Moomin mug mania: a collector’s guide to Finland’s favorite cup

Just the right fit for your hand. A simple everyday delight. A durable, reasonably priced piece of design. A childhood memory. An easy collectible. Almost every Finn recognizes the Moomin mug, and in the 35 years since these playful cups were introduced, they’ve earned a permanent place in homes across Finland and beyond.

In a small survey in 2025, 69 percent of Finns said they own at least one Moomin mug—one quarter of them have more than ten. Most people have received their mug as a gift—many a Finn has unwrapped the classic cup at a graduation or housewarming party.

The first Teema-shaped Moomin mug was Mug Green (1990)

The Moomin mugs we know today weren’t actually Arabia’s first Moomin dishes. In the 1950s, Kaj Franck designed a porcelain children’s set featuring Moomintroll, Little My, and Snorkmaiden. In the 1990s, the Moomins made a comeback when the animated series Moomin began airing on TV. The first modern Moomin mug appeared in 1990, just in time for the Moomin craze. The Teema collection’s design was chosen because its straight sides are perfect for decals—and because the shape was already a Finnish everyday staple.

The 1950s Moomin dishes featured, among others, Moomintroll. The shapes were designed by Kaj Franck. The Teema shape of the mugs produced since the 1990s is also Franck’s work. Photo: Helander

The unassumingly named ‘Mug Green’ was illustrated with a frame from Tove Jansson’s 1956 comic strip. The first Moomin mug illustrator, Tove Slotte, removed the speech bubbles, but otherwise kept the artwork true to the strip. Early on, Slotte was careful not to alter the original drawings too much. She even had her first sketches approved in person by Tove Jansson.

Mug Green was the first Teema-shaped Moomin mug. Today its value is roughly €600–€900.

Tove Slotte spent more than 30 years illustrating Moomin mugs. Photo: Satu Nyström

Four different mugs were launched in 1990, and Slotte faithfully copied even the tiniest details from the original drawings. It wasn’t until the late 1990s that character-focused mugs became popular; for those, Slotte sometimes combined features from multiple sources.

Tove Slotte ultimately illustrated Moomin mugs for more than 30 years. She retired in 2022 with designer Annika Tickle and illustrator Parvati Pillai chosen as her successors.

Read more: How did India-born Parvati Pillai end up working with the Moomins? Read the illustrator’s interview here.

The Little My mug was produced from 1999–2007 and again in 2011.

The ‘Moominpappa Thinking’ mug was produced from 1999 to 2013. The 1999 Moomin mugs have the year stamped on the bottom, which makes them rare among collectors.

The ‘Moominmamma and Berries’ mug was produced from 1999 to 2013.

The ‘Moomintroll on Ice’ mug was produced from 1999 to 2012.

Special editions are usually sold for a limited time

Heading into the 2000s, the mugs began to spotlight individual characters more clearly. The first characters to get their own mugs were Little My, Moominpappa, Moominmamma, and Moomintroll.

Moomin mugs can be categorized as character mugs (the so-called classics), seasonal mugs, special editions, and 0.4-liter mugs. Seasonal mugs come out twice a year, in summer and winter. Special editions, like those released on Moomin’s Day—Tove Jansson’s birthday on August 9—are often sold only for a limited time.

The first mug featuring narrow-snooted Moomins

The 2025 Moomin’s Day mug is a tribute to the first Moomin story The Moomins and the Great Flood, published in 1945. On this mug, the Moomins have narrow snouts, just as Tove Jansson originally drew them. Their features only rounded out later. The mug goes on sale on August 9, 2025, and will be available in limited quantities.

The 2025 Moomin’s Day mug is adorned with a scene in which Moominmamma has built a sheltered nest among moss and ferns for Moomintroll, herself, and a small creature they meet—the ever-curious Sniff—plus a girl named Tulippa. Photo: Moomin Arabia

2023 was a record year for new Moomin mugs

Arabia has released about 160 Moomin mugs so far. The pace has picked up year by year: in the 1990s, a new mug came out every few years, totaling 18 for the entire decade. Since 2004, Arabia has launched at least three new mugs annually. A record was set in 2023, with 20 new mugs introduced.

Arabia has already released roughly 160 Moomin mugs. Photo: Moomin Arabia

Mini mugs are tiny decorative items

Over the years, the traditional 0.3-liter mugs have been joined by several other sizes. In 2011, Arabia began releasing mini mugs. These decorative items hold just 12 milliliters, and they reintroduce some classic designs that are no longer on the market. Since 2021, 0.4-liter mugs have also been made, showcasing slightly adapted older designs in a bigger format.

Mugs travel to the United States and Japan

After the Nordic countries, the next-biggest Moomin mug market is perhaps surprisingly the United States, online store Finnish Design Shop reports. Japan, home to many long-time Moomin admirers, also has a thriving market of its own. ‘Friends Forever’ and ‘Ski Jumping’ mugs, for instance, are frequently ordered from Finnish Design Shop to Japan.

The Best Friends mug is part of the 80th anniversary collection. Photo: Moomin Arabia

Lettered Moomin mugs reinforce the joy of reading

In fall 2022, a new kind of Moomin mug appeared on store shelves, with the letters L, O, V, and E. They were part of the ‘Reading, Writing, and the Moomins’ initiative, which aims to spark greater joy in reading and writing. The final six letters in the alphabet collection were released this March.

The alphabet collection’s illustrations are based on Tove Jansson’s hand-drawn initials and letters. All the letters in the series have now been published. Photo: Moomin Arabia

The Moomin mug that has been in production the longest is Love (1996)

There are about twenty mugs in continuous production. The one that has been around the longest is Love, first released in 1996 and still made today.

Moomin Characters, which oversees Moomin copyrights, reviews every mug in the design phase. This fall, Moomin Arabia and Moomin Characters will publish the book Muumimukit (Moomin Mugs), which explores the mugs’ history from the 1990s to now.

The Love mug is one of the most cherished Moomin mugs. It has been available since 1996. Over the past 30 years, its base stamp has changed five times, which can affect its value.

Sources: Mukify, Moomin.com, Moominarabia.com, SOK Viestintä, Helena Leppänen: Muumilaakso Arabiassa. A-lehdet and Finnish Design Shop belong to the same corporate group.