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Want to create awe-inspiring sublimation cups and tumblers that your friends, family, and customers will love?
You might be planning to start a sublimation business, make a new collection for your existing shop, or make some awesome DIY gifts for family and friends.
But how to choose? There are so many different designs and tumbler shapes out there, and it might feel overwhelming to come up with new ideas.
Not to mention, you don't want to waste sublimation ink, paper, and blanks on a design that didn’t turn out the way you expected.
Well, today, we’re here to help!
We're bringing you 49 unique sublimation cup ideas made by MakerFlo and our family of creators—use them to get inspired for your next project. 💡✨
Important Note: Most of these cup designs are from other small business owners and crafters like you! Please do not copy other crafter's designs, but use them as inspiration for your own unique creations.
49 Dreamy Sublimation Cup Ideas to Inspire You
We've pulled these ideas from our archives and examples from creators in the MakerFlo community to jumpstart your creative process.
1. Sunny Sunflower Mug
A sunny sunflower mug like this one will brighten up your morning routine! Give this as a gift to a sunny person in your life, or add it to a summer product collection. On second thought, maybe it’s best saved for winter since we all want a little bit more sun during cold months!
Products Used: 12oz Camper's Mug
2. Dog Mom Duozie
Celebrate your love for your furry pal with a Dog Mom tumbler. This cup isn't a traditional tumbler, but a thick duozie—designed to keep beer bottles and cans cold. You can layer different patterns with text to create your own variation. And why stop with dogs? You can riff on this theme for all pet lovers out there.
Products Used: 12oz Thick Duozie
3. Best Mom Ever Mug
We love this gorgeous mug design with blooming flowers over the words "Best Mom Ever," created by Krystle G. A design like this would be perfect for a Mother's Day gift, birthday gift, or a baby shower gift. It's the perfect way to make a mom feel special and let her know how much you care!
Products Used: 12oz Camper's Mug
4. Boatin' and Floatin' Duozie
Some people would rather be on a boat than anywhere else on planet Earth! This fun sublimation cup idea from Abigail W. pays tribute to a boating and beach-loving friend with a playful design. And because it’s a thick duozie, it’s the perfect companion for a relaxing day on the water.
Products Used: 12oz Thick Duozie
5. Flowers and Leopard Print Skinny Tumbler
This gorgeous skinny tumbler design takes traditional flower and animal print motifs and turns them on their head with a jewel-tone rainbow background. It's bold, on-trend, and brings a huge splash of color into your day!
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
6. Bus Driver Gift Tumbler
Bus drivers put up with a lot, and they deserve to be appreciated! This thoughtful tumbler design from Beth V. celebrates the strength and patience of bus drivers with quotes like, "You can't scare me! I'm a bus driver," and "Shhh! Sit down!" What a fun way to surprise the man or woman who helps your child get to school every day.
Products Used: 30oz Skinny Tumbler
7. Retro Cowboy Sippy Cup
This retro cowboy-themed sippy cup made by Teresa R. features an elegant design for kids. It’s a nice break away from rainbow-colored designs if muted colors are more your thing. Any child who envisions themselves a hero or loves horses will enjoy looking at the little cowboy illustrations up close.
Products Used: 12oz Straight Sippy Cup Duo
8. Daily Reminders Skinny Tumbler
We all need a pick-me-up when we're feeling down, and this affirmation-themed tumbler printed by Joliane M. is here to provide your daily dose of encouragement. Why not create your own with personalized affirmations or encouraging words for yourself, a close friend, or a customer? It's an excellent, easy way to practice self-love and self-care.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
9. Dinosaur Tumbler
A colorful design like this dinosaur-themed tumbler makes every day more bright and fun! If you're looking for a place to find designs like these you can use for your sublimation cups, we’ll introduce some good template websites at the end of the article.
Products Used: 14oz Skinny Tumbler
10. Drink Drank Drunk Duozie
Not much needs to be said about this design from Rachel E. on our slim duozie, designed to keep bottles cool. What kind of bottles? I think we can all make a good guess! ☺️ A fun drinking-themed tumbler like this is a great product idea for an upcoming bachelorette party, graduation party, birthday party, and more!
