These Hilarious Christmas Cards Are Equal Parts Cringe And Holiday Spirit
'Tis the season for family Christmas cards to start arriving in your inbox and mailbox.
Thanks to people like the ones below, not all of those cards will be your standard, everyday "Happy Holidays" stock photo. All of these people went above and beyond to make their Christmas card something memorable.
They Know How To Make Their Family Cringe-Laugh
These two decided to lean into the comedy for their Christmas card and went for ironic.
The woman holding the bra recently underwent a double mastectomy and her partner, an amputee, holds a glove for his prosthetic arm.
The Cat Is Not Supportive Of Christmas, Sweaters, Or Group Photos
When you invite a new furry family member into the home, it may take a while for them to adjust.
According to this cat's face, it may never warm up to a family Christmas photo.
Away In A Manger
This guy said some people took offense to his staged photo for his annual Christmas card, but come on, it's pretty funny.
He created a tiny manger, swaddled his cat to play the role of baby Jesus, and dressed as Joseph himself. The dedication to the part is really admirable.
The Starks Wish You Well
This family lives by the throne and stands for the North, even their dog is ready for greatness.
They planned this Game of Thrones-themed photo for their annual season's greetings card and they did not disappoint.
Santa Pics Are Always A Gamble
These three children are the perfect representation of youngest, middle, and oldest child syndromes all in one picture.
The oldest is laughing their butt off while the middle child screams for a parent, and the youngest baby seems to just be along for the ride.
"Mornin! Sh*tters Full!"
Working in wastewater treatment creates at least one opportunity for a hilarious Christmas-themed photo like this one.
The man said his parents requested a photo for their Christmas cards and this is what he provided them with. Cousin Eddie would be so proud.
Emily Is Doing Just Fine
When things are going perfectly for everyone else in your life and you feel like you're kind of just along for the ride, you're probably the Emily of your family.
This family's holiday card is proof that Emily can laugh at herself and still be pumped for her siblings.
She's Under The Mistletoe With Herself This Year
The most classic Hallmark-esque Christmas cards always feature basic couples deep in "love" and this woman decided to make a joke out of the traditional card.
Embracing the single life, she decided to stage a couple's photoshoot and added the words "Merry Christmas from just me." Relatable.
Rocking Around The Catmas Tree
It's a well-known fact that cats are obsessed with Christmas trees and this little kitten managed to find their way into the center of the tree to peek out.
The perfectly timed picture ended up making the Christmas card.
They Are Getting An Education
Parenting is a challenge on the best of days but these parents know how to have a laugh with their little ones.
They got their kids in on a joke Christmas card that shows them gasping at the Fifty Shades of Grey book that they definitely can't actually understand.
Her One True Love Is A Tall, Bold, Red
Khadejeh doesn't have any time for the traditional couple card and decided that her single status wasn't going to stop her from taking an adorable, festive photo.
She added "Merry Christmas from Khadejeh...Just Kadejeh."
The Christmas Creep
This guy saw an opportunity to create the year's creepiest Christmas card and went for it.
His note says, "Santa's not the only one who knows when you're sleeping..." If he was going for unsettling, he nailed it.
Who Left Dad In Charge Of The Card?
When Dad is in charge of editing and printing the family photo, it's best to have someone double-check his work before he distributes it.
One sibling was the unfortunate victim of a floating mouse cursor to the face.
Guess Who Else Loves Gingerbread?
Someone set their leftover gingerbread house on the back porch to take to the trash bins.
They were not expecting a hungry little visitor to help themselves to the gingerbread scraps. Fortunately, it ended up making for the perfect Christmas card for the following year.
Older Siblings Are The Best At Being The Worst
The caption on this photo says, "The big one has discovered pinching."
This picture shows the joys of parenting and being a youngest sibling all at once. Surely, tears were shed moments after this.
Did They Go To A Portrait Studio For This?
Man's best friend understood his assignment in this super distinguished pose for a Christmas greeting card.
Both the dog and his human bro are glancing off into the distance looking more than ready to take their place on Mom's fridge.
