the economic uncertainty we decided to head out to more bed and breakfast conferences in the hopes of attracting new customers. A few weeks back my dad attended the Illinois Innkeepers conference where he met many lovely people that had not heard of Deneen Pottery, and were unfamiliar with our hand made mugs.

Our booth usually takes the longest to set up and tear down as we have so many different styles and colors of handmade mugs that need to be displayed. This is where my dad feels the most confident, order pad in hand, discussing the benefits of using our handmade mugs to serve coffee to guests.

The 10-15 minutes that is used to tell stories about successful inns, can mark the beginning of a relationship that we hope to enter with a new customer…

Then the fun begins with choosing the right style of custom mug, the custom design that will be placed on the stoneware, and then the appropriate custom glaze color. We have 11 styles of custom mugs and 31 solid glazes and over 64 different marble glaze variations. This means for an order size of 100 mugs, where 2 styles can be selected with 4 different glaze options, the order can have 6270 different possibilities! While overwhelming in it’s size that is why my dad, Julie Longtin (our GM) or myself – Niles Deneen can help by giving suggestions that keep things simple.

Nothing makes any of us here at Deneen Pottery more pleased than going over the popular custom glaze colors, or stoneware mug styles that we customize for each order.

We’ve got another big show coming up next week – The Innkeepers Conference and Trade Show sponsored by PAII… The Professional Association of Innkeepers International. Hope to see you there!

Dear Niles and Teena,
I want you to know that our new custom mugs are simply spectacular.  The logo has depth, every detail is perfect and I’m thrilled to once again have Deneen Pottery mugs in the inn.  They look rich and I’ve already sold two in spite of slow business.

Susie Goldsmith
Boreas B&B – Long Beach, WA

Susie has also posted a blog on her site about her new handmade mugs, read more…

Tides Inn by the Sea is bringing in a new color – Lt. Dijon w/Dijon White – Perfect to match their billing as “The Grand Yellow Lady of Goose Rocks Beach”. It will be fun to hear how this new glaze color on their custom mugs, goes over with thier guests this season.

Customers since the PAII conference of 2004, The Grape Arbor Inn has their 3rd order coming through… Round Belly Mugs in Hunter Green and Cranberry, with 5 new marble glazed mugs in Cranberry w/Blue White Tops

The Blue Goose Inn – Coopeville, WA is the next custom mug. This handmade mug is called the Flare Mug, it holds 10 ounces and is pictured in our Heritage blue. We are also 5 of these handmade mugs that are in a marble glaze: Heritage Blue w/Grey White Tops!

Sue Cunningham, the innkeeper wrote in a previous message: “In less than a year I am already placing a second order for your fabulous hand thrown mugs.  The guests at my B&B love being served their morning coffee in such a comfy warm mug, and because they love them so much -I’m nearly sold out!  I couldn’t be happier with the quality and the design, as well as the great friendly service from everyone there at Deneen Pottery.  Please tell everyone thanks for me, and send me more mugs!!  ”

The Dragon Run Inn – Church View, VA placed their 3rd order with us in January, for more Hunter Green Round Belly Mugs. Such detail in their Artwork!

I am so excited to announce the first of our newest customers from the Dude Rancher Conference that we attended in Tucson, AZ! The Burnt Well Guest Ranch has two different colors of their handmade round belly coffee mugs that are coming off the kiln today – Sand, and Rustic Brick. We are looking forward to having more mugs served to guests in settings like Roswell, NM!