The front of an Ottermagic card already does a lot of the talking: it looks like them, in a style you chose, from a photo you uploaded. The inside still needs a sentence that sounds like you. You can print a message when you order, or leave the A5 blank and write by hand. Both are normal. This page is a set of starting lines by occasion, plus a practical look at printed versus blank.
Christmas wording and when to send sit in Christmas card etiquette. If you have no photo and only want names or a short greeting on the front, that is AI text-only personalised cards and Ottermagic Text Swap. Here the photo is already on the front, and you are stuck on the words.
Let the photo choose the sentence
If the front is a Watercolour of Nan in her garden, you do not need a generic “have a wonderful day”. Mention the garden. If Face Swap put your brother in a Royal Portrait, you can tease the crown and still mean the birthday. If Pet Swap made the dog look like Clay 3D, the dog can “sign” the note.
Write one specific thing: the Sunday calls, the burnt roast, the way they still keep your old drawings. Specific beats poetic. Short beats a paragraph you would not say out loud.
You see a preview of the front before you pay. The inside is separate: blank, or a printed line you add at checkout. If you freeze, leave it blank. A handwritten “love from us” on 330gsm gloss is still a complete card.
Birthday
- “Happy birthday. This is you, slightly smarter than the barbecue photo. Love from us.”
- “To the person who still remembers my coffee order. Have a good one. The cake is not a test.”
- “Happy birthday. I used the photo you do not hate. That took research.”
- (US, personalized spelling if you write that way) “Happy birthday. This file is for the fridge until the paper one arrives, if it does.”
More birthday styles: Style Swap birthday cards and Face Swap birthday and anniversary cards.
Anniversary
- “Happy anniversary. This is us before we owned matching mugs. I would still pick you.”
- “Another year of the same jokes. Please do not stop.”
- “To my favourite person in the house, including the cat. Happy anniversary.”
If the front is a restyle of the wedding photo, you can say so in one line. You do not need to recap the vows.
Thank you
- “Thank you. We used it the same day, which is the point.”
- “Thank you for the present, the lift, and pretending the house was tidy.”
- “This is her wearing it. Thank you. Love from both of us, one of whom can write.”
After Christmas, thank you for my Christmas present has child-voice examples.
New baby
- “Welcome. You look like yourselves, only more tired. We are happy for you.”
- “For the small one, who cannot read this, and for you, who needed a sit down.”
- “We made this from the photo you sent at 2am. Sleep when you can. Love from us.”
Do not invent medical cheer. Do not guess a due date. A Christmas version of baby news is Christmas pregnancy announcement cards.
Congratulations
- “Congratulations. You did the work. We noticed.”
- “Well done on the new job / the keys / the exam. This is your face on a good day, on purpose.”
- “We are proud of you in the ordinary way, which is the real way.”
If they are sending a card to themselves, that is a different, slightly odd, perfectly allowed job: send yourself a card.
Sympathy
Keep it small. Do not pretend you know how they feel.
- “I was sorry to hear. I am thinking of you. No need to reply.”
- “With love. I remember [a specific, kind detail]. I am here on Thursday if you want company.”
- “For you, from us. We did not put a joke on this one.”
A photo of the person who died can be a comfort or a shock. Only use one if you are sure. Sketch, Watercolour, or Text Swap are often safer than a novelty style. More care on get well, sympathy and retirement cards and condolence and memorial cards.
Just because
- “No occasion. I found this photo and I liked your face in it.”
- “Thinking of you in the middle of an ordinary week.”
- “For the fridge, from the person who still has you in their camera roll.”
These are good e-card candidates: a hi-res watermark-free download you can send the same day.
Printed message versus blank inside
Ottermagic printed A5 cards (148×210mm folded, 330gsm gloss, envelope included, made to order in the UK, posted with Royal Mail to UK addresses in around 3–5 working days or sent by airmail to US addresses in around 2–3 weeks) can be blank inside or carry a printed message.
Blank inside is better when handwriting is part of the gift: parents, sympathy, thank-yous from children, anything you would rather not see in a typeface. You can still Style Swap the front. The inside stays yours.
A printed message is better when your handwriting is genuinely hard to read, when you are sending several similar cards, or when the e-card is the whole object and there is no paper to scribble on. Keep the printed line short. The front is already personalised; the inside does not need a speech.
The e-card (the storefront option labelled E-card) is a download. You can add a printed-style message if the flow offers it, and you will usually also write something in the email or chat you send the file with.
Posters and canvas are available from the same artwork if the portrait should live on a wall. Check live details on Ottermagic.com. The wall version does not replace a sentence; it just means the sentence might live in a text instead.
Lookalikey and similar catalogues can lead on deep text-led browsing. Ottermagic still offers Text Swap. When you have a photo, Style Swap, Face Swap, and Pet Swap are the reason most people stay.
Support: support@ottermagic.com (reply within one working day). Checkout shows pounds in the UK shop and dollars in the US shop.
Ready when you are
Pick one true sentence, match it to the photo on the front, and stop. Upload a picture, try Style Swap or Face Swap, preview until it looks like them, then choose blank inside or a short printed line. Order a printed A5 (148×210mm, 330gsm gloss, envelope; around 3–5 working days by Royal Mail in the UK, 2–3 weeks by airmail to the US) or send the e-card. Start at Ottermagic.com.
FAQ
What should I write in a birthday card if I am not funny?
One specific, kind fact and “happy birthday”. The Style Swap front is already the extra bit.
Is a printed message impersonal?
It can be, if it sounds like a template. A short line that mentions the photo is still yours. Handwriting is warmer for some people. Neither is required.
Can I leave the inside blank on a printed Ottermagic card?
Yes. Blank inside or a printed message.
What if I have no photo?
Use Text Swap for a name or greeting on the front, then write inside as usual. See AI text-only personalised cards. If you can find one decent picture, Style, Face, or Pet Swap will usually make a stronger card.
I am in the US. Should I print a message?
You can. The printed A5 goes by airmail to US addresses in around 2–3 weeks, blank inside or with a printed message. If you take the e-card instead, write in the message you send with the file. Personalized spelling is fine.