A Frozen Family Photo
When you live in Canada, sometimes taking the family Christmas photo means going outside when it's -37° Celsius to get the perfect shot.
The dog looks like the only one who's not at least a little chilly.
Angry Elf
This person's mom was preparing the yearly Christmas card and asked for a photo of the dog to include.
Unfortunately, it doesn't look like the dog likes Christmas, cameras, or being an elf.
A Stranger Christmas
Stranger Things fans would recognize this awesome Christmas cosplay right away.
Everyone in the family dressed as characters from the iconic show and even got the dogs in on the action.
This Was Mom's Idea
We can all tell just by looking at Dad's face that this family in boxes idea was Mom’s. His face screams "what the hell are we doing, why did I agree to this."
Well, Dad, you signed up for this the day you said: “I do”. So smile big because you made this bed. At least this photo has a theme. A little further down the list, you’ll find a family that couldn’t decide which holiday it was celebrating.
Run For Your Life
Some kids are deathly afraid of clowns, others are traumatized by drunk fat men at shopping malls who dress in red outfits, stink of whiskey and laugh way too much. Which do you think is the more rational fear? I'm going to say the latter. This kid is clearly going places.
The best news for the parents is they don’t have to worry about Christmas shopping or their son now. He’s too scared of the holiday to celebrate it.
Taking One For The Team
Poor doggo was forced to wear a cone on Christmas to keep him from licking his junk. Mom and Dad decided they'd wear one too to show young Ruffles he was part of the family and that if he suffers they all suffer together.
That’s what Christmas spirit is all about is it not? Wrong! If the pictures on this list have taught me anything it’s that Christmas has no rules. You’ll get the impression further on down the list.
C'mon Man
The Heisman pose? Really? I always knew Seahawks fans were the worst but this is starting to get out of hand. The self-proclaimed "12th Man" strikes again with this Seahawks-themed family Christmas photo wherein Dad is striking the revered Heisman trophy pose. Yikes!
Did you know that every time Seattle uses the “12th Man” they have to pay Texas A&M? That school originated the moniker and owns the copyright to it.
Cute!
Once a momma's boy always a momma’s boy, I guess. In his defense, this looks like a super comfortable setting. This couple looks like they don’t have plans to do anything but sit by the fire and watch hours worth of classic Christmas specials.
That sounds like a great plan honestly. I know what I’m doing tonight. Lighting a fire, making some hot cocoa, and turning on The Santa Clause.
The Three Scrooges
Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse, Moe, Curly and Shemp get all decked out in candy cane themed scarfs and don matching top hats to take the cringiest Christmas pic of all time. There really isn’t much else to say about it other than that it shouldn’t exist.
Sadly, it does exist, and we can’t help but ask whose genius idea it was to take this disaster of a photo.
No Shame December
That right there is a very, very proud man. He owns a big dog, cradles a baby doll whenever he's feeling a bit paternal and spends his free time watching river monsters while sharpening his hunting knife.
He grew the handlebar stash in support of prostate cancer research during the month of November but when the calendar turned to December he said "what the hell" and kept the fire burning.
You Had To Know There Was Going To Be A Face Swap
The face swap fad blew up on the internet a couple of years back and found its way into just about every facet of our lives. Snapchat, Facebook profile pictures, Instagram posts and apparently, Christmas cards too.
Personally, I can't stand face swaps but I found this one particularly amusing, which is saying something. Just not as amusing as the weird cellphone family that appears just a few clicks later.
The Bearded Guy Is Definitely Gimli
There's nothing like a well-timed Lord of the Rings reference to get everyone in the Holiday spirit. If we can all agree that the bearded man is obviously Gimli that means the woman in the picture is Mira, the dog’s name is Buddy and the cat’s name must be Joe.
I kind of hope the pets are actually that large. It would be pretty amazing, however unlikely we know it is.
Accurate
Christmas is supposed to be a time when family comes together. A time when they sit at a table together where they share good food, enjoy good wine as well as each others company, free of distractions.
