Best Custom Pet Memorial Canvas: How to Choose Size, Style and Wording

Sizes and prices

• —8" × 10" — $59. Shelves, desks, bedside tables and gallery-wall groupings.
• —12" × 16" — $79. The most-ordered size; works above a console or in a hallway.
• —16" × 20" — $99. A single statement piece for a living room wall.
• —24" × 30" — $149. Above a sofa or bed, or for multi-pet compositions.
• —Framed memorial editions — $89–$129, with name and date wording included.

Match the size to the wall, not to the pet

A portrait should occupy roughly two-thirds of the width of the furniture beneath it. Over a standard three-seat sofa that means 24" × 30"; over a console or fireplace, 16" × 20" usually reads correctly.

If you are between two sizes, choose the larger one. Undersized art is the most common regret people report, and it is not fixable after printing.

Choose a style that suits the photo you have

Painted and watercolour styles suit older or softer photos and give a memorial piece a gentler, less literal feeling. Royal and renaissance styles suit dogs and cats with strong facial character and work well as a deliberate statement piece.

Photographic and fine line styles need a sharp, well-lit original. If your only photo is from years ago, avoid them at large sizes.

Wording: names, dates and short lines

Restraint ages better. A name alone, or a name with years — "Milo, 2009–2024" — is what most people are still happy with a decade later. Longer verses tend to date quickly and compete with the portrait.

If you want a phrase, use something specific to your pet rather than a stock quotation: "first to the door", "our shadow", "garden supervisor".

What your photo needs to support the size

Every file is prepared at 300 DPI, so the larger the canvas, the more original detail it needs. A recent phone photo taken close up in daylight prints comfortably at 24" × 30". A small, cropped or scanned image is usually better at 12" × 16" in a painted style.

We check this before printing and tell you honestly at the proof stage if a smaller size would look better.

Canvas or framed print?

• —Gallery-wrapped canvas — no glass, lighter, no reflections, contemporary look.
• —Framed print — more formal, better for a memorial wall or a hallway grouping.
• —For multi-pet families, matching smaller pieces hung as a set often beats one large composition.

Timing and delivery

You receive a digital proof in 24–48 hours, and canvases ship 2–3 business days after you approve it, so a typical US order arrives within one to two weeks. If the canvas is for an anniversary or a service, tell us the date when you order and we will prioritise the proof.

Before you buy

Remember that the on-screen preview shows photo placement only — the final artwork is emailed to you for approval before printing, and revisions at that stage are free. That is the moment to check the spelling of your pet's name.

Next steps

Compare canvases and framed editions in the memorial collection, or upload a photo to see placement and sizing. Vet clinics, crematoriums and aftercare providers who are asked for memorial recommendations can refer families through our partner program with no stock and no artwork workload.