The short version. Order by the first week of December and you are comfortable. Four to nine working days is the door-to-door window on a normal week, and December is not a normal week. If you have left it later than that, read the last section.
How long it actually takes
Nothing here is warehoused. The print is made after the order, which is why there is no dead stock and no discounting, and it is also why the window is a window rather than a next-day promise. Four to nine working days covers production and delivery together on a normal week, and delivery is inside the price rather than added at the end.
December compresses that from the delivery end rather than the printing end. Carriers are carrying more than at any other point in the year, so the sensible move is to add a week to whatever you would normally allow and to check your carrier's own published last posting dates before you rely on a date. We are not going to quote those here, because they change every year and a stale date in a guide is worse than no date.
What to buy, briefly
The choosing is covered properly elsewhere and December does not change it. If you can get a photograph of their car, the Paint Shop is the answer and always has been. If you cannot, the decision tree gets you to one recommendation in about a minute, and the petrolhead guide handles the person who already owns everything.
The one December-specific point is that a framed print is a better wrapped object than a rolled poster. It arrives ready to hang, it has weight in the hand, and it does not need the recipient to go and buy a frame in the first week of January, which most people never get round to.
What to avoid at Christmas specifically
Anything carrying a marque you have inferred rather than been told. Badge loyalty in this hobby is real and specific, and a present in the colours of a rival is a story that gets retold for years.
Cheap poster multipacks are the other one. They are printed on thin stock, the corners curl within a season, and a keen owner notices the difference immediately, which turns a gift into an awkward moment. Everything here is on 250 gsm uncoated archival paper for exactly that reason, and the formats page sets out what that means.
If you have left it late
Check the delivery estimate before choosing a made-to-order print for Christmas. AI styling needs email verification and time to generate a preview; it is not an instant present. If the estimate misses your date, choose something available locally or give a personal note explaining the gift you plan to make together. There is no need to rush an artwork choice to place an order.
The one thing not to do is order something you would not otherwise have bought simply because it can arrive in time. That is how the drawer full of car gadgets got started.
Written by Craig Fearn, Petrol & Ink. Last updated .