Every December the same question comes round: what do you give the people who already have everything they need? For a lot of families the answer is the one thing nobody can buy in a shop: the year itself. The holidays, the birthdays, the new baby, the dog, the ordinary Sunday that turned out to be the best photo of the year.
Here are the personalised Christmas gifts worth considering, an honest look at the usual photo gifts, and how to gather a whole year of photos in a single evening.
What makes a personalised Christmas gift work
It is about the person, not the season
Christmas-themed gifts go back in the loft in January. A personalised gift that is about the person and the people they love can stay on the wall all year.
It is something they would never buy themselves
Parents and grandparents especially are hard to buy for because they buy what they need. What they rarely have is the family's photos out of the phone and in front of them.
It is ready in time
A personalised gift has to be made, and December is the busiest month of the year for every delivery service. The best Christmas gift is the one that is planned in October or November, not the night before the last posting day.
Personalised Christmas gift ideas, honestly assessed
1. The family's year, in one piece
Choose the best photos of the year, from New Year to the first frost, and put them together in a single collage. Add the words that sum the year up: the places you went, the new arrival, the house move, the running joke from the summer holiday.
A word art collage puts the photos together in the middle and fills the space around them with your words, in different sizes and directions. You design it yourself, so every photo and every word is one you chose.
2. For grandparents: every grandchild in one frame
Grandparents with several grandchildren rarely have one place where they can see them all. Ask each family for a handful of their best photos from the year, and add the grandchildren's names and the things they call their grandparents. It is the gift most likely to be shown to every visitor.
3. Photos only, no words
If you would rather let the pictures speak, a Standard Collage lays the photos out with no words at all. It suits a year with lots of strong photos, or someone who prefers a simpler look.
4. A photo calendar
A classic, and genuinely useful. Each month gets a photo, and it is used every day. The drawback is that it is put away after twelve months, so it works well as an extra rather than the main gift.
5. A photo book
A good way to hold a lot of photos, especially from one big trip. Lovely to look through, but it spends most of its life closed on a shelf.
6. A personalised decoration
A bauble or ornament with a name or a photo. A sweet stocking filler that comes out every December, though it is small and seasonal by design.
Gathering a year of photos in one evening
Most people have hundreds or thousands of photos from the last twelve months. Finding the best forty is quicker than it sounds.
Use your phone's search
Both iPhone and Android photo apps can search by place, by month and by the people in the photo. Searching for one person, or for "beach" or "snow", narrows a whole year down in seconds.
Start with your favourites
If you have marked photos as favourites during the year, start there. Most of the year's best moments will already be in that album.
Pick one or two per month as a backbone
Choose at least one photo from each month so the whole year is there, then add extras from the big moments: holidays, birthdays, new arrivals.
Ask the rest of the family
Set up a shared album and ask each family member to add their three favourite photos of the year. You will get pictures you have never seen, including the ones of you.
Leave out the near-duplicates
Ten photos of the same sunset look like one photo in a collage. Choose the best one and give the space to something different.
What size and format
An A2 print suits a family year with twenty or thirty photos. For the grandparents' version with photos from several families, an A1 holds up to 60 photos on paper. Not every size is available in every country.
It can be made as a framed print or a poster hanger, in portrait or landscape. Our guide to photo collage prints explains how they compare.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good personalised Christmas gift for grandparents?
Something that brings all the grandchildren together in one place. A collage of the year's best photos from every family, with the grandchildren's names and words around them, is a gift they will keep on the wall long after Christmas.
When should I order a personalised Christmas gift?
As early as you can. Each piece is made to order, and delivery services slow down in December. Our delivery page lists the working days for your country, and it is worth leaving extra time on top.
Can I add Christmas words or a festive message?
Yes. You choose every word yourself, so a line like "Our Year" or "Merry Christmas, Grandma" can sit alongside the names and places. Many people keep the words about the year rather than the season, so it stays up all year round.
Can I make one for several family members?
Yes. Each one is designed separately, so you can use the same photos with different words for each person, or a different selection for each household.
Is it a good gift for someone who has everything?
It is one of the few. Nobody already owns a piece made from their own family's year.
Where to start
Tonight, open your photos, search for this year and favourite the forty or so that make you smile. Then start creating your collage here. Designing is free, you can change it as often as you like, and you only pay if you decide to print it.
If someone close to you also has a big birthday coming up, our guides to 40th and 50th birthday gift ideas cover gathering photos from friends and family.