As an artist, I’d love to be able to handmake personalized artsy Christmas gifts for my friends and family. Whether it be paintings, drawings, or using some other unique art medium, it’d be great to say all the gifts I give are not only personal but made by myself.
But I’m a husband and father with a full-time job. Our water heater went out several weeks ago, and just last week, we had septic back up into our basement (gross). I don’t have the time to make custom artsy Christmas gifts, as much as I would love to. I need to prioritize spending time with my family.
Fortunately, there’s a long list of websites and places where you can make custom gifts for your family without needing to take the time to do it all yourself. No, it won’t entirely be the same as if you made it personally, but this is the next best thing when you simply don’t have the time.
So, for all of you in the same boat as me who are looking for custom gifts when you just can’t make it yourself, here’s a list of websites that offer truly unique custom and artsy gifts to surprise your friends or family.
1. Lime & Lou
- Website: www.limeandlou.com
- Range of Items – Medium
- TrustPilot Score – 4.1 Stars
Lime & Lou is a custom-gifting website currently well known for its “Music Memories” custom artwork that will print the lyrics of your favorite song onto an image of a record. It’s incredibly popular with couples but can be customized for whatever purposes you might have.
I selected Lime & Lou as the best place for personalized artsy gifts for a few reasons. The main reason, though, is their custom song artwork. It seems simple, but it’s a big part of their brand. You can even create your own custom song, which can then be added to their iconic Music Memories artwork.
Other reasons include their high TrustPilot Score, with many of the negative reviews acknowledging that their products are high-quality. When even your critics tell you you’re making a solid product, you’re probably doing a fine job.
So, if you want to buy a personalized artsy gift for your spouse (or significant other), Lime & Lou is my first pick.
2. Zazzle
- Website: www.zazzle.com
- Range of Items – Very Large
- TrustPilot Score – 4.5 Stars
Zazzle is an incredible website when it comes to personalized artsy Christmas gifts. I’ve used them several times now, and I love the result every time.
Zazzle has a HUGE range of customizable artsy products, from the standard customizable t-shirts all the way down to custom wrapping paper. If you were really committed, you could create an entire custom gift experience with a custom gift wrapped in custom wrapping paper, a custom bow, and a custom card to go along with it. That’d be next-level customizable Christmas gifting.
They also offer a membership called Zazzle+, which gives you free shipping on all orders for a calendar year. Kind of like Amazon Prime but for custom gifts.
If it’s so great, then why isn’t this number 1 on the list? Well, that’s because they’re sticklers about copyrights. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, since copyrights are important, but it includes any artistic recreations of known characters or brands. I’ve had multiple instances where I created a custom product, bought it, and then a few days later got a notice that it somehow violated a copyright. But it should be fine if you’re using artwork you own that isn’t based on a copywritten character.
This custom Christmas gift seller is best for any occasion but particularly useful for custom Christmas cards and wrapping paper. It’s also one of the most affordable options on this list.
3. Minted
- Website: www.minted.com
- Range of Items – Large
- TrustPilot Score – 3.8 Stars
Minted is like the luxury version of Zazzle, with professional artists partnered with the platform to help you create custom gifts that will be treasured indefinitely.
If Zazzle doesn’t have what you’re looking for and you’re not particularly artistic, you can pay a premium on Minted to help bring your vision of giving the ultimate custom artsy Christmas gift to life. It’s an excellent option for anyone with the budget to give a professionally crafted custom gift.
They do have a lower TrustPilot score than the first two on my list, but it is still a good rating, all things considered.
If you’re looking for a professionally made premium custom Christmas gift, Minted is your best bet.
4. Etsy
- Website: www.etsy.com
- Range of Items – Huge
- TrustPilot Score – 1.5 Stars (ouch)
Etsy is… well, it’s Etsy! It once was touted as THE place to go for handcrafted custom gifts, and it is still a great option today! However, the site has kind of lost hold of its roots, in my opinion. Many of the products on the site are now clearly just big businesses using Etsy as an additional storefront to sell their products. It’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s not quite what Etsy was made for.
If you’re not familiar with Etsy, It’s a place for people (or businesses) to market products that are custom and/or handmade. It used to be almost entirely made up of individuals who handmade the products themselves, but now it has evolved into a “mostly handmade.” Why? Because Etsy has become the go-to place for people who want to strike it rich through dropshipping rather than offering their own unique products.