Products Used: 12oz Slim Duozie
11. Butterfly Glitter Shimmer Tumbler
This glittery green garden design with purple butterflies brings a bit of magic wherever you go! This design is printed on the MakerFlo glitter shimmer tumbler whose iridescent finish shows through your printed design.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Glitter Shimmer Tumbler
12. Mushroom Glitter Shimmer Tumbler
This whimsical toadstool tumbler made by Ivy F. would make Alice in Wonderland proud! The glitter shimmer tumbler makes it look like the entire design is sprinkled with magic stardust.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Glitter Shimmer Tumbler
13. Good Vibes Only Wine Tumbler
Keep bad vibes away with this awesome retro wine tumbler made by Kathryn M. You can make retro designs like this with some creative fonts and grain effects in a program like Canva or Kittl.
Products Used: 12oz Straight Wine Tumbler
14. Haunted Forest Glow-in-the-Dark Tumbler
Step into the haunted forest with this spooky, glow-in-the-dark skinny tumbler made by Jamie K. Designs like this, with opaque black shapes over lighter-colored backgrounds, will seem to glow from within when you turn out the light.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Glow-in-the-Dark Green Tumbler
15. Personalized Home State Mug
Rep your hometown or remind your customers of home with a personalized mug featuring a silhouette of the state’s outline, like this one made by Kylar P. You can find simple state shapes in programs like Canva, or by buying design assets from a site like Creative Fabrica.
Products Used: 12oz Camper's Mug
16. Hot Mess Boy Mama & Mama's Boy Tumblers
We love these pair tumblers made by Krystal G. that take design cues from a much-loved toy car brand. Mama's tumbler is emblazoned with the words, "Hot Mess - A Little Stressed," while her son's tumbler says "Hot Mess - Never Stressed." If you're a parent, you know that truer words have never been spoken.
Products Used: 14oz Skinny Tumbler, 20oz Skinny Tumbler
17. Hot Godmother & Godfather Wine Tumbler
These sassy wine tumblers made by Jennifer would make an awesome godmother or godfather gift. Who says godparents have to be old or out of touch? The "I'm the ___ Everyone Warned You About" theme has been trending recently and you can extend it to tons of different subjects.
Products Used: 12oz Straight Wine Tumbler
18. Let's Get Tanked Wine Tumbler
This whimsical "Let's Get Tanked" wine tumbler made by Stacy W. is a perfect gift for anyone who drinks like a fish! It looks like she’s used a wraparound design to cover all sides of the cup.
Products Used: 12oz Straight Wine Tumbler
19. Cow Print Mama Skinny Tumbler
Moms have a tough job and should be recognized for what they do! Tumblers that let a mom show off her status as somebody's "mama" are always a popular purchase and gift choice. We love this distressed cow print tumbler made by Krystle G.
Products Used: 30oz Skinny Tumbler
20. Day of the Dead Skinny Tumbler
This Day of the Dead-inspired tumbler made by Amanda T. celebrates culture and heritage with colorful sugar skills all over a deep purple background. What culture do you or your customers come from and how could you pay tribute to it with your tumbler designs?
Products Used: 30oz Skinny Tumbler
21. Life is Better at the Beach Tumbler
If you or someone you know constantly dreams of putting their toes in the sand, a beach-inspired tumbler like this one by Crystal L. is an excellent gift or product idea. This one is printed on a slim duozie that keeps bottles and cans cold.
Products Used: 12oz Slim Duozie
22. Best Friends Matching Wine Tumblers
These matching tumblers from Lisa G. will make girls' night even more fun! Each friend in the group gets a personalized tumbler with their name printed on it. Perfect for bachelorette parties, weddings, reality show watch parties, and more!
Products Used: 12oz Straight Wine Tumbler
23. Mom Life Sunflower Skinny Tumbler
We're seeing a lot of sunflower designs these days, and for good reason! Sunflowers are sunny and bright, and they symbolize hope, warmth, positivity, and strength. What a perfect way to sum up a mom’s presence in her family, like this tumbler made by Erin R.
Products Used: 30oz Skinny Tumbler
24. Lucky Clover Glow-in-the-Dark Skinny Tumbler
This lucky clover design printed by Shelly B. glows like stained glass in the dark. Our glow-in-the-dark tumblers can make any forest-themed design look like the sun is shining through the greenery, which is pretty cool, if you ask us!
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Glow-in-the-Dark Green Tumbler
25. Personalized Nursing Home Water Bottles
Nursing home residents may sometimes feel lonely or forgotten, but we love how these personalized water bottles made by Janet S. match each resident's personality and interests to a tee. What a special way to show each resident how much they're loved and appreciated.
Products Used: 18oz Hydro Water Bottle
26. Spooky Scarecrow Halloween Tumbler
Get into the spooky Halloween spirit with a haunted scarecrow design like this one printed by Brian V. You'll need to find a commercial-use illustration and fit it into a tumbler wrap template or find a pre-made sublimation tumbler design. (You can find tumbler templates on all of our product pages.)
