Made-to-order is not the same as buying something off a shelf, and most of the confusion comes from expecting it to behave the same way. There is a person laying out your pages, and there is a point where you approve them.
Here is the whole sequence, what each stage needs from you, and roughly how long it takes.
The five stages
| Stage | What happens | Who acts | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Order | You choose a format and size and pay | You | Minutes — by Friday for the coming Monday |
| 2. Material | You send photographs and any words | You | With the order, ideally |
| 3. Design | A designer sequences and lays it out | Us | Starts once your photographs arrive |
| 4. Proof | You see a digital PDF and approve or change it | You | Reply when it arrives |
| 5. Print and dispatch | It prints and ships | Us | The coming Monday, for an order placed by Friday |
5 to 14 days from order to doorstep, 5 to 12 to Delhi NCR. The rule underneath: an order placed by Friday is designed, proofed, printed and dispatched on the coming Monday, provided the proof is approved when it arrives; a weekend order goes out the Monday after. The range is wide because two of the five stages are waiting on you, because dispatch runs once a week, and because transit is two to three days within Delhi NCR and three to five elsewhere.
One product runs a shorter version. If you are printing a magazine you designed yourself, stages 3 and 4 become a file check: we look at the page count, the size and the image quality, you confirm on WhatsApp that it is ready, and it prints exactly as sent — so the spelling and the page order are yours to check before you share the link.
What you need before you start
Not much, but having it ready removes days.
The photographs. About three fill a page, so about 48 for a 16-page magazine — send more than that so the layout has choices. How to choose them →
Five specific things. Places, dates, a running joke, something that went wrong. These become the captions, and they are what separates a personalised gift from a printed one. Write them badly; they get shaped.
The delivery address, and whose it is. If it ships straight to the recipient, that address goes in at checkout rather than yours.
What the checkout asks for
Five minutes, and two of the boxes are optional ones worth filling in.
| Field | What it is for | Get it right by |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Identifying the order | Your own name, not the recipient’s |
| WhatsApp number | Where we message you about photographs and the proof; its last four digits unlock tracking | Using your own ten-digit number, even when the gift goes elsewhere |
| The confirmation, the photo-upload link and delivery updates | Using an inbox you check, and one the recipient does not | |
| Delivery address | Where the parcel goes | Flat, tower, landmark and the right pin code |
| When do you need it? (optional) | Warns you before you pay if the date is out of reach | Entering the occasion date, not the order date |
| Anything we should know? (optional) | A surprise, gift wrap, who it is from, the recipient’s number for the delivery | Writing it now rather than remembering it later |
The WhatsApp number is the easiest field to get wrong on a gift. It belongs to the person handling the order, not the person receiving it — put the recipient’s number there and our first message about photographs lands on their phone. Ordering on behalf of someone else →
The stage people underestimate
Sending the photographs. Ordering takes four minutes; assembling sixty photographs from three phones and a relative in another city takes days, and the clock on your delivery date is running the whole time.
If a date matters, gather the material before you order rather than after.
Where it can still change
Everything, until you approve the proof. That is the point of the stage: you see the whole thing as a PDF, and layout, captions, order and cover can all change. Revisions are included.
Once you approve it, it prints. After that the only changes possible are to the delivery address, and only before dispatch.
What it costs
Magazines run ₹499 for 8 pages to ₹1,099 for 40. Print packs are ₹270 for 30. Diaries are ₹699 to ₹1,299, and hardcover albums ₹1,299 to ₹2,299. Flat ₹70 delivery to every serviceable pin code in India, and design, sequencing and revisions are included at every size. Printing a magazine you designed yourself is ₹299 to ₹699 a copy.
Payment is prepaid — here is why.
Four ways an order goes wrong
None of them is dramatic, and each costs days or a surprise.
Ordering on a Saturday for a date that needed Friday. A weekend order misses the Monday dispatch and waits a full week for the next one. If a date matters, the day of the week you pay on matters more than anything else you do. Ordering for a fixed date →
The recipient’s number in the WhatsApp field. The surprise is spoiled by our first message, and the order stalls while the recipient wonders why a print studio wants their photographs.
Photographs sent the quick way. A picture attached as a normal photo in a chat is shrunk on the way, and it shows on paper. Send them as documents, or through the upload link. Sending photos without losing quality →
A proof approved by nobody, or by everybody. Left unread, it misses the Monday; read by four relatives, it collects four sets of contradictory changes. One person reads it properly, collects the others’ notes, and replies once.
The rest of the process, in detail
Sixteen pages sit under this one. They divide into four questions, and most people only ever need the row they are standing in.
| If you are | Read |
|---|---|
| About to order | What we need from you before design starts · ordering for a fixed date · why we are prepaid only |
| Waiting on it | What happens after you order · sending photos without losing quality · the design proof · tracking your order · changing an order |
| Working out where it goes | Delivering to an office address · gift delivery to a hostel or PG · sending it without the price showing · ordering on behalf of someone else |
| Buying more than one | Ordering several gifts at once · reordering something you gave before |
| Somewhere it went wrong | What happens if nobody is home · when a gift arrives after the occasion |
Two of those are worth reading before you order rather than after. Which phone number the courier has decides what happens when it finds nobody in, and where it is delivered decides whether the recipient opens it alone or at a desk.
Frequently asked
How long does a personalised gift take? 5 to 14 days from order to doorstep, 5 to 12 to Delhi NCR. Two of those stages wait on you, so it is faster when the photographs are ready before you order.
Do I see it before it prints? Yes, for everything we design. Nothing prints until you have approved a digital proof of the whole thing, and revisions are included. A magazine you designed yourself is checked, then printed exactly as you sent it. Get your magazine printed →
How many photos do I need to send? About three per page — about 48 for a 16-page magazine. Send more so the layout has options.
Can it be delivered to someone else? Yes. Put their address as the delivery address at checkout and it ships straight there.
What if I do not like the design? Change it at the proof stage. That is what the stage exists for, and revisions are included in the price.
Start here, then: what happens after you order · sending your photos properly · the design proof · ordering for a fixed date · changing an order · why we are prepaid only · tracking your order · what to send us
Start an order: Photo magazines from ₹499 · All 12 keepsakes
Also asked: Do you deliver to my pin code? · Is there a minimum order? · Can I order without WhatsApp?