That doesn’t mean that Etsy isn’t a good place to purchase custom artsy Christmas gifts, but it’s something to consider as you browse their platform. Also, in a sense, it’s kind of like eBay in that you’re not buying anything from Etsy, the company, but rather individual sellers on the platform. This means that your experience can vary greatly depending on who you buy from. My advice is to carefully consider the reviews for each seller as you’re shopping.
Etsy is a great platform to look for relatively inexpensive personalized Christmas gifts, but I recommend checking the reviews thoroughly before buying.
5. Uncommon Goods
- Website: www.uncommongoods.com
- Range of Items – Large
- TrustPilot Score – 3.3 Stars
“C’mon man. Zazzle, Etsy, Lime and Lou? EVERYBODY knows about those. Give me something unique.”
Ahh, you’re looking for a unique custom Christmas gift. Maybe even something a little… weird? *looks around* All right, follow me. We’re headed to a place called “Uncommon Goods.”
The other shops are all great at providing customizable t-shirts and stationery, but Uncommon Goods is excellent at giving gifts that are… well… Uncommon. Like this paint-by-the-numbers custom portrait kit, or this fascinating DIY pinball machine creation kit. And those aren’t even the coolest things on the website.
Sometimes, the most unusual Christmas gift is the one they’ll remember most. If you agree with that, then Uncommon Goods might be the place you’ve been looking for.
6. Society6
- Website: society6.com
- Range of Items – Large
- TrustPilot Score – 1.4 Stars (ouch)
Society6 has a lot of similarities to Zazzle, as they’re both a POD (Print-On-Demand) service where you upload your own designs and then order them printed on whatever products are available. However, the Society6 audience is more targeted towards fine art.
In my experience, you’re more likely to find custom art gifts at a better price on Zazzle, but there might be options on Society6 that you won’t find on other POD sites. In terms of popularity, Zazzle beats Society6 by a large margin, with nearly four times the amount of organic traffic to their site. That alone would be an indicator that Zazzle is offering a better product overall, but Society6 also has a suspiciously low rating on TrustPilot, at just 1.4 stars (yikes). Remember, though, that customers are more likely to leave negative than positive reviews, so it doesn’t mean you’re guaranteed a bad experience.
I’d look at the above options first before going to Society6, but if they don’t have what you’re looking for then this is still a safe place to buy a custom artsy gift.
7. Personalization Mall
- Website: www.personalizationmall.com
- Range of Items – Large
- TrustPilot Score – 3.9 Stars
Personalization Mall, like Society6, offers a variety of unique items that you might not find on the other options above. What makes Personalization Mall stand out to me is its collaboration with notable brands, sports teams, and well-known characters. For example, you can get customizable NFL merchandise for your friend who loves sports and then buy your kids (or nieces/nephews) personalized Melissa and Doug toys! I love that!
Apart from their collaboration with notable brands, there’s not a ton unique to this store compared to the above alternatives. However, their production is standardized compared to Zazzle’s use of third-party manufacturers, which helps ensure quality remains consistent. Personalization Mall also has an air of classiness to it that I don’t really get from Zazzle. It doesn’t mean their products are necessarily better, but they certainly make you feel like you’re ordering higher-quality products.
Personalization Mall is an excellent pick for buying a personalized artsy gift for any occasion, and they have great reviews on TrustPilot to back up their products.
Conclusion
And there you have it, the top places to buy personalized artsy Christmas gifts for your friends, family, neighbors, or that distant relative who you forgot exists but sent you a thoughtful gift, and now you’re panicking because you don’t know what to get them.
While Lime & Lou took first place on this list, my most frequently used platform is Zazzle, as I have experience with them, and I appreciate their subscription service, which offers free shipping on all their products for a full calendar year.
Personalized gifts are a way to show someone you care about them enough to spend extra time in the gift-giving process. It’s why they’ve become increasingly popular over the years. As a side note, it’s always a good idea to buy your gifts when they have Black Friday Deals going on in order to save yourself some money. It’s generally the best price you’ll get in the year.
Think I missed one that should have been on the list? Mention it in the comments, and I’ll check it out and possibly add it to the article! I hope you have an excellent day and a Merry Christmas!