Christmas card lettering: a final checklist before you order
Check faces, lettering, names, margins and the inside message so your card works beyond an enlarged screen preview.
Before ordering a personalised Christmas card, review it at two sizes: enlarged enough to inspect details, and small enough to resemble the way someone will actually see it. The first catches mistakes; the second tells you whether the greeting is readable and the picture still leads.
1. Approve the artwork first
Count the people and pets, check their likeness, and inspect hands and overlapping figures. Do this before fine-tuning lettering. It is frustrating to perfect a sign-off around a picture that later needs replacing.
Fable's Christmas images are AI-created interpretations of uploaded photos. A charming overall result can still contain a detail you do not want to print. Our likeness checklist gives a more detailed review method.
2. Keep the front hierarchy simple
Decide what should be noticed first: usually the portrait, then the greeting, then the sign-off. A long front message asks all three elements to compete. Move the extra sentence to the message side rather than shrinking every word.
Test the actual names you intend to use. A template that looks balanced with a short example name can feel crowded with a long family sign-off. Use a shorter sign-off or another lettering treatment if the preview is difficult to read.
3. Read the words against the picture
Light lettering needs enough contrast with the area behind it. Dark lettering can disappear against a dark coat or wooden floor. Look at each word, not only the first line, and check that an ornament does not cross a face or make the sign-off harder to read.
Warm gold and ivory can suit a nostalgic scene, but colour alone does not guarantee legibility. Preview the combination you have actually selected. If the layout feels busy, removing an ornament is a valid design choice.
4. Respect the safe area
Keep important text comfortably inside the card edges. If the editor reports a fit or safe-area warning, resolve it before ordering. Try a shorter greeting, another position or the fitting controls offered there. Do not rely on an enlarged screenshot to decide that a print warning can be ignored.
The goal is not to use every available centimetre. A little breathing room helps the card read as a deliberate composition. Check the front and the longer message separately.
5. Proofread names and the message
Read the wording aloud, including the sign-off. Check accents, apostrophes, repeated words and accidental line breaks. Ask another person to proofread if the card is going to a large group. They may notice a mistake that you have stopped seeing.
For ideas, use our short Christmas card messages, then adapt the wording to your own recipients.
6. Check the physical product
Fable's printed Christmas product is a folded greeting card with the artwork on the front and the message inside; envelopes are included. Confirm the current pack, quantity, total and delivery destination at checkout. Cards come to you to address and post, so allow for that second stage without assuming a particular arrival date.
The free preview is watermarked. Finished digital cards and printed cards are paid products. If you choose digital, check the final front and back and the supplied greeting link instead of a printing workflow.