Mugs Archives - Lead Safe Mama

XRF test results for 2009 Design House Stockholm green glazed Starbucks mug sent in by Shelly in California

July 18, 2023December 7, 2023

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-Federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead-poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used by…

Green, Red & Blue Denby Mug, Made in England (sent in by Claire in MO): 145 ppm Lead (on interior glaze)

May 2, 2023November 5, 2023

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-Federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead-poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used by…

Interlaken, Switzerland souvenir ceramic mug (2022): 6,151 ppm Lead on the interior food surface.

December 18, 2022December 7, 2023

1 Comment

Published: December 18, 2022 – Sunday I purchased this at a souvenir shop in Switzerland (November 2022) — following a long group discussion/collective speculative inquiry with my kids about which souvenirs were likely to be Leaded and which were likely to be Lead-free [it’s a strange “game” of educated-guessing we sometimes play for dark “fun” with…

Garfield “Use Your Friends Wisely” McDonald’s mug: 103,600 ppm Lead (causes brain damage) + 7,314 ppm Cadmium (causes cancer)

July 19, 2022November 9, 2023

3 Comments

Continue reading below the images of additional cups/mugs/glassware we have tested. Each image below is a direct link to a separate post about that item containing its XRF test results. This post (about the Garfield mug) is a good overview to help provide context for all of these additional examples. The annoying ads you see on…

Calamityware (2015) mug: 28 ppm Lead (safe by all standards) + 12,200 ppm Cobalt [a possible human carcinogen, per CDC] in the blue decorations. Click to read more.

February 4, 2022February 8, 2022

XRF test results below are for the exact item pictured. (It arrived broken – shipped to me by a reader) To learn more about the testing methodology employed for the test results reported on this website, click here. For a quick menu to explore more categories of tested items on this website, click here. For…

Handmade ceramic mug with white, blue & brown glaze: 39 ppm Lead in the substrate & 23 ppm on the food surface (safe by all standards).

December 17, 2021December 19, 2021

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Reading #1) Unglazed white base-clay of mug 60-second reading Lead (Pb): 39 +/- 4 ppm Cadmium (Cd): 5 +/- 2 ppm Mercury (Hg): non-detect Bromine (Br): non-detect Chromium (Cr): non-detect Iron (Fe): 3,910 +/ 84 ppm Zinc (Zn): 212 +/- 9 ppm Titanium (Ti): 2,629 +/- 442 ppm Indium (In): 5 +/- 2 ppm Tin…

222 Fifth “Bonjour Paris” Jumbo Mug with Eiffel Tower – Made in Indonesia: 23 ppm Lead on the plain white (safe by all standards) & 5,802 ppm Lead on the logo mark.

December 14, 2021December 16, 2021

Published: Tuesday – December 14, 2021 How much Lead is “too much” Lead? In any item intended for use by children, Lead content must be below 90 ppm in the paint, glaze, or coating for the item to be legal (and any Lead present in the substrate of an item needs to be below 100 ppm), as regulated by…

Vintage Orange Hazel Atlas Milk Glass Mug: 24,100 ppm Lead + 1,546 ppm Cadmium + 39 ppm Mercury. Cadmium causes cancer. Lead is toxic at 90 ppm & up.

December 7, 2021December 7, 2023

8 Comments

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

Vintage Yellow Corelle Milk Glass Mug: 154,100 ppm Lead + 14,200 ppm Cadmium + 9,582 ppm Arsenic. Cadmium causes cancer. Lead is toxic at 90 ppm & up.

December 7, 2021

1 Comment

Here’s the general introduction I provide on a lot of my posts, for those who may be new to (or have possibly “stumbled upon”) my work – while just casually browsing, or conducting more serious research: Tamara Rubin is an internationally recognized, Federal-award-winning independent advocate for consumer goods safety and childhood Lead-poisoning prevention. She is also a mother…

QVC Temp-tations Espresso Cup Christmas Ornaments (Xmas 2020): 2,924 ppm Lead + 981 ppm Cadmium — QVC tells customers to use them for cocoa with the grandkids!

November 18, 2021November 5, 2024

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For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method…

Harvest Hill Press mug: 10,300 ppm Lead on the purple flowers. 404 ppm Cadmium in the birdhouse.

October 29, 2020November 11, 2023

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

Harvest Hill Press (Maine) porcelain coffee mug with bald eagle design: 17,800 ppm Lead on black of the eagle.

October 29, 2020October 29, 2020

How much Lead is “too much” Lead? …including some “Fun Facts”: Newly-manufactured items (made today) are considered unsafe for children to use if they are finished with any paint or coating that is 90 ppm Lead or higher. Substrates that test positive for 100 ppm Lead (or higher) are considered unsafe for children. There is…

Unmarked mug with urns and vases: 39,400 ppm Lead on decorative elements (high Lead inside of mug too!)