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
27. Retro Farming Collage Tumbler
This thick duozie design printed by Mary R. celebrates Americana and the Old West with a faded, retro-style photo collage. You could create a similar effect with a set of photos that match your personal aesthetic. The great thing about sublimation is that you can print photo-quality designs just by printing them out on a sublimation printer.
Products Used: 12oz Thick Duozie
28. Colorful Tiger Tumbler
Another striking illustration on a sublimation tumbler! This one was created by Jessie B. We love the intensity of the tiger's gaze and how it’s balanced with the colorful paint droplets that blend with its fur.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
29. Sloth-Lover Personalized Water Bottle
Why do sloths look so cuddly and sweet? Bring on the relaxed vibes with this ultra-cute personalized pastel sloth tumbler, crafted by Sara S. You could create a variation of this theme with a cute pattern background, an illustration you like, and a brush font in a program like Canva.
Products Used: 18oz Hydro Water Bottle
30. Wild Child Water Bottle
Rainbow designs are super popular right now. This one created by Sara S. combines a colorful leopard print with a tye-dye motif to punch the color up to 100! You can create your own variation by finding different rainbow-colored patterns and design elements and putting them together in a creative way.
Products Used: 18oz Hydro Water Bottle
31. Anniversary Cruise Skinny Tumbler
This sunset-colored skinny tumbler was created by Kara A. for a couple’s anniversary cruise trip. You can create tumblers for anniversary trips, family trips, or other milestones to create a keepsake and reminder of the occasion! (See #43 for another great example of this.)
Products Used: 30oz Skinny Tumbler
32. Personalized Teacher Skinny Tumbler
Give a teacher a one-of-a-kind gift with a custom-made personalized tumbler he or she can bring to class! This one, created by Kayla M., has a playful pencil motif with space for the teacher’s name.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
33. Patriotic Military Tumbler
This colorful patriotic tumbler honoring a service member and printed by Brandy K. combines a bright American flag, a photo of a military uniform, and the person’s name inside an American flag heart. We can imagine how much the loved ones of this service member cherish this cup while he’s away.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
34. Cow Motif Sippy Cup
This adorable sippy cup combines many popular motifs you’ll see on sublimation designs right now: sunflowers, rustic imagery, farm animals, and the mama-and-me theme!
Products Used: 12oz Straight Sippy Cup Duo
35. Flowering Cactus Skinny Tumbler
If you look up close, you can see the shimmery texture on this flowering cactus and animal print tumbler printed by Krystle G. A chic design like this is totally on trend and is the perfect accessory for a cute outfit (or to dress up a comfy one)!
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Glitter Shimmer Tumbler
36. Rustic Chic Cow Tumbler
More cow motifs! Is it just us, or are cows unexpectedly really cute? This tumbler somehow makes them even cuter with a leopard print background and oodles of blossoming pink flowers, including—yes!—pink sunflowers. Are you starting to pick up on some trends here? 😉🌻🩷
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
37. Retro Photograph Tumbler
You won’t find rainbow colors on this tumbler, but you will find plenty of relaxing vibes and a sweet sense of nostalgia. You can almost hear the lo-fi playlist humming in the background. A design like this one, printed by Mary R., can be created with any moody photograph or retro photo that's approved for commercial use (if you're making products to sell, of course).
Products Used: 20oz Thick Tumbler
38. BadBass Fisherman Thick Duozie
We love this BadBass Fisherman duozie, designed with a rustic wooden background image, Wanted Poster-esque type, and a bold illustration of the bass itself. The duozie is a great way for fishing enthusiasts to keep their drinks cold while out on the boat.
Products Used: 12oz Thick Duozie
39. Dark Rose Tumbler
This tumbler, printed by Cristina, embodies elegant beauty with a gorgeous black and red rose design. You could create something like this by layering a moody background image with another colorful image (after removing the background, of course).
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
40. Sunflower and Gnome Water Bottle
We love this whimsical garden gnome water bottle printed by Kenna H.! Clearly, the sunflower is a favorite this year for products and gifts. We can't wait to see YOUR sunflower-inspired designs if you choose to create them! Share them with us in our official creator community on Facebook!
Products Used: 18oz Hydro Water Bottle
41. Groovy Frogs Water Bottle
This funky water bottle design features a bunch of groovy frogs having fun between red-capped mushrooms. Picking a text style, set of illustrations, and a background image that follow the same theme can help you create cohesive designs that create a certain mood like this one!
