Packing ceramic mugs and cups with honeycomb paper: handles, rims and sets

A ceramic mug looks solid, and the body usually is. The handle is not. It sticks out, it is joined to the body at two small points, and in a drop the whole weight of the mug swings against those joins. The rim is the other weak edge, thin glaze over thin clay.

So a mug is packed from the inside out. Put a twist of honeycomb paper inside the mug and thread a strip through the handle loop, so the handle is part of a solid block. Then wrap the whole mug in two or three turns, fold the ends over the rim and the base, and put it in a box that fits. Wrap each mug in a set on its own.

We make honeycomb paper in Jaipur on multiple lines, and ceramics are one of the jobs it is best at.

Here is how I would set up a mug packing table if I were starting one tomorrow.

Why do mug handles break?

Because they work like levers.

I think of the clay kulhad cups at an Indian chai stall. Stack a few loosely in a bag and they chip at the rim and crack at any thin point first. A mug is a kulhad with a handle added, so it has one more weak point.

When a box drops, the mug stops and the handle wants to keep moving. The force goes into the two joins between the handle and the body. If there is air around the handle, it moves freely and snaps at the join. If the space inside the handle is filled and the outside is padded, the handle and the body move together.

The rim fails differently, and I would say it is the easier one to fix. It chips when it touches something hard: the box wall, another mug, or the base of the mug next to it. That is a spacing problem, and paper fixes it.

Step by step: packing one mug

1. Fill the inside. Pull a short sheet of honeycomb, twist it loosely, and push it into the mug until it fills the space without stretching the rim. The filling supports the rim from inside.
2. Fill the handle. Thread a narrow strip through the handle loop, or fold a small pad and press it into the gap between handle and body. A 100 or 200 mm roll is perfect for this.
3. Wrap the mug. Lay the mug on a pulled sheet with the handle pointing along the sheet, then roll. Two turns for a light mug, three for stoneware.
4. Close the ends. Fold the paper over the rim and under the base, and tuck the edge into the cells.
5. Box it. Upright or on its side, with a folded pad under it. The wrapped mug should not move when you shake the box.

Steps 1 and 2 take less than half a minute. They are also the steps I would check first if a packer's mugs start coming back broken.

Which part fails, and what fixes it

Which paper suits mugs?

For a standard ceramic mug, I would test 80 GSM first. For heavy stoneware, large mugs or mugs with thick bases, test 90 to 100 GSM. Light paper cells can fold flat under a heavy mug, and once they are flat the cushion is gone. Our GSM guide explains how to choose a grade by weight and fragility.

A 380 or 400 mm roll suits most mugs, with enough width to fold over the rim and base. Keep a narrow roll on the table for handles and the inside twist.

Tall travel mugs and tumblers may need a 490 or 500 mm roll. We make all of these widths as standard, so a studio can keep one wide and one narrow roll from the same supplier.

Packing sets of two, four or six

Sets are where trouble starts, because the mugs can touch each other.

1. Pack every mug fully, as above. Do not nest one mug inside another, even wrapped.
2. Stand the mugs side by side, handles pointing the same way, or alternate them so the handles sit in the gaps.
3. For four or more, use a box with cardboard dividers. The dividers hold the spacing and the paper does the cushioning.
4. Fill the top gap with a loose twist of honeycomb, so the mugs cannot lift when the box is turned over.

For cups with saucers, wrap the cup as a mug and pack the saucers on edge. Our guide on packing plates and dinnerware explains why plates travel better standing up.

Mugs in a retail box

Many printed mugs are sold in their own white or printed box. The box helps, but it is not enough on its own for courier.

Put the inside twist and the handle pad in before the mug goes into its box. Then wrap the retail box in honeycomb and put it in a shipper that fits. The retail box becomes the inner layer.

Handmade pottery

Handmade mugs vary. One piece has a thick rim, the next a thin one, and handles are attached by hand.

I would pack handmade work with one extra turn.

I would also test the thinnest, lightest piece in the range, not the average one. If the thin one survives, the rest will.

Test before you trust it

Pack three mugs as your packer will. Drop each box from about waist height: once on the base, once on a corner and once on the side where the handle is. Open them and check the handle joins first, then the rims.

We put our own samples through strength and drop tests in Jaipur, and we check every lot for GSM, roll weight and moisture. Those tests tell us our paper is sound. Your test tells you whether your mug, your box and your packer's hands work together.

Where honeycomb paper is the wrong choice

1. Very large serving jugs or heavy sets packed in one box. They need dividers or fitted inserts. Paper alone will not hold heavy pieces apart.
2. Mugs with delicate added parts, like a thin lid knob or a moulded figure. Wrap those parts in tissue first and fill around them.
3. Wet routes. Paper loses stiffness when damp. Use a strong outer carton and keep the parcel dry.

Worked example: a ceramics studio

Picture a ceramics studio selling single mugs and sets of two, 100 orders a day. One plan to test is a 380 mm roll of 80 GSM on a dispenser, a 100 mm roll beside it for handles and inside twists, single shippers for one mug and divided boxes for two.

With two rolls on the table, the packer never has to tear and fold a wide sheet into a strip. That alone makes the pack faster and more even.

To work out how much paper a plan like this uses each month, read our guide on honeycomb paper consumption. The widths and grades we make are on our products page.

Send us your mug sizes through our contact page, and we will send two grades of paper for you to test against your own range.