The “Mug Life” Online Group Is A Place To Show Off Your Favorite Mugs, Here Are 50 Of The Best Ones

Clearly, there are many mug lovers out there, as the Mug Life subreddit currently has 355k members. It’s a wholesome group with a simple description: “Like coffee mugs? Like weird coffee mugs? This is the place for you. Show us your best thrift store finds, your garage sale triumphs, and your old favorites.” Users are constantly sharing the coolest mugs that they find, and artists are even posting their most impressive pieces of work as well.

Mug Life has a simple goal, yet it is such a peaceful community. We associate our mugs with one of our favorite times of the day, the ritual of having a calming cup of coffee or tea, so it’s understandable that we want to celebrate them online as well. These little canvases can be amazing pieces of artwork or tiny bits of comedy, but we love them all the same. Whether you like mugs with quotes, flowers, your favorite characters or beautiful paintings, Mug Life has got you covered.

I try to exercise self control when it comes to mug shopping, but they are my favorite souvenir to bring home from a holiday, as I find that they can serve many purposes. Once I find a local artist in a new place that makes unique and beautiful mugs, I just can’t resist picking one up. And although I tend to rotate through the same few for my morning beverages, who says the value of a mug ends there? They can be beautiful knick knacks to place around your home to feature their unique art, and they can even be used to hold items like flowers, pencils or scrunchies. Never underestimate the power of a pretty mug.

And while many of us dabble in the art of mug collecting, one man has gone above and beyond. Charles Hubbell, also known as the “Cup Man”, of Culleoka Tennessee acquired an astonishing collection of over 23,000 mugs before he passed away in 2019. Not surprisingly, these beauties could not fit in his home, so he resorted to filling his garage and an entire barn with his impressive collection. 

The obsession with mugs started when Charles’ wife Dorothy ran out of space for mugs in their kitchen, so Charles hung 16 nails in the garage to hang the leftovers on. After seeing this piece of wall art, the couple’s friends began offering their own mugs and the collection began to snowball. It only took five years for Charles to hang his 10,000th mug. As Peter Funt writes in his piece for the Wall Street Journal featuring Charles’ story, “Mugs, like books, are difficult to throw away.”

They gain sentimental value, and they can always serve a purpose, so why get rid of them? “Americans love mugs because they fit our bigger-is-better mindset and are integral to the kitsch market we aggressively support,” Peter explains. “Plus, who doesn’t covet a hefty mug with 18 ounces of coffee, a third of which will be consumed before the rest is cold?”