Advent is the slow start of Christmas, which is a good moment for a card that looks like your actual people dressed up as festive elves. On Ottermagic you upload a photo, run Face Swap into a festive elf scene, or Style Swap the family into a named look, preview until you still know who is who, then order a printed A5 or take the e-card. Start at Ottermagic.com.
Advent Sunday in 2026 is Sunday 29 November. Advent calendars traditionally start on 1 December. A card in that first week can sit next to the calendar, go with it as a gift, or land as an early “the countdown has started” joke. This is original Ottermagic artwork from your photo. No named films, no trademarked elf toys, no borrowed TV elves.
Dates, without turning this into a church leaflet
If you like the liturgical calendar, Advent Sunday (29 November 2026) is a natural send day: first candle, first card. If you live by chocolate doors, aim the card to arrive around 1 December so it meets the first window.
UK printed A5 cards are made to order and posted with Royal Mail in around 3–5 working days (148×210mm folded, 330gsm gloss, envelope included, blank inside or a printed message, recyclable stock, water-based inks). Count back from 29 November or 1 December, including weekends. If you are already inside that window, take the e-card, a hi-res watermark-free download after payment.
Support: support@ottermagic.com (reply within one working day). Prices are in pounds in the UK shop and dollars in the US shop. US shoppers get the same printed A5, sent by airmail to US addresses in around 2–3 weeks, so for Advent Sunday or 1 December order in early November. After that, send the personalized e-card by text or email.
Putting the whole family into a festive elf scene
Face Swap is the path when the fun is the scene: hats, pointed ears, a workshop mood, the feeling of everyone drafted into the same silly uniform. Use a photo where faces are visible and reasonably even in size. A sofa shot from last Christmas often works better than a tiny crop of one person.
If the household is two adults and two kids, try a group photo first. If the preview muddles a face, generate the adults and the kids as separate cards, or pick the clearest head-and-shoulders for a single Face Swap and put the rest of the family in the inside message.
Style Swap is the path when you want them, still in their jumpers, restyled: Photobooth, Cartoon, Chibi, Clay 3D, Retro Game, Watercolour. Chibi and Cartoon are especially kind to kids in elf hats you already own (plain hats, not a branded costume).
Pet Swap belongs here too. An elf-coded dog, or a cat who would never agree to the hat, is half the reason people open the envelope. Use a clear pet photo; hide-the-eyes hats still fail.
Live styles if you are browsing: Brick, Chibi, Emoji, Anime, Watercolour, Caricature, Cartoon, Classic Cartoon, Action Figure, Clay 3D, Retro Halftone, Retro Game, Royal Portrait, Pixel Art, Bobblehead, Sticker Sheet, Tarot Card, Photobooth, Sketch, Lucky Leprechaun.
Text Swap can put “The countdown has started, Priya” on a designed front with no photo. If you have faces, use them.
An early “countdown has started” card
Send this in late November, not on the 23rd. The joke is time.
Inside lines:
“Door number one is chocolate. Door number two is this card.”
“Advent has started, which means I am allowed to be festive at breakfast.”
“Four weeks of pretending we are organised. Love you.”
“The tree is still in the loft. The card arrived first.”
Face Swap of the kids as elves works for grandparents who start decorating at the first hymn. Watercolour of the couple works if elves would annoy them.
A card to go with an Advent calendar gift
Calendars are a present that looks incomplete without an envelope. Tuck an A5 under the box, or tape it to the back so it is the first thing they see.
For a child: Face Swap of them in a festive elf scene, inside “One door a day. No cheating. (I will know.)”
For a partner who bought a fancy calendar: Style Swap in Photobooth, inside “I got you 24 tiny surprises and one large face.”
For a friend: Text Swap on the front, “Your official Advent supervisor,” and a printed A5 they can stand next to the calendar.
If the calendar is being posted by someone else, send the e-card the morning of 1 December and let the printed card follow. Flowers-and-card logic from a card to go with a present applies: the file lands with the gift, paper arrives as a second beat.
Kids’ elf-themed cards
Kids like seeing themselves in the scene. Use a recent school-or-sofa photo, not a baby picture of a nine-year-old. Chibi, Cartoon, Emoji, and Face Swap elf scenes are the usual winners. Sketch is for the child who already draws.
Keep the inside in their voice if the card is “from” them to a grandparent: “I am an elf now. Please send chocolate.” Adults still sign it.
Do not name a film elf or a shop elf. “Festive elf” is enough. The likeness is the personal part.
Pet Swap elf dog (and unimpressed cat)
Dogs in hats, if you can still see eyes, are Christmas. Cats in hats are a negotiation. Pet Swap does not need a costume in the original photo; the template can supply the festive mood. A straight garden photo is often better input.
Inside: “He volunteered as tribute.” “She did not volunteer.” “From the dog, who believes Advent is a food schedule.”
Memorial pets are a different tone. Skip the elf hat. See the gentle note in pet portrait Christmas gifts 2026.
Posters, canvas, and the e-card
The same elf Face Swap can be a poster or canvas if you would hang it past 25 December. Check Ottermagic.com for live wall-art details. Ottermagic offers those formats; you do not need a novelty-portrait site for the wall copy.
E-card for anyone, in the UK or the US, you will not reach by post before Advent Sunday.
Ready when you are
Start the season with a card that looks like your people (and the dog) as festive elves, or restyled in a look they will actually like. Upload a photo, run Face Swap, Style Swap, or Pet Swap, and take a printed A5 or the e-card in time for Advent Sunday or 1 December. Start at Ottermagic.com. Support: support@ottermagic.com (reply within one working day).
FAQ
When is Advent Sunday 2026?
Sunday 29 November 2026. Advent calendars traditionally start on 1 December. Either date is a fair target for the card.
Can I make an “elf yourself” card from a photo?
Yes, in the ordinary sense: Face Swap into a festive elf scene, or Style Swap if you already have hats in the photo. Use original Ottermagic artwork. Do not copy a branded elf product or a film character.
Will a printed card arrive before 1 December?
For a UK address, allow around 3–5 working days after you pay, plus weekends; for a US address, around 2–3 weeks. If you are closer than that, send the e-card on the day and post the A5 anyway.
Can the whole family be elves on one card?
Try a group photo in Face Swap. If a face gets lost, make more than one card or put extra names inside. Preview is the test.
Do you do posters of the elf artwork?
Ottermagic offers posters and canvas from the same preview. Check the site for live options. The A5 is the usual Advent gift-with-calendar object.
