We have never really celebrated Valentine's Day. It's just too easy to go and buy some flowers, chocolates or a card. Too standard and not unique or personal enough (for me :).

This year my experiment actually inspired me to make a present. I always look for DIY ideas on the web and more so, romantic DIY ideas. I think the longer you are together the more effort should go into romance. I've decided to try the sharpie method for customizing a pair of his + her mugs (this blog post was my inspiration, but there are literally tons more online). The directions listed did seemed too easy to be true... so I did a little testing. I even tried running them through the dishwasher and here's what I found out...

1. Do get special porcelain marker. I happened to have one already, they last for a very long time and they are cheap (mine was 4.95 euro). Don't try to draw with a regular marker; it'll wash off (when you wash in a dishwasher or scrub with sponge).

2. Practice what you going to draw. It's harder to draw on a mug then on paper, your hands will shake and you won't be able to rub the drawing off. Practice the design on paper many times, it'll help.

3. Keep it simple. If you don't know what to write or draw, look online. There are so many cute drawings there. Think of an idea, say a "cat" and Google it. You'll easily find tons of nice drawings for inspiration.

4. Get a practice mug and draw on it if you can. It really will make a difference.

How to draw on a mug

1. Make sure your mug is clean.

2. Come up with design and practice it a few times on a paper.

3. Open your marker (sharpie) and press it a few times on a piece of paper to get the ink to flow to the tip of the pen.

4. Try resting edge of the mug on a table so you can draw more comfortably

5. When you are happy with your design place the mugs in a normal kitchen oven and turn up the heat to 150°c. Leave the mugs there for 40 min.
   - Do not pre-heat the oven. A quick change in temperature might cause mugs to crack!

Enjoy! Let me know how your mugs turned out!