I have to be honest that when I see a ‘personalised’ category in an online shop I cringe a bit; it’s never been my cup of tea. However, I have to eat a big slice of humble pie and tell you that I have changed my mind. I was sent a package of items from Zazzle, specialists in creating personalised accessories, homewares, gifts and even fabric and I enjoyed every part of the ordering process. The main turning point for me was that I was in control of the personalisation and I could tailor the products exactly to my tastes and needs: you can upload your own photographs, designs, graphics, fonts and have these printed on stationery, ceramics, fabric – the possibilities are endless.
It took me ages to decide what I wanted as there are so many choices and if I was a bit more creative I really could have had a field day; imagine designing your own fabric! However, you don’t need to be creative at all because as well as designing your own products you can order designs made by others. In the end I chose some cards, a tote bag and some fabric monogrammes.
I am honestly in LOVE with the Christmas cards that I made using a photograph of Otto that I took last Christmas; never have I been so excited to open a parcel! I chose the square cards so that I could use an Instagram photograph. The matte effect looks and feels really high quality – I can not wait to give these to family and friends.
I also chose this pretty monogramme design on cotton that I personalised with a ‘K’. I can appliqué these onto sewing projects and the quality of the print and colours is excellent.
Combed cotton with Whimsical Floral Wreath Monogramme
I couldn’t resist getting a personalised tote bag with my blog logo 😉 The tote itself is a great size and is made of thick, strong cotton. The one thing I would say is that when you upload a graphic to personalise off-white fabric make sure you take into account the colour of the fabric – I should have made my logo background brighter to offset the natural colour of the canvas.
And just one more pic of Otto cards as I couldn’t resist!
I’d love to get some personalised postcards and gift tags for Christmas and there are so many fabric designs that I want – isn’t this one beautiful? It would be amazing on linen for a summer project.
What do you think of personalised items? Pop over to Zazzle and have a play – you may change your mind, too. If you’re quick, there’s 20% off every order that ends today!
Katy x
*This post was written in collaboration with Zazzle.
Otto is a superstar! I want him to feature on my Christmas cards too 🙂
I’m like you and have always hated personalised stuff – you know when you can only type in your name or whatnot. This looks so much cooler and the idea of printing my own fabric sounds amazing as I’ve been toying with a few designs that I can’t find anywhere in the shops. Going to scoot over now and have a play x
I used to feel the same as you about personalised stuff – that it’s all a bit tacky and not quite for me, but I have to confess that I have a bit of a soft spot for it now. Perhaps I’m getting old 🙂
I’m a big Zazzle fan, their site is extensive but I love the pieces you’ve chosen here. Love Otto too x
I might have to check out Zazzle. As you say, it’s lovely to personalise something your way and you can be really creative. Love those xmas cards xx
The Otto cards! Love love love!
What great picks! I love the tote bag, what a great idea! x
Fabulous photo of Otto!
I’m such a sucker for personalised stuff! Love the tote bag you made 🙂 x
I’m such a fan of Zazzle. Once you find some designers you really love you can find some brilliant products to buy with the designs and patterns x