If you want a card for Mothering Sunday, Boxing Day, or a bank holiday weekend that looks like the person (or the pet who runs the house), Ottermagic is the straightforward UK path. Upload a clear photo, run Face Swap or Style Swap, preview until it feels right, then order a printed A5 card (148×210mm folded, 330gsm gloss, envelope included, made to order in the UK and posted with Royal Mail in around 3–5 working days) or take an e-card, a hi-res watermark-free download. Mothering Sunday moves with Easter, Boxing Day sits in the Christmas post crush, and bank holidays pause working days. Start the preview early at Ottermagic.com.
The short answer
| Occasion | What to make on Ottermagic | Format |
|---|---|---|
| Mothering Sunday | Style Swap portrait (Watercolour, Sketch, Royal Portrait) or a gentle Face Swap scene | Printed A5 if you have the working days; e-card if you left it late |
| Boxing Day | A Face Swap gag or a Photobooth / Cartoon restyle of the Christmas group shot | Printed A5 if you ordered before the Christmas close; otherwise e-card |
| Bank holiday weekend | Whatever the gathering is for: birthday, thank you, “we made it to the sofa” | Count working days around the holiday, then pick print or e-card |
Ottermagic also offers posters and canvas if the picture is one you would rather hang than post. Check the site for live wall-art details. Text Swap is there if you only have a name and a line of copy, though a photo is the better starting point for these dates.
Mothering Sunday is its own date
In the UK, Mothering Sunday is the fourth Sunday of Lent, three weeks before Easter Sunday. The date moves every year. Check a calendar for the year you are buying for; do not copy a US Mother’s Day date in May.
The card job is usually quieter than a novelty birthday. You want her face, or the family face she will recognise, drawn into something she might keep on the mantel after the chocolates have gone. Style Swap does that well:
- Watercolour and Sketch if she likes something calm
- Royal Portrait if the joke is that she already runs the house
- Photobooth if you have a recent snap of you together
- Anime or Chibi if you are making it for a younger mum, or from younger children
Face Swap is useful when the fun is the scene rather than a restyle of the whole photo: her face in a finished template, still obviously her. Pet Swap belongs here more often than people admit. Plenty of UK mothers would rather see the dog in Clay 3D than another stock bunch of tulips.
Upload in daylight if you can. A kitchen selfie with the extractor fan in shot will still work if her face is clear; a dark restaurant photo usually will not. Preview on Ottermagic, then decide print or e-card from the date, not from guilt.
Boxing Day cards, after the wrapping paper
Boxing Day is 26 December. Some years it sits on a weekday bank holiday; some years it sits on a weekend and the substitute holiday moves. Either way, it is a strange little card occasion: thank-yous for hosts, a laugh about the Christmas jumper, a note to grandparents you only saw on Zoom, or a “we survived” card for a sibling.
You do not need a design labelled Boxing Day. You need a photo from the week and a style that still looks like them:
- Photobooth for the paper-hat group shot
- Cartoon or Classic Cartoon for something colourful without going full figurine
- Clay 3D, Bobblehead, or Action Figure if the household likes a joke
- Brick if someone still has Lego on the table from Christmas morning
- Lucky Leprechaun as a Face Swap gag if the photo is face-on and the recipient will take it well
Printed A5 is the nicer object: 330gsm gloss, folded, envelope in the pack, blank inside or with a printed message, recyclable stock and water-based inks. The catch is timing. Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year are not ordinary working days. Ottermagic still posts printed cards with Royal Mail in around 3–5 working days. That window does not shrink because you thought of the card on the 24th. If you are inside it, take the e-card.
Bank holiday weekends are gatherings with a paused printer
UK bank holidays (the early and late May days, the August holiday in England, Easter Monday, and the Christmas cluster) create two problems at once. People get together, so you suddenly want a card. Working days pause, so the 3–5 working day range stretches if a holiday sits in the middle. A Thursday order before a Friday holiday is not five calendar days later. Count Monday to Friday, skip the bank holiday, and read the estimate at checkout.
A May bank holiday birthday can be Action Figure or Retro Game. An Easter thank-you can be Sketch. A late-August barbecue can be Cartoon of the person turning the sausages. Pet Swap covers the dog who attended all of those.
Ottermagic does not promise same-day printed cards on bank holidays, or on any other day. Other retailers sometimes advertise late cut-offs; check their sites for that claim. For a likeness in Brick, Chibi, Anime, Clay 3D, or Watercolour, start on Ottermagic and pick the e-card when the calendar is tight.
Print vs e-card around these dates
| You have… | Choose |
|---|---|
| At least around 3–5 working days, no bank holiday in the way | Printed A5, posted with Royal Mail |
| A bank holiday inside the next few days | Add a day, or switch to the e-card |
| Mothering Sunday next weekend and you only thought of it now | E-card: hi-res, watermark-free download after payment |
| A Boxing Day thank-you after the last Christmas post has gone | E-card, then print at home or send the image |
| A picture good enough to hang | Poster or canvas (confirm live details on Ottermagic.com) |
The swap is the same in every format. You are choosing an envelope versus a file, not a different portrait.
Styles worth trying (the live list)
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.
Try two. Mothering Sunday often wants one quieter look and one braver one; Boxing Day usually wants the braver one.
How to time an order
- Find the date they should hold the card (Mothering Sunday, Boxing Day, or the Sunday of the bank holiday weekend).
- Count back five working days for a comfortable printed A5.
- If a UK bank holiday sits in that gap, add a day.
- If you land inside three working days, take the e-card.
- Always read Ottermagic’s live estimate at checkout.
Royal Mail publishes Christmas last posting dates closer to December. For Boxing Day thanks that still need the Christmas post, use those dates plus Ottermagic’s 3–5 working day print window.
Ready when you are
Upload a photo of mum, the Boxing Day host, or the person you keep seeing on bank holidays. Run Face Swap or Style Swap (Pet Swap if the animal is the real recipient), preview until it looks like them, then order UK A5 330gsm gloss with an envelope, or download the e-card the same day. Start at Ottermagic.com. Support: support@ottermagic.com (reply within one working day). Prices are in pounds in the UK shop and dollars in the US shop.
FAQ
Is Mothering Sunday the same as Mother’s Day in the UK?
People use both names. The UK date is Mothering Sunday, the fourth Sunday of Lent, three weeks before Easter. It is not the US second-Sunday-in-May date. Buy against the UK calendar.
Can I get a Face Swap card printed for the next bank holiday weekend?
Often, if you still have around 3–5 working days after you approve the preview, excluding the holiday itself. If you do not, use the e-card. Ottermagic does not offer same-day print.
What if I only thought of a Boxing Day card on Christmas Day?
Take the e-card. Printed A5 will not jump the Christmas close. You can still write a message, send the file, or print a copy at home.
Do you do pet cards for Mothering Sunday?
Yes. Pet Swap is a first-class path. Upload a clear photo of the animal she actually loves.
Can I add a printed message inside?
Yes on printed A5: blank inside, or a printed message where you add one. The e-card is the artwork file; you send that however you like.
What about posters?
Ottermagic offers posters and canvas as well as A5 cards and e-cards. Check the site for current wall-art details. A Mothering Sunday Watercolour that worked as a card can be the same artwork on a wall.
