In this guide
What are the best Christmas gifts for couples?
The best Christmas gifts for couples are things they share and see every day. A hand-painted oil portrait of the two of them from a favourite photo leads the list: it takes 21 to 28 days to paint and comes in sizes from 40 x 50 cm to 100 x 150 cm. Famous love paintings, a photo on canvas and gift cards suit later shoppers.
Buying for two people at once is harder than buying for one. A gadget suits one of them, a hamper is gone by New Year, and an experience voucher often sits in a drawer until it expires. What works is a gift that belongs to the household rather than to either person, and that both of them will walk past every day.
Art fits that brief better than almost anything else. Below we cover four kinds of gift, from the most personal to the most flexible: a portrait of the couple, a famous painting about love, their own photo on canvas, and a gift card. Each comes with real sizes, make times and the Christmas order-by guidance.
A quick word on what you are buying. Every painting we sell is 100% hand-painted in oils on canvas by professional, university-trained artists. Nothing printed is sold as a painting. Our canvas prints are printed, stretched and framed in Melbourne, and are always labelled as prints.
How does a portrait of the couple work as a Christmas gift?
You upload a photo of the couple, choose a style and a size, and pay a 20% deposit to start. An artist paints the portrait by hand in oils, and before anything is sent you receive a photo of the finished painting to approve. Changes before approval are unlimited and free, and the balance is charged only once you are happy.
The Oil Painting Portrait from Photo comes in three styles. Realism gives a lifelike result and suits a wedding or engagement photo. Impressionist uses looser, visible brushwork that feels like a painting from another century. Pop Art uses bold colour and suits a younger couple or a modern apartment.
The details that make it personal are the ones most people do not know they can ask for:
- Up to four subjects on one canvas, so the couple can be painted with their dog, cat or children.
- Photos can be combined, which helps when there is no single good photo of both of them together.
- Backgrounds can be changed, for example to the beach where they got engaged or a plain colour that suits their walls.
- Leads and harnesses can be left out of any pets in the picture.
Not sure the photo is good enough? Our guide to which photos work best for an oil painting covers light, angle and resolution. The custom portraits page shows finished examples in each style.
Which classic love paintings make good gifts for couples?
When the gift needs to be a surprise and you cannot get a photo of the two of them, a famous painting about love is the next best thing. It says the same thing as a portrait without needing anyone to pose, and it suits couples who would feel awkward seeing their own faces on the wall.
Choose by the couple's taste first and the room second. A couple with a classic, warm home will enjoy gold and ornament. A couple who travel, or who met overseas, may prefer a scene of a city at night. A modern couple may want something abstract that hints at romance without spelling it out.
Three that work for different couples:
- Klimt, The Kiss is one of the best-known paintings of a couple in Western art, painted in 1907 to 1908 and held at the Belvedere in Vienna. It is square only, from 60 x 60 cm to 175 x 175 cm, and offered from "Rolled in a Tube - Canvas Only (No Frame)" through to a Gold Ornate Outer Frame. Our guide to Klimt's paintings explains the story behind it.
- Vincent van Gogh, Cafe Terrace at Night was painted in Arles in 1888 and hangs at the Kröller-Müller Museum in the Netherlands. It suits a couple who love a night out together. It is a portrait-shaped canvas, from 50 x 60 cm up to 135 x 200 cm.
- Lovely Kiss is a contemporary cubist painting of a couple kissing, hand-painted in oils, square from 60 x 60 cm to 175 x 175 cm. It comes "Stretched Ready to Hang (FREE)" with Gold, Black, Silver, Natural and White Floating Frame as options.
For more choice, browse the Klimt collection, the Van Gogh collection or the wider masterpiece reproductions.
Christmas gift ideas for couples: which gift suits which couple?
Most couples fall into one of a handful of types, and each has a gift that suits it better than the rest. Think about where they are in life, how much wall space they have, and whether they would rather see themselves or a great work of art.