Products Used: 18oz Hydro Water Bottle
42. Wino Rhino Wine Tumbler
Know someone who's spirit animal is the Wino Rhino? A playful print like this, layered over a leopard print design, would be an awesome design to stock in your shop! If you can find more sticker-like illustrations, you could even create a whole series on the same leopard print background for more variations on the theme.
Products Used: 12oz Straight Wine Tumbler
43. Just Married Photo Tumbler
A personalized tumbler with a couple's wedding photo is such an awesome wedding keepsake. You could even have the couple take pre-wedding photos and present the tumblers to them at their own wedding. Or the entire bridal party could get matching tumblers to remember the special celebration. (This one was made by Shelly B.!)
Products Used: 20oz Thick Tumbler
44. Winter and Christmas Tumblers
Every year, when the holidays roll around, everyone starts scrambling to find good Christmas gifts. You can stay ahead of the curve by creating a Christmas collection in advance! You could make designs inspired by Christmas trees or flannel like Kendra S.'s designs here, or other Christmas-y motifs: wrapped gifts, Santa, Christmas cookies, snow, and the list goes on and on.
Products Used: 12oz Slim Duozie
45. Mystical White Wolf Tumbler
This breathtaking tumbler design features a white wolf stalking toward the viewer, against a backdrop of dark trees on a starry night. The glittery lights and colorful feathers add even more depth to the design and a feeling of mysterious beauty.
Products Used: 30oz Skinny Tumbler
46. Boy Mama & Mama's Boy Matching Tumblers
Here's another cute idea for a mom-and-me tumbler set, created by Crystal L. Both feature a black and white rainbow and heart, but the full-size tumbler says "Boy Mama" while the sippy cup says "Mama's Boy." What a great way to celebrate the bond between a mother and son.
Products Used: 12oz Straight Sippy Cup Duo, 20oz Skinny Tumbler
47. Black Flame Candle Company Glow-in-the-Dark Tumbler
If you're not a fan of the Hocus Pocus movies, just know that the black flame candle is a magical item that brings three witch sisters back to life for one night. We love this use of our glow-in-the-dark green tumbler to make a real-life version of the fabled candle, printed by Cami A.
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Glow-in-the-Dark Green Tumbler
48. 3D Effect Nurse Tumbler with Custom-Made Ice Topper
Another big trend in sublimation tumblers is 3D designs, where the design looks like it's puffy and soft instead of flat. This 3D tumbler pays homage to all the hard-working nurses out there, with a stethoscope, heart, and other images. Sonia H. even added a custom ice and lemon topper to the cup, which looks like it's made out of resin!
Products Used: 20oz Skinny Tumbler
49. Cactus Motif
Next up is this vibrant cactus design! Another great thing about sublimation printing is that you can make really natural blends with colors like this design. This is printed on a FrostBuddy® Universal Buddy 2.0, which is made to hold cans and bottles in 12oz and 16oz sizes.
Products Used: FrostBuddy Universal Buddy 2.0
Learn How to Make Your Own Sublimation Cups & Tumblers With Our Free Sublimation Guides
Want to learn how to make these sublimation cups yourself? Learn how with these guides and tutorials designed to get you started with sublimation printing:
- What is Sublimation? The Essential Guide for Crafters
- How to Make Sublimation Tumblers (+ Free Templates)
- How to Sublimate a 20oz Skinny Tumbler
And before you go, make sure to join our Official Facebook Community to meet other crafters and get even more inspiration! We’ll see you inside 😀
Where to Find Designs for Sublimation Tumblers?
There are a ton of great places to find sublimation designs!
First, check out our free tumbler templates on each of our sublimation tumbler pages, like our popular 20oz skinny tumbler or 30oz skinny tumbler. These will help you size your design to fit MakerFlo sublimation blanks.
You can find images to use for your prints in our roundup of more than 1000 free sublimation designs. Or look through the best sublimation software we’ve found for creating custom designs.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What mugs can you sublimate on?
You can sublimate on any mug that has a sublimation-friendly coating. These are called "sublimation mugs" and usually come in white.
What makes a cup sublimation-friendly?
Sublimation cups and tumblers are covered in a polyester coating that sublimation ink can seep into.
How durable are sublimation mugs?
The ink won't wash off or fade, but you do want to gently handwash them to keep them from getting scratched.
Can you sublimate on a cup twice?
You can, but the original print won't go away, so you'll print the new design on top of the old one.
