Moomin’s Day is celebrated on 9 August and this year it correlates with the 150th anniversary of Arabia, producer of the immensely popular Moomin mugs. Two special mug designs, “Sea Breeze” and the exclusive “Sea Breeze platinum” will be launched in honor of Moomin’s Day and Arabia’s 150-year design tradition.
The archipelago illustrations on the mug were chosen intentionally, as the island theme is very important in the Moomin stories. ”Sea Breeze” is the 100th Moomin mug that the recently retired illustrator Tove Slotte designed after author and illustrator Tove Jansson’s original drawings. A limited edition of the Moomin’s Day mug will be available from 9 August, and the exclusive mug already in June.
Moomin’s Day 2023 journeys to the Finnish archipelago to celebrate Arabia’s 150th anniversary. Two special mug designs, “Sea Breeze” and exclusive “Sea Breeze platinum” pay homage to Jansson’s invaluable life’s work and Arabia’s 150-year history and design tradition. Of the two Moomin’s Day mugs launched in honour of the landmark year, the platinum version can only be obtained through a raffle.
Moomin’s Day is celebrated on August 9
The author and illustrator Tove Jansson was born on 9 August, 1914. In 2004, exactly 90 years later, the first ever Moomin’s Day was celebrated as a tribute to her artistic work. Moomin’s Day has since become a global phenomenon involving various Moomin-themed events and festivities. Jansson, who had a colourful and versatile career, is best known as the creator of the Moomins. Moomin stories were published during Jansson’s lifetime as novels, picture books, and comics, and they have been translated into dozens of languages.
Founded in 1873, Arabia is celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. Arabia is one of Finland’s most well-known and respected brands, cherished in Finnish homes for generations, and with fans all around the world. The first Moomin mugs also bear the Arabia mark on their bottom, and the mugs were produced at the Arabia factory in Helsinki until the 2010s. To acknowledge Arabia’s rich history, an exclusive platinum version of the Moomin’s Day mug will also be released for sale.
Tove Slotte’s 100th Moomin design depicts an important archipelago theme
In her childhood, Tove Jansson spent long periods of time at her family’s shared summer residence in the Stockholm archipelago. The villa and the surrounding valley provided Jansson with inspiration for both the Moominhouse and Moominvalley.
The design of the mugs is based on Tove Jansson’s novel “Moominpappa at Sea” from 1965, where the Moomin family moves to a lighthouse island as Moominpappa feels useless in the safe environment of Moominvalley. On the mugs, we see Moomintroll, Moominmamma, Moomin-pappa, and Little My on the shore. The illustrations have been adapted by the recently retired designer Tove Slotte from Jansson’s drawings on the writing paper she used to answer her fans. This is Slotte’s 100th Moomin mug design. Altogether, there are over 120 Moomin mug designs made.
The mugs show a beautiful windy islet scenery with violets, wild roses, spiny sea buckthorns, and seashells as ink-blue illustrations on a white background.
Childhood summers spent in the Stockholm archipelago and later in Pellinge, Porvoo, gave Jansson a close and loving relationship to the archipelago. Owning her own island was her dream, and in the early 1960s, she and her life partner Tuulikki Pietilä found Klovharu island in the Pellinge archipelago. A small cottage built on the island served as their summer home for three decades. The islands were a symbol of freedom to Jansson, and this theme is also reflected in the illustration on the Moomin’s Day mug.
A rare platinum version of ”Sea breeze” marks Arabia’s 150th anniversary
To celebrate Arabia’s 150-year ceramic heritage, the mug has also been designed in an exclusive edition of 5000 pieces. The platinum plated horseshoe and oar details of the “Sea breeze platinum” mug, applied by hand, resemble hidden treasures. Each mug has an exclusive platinum Arabia 150 anniversary stamp on the base and unique, running numbering between 1-5000. The rare platinum version of the mug can only be obtained by participating in a raffle.
The raffle can be entered by signing in at moominarabia.com between 7 – 13.6.2023. The raffle will be held on 14th June. It is not possible to purchase the platinum mugs without entering the raffle, and the mugs will not be otherwise sold online or in physical stores. The details concerning the raffle can be found at moominarabia.com.
Both Moomin’s Day mugs are delivered in a beautiful gift box, which is adorned with the same atmospheric illustrations as the mug.
The limited edition of the Moomin’s Day mugs is released for sale on Wednesday 9th August 2023 online at moominarabia.com and globally at Moomin.com. The mug will also be sold in selected Iittala stores, and the local pop-up stores in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark. The mugs will only be available for purchase until the stocks last.
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