Cartoon

A cartoon portrait works by pushing the features your pet already has - the ears, the eyes, the enormous grin - without pushing so far that it stops being them.

That balance is the entire craft of the style, and it is why every portrait is looked at by a person before it goes anywhere near a printer. Too little and it is just a photo; too much and it is somebody else's dog.

Younger households, children's rooms, and pets with a face that already looks like a cartoon. Flat-faced breeds, dogs with mismatched ears, and cats with an air of permanent disapproval do especially well.

It is also the style most often chosen for a first portrait, because it is the least serious way into the idea, and the easiest to explain to someone who has never bought art of their pet before.

• Pick the style that feels most like them, and tell us their name.
• Upload one clear photo of their face. If it will not reproduce well, we ask for another before any work starts.
• Approve your proof. It arrives in 1-3 working days, and nothing is printed until you say yes. Revisions are unlimited and free.
• It ships free and tracked, ready to hang.

8x12 and 12x18 are the sizes most often chosen here. They sit at a child's eye level rather than dominating a small room, and they are light enough to hang above a bed safely.

If it is going on a landing or a playroom wall, 16x24 gives the colours room to work. Cartoon styles hold up well at larger sizes because the shapes are bold rather than fine.

Framed arrives ready to hang in a real pine frame with shatterproof plexiglass, in white, black, natural wood or dark wood. Canvas is stretched over a slim 2 cm frame with no glass at all.

Framed suits a gift, because it looks finished the moment the box is opened. Canvas suits a wall that already has a lot going on. Both use the same artwork, so the choice is about the room rather than the portrait.