Deneen Pottery Illustrator Series Round 4 Space Cat + Dog
Deneen Pottery x Coach Scotty Russell Space Cat + Dog Mug (Photo by @beertographic)
Follow Your Dumb Ideas
FACTS: Sometimes your dumbest idea just for fun could explode into something much bigger…
Yet often we don’t allow ourselves to play for the hell of it as everything is tied to business-related miserable results.
Lemme share a quick back story followed by a BIG announcement…
It was February 9th, 2017, and it just so happened to be National Pizza Day (my favorite Holiday).
I was at my corporate cubicle that morning with a drawing of an astronaut cat hunting down a slice of pizza in space in my head...go figure
I couldn’t wait to get home on my lunch break to spend the hour to knock it out.
Original lunch doodle sketch that started it all.
Here was the timelapse video I made of this drawing.
I didn’t expect anything from it—it was solely just for fun to showcase my strange obsession for outer space, pizza, and being a proud cat dad.
I posted it, got a few Likes and laughs, and carried on.
A few weeks later I was doing an Instagram Live drawing on a pizza box...go figure again.
When Niles Deneen of Deneen Pottery happened to randomly stumble across my feed.
He ended up connecting with me and pitched the idea of me doing an "Illustrator Series" collab with them.
Essentially we’d put my art on one of their iconic hand-thrown mugs and exclusively launch 200 of them…
He suggested the lunch break Space Cat doodle molded onto a specific mug style with a specific glaze.
(I thought this pottery dude was nuts but I rolled with it.)
Fast forward a few months to June 7th, 2017 and we sold out all 200 mugs in under 30 minutes. 🤯
People went nuts over them because we combined a range of weird interests (cats, outer space, pizza, and coffee) all into a unique product with a killer story behind it.
QUICK TAKEAWAY 💡 There’s a market for the weird shit you love that makes you, you. Give it time and it’ll find you if you courageously and consistently have the guts to wave your freak flag and own it.
Previous Illustrator Mug Series collaboration with Deneen Pottery
Making Lightning Strike 3 Times
We’ve since collaborated a few more times based on our love for animals…
Round #2: October 2017 - UFO Cat (sold out 400 in under 30 minutes)
Round #3: June 2019 - Space Dog (sold out 500 in under 30 minutes)
I could’ve never imagined this taking off like this...
This mug collecting community has been incredibly supportive over the years and I've become good friends with many of them (Teresa, Gabe, Gail, Jason, Paul, Philip, Wayne, and IBCC to name a few).
To get your hands on one of these past mugs now (especially the OG Space Cat) is pretty difficult and the resell value on them baffles me.
I’d recommend inquiring about a mug you wanted in Duke’s Mug Collecting Facebook Group.
I told you these silly mugs were special AF.
Big News: Round 4 Space Cat + Dog Mug Launch 10/27/21
Thanks for entertaining the backstory as you gotta have context for what's next...
Fast forward to today, Thursday, October 20th…
And we’re 24 hours away from dropping Round #4 in this Illustrator Series: Space Cat + Dog. 🤩
(Full mug launch details + tips for beating the rush below!)
Round 4 Illustrator Series Space Cat + Pizza Mug Deneen Pottery Production Photos
This has been in the works for over a year before Covid rocked us all...
And it's fueled by the mug collecting community’s feedback and ideas of wanting to see both cat and dog unite.
To say I’m absolutely geeked out of my gourd is an understatement…
This project has me excited about drawing again since making the shift to full-time coaching and podcasting for side hustling creatives back in Jan. 2020.
It’s been all work and no play but this mug re-sparked the dormant artist in me! 🔥
Here’s a glimpse of how this artwork was turned into a mug + matching sticker design.
Instagram Reels Process Video from Art > Sticker > Mug
How to Get Your Hands on a Mug
With that all being said, here’s the full poop scoop if you want to get your phalanges on one of these limited mugs…
LAUNCH DETAILS ⚠️
When: These will be available Friday, Oct. 29th
Time: They’ll go live at 7 pm CT
Where: DeneenPotteryMugs.com (The product link will appear once live in the top hero image on the page)
Quantity: 500 numbered, hand-thrown mugs with signature on the bottom
Order limit: Max 2 mugs per order (these will sell quickly)
Style + Glaze: Lumberjack + Black with Sunshine Red glaze
Bonus: Get a matching Space Cat + Dog sticker with each purchase (courtesy of WizarCo)
Digital Print: I’ll have a digital downloadable design file for purchase if you'd like to print your own to go with it
All 4 mug designs will be available as: 8x10 ($10), 8x8 ($10), 12x12 ($15), and 20x20 ($20)
I’ll offer a bundle deal if you’d like multiple sizes and/or designs
Email me if interested at scotty@perspective-collective.com
TIPS ⚠️
You gotta have that Black Friday first-come, first-serve savage mindset...
Note: There will be an insane traffic boost that has slowed down their servers in the past.
So follow these tips to increase your odds:
Have the product page up 5 minutes before 7 pm CT.
Get ready to reload the page like crazy (Keyboard shortcut: Cmmd + R / Control + R).
Be diligent about repeatedly attempting to add to cart and check out as it’ll be crazy.
Have your payment information saved within the browser you’re using to speed up checkout process.
Have another friend or family member attempt to order at the same time!
Best of luck—may the odds be forever in your favor.
Small Favor 🙏🏻
If you’re able to get your hands on one of these…
It’d mean the world to me and Niles Deneen if you took a photo of your mug, bonus points for having your pets in it too, and tagged us on Instagram Stories (@CoachScottyRussell and @Deneen_Pottery) or on Facebook.
We love to connect with you and the community—we couldn’t do what we do without you!
Thanks so much for your support.
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Credits
Music - Blookah
Executive Assistant - Paige Garland
Photo & Video Specialist - Colton Bachar
Social Media Coordinator - Hannah Schick
Animation Specialist - Greg D'Amico