Most people order forwards: they decide today, then hope. Counting backwards from the date turns it into arithmetic, and the answer is almost always “earlier than you think, but not by much”.
The arithmetic
Start at the day it must be in someone’s hands and subtract.
| Subtract | For | Running total |
|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 days | Courier transit | 5 days |
| Up to a week | Waiting for the Monday dispatch | 12 days |
| A day or two | Your proof review | 14 days |
| Two to four days | Design and layout | 18 days |
| One to three days | You gathering photographs | 21 days |
Three weeks is comfortable. Two weeks works. Ten days is tight but real. Under a week is not.
The single largest variable is the Monday dispatch: it contributes anywhere from zero to seven days depending entirely on which day you order.
Order on a Tuesday, not a Saturday
We dispatch once a week, on Mondays. An order that finishes design and proof by a Friday catches that Monday. One that finishes on a Tuesday waits six extra days for the next.
Ordering early in the week pulls the whole chain forward. It is free, and it is worth more than anything else on this page.
The deadline nobody counts
Gathering the photographs. Ordering takes four minutes; collecting sixty pictures from three phones, a group chat and an aunt in another city takes days, and the clock is running the whole time.
Start collecting before you order. If you do only one thing from this page, do that one.
When the date is genuinely too close
We will say so rather than take the order, which is the honest version of this business. Inside about a week, nothing made to order arrives in time.
Two things that do work:
Give a card saying what is coming. Then make it properly. A good object arriving late beats a rushed one arriving on time, and the anticipation is not a consolation prize.
Buy something off a shelf for the day itself, and give the made thing when it lands.
Dates worth ordering unusually early for
Festival weeks compress everything — couriers slow, volumes rise, and a delayed parcel has no slack behind it. Diwali, Rakhi, Valentine’s week and the December wedding season all deserve an extra week on top of the arithmetic above.
Realistic delivery timelines by zone →
Frequently asked
How far ahead should I order a personalised gift? Three weeks is comfortable, two weeks works, ten days is tight. Under a week, nothing made to order will arrive.
Does the day of the week matter? More than anything else. Dispatch is weekly on Mondays, so a Friday order catches that week’s dispatch and a weekend order waits seven days.
What is the biggest cause of missing a date? Time spent gathering photographs after ordering rather than before. It regularly costs more days than the design stage.
What should I do if the date is too close? Give a card explaining what is coming and let the real thing be made properly. We will tell you when a date is not achievable rather than take the order.
Do festivals affect delivery? Yes. Courier networks slow during festival weeks, so add roughly a week to the arithmetic around Diwali, Rakhi and the wedding season.
Part of our guide to ordering a personalised gift. See also: how to keep a surprise a surprise, what happens after you order and fast personalised gifts.
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