Why It’s Never A Bad Thing To Own Too Many Mugs

Think you have too many mugs? As a mug enthusiast, I’m here to tell you that you can never have too many.

“Makeila, you have too many mugs?!”

“Why do you need so many mugs?”

“At least we know when you move out, you will never run out of mugs.”

These are only a few of the comments my parents make daily. Yes! I like mugs, and it goes without saying that I have a lot of them. What can I say? I am a coffee addict and, being the writer I am, coffee is an essential beverage if I am to function properly. Having too many mugs—as my parents would call it—is not such a bad habit to have. In fact, there are many benefits to owning too many mugs. I would know. Here is a list, just to name a few.

1. Display

Having too many mugs is more than just having and using the dishware for almost any type of dish. Literally. Take, for instance, wall art and consider putting some (if not all) of your mugs on display. You can arrange them by season, color, trips taken, and inspirational words or phrases.

Whenever I move out and into a place of my own, I plan on putting most of my mugs, if not all of them, on display in my kitchen. Creating a mug rack, or wall, is a project I plan to take on. I have even considered displaying them on some type of shelving system, that will hopefully be included in the coffee corner, or station that I am eager to fashion in my kitchen.

2. Multi-Purpose Usage

One of the more obvious benefits of owning too many mugs is their usage. With mugs, you can use them for practically anything. They serve as great bowls for soup, your favorite ice cream, and let us not forget their apparent purpose of being used for drinking your morning coffee or evening tea.

I first discovered the multi-purpose usage of a mug during my first year of college. As a freshman living on campus, you are required to spend your first year living in a dorm. That might sound obvious to some but not to others.

I attended and graduated from Grand Canyon University, which is located in Phoenix, Arizona. While I was a freshman, we were not allowed to live in the on-campus apartments. Now, students are able to. In regards to appliances, we were prohibited from owning anything more than a microwave, a mini-refrigerator, and a coffee pot in our dorms. That was it. Needless to say, most of my meals were sandwiches, salads, or microwavable meals — that is, if I did not purchase one from the many fast food stops on campus.

Since we were limited in space, most of my meals were cooked in a mug (since I had so many of them and only one plate). Meals included canned corn, green beans, rice, top ramen, soups, scrambled eggs, oatmeal, cake-in-a-cup, and mac & cheese. And those are only a few of the many purposes my mugs served in the microwave. That does not include the non-microwavable meals and beverages.

3. Fills Empty Space

Now, one benefit that may not be some people’s favorite—my parents included—is having too many mugs does wonders for filling up space that would otherwise be empty and vacant. If you have an empty spot to fill in your dishware cabinet or have run out of ideas to decorate the rest of your vacant kitchen with, then put some of the mugs that you have collected to use. Nobody tires of looking at mugs and observing their intricate, simple, or basic designs and recognizing that they brighten up and enhance a kitchen.

This may not come as a surprise to you, but whenever I notice an empty space in a cabinet, I am quick on my feet to fill the empty space with a mug. Of course, I am mindful of my parents and ask them before actually placing my mug in the empty space.

4. A Mug For Every Day Of The Week

As time would soon tell, with having too many mugs stored away in your kitchen cabinet, you would never have to worry about running out of mugs or having enough for when guests come over. In fact, you probably would have enough mugs for every day of the week, month, or even year.

As a writer, it goes without saying that I have a fair share of mugs. I unintentionally collect them. Whether I am in line at Starbucks gazing at their mugs on display for sale, on a trip to some exotic place I have never been, or I just so happened to find a mug I like, I’m always admiring this simple, yet versatile item. They come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. Others come adorned with phrases, depictions, and illustrations.

5. Growing Plants

The last benefit of having too many mugs is that they make for great pots to grow succulents and other small indoor plants. I, myself, have not personally had the experience of doing this, but I hear that coffee mugs make the perfect decorative vessels for growing indoor plants, and possibly starting an indoor garden.

In order to do this, begin with drilling a small drainage hole at the bottom of your mug. Then, fill the mug with soil. Next, plant your succulent, herb, or whatever indoor plant you wish to grow inside your home. Again, I have never done this before, but trust me when I say that it is on my to-do-list of DIY projects to complete. I mean, I do have enough mugs to plant an indoor garden. Why not start one, right? Maybe my parents will not be against my collection if I sprouted an indoor herb or succulent garden.