Hugh Hefner For a Day: Christmas Cards with Snapfish

The first time I came across a personalised Christmas card was back when I lived with my parents, sent from some distant relatives in the USA. I was a teenager, maybe 14 or 15, and I remember thinking what a self-indulgent practice it was. I couldn’t imagine why you’d want to send out a card to your friends with your face on it.

Fast-forward 16 years: 3,000 Instagram selfies later and here we are, fully immersed in the era of over-sharing. I LOVE SENDING THINGS WITH MY FACE ON!

In all seriousness, I think it’s lovely way of connecting your family with others. My cousin’s wife Beccy is brilliant at sending out personalised thank-you notes after her daughters’ birthday parties (my kids love receiving them), and my friend Lizzi is the best at sending cards specific to you that will bring a smile to your face. This year, after a particularly challenging couple of months, she sent me a card that featured a photo of me trying to dry myself in one of those Dyson Airblade hand dryers (there was a cocktail-on-dress incident). It made my week, and even now I keep it in a drawer in the kitchen for when I need a pick-me-up.

Now, I haven’t got around to sending out photo Christmas cards yet, instead panicking and last-minute ordering a hundred of the cards designed by Elfie at school (though I’m sure last year’s resembled a pizza rather than anything festive). But this year, with plenty of time to go before the final Christmas postage, Snapfish got in touch and asked us if we fancied having a go at making our very own family card.

They wanted us to have a think about our favourite celebrity Christmas card and re-create it (and you can do the same by winning £25 Snapfish credit – keep reading to find out how).

We decided to go all Hugh Hefner, pop our pyjamas on and rope in our pets – i.e. our favourite stuffed animals. Here’s the man himself with a bunny (and a puppy), though I stopped short at the silky PJs and instead went to M&S.

Hugh Hefner at Christmas

One of the things I love about working on this kind of project is the memories it leaves you with. The photographs we have ended up with from sitting and having a cheesy photoshoot together for half an hour: if it wasn’t for the Christmas card we were creating I wouldn’t have done this little snap session, and I’m very happy that we did. I’ll be able to look back on these lovely photos of the three of us for years to come.

It’s not just the posed pictures, either. Some of the best images were the outtakes. This one is currently making me smile as my iPhone’s wallpaper. Of COURSE Hux clonked himself in the eye with a space rocket the morning before, meaning he has a lovely shiner to look back on in years to come:

Snapfish Christmas Card

(What do they say? Never work with children or pets?!)

Here’s Elfie’s favourite, as I jumped in front of the self-timer. It’s probably not going to make it to our 2016 Christmas card but gave us a good laugh…

Snapfish Christmas Card

I think we did a great job. Elfie and Hux were on a bit of a high as they’d been bought spanking new PJs for the project (I’m not above bribery – Elfie’s are here and Hux’s here). They seemed to be enjoy being a little bit cheesy for the camera as much as I did! I kept it simple and had us snuggle up on the sofa – something we do A LOT of – and added in the poinsettia for that little extra bit of festive cheer. Here’s the best of our Playboy mansion-esque bunch:

snapfish christmas card snapfish christmas card

Making up the cards was super easy. I simply edited my original photos in PhotoShop,HP10 0TT to Snapfish, selected the style of card I fancied, uploaded the image and sent them off to be made up. I tried a few different styles with my favourite being the first I reckon (‘Merry Christmas: stylish frame‘ it’s called), though if you had an image with a solid block of colour at the top I think the second (‘flurry Christmas‘) would also be brilliant:

snapfish christmas card snapfish christmas card

I quickly processed these through the Snapfish online system and bobs your uncle, they’ll be with me in less than a week! I don’t know about you but I’d be all-out delighted to receive one of these as a Christmas card ;)

Have a go at creating your own Snapfish Christmas card – mine will be on my Instagram as soon as it arrives! I hope you have just a ridiculous and fun time as we did making memories…

snapfish christmas card snapfish christmas card

Snapfish are kindly giving away £25 online credit to a MTT reader so you can trial the service for yourself. All you have to do to enter is tell me the kind of Christmas card you’d send in the comment box, and record your details in the Rafflecopter widget below: good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thank you Snapfish for working with MTT.

