Where elves find their voices

Once upon a December…

Every year, when the first frost sparkles on the windows, the Elves on the Shelf slip quietly back into homes around the world. They hide in fruit bowls and dangle from lampshades. They keep a careful eye on things for Santa. They get up to all sorts of mischief. But they never, ever say a word.

Then, one snowy evening in December 2020, something wonderful happened. A family's elf found its voice.

The night the elves started talking

It began with a simple wish: what if an elf could talk? What if it could say hello to the children it watched over, by name, and tell them how proud Santa was of their kindness?

Before the evening was out, the very first Elf Message had been sent from the North Pole. By bedtime, more families were asking for one. Word spread through the workshop faster than a sleigh on Christmas Eve, and the elves have been talking ever since.

Thousands of messages later

Over the past six years, our elves have recorded thousands of personalised messages for families near and far. Messages welcoming elves home on the first night of December. Messages cheering on brave first days at school. Messages about new baby brothers and sisters, grandparents flying in for Christmas, and very important presents that Santa has definitely heard about.

Every single one is made for one family alone, wrapped in the jingle of sleigh bells and sent with love from the North Pole studio.

How the magic happens

You tell us what your elf would like to say. One of our elves takes your words to the recording studio, warms up their very best elf voice and records your message, with sleigh bells at the beginning and end. When it's ready, it flies straight to your inbox, to play, play again and treasure.

Spotted a little mistake? Your elf will happily record it again, once, for free. Payments are handled safely by Stripe, so even the elves never see your card details.