Three Amigos Bowl
Manufacturer: Castaway Ceramics
Designer: Squid
Skull
Manufacturer: Accoutrements
Designer: unknown
Hukilau 2013 in Redwood Ember
Manufacturer: Tiki Diablo
Designer: Barney West, Tiki Diablo
Blue Bird of Paradise
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: unknown
Ohana: Luau at the Lake 2012 Bucket
Manufacturer: Taboo Island
Designer: Squid
Ohana: Luau at the Lake 2011
Manufacturer: Squid
Designer: Squid
Ohana: Luau at the Lake 2010
Manufacturer: Squid
Designer: Squid
Tikiyaki Polynesian Village Hotel
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: Bosko
Parrot Blue
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: unknown
Crude Tiki
Manufacturer: Go Tiki
Designer: Gary Brockway
Only 15 made.
Go Go Tiki 5/50
Manufacturer: Go Tiki
Designer: Gary Brockway
Limited edition 5/50
Hukilau 2008
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: unknown
Big Chip Tiki Artist Proof #2
Manufacturer: Go Tiki
Designer: Gary Brockway
Artist's proof #2 - never produced
Skull Mug
Manufacturer: Go Tiki
Designer: Gary Brockway
Limited edition 2/20
Go Go Tiki 3/50
Manufacturer: Go Tiki
Designer: Gary Brockway
Limited edition 3/50
Trader Vic's Kneeling Hula Girl Bowl
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: unknown
Trader Vic's 75th Anniversary Fogcutter
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: unknown
Holiday Inn Chinatown
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: unknown
Marked: Holiday Inn - Chinatown - SanFrancisco - Financial District
Hukilau 2009
Manufacturer: Munktiki
Designer: Kevin Kidney
The 2009 Hukilau commemorative mug. This mug is number 42 of 300. The mug is from the collection of Tiki-Kate. Tiki-Kate was an online friend. I never had the pleasure of meeting her in person. We traded e-mails and PMs on mugs and such. I enjoyed reading her posts on Tiki Central. She was an inspiration and I got ideas from her. We had a lot of common interests. I feel that if we had lived closer we might have been real friends and not just online acquaintances. Kate visited my website and she had kind things to say about it. Kate lost her battle with cancer and passed away 2010/09/22. I purchased her Hukilau 2009 mug from her estate. Having the mug is bittersweet. I wish Kate were still here to keep the mug safe but I am honored to watch over it in her place for a little while.
Sherm
Manufacturer: Accoutrements
Designer: unknown
Tiki Torch Mug
Manufacturer: GoTiki
Designer: Gary Brockway
Hukilau 2010
Manufacturer: Munktiki
Designer: unknown
Westwood W-1
Manufacturer: Westwood
Designer: unknown
Carlos
Manufacturer: Accoutrements
Designer: unknown
Westwood W-4
Manufacturer: Westwood
Designer: unknown
Mr Bali Hai (concave bottom)
Manufacturer: Otagiri Mercantile Company
Designer: unknown
Haka Po'o
Manufacturer: Castaway Ceramics
Designer: Squid
Tikiyaki Jungle Jetsetter Drum Mug
Manufacturer: unknown
Designer: Squid
Limited edition of 100. Promotional item with the Tikiyaki Orchestra's "Jungle Jetsetter" CD.
Spirit Hut
Manufacturer: Castaway Ceramics
Designer: Squid
Marcel Moai
Manufacturer: Castaway Ceramics
Designer: Squid
Cap'n Sqully
Manufacturer: Castaway Ceramics
Designer: Squid
Trader Vic's was one of the most popular and most successful of the Tiki bar establishments. I have some of their original pieces from the 60s as well as some of the reproductions done by Tiki Farm. On the left is an original mug from 1966, in the center a mug from 1984, and on the right a Tiki Farm reproduction.
Oriental or Asian styled mugs are another sub category of Tiki mugs. I find these particularly fascinating. As Tiki became a hip fad sweeping the nation in the 50s there were establishments that were built from the ground up as Tiki. But there were a lot of Chinese restaurants that became Tikified; retrofitted for the Tiki experience. I have mugs that are in this style, some from Benihana's Steak house (Japanese), and others of Asian influence.
One sub-class of 'Tiki mugs' is the hula girl mug. These were popular in the hey-day of Tiki and continue to be popular.
Mugs that were used as drink promotions often came with the reastaurant's name or logo on them. When you purchased the cocktail you took home the mug as a souvenir and they served as advertising for the establishment.
These 2 mugs are the ones that started it all. These are my favorite mugs. They are the Orchids of Hawaii R-72 pattern. They're marked on the bottom with just 'japan'. Nothing special about them except for the fact that my wife bought them for me. Of course, that's something she probably now regrets. About ten years ago I was into collecting bar glassware from the 40s and 50s. One day while I was at work my wife was at a garage sale and she got me these 2 mugs. She thought I might like them. These mugs started the whole Tiki obsession. Now there's an entire Tiki room in the house and my wife complains about tripping over the e-Bay packages when she gets home from work.
A Tiki mug is a mug in the shape of a Tiki. That's a definition. In order for a mug to be a Tiki mug it needs to be in the shape of a Tiki or have a Tiki on it. There are other sub-groups or genres of mugs that get lumped in with Tiki mugs in general but to be specific there needs to be a Tiki on a Tiki mug. I have vintage Tiki mugs and newer Tiki mugs in my collection.
What is Ooga Mooga?
Ooga Mooga is a great website and great reference for Tiki mug enthusiasts. You can view my Tiki mug collection at the Ooga Mooga website. Visit Ooga Mooga - click the link below:
Ooga Mooga has hundreds of collectors showing off their mugs. There are mugs for sale, mugs for trade, and lots and lots of pictures of mugs. Check it out.
My Tiki mug collection highlights:
tiki mugs
Khan Tiki Mon's collection of Tiki Mugs.
Why Tiki Mugs?
The 1950s in mainland America saw the first themed restaurants. These were the tropical motif restaurants like Trader Vic's. These bars and restaurants were decorated with bamboo, thatch, and Tikis. The music was island exotic with bird calls and the musical style would come to be called Exotica. You could leave the 'mainland' and visit one of these Polynesian Pop restaurants and 'go native'. It was like a mini vacation where beautiful girls that were dressed in revealing costumes would serve exotic drinks with names like Mai Tais, Missionary's Downfall, and the Zombie. The drinks were served in collectable mugs and when you left you could take the mug as a souvenir of your trip. Later, taking a sip from the Tiki mug would transport you back to that island paradise and away from all the stress and cares of daily living if only for a few moments. These mugs from one of the original Tiki bars are urban archaeological treasures. My collection of Tiki mugs includes some older vintage mugs as well as some of the newer pieces made in this newest resurgence of things Tiki.