Designs with butterflies and exotic birds are diligently sought after. Cups with strikingly beautiful geometric designs in bold colors bring high prices today. Mustache cups with decalcomania and transfer designs are not uncommon, but are frequently combined with hand painted borders and designs. Roses, a Victorian favorite, appear on many cups. However, the hand-painted roses far outshine those found on decals or transfers.
Many mustache cups have lavish gold applied designs.
Gilding was widely used, and the interiors of many cups gleam with gold. Very few cups are found without some gold representation. Victorians did know how to gild the lily. Mustache cups are found in all sizes from miniature to very large, the large holding almost a pint of beverage. Mustache cups can also be found in a variety of shapes.