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Smart Snark: Anne Taintor coffee mugs & more

By Jesse Kornbluth
Published: Dec 12, 2016
Category: Food and Wine

When the Small Person buys a t-shirt, it expresses quintessential 14-year-old attitude. For example: National Sarcasm Society: Like we need your support.

So I wasn’t surprised when she gave her mother a coffee mug with art of a l940s mom holding a perfect toddler and the words “Parenting… when messing up your own life isn’t enough.”

This mug is the handiwork of Anne Taintor, who blends smarts and snark in a product line that delights an ever-increasing audience in 3,000 stores in 25 countries and, thankfully, on the web.

Don’t be fooled by Taintor’s 1977 Harvard degree in Visual and Environmental Studies — it turned out to be preparation for jobs as a waitress and a seamstress. But she had an interest in collage, so she made wooden lapel pins and earrings decorated with artwork from 1940s and 1950s advertisements. These ads elevated the stereotype of the white housewife to a domestic goddess. Taintor had a different view: “My motto is: “Say what you mean…but do it with a smile.” She juxtaposed one of these images against the caption “intellectuals gone bad.” It sold at a crafts fair, so she made more and started a company.

Taintor’s signature item is the 14 oz. ceramic gloss finish coffee mug: inexpensive, amusingly boxed, an unfailing bit of intelligent good cheer in the blur of the early morning or the grind of the office. But don’t overlook her other offerings. Like…

The Pill Box Compact, with its helpful message: “Medicated And Motivated.” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

The “Make Mine Estrogen” Pill Box (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

The ”Breathalyze Me” Flask (To buy it from Amazon for a ridiculous $10, click here.)

The 2017 Wall Calendar, with its surprising cover image of a mother and daughter, and the mother saying: “What a coincidence — you embarrass me too.” (To buy it from Amazon for a crazy $8.67, click here.)

The Trainor book, 176 pages of clever: “Someone has to set a bad example.” (To buy the paperback from Amazon, click here. For the Kindle edition, click here.)

20 Retro gift napkins: “SAY IT WITH CARBOHYDRATES” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

And now…. the mugs….

Caption: “We Go Together Like Drunk And Disorderly” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “If It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere Can I Go Home Now” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “If You’re Going To Kick Ass, You Need Kickass Shoes” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “Walk Faster… The Children Are Catching Up” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “She Was Comforted By The Knowledge That They Were Helpless Without Her” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “Why Yes, I Am Overqualified” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “Funny…I don’t recall asking for your opinion” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption; “I’m going to be the most popular girl in rehab” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “Why do dishes when you can do daiquiris?” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “Parenting… When Messing Up Your Own Life Just Isn’t Enough” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “You Can Lead A Horse To Water… But I Prefer Tequila” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “I’m Pretty Mediocre at Housekeeping” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “The Voices In My Head Are All Demanding Drinks” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “The Paleo Diet…. Isn’t That What Killed The Dinosaurs (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “Stop Me Before I Volunteer Again” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “She Could See No Good Reason To Act Her Age” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)

Caption: “Martinis…they’re not just for breakfast anymore” (To buy it from Amazon, click here.)