How to Make Thanksgiving Stickers on iPhone (for the Family Group Chat)
Thanksgiving runs on the family group chat long before anyone sits down: who brings the pie, who is picking up Grandma, whose flight is delayed, and, on the day itself, a steady stream of turkey photos, football reactions, and "I'm so full" messages. A small set of your own Thanksgiving stickers makes that chat feel like your family instead of a generic greeting card. On iPhone you can make them from real photos, as cartoon versions of the family, or from a description. This guide covers what to put in the set, three ways to make the stickers, and how to get them to everyone before the fourth Thursday of November.
The short version
- Plan eight to ten stickers for what the chat actually says: on my way, what are you bringing, turkey time, food coma, thankful, happy Thanksgiving.
- From real photos: in Photos, touch and hold the pie, the turkey, or the dog, and tap Add Sticker (iOS 17 and later).
- Cartoon versions: in Pixmoji, Text to