That means no Instagramming meals, snapping friends or tweeting about Christmas cake. It may not seem like it, but at least they're spending time together. One person further down this list wasn’t so fortunate.
Tough guys
Croquet mallets and Christmas vests are a winning combination. These two could run a clinic on how to look super badass in just about every situation imaginable. They've checked all the boxes: power poses, subtle flexing of the shoulders and biceps capped off with the intimidating staredown. It’s all here people.
No one will ever create a better Christmas card than what you’re looking at right now. It’s just so beautiful.
How Many Daves Does It Take To Decorate A Christmas Tree
It looks like Dave knows how to throw quite the tree lighting party. I spot 17 of them in the frame, including the Dave hiding under the Christmas tree and the one who's apparently stuck behind it. If you can’t party with you — or 15 of you — how can anyone else, right?
This seriously took some amazing Photoshop skills. Even if you’re not a big fan of the card itself, you have to be impressed with the time put into making it!
Me, IRL
Ultimately, gathering together as a family is great, but when you have to all share to the world everything you're thankful for to slap on a Christmas card, honesty is generally the best policy. While everyone is happy, hopeful, and hitched, Emily just loves Emily. I appreciate that. Deep down, we all would like to be Emily.
Actually, this gives me an idea for my own Christmas card this year. Thanks, Emily!
Christmas Is The G.O.A.T. – Literally
This Christmas card may be wildly cheesy (seriously, what thrift store did they pull those absurd Christmas sweaters from? What about that vest?), but the most perplexing part is the goat. How did a baby goat get there? Are they raising it as their child? We can only assume.
This photo really does raise far more questions than it does give answers. I guess we know what everyone will be talking about at the big holiday dinner party!
Everyone's In Their Christmas Best
Okay, so this dad actually gets some points for wearing a dress and stockings. Sometimes we all want to look pretty. What's deeply unsettling is the weird, plastic Santa saluting to nothing and the spray-painted backdrop which looks more like something from the Manson family homestead than a cheery photo studio.
At one point, this point may have seemed like a good idea. At another point it was clear it was not, but the family decided to commit anyway.
What Exactly Is Happening Here?
It's hard to tell exactly where to start with this one. There’s no snow in sight and the family bizarrely draped tinsel and hung stockings on a cactus. Beyond that, why is the mother in a tennis outfit? Why is the kid wearing some kind of spandex wrestling-slash-ballet uniform? Why are dad’s shorts so short? It truly was another time that I will just never understand.
Coming up: snakes! On a sled!
Snakes Are Part Of The Family Too
We get it – you love your pets. Who doesn't? Seriously, though, who actually brings their snakes all the way to meet Santa. A dog, maybe. Maybe even a cat. But a snake and iguana?
Where does Santa actually draw the line and can you even legally bring those things into a mall. Are they registered as emotional support snakes? If not, I’m not sure they are actually allowed to be brought into the mall.
The Ho Ho Whole Family Is Disgusted with This One
This Christmas card got really awkward really fast. Once the parents finally got their little munchkin to sit still, up goes his lunch. His older brother is even leaning away from him in disgust.
It would've probably been best to just clean up and delete any evidence of this photo from the camera roll, but here we are. I feel bad for this kid, too. Once he grows up, this photo will be used as blackmail by his parents or other siblings.
The Grinch
The girls and their mother are decidedly dorky, but it's kind of adorable to recreate the Whos of Whoville. What isn’t cute is Dad in a bright green, full-body, spandex suit and creepy face paint.
Yes, he looks like the Grinch, but man, it could have been a whole lot less weird if he wore anything else. Did he have the green suit just laying around in storage, or did he actually buy the cheapest Grinch costume he could find?
We Can't Even
This Christmas card is certainly unforgettable but in that sort of painfully cringy kind of way. Basically, we can't figure out what’s happening here. Are there two, near-identical skiers with Native American heritage (look at their boots) trapped in a cabin with their cat and some fondue?
We really need to know more. Are they lovers? Are they brothers? The turtlenecks, the wine, the fireplace on TV – we have so many questions.