Size matters as much as the subject. A canvas that is too small above a sofa looks like an afterthought, while a huge canvas in a small flat can crowd the room. Use the sizes below as a starting point, and check the size guide for canvas shapes.
| The couple | Gift that suits them | Size to start from |
|---|---|---|
| Newlyweds or newly engaged | Realism portrait from a wedding or engagement photo | 60 x 90 cm |
| Parents or grandparents celebrating a long marriage | Portrait of the couple, or the couple with a grandchild or pet | 75 x 100 cm or 90 x 120 cm |
| Couple with a dog or cat | Portrait of the two of them with their pet, up to four subjects | 90 x 120 cm |
| Classic, warm home | Klimt, The Kiss, in a gold frame | 90 x 90 cm or 110 x 110 cm |
| Travellers, or a couple who met overseas | Cafe Terrace at Night | 60 x 90 cm or 75 x 100 cm |
| Small flat, or not sure of their taste | Gift card from $50 to $2,000 | They choose |
Frames add to the outside size: a floating frame adds about 2 to 3 cm per side and an ornate or classic frame about 8 to 12 cm. The free See it in your room tool places a painting on a photo of a real wall, to scale, so you can check the fit before you order.
When should you order Christmas presents for couples?
Hand-painted work takes 21 to 28 days to make, and canvas prints take 10 to 14 days. The weeks before Christmas are our busiest, so make times can run longer, and approving a portrait photo quickly helps. Delivery is free Australia-wide with no minimum order.
This is the order-by guidance we give every Christmas shopper. These are recommendations, not delivery promises, and every date is on our Christmas order-by dates page.
- Custom portraits of the couple: order by the end of October.
- Hand-painted reproductions such as The Kiss: order by about 10 November.
- Canvas prints, including their own photo on canvas: order by late November.
- Gift cards: any time.
If you have a photo but missed the portrait window, Print Your Own Image on Canvas turns it into a stretched canvas print in 10 to 14 days, in sizes from 40 x 50 cm to 100 x 150 cm. Our Christmas art gift guide has more on timing across the whole range.
What if the couple has everything, or you run out of time?
A gift card is the honest answer for a couple who has everything, and for anyone shopping late. The Direct Art Gift Card ranges from $50 to $2,000, and the couple can choose a portrait of themselves in January with a better photo and no rush. The gift certificates page explains how cards are sent.
Write a note in the card saying what it is for, for example "for a painting of the two of you". A card with a clear purpose feels like a real present, not a fallback, and the couple gets exactly the size and style they want.
Whatever you choose is covered by our 30-day money-back guarantee, custom portraits included, and you can cancel within 24 hours for a full refund. The details are on the guarantee page. If the occasion is an anniversary rather than Christmas, our anniversary gift ideas page is a better place to start.
Questions people ask
What do you get a couple who has everything for Christmas?
Get them a hand-painted portrait of the two of them. Couples who own every gadget rarely have a real painting of themselves, and it cannot be duplicated. If you cannot get a photo, a gift card lets them order one themselves in the new year.
Are gifts for couples better shared or separate?
Shared, in most cases. One gift for the household, such as a painting for the living room, avoids the problem of one partner getting something better than the other. It also tends to last longer than two small presents.
Can a couple portrait include their children or pets?
Yes. The portrait takes up to four subjects, people or pets, and photos taken at different times can be combined into one scene. For three or four subjects choose 90 x 120 cm or larger so each face has room.
Is a painting a good Christmas gift for parents or in-laws?
Yes, especially a portrait of them together or with the grandchildren. Choose a Realism portrait at 60 x 90 cm or 75 x 100 cm, and order by the end of October for Christmas.
Related guides
- Wedding Anniversary Gifts by Year: The Traditional and Modern List from Paper to Diamond
- Christmas Art Gift Guide: What to Order, and When to Order It
- Oil Painting from a Photo: Which Photos Work Best
Next step: upload a photo of the couple and start a hand-painted portrait of the two of them with a 20% deposit. You approve the finished painting before you pay the balance.