Competition is UK-only. Competition closes at midnight on 28th November. Snapfish/Edelmen are responsible for the delivery of the prize. Winner will be notified via email within 3 days. 

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76 Comments

  1. Giselle wrote:

    Your pictures look super cute! Your two look so sweet in their PJs.

    I’d like to send a Christmas card showing the exciting chaos our new 8 week old son has brought to our home! I’m thinking he’ll look all cute in the foreground, I’ll be looking tired with a sick stain on my Xmas jumper and my yawning husband will be trying to stop the cat climb the Xmas tree… all complete with three cheesy grins, of course, because this is our first Christmas together!

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  2. Laura Banks wrote:

    we usually send funny ones

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  3. Zoe C wrote:

    I will be sending fun ones

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  4. Harry Alty wrote:

    Probably ones featuring my new dauschaund puppy!

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  5. Lorraine Stone wrote:

    We make cards. I am following https://twitter.com/alicej_t on Twiter. The name to follow in the rafflecopter didn’t look right?

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  6. Emma Salter wrote:

    Ones that my daughter has made

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  7. Fiona K wrote:

    I will send childish fun ones such as of teddy bears in tinsel

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  8. sam macaree wrote:

    i send ones with cats on

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  9. Paul Martin wrote:

    A traditional christmas scene

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  10. Isabel O wrote:

    I’ve got a few funny ones and a few cute ones, I will send each depending on the person. :)

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  11. Becs wrote:

    The cheapest ones

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  12. Bob Clark wrote:

    I always try to send funny ones if I can find them

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  13. Caroline H wrote:

    We send different ones to different people. We make them ourselves but are a bit camera shy so the older rellies will get a nice landscape pic from one of our autumn/winter weekend walks – bonus if we find somewhere with snow. Friends will probably get the cat looking grumpy with a photoshopped Santa hat on (no chance of actually getting one on him!).

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  14. purpleshoes wrote:

    I like to send charity cards

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  15. Lori Mckillop wrote:

    I like to send cute ones :) x

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  16. Hannah wrote:

    Hopefully some Snapfish ones!!

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  17. Matt Froggatt wrote:

    As few as possible – save the trees! :)

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  18. Jane wrote:

    Whatever is left over from last year, advantage of having a lot of elderly relatives they never remember :-)

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  19. Fiona B wrote:

    I get the kids to make a few with hand prints

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  20. Inga Andersen wrote:

    I always make my own so it’ll be a decoupage Christmas scene :)

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  21. Kim Neville wrote:

    Some cute and funny cards

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  22. Mary wrote:

    I will send traditional cards to a few close family members living overseas.
    Otherwise I donate to charity instead of sending cards.

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  23. Emma Rawlinson wrote:

    I generally send cute ones with snowmen, reindeer etc

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  24. Natalie Crossan wrote:

    I don’t send many – mainly just neighbours and family x

    Posted 11.23.16 Reply
  25. Ellie Wood wrote:

    Traditional ones to family and friends

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  26. Holly Gibson wrote:

    I always like to send glittery cards!

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  27. Lindy Hine wrote:

    I’ll be sending ones from the RNLI because living near the sea I like to support them

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  28. Marc Chivers wrote:

    Funny

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  29. Ray Becker wrote:

    Festive

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  30. Tracy Hanley wrote:

    Funny ones

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  31. Stacey Carnell wrote:

    A handmade one from my son :)

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  32. Sheila Shepheard wrote:

    I send charity cards from Save The Children – I only send to people I don’t see regularly and usually enclose a hand written letter too, particularly to the older recipients.