October 29, 2020October 29, 2020

2020 | Mug | Mugs | Mugs with Lead

How much Lead is “too much” Lead? …including some “Fun Facts”: Newly-manufactured items (made today) are considered unsafe for children to use if they are finished with any paint or coating that is 90 ppm Lead or higher. Substrates that test positive for 100 ppm Lead (or higher) are considered unsafe for children. There is…

Harvest Hill Press (Maine) porcelain coffee mug with bear design: 17,300 ppm Lead on black of bear.

October 29, 2020October 29, 2020

How much Lead is “too much” Lead? …including some “Fun Facts”: Newly-manufactured items (made today) are considered unsafe for children to use if they are finished with any paint or coating that is 90 ppm Lead or higher. Substrates that test positive for 100 ppm Lead (or higher) are considered unsafe for children. There is…

Berenstain Bears 1987 Princess House Mug: 22,000 ppm Lead. 90 ppm (& up) is unsafe for kids. Kids don’t use mugs, right?

October 29, 2020October 29, 2020

Mug | Mugs | Princess House | Princess House Mug

How much Lead is “too much” Lead? …including some “Fun Facts”: Newly-manufactured items (made today) are considered unsafe for children to use if they are finished with any paint or coating that is 90 ppm Lead or higher. Substrates that test positive for 100 ppm Lead (or higher) are considered unsafe for children. There is…

Vintage (1993!) McDonald’s glass Pre-Dawn Flintstones mug. I was so happy to confirm these are Lead-free!

October 12, 2020October 13, 2020

5 Comments

Monday, October 12, 2020 Writing to you from a cabin in Maine (on a lake in the forest!) I am SO EXCITED that these Flintstones glass mugs (from McDonald’s) are definitely Lead-free! Before I had my first child, my boyfriend at the time had collected a full set of these for me. I don’t have…

Ikea mug with blue, orange and yellow design, made in Thailand. Item 15199: 82 ppm Lead + 41 ppm Antimony.

June 27, 2020February 10, 2021

1 Comment

When tested with an XRF instrument this mug had the following readings: #1.) on the plain white glazed components of the mug Barium (Ba): 2,399 +/- 492 ppm Zinc (Zn): 21,100 +/- 900 ppm Iron (Fe): 321 +/- 112 ppm Bismuth (Bi): 147 +/- 56 ppm Titanium (Ti): 134 +/- 76 ppm #2.) on the…

Ikea mug with blue & red floral design, made in Thailand. Item 15199: Lead-free, Cadmium-free, Arsenic-free, Antimony-free.

June 27, 2020February 10, 2021

3 Comments

When tested with an XRF instrument this mug had the following readings: #1.) on the plain white glazed components of the mug Barium (Ba): 2,594 +/- 381 ppm Zinc (Zn): 23,500 +/- 900 ppm Iron (Fe): 383 +/- 93 ppm Bismuth (Bi): 125 +/- 44 ppm #2.) on the blue decorated components Barium (Ba): 3,818…

Rae Dunn ceramic “Calm” coffee mug purchased at Marshall’s: 100 +/- 20 ppm Lead (within safe range for Lead)

June 20, 2020May 17, 2024

3 Comments

For those new to the Lead Safe Mama website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her four sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Tamara owns and runs Lead Safe…

California mug purchased at Oakland Airport in 2020: Free of Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, Mercury & Antimony! Woohoo!

March 20, 2020December 7, 2023

5 Comments

Posted: Friday, March 20, 2020 Introduction: Tamara Rubin is an independent advocate for consumer goods safety, and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses high-precision XRF testing (a…

“Better For Your” coffee mug: 304 Stainless Steel (Non-detect for Lead, Cadmium, Arsenic, Mercury & Antimony)

March 14, 2020May 29, 2021

9 Comments

Posted: Saturday, March 14, 2020 Introduction: Tamara Rubin is an independent advocate for consumer goods safety, and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses high-precision XRF testing (a…

Target Threshold Earthenware Easter Bunny mug: 217 ppm Lead in the black accents, 90 ppm on the white glaze

March 14, 2020February 21, 2024

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method used…

Green Ikea Mug (Made In China): Lead-free glaze. White ceramic substrate: 43 ppm Lead – safe by all standards!

March 11, 2020March 11, 2020

Posted: Wednesday, March 11, 2020 Introduction: Tamara Rubin is a independent advocate for consumer goods safety, and she is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children. She began testing consumer goods for toxicants in 2009 and was the parent-advocate responsible for finding Lead in the popular fidget spinner toys in 2017. She uses high-precision XRF testing (a…

New 2019 enamelware mug: 7,862 ppm Lead, 3,502 ppm Cadmium, 1,088 ppm Arsenic, & 1,031 ppm Antimony!

March 6, 2020November 27, 2023

3 Comments

For those new to this website: Tamara Rubin is a multiple-federal-award-winning independent advocate for childhood Lead poisoning prevention and consumer goods safety, and a documentary filmmaker. She is also a mother of Lead-poisoned children (two of her sons were acutely Lead-poisoned in 2005). Since 2009, Tamara has been using XRF technology (a scientific method…