CHRISTMAS GIFTS FOR ATHLETES.

Most athletes unwrap the same things every Christmas: a hoodie, a water bottle, one more gym bag. A gift built from their own photos is different, because it could only ever be theirs. Below is what we make, which piece suits which athlete, and what to send. The order-by dates are on our Christmas gifts for athletes page, and the photo guide shows which photos to pull from your phone first.

A water bottle is the same for every athlete on the team. A card or a poster built from their photos carries their face, their uniform and their season, and nothing else under the tree does. The kit is copied from your photos exactly as it is, crest and all, and the art is finished in one of six finishes: Stadium Night, Chrome All-Star, Fire & Smoke, Heritage, Signature Spotlight and Prism Rush.

The card is also a record. Every card carries its registered card ID on the back. The QR code beside it opens the card's own page, with the season and the stats you chose to print. Long after the uniform stops fitting, the card still says who wore it and when.

Every piece starts from the same photos and the same artwork, so the choice comes down to where the gift will live.

• Trading cards, the keepsake. For the athlete who keeps a binder, swaps with teammates or wants something to hand out. Printed, 12 or 24 to an order: square-cut, UV-coated 2.5 × 3.5 in cards plus every digital file. Shipped free in the US. More on custom trading cards.
• A poster, for their room. Art for the wall — the stats stay on the card. It suits a bedroom, a dorm room or a grandparent's hallway. Printed at 18 × 24 in or 24 × 36 in; the files carry 18 × 24 and 24 × 36 at 300 DPI, plus phone and desktop wallpapers. More on custom sports posters.
• A banner, for game day. A vinyl banner for the fence, the gym wall or senior night. For the family that brings folding chairs to every game. Three sizes, 1 × 2 ft, 2 × 4 ft or 3 × 6 ft, each a printed vinyl banner plus the digital file. Ships separately, 1–2 weeks.
• A blanket. A plush blanket printed with their artwork — bedroom, dorm or the bleachers. New, in three sizes, each priced on the free-proof form.

Pick one or all. Every printed option includes the digital files. Cards and a poster together are priced as a set. Not sure which? Ask for more than one on the same free proof, and decide once you can see them side by side.

A surprise is easy to keep, because nobody has to pose for anything. The season is already on your phone: game photos, team photo day, the sideline after the last whistle. Send 4–10 photos with a clear view of the athlete's face and body. Different angles are better than many similar photos. Game photos, portraits and uniform photos all help.

Four of them matter most. Look for these first:

• One close-up: face sharp, both eyes visible.
• One with the head turned left, one turned right.
• One full-body — head to shoes.
• One in the team kit — game day or team photo day.

Skip screenshots and social-media downloads and send the original files. If you have the school or club crest as a file of its own, add it; the kit on the card is copied from your photos, and a clean crest saves a revision.

The order-by dates live on the Christmas page and move with the calendar, so this post names none. What never moves is the order things happen in:

1. 1Send photos. 4–10 photos from your phone, and what you'd like made.
2. 2Your free watermarked proof. We build a watermarked proof of the real card, poster, banner or blanket — free, within 1–2 business days.
3. 3Choose digital or printed — pay your way. Love it? Pick digital or printed and pay by secure payment link or on our Etsy shop. Not happy? Nothing to pay.
4. 4We finish it — watermark off. Digital files within 1–2 business days of payment; printed items ship within 5–7.

Digital files arrive first. Printed items ship after you approve the proof and may arrive in separate packages. Printed and shipped free in the US. Physical and digital orders: US only for now. A printed banner ships on its own clock, so if one is part of the gift, ask for it with the first proof.

Cutting it close? The files arrive before the prints, and they are a gift on their own: the card front and back, the flip video of the card turning over, the poster files and the phone wallpapers, depending on what you chose. Open them together on the day, and let the printed pieces follow.

Order the printed piece as usual. Every printed option includes the digital files, so those come first and the print follows on its own clock. Nothing about the gift changes except the order it is opened in.