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  33. Jo Carroll wrote:

    I like to send a funny card to my closest friends & family but am careful not to make them personal…you can load yourself up with a whole sackful of trouble if you offend anyone at Xmas time ;)

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  34. Kathrine B wrote:

    One with a cheesy family photo!

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  35. Emma Gibson wrote:

    None, they take too long to write out.

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  36. leanne weir wrote:

    a standard one

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  37. Isabelle Smith wrote:

    none, find them pointless

    Posted 11.24.16 Reply
  38. Sarah Brokenshire wrote:

    lots of handmade ones x

    Posted 11.25.16 Reply
  39. Alexandra Adams-Duff wrote:

    wallace and gromit ones sold at john lewis x

    Posted 11.25.16 Reply
  40. Jo McPherson wrote:

    Not sure, haven’t seen any I like yet

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  41. Daniel wrote:

    Always joke ones

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  42. michelle o'neill wrote:

    i like traditional ones x

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  43. Beky Austerberry wrote:

    I tend to send unusual ones or funny ones but have some traditional ones for traditional family members

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  44. Jade Hewlett wrote:

    I like traditional cards

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  45. I usually get a mixture to be honest. Kids ones for the school freinds, traditional for neighbours and personalised for close family and freinds.

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  46. Karen Barrett wrote:

    Charity Christmas cards from Bolton Hospice

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  47. Sarah Archibald wrote:

    We dont really send out cards, never have but we make ones with our daughter for family members and she does get a pack to hand out to her school friends.

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  48. bella smyth wrote:

    I dont send cards but the kids do and they make cards for the grandparents and dad

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  49. Joanna Kasznicki wrote:

    Traditional ones

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  50. Jules Eley wrote:

    A winter scene card!

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  51. Catherine wrote:

    Funny one

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  52. Lisa Wilkinson wrote:

    I’m not sending Christmas cards this year as I’m donating to the local food bank

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  53. Jamie Millard wrote:

    something funny

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  54. Rebecca Smith wrote:

    one with a design by my son

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  55. Lynsey Buchanan wrote:

    We made handmade ones for family members

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  56. Deborah J wrote:

    no xmas card s this year giving a donation to Cancer Research instead

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  57. sarah m wrote:

    My kids make most of them! They absolutely love it so it’s a tradition that we do every year now :)

    Posted 11.26.16 Reply
  58. emma speers wrote:

    I have ordered some xmas cards from my childrens school, they make Christmas cards and they are printed for us to buy

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  59. Laura Asplin wrote:

    Personalised cards with my little boy on them

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  60. Lee Ritson wrote:

    I get generic store bought ones for most people but close family and friends get customised ones :)

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  61. Tiffeny Brown wrote:

    I will be sending special ones to my close family members and friends and ones I bought from pets at home with hamsters on to other people. Would love some from snapfish with my pets in though! :) x

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  62. Dale Dow wrote:

    I normally send photo postcards

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  63. Vicky Hawkins wrote:

    We will send a funny family photo card of my children

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  64. Macmillan cancer charity cards this year.

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  65. jen s morgan wrote:

    We usually send ones to family that the children have made x

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  66. Gillian Mcclelland wrote:

    I will be sending funny cards

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  67. Sarah Wilson wrote:

    I love cards with Robins on them, so will be sending them!

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  68. Libby Noack wrote:

    A Home Made Personalised Christmas Card :)

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  69. Andrea A wrote:

    None. I’ll send Xmas messages via email and whatsapp instead.

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  70. Diana wrote:

    The ones my daughter made :) By the way, all of you look so pretty :)

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  71. Caroline Blaza wrote:

    A traditional Christmas card.

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  72. Tammy Westrup wrote:

    Simple traditional cards this year

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  73. Janet Palmer wrote:

    We made homemade ones this year

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  74. Dawn Hull wrote:

    I always try and send ones with animals on (usually cats!).

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  75. Marsha Richardson wrote:

    Always cards with plenty of glitter!!

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply
  76. We’ve got some very glittery cards this year!

    Posted 11.27.16 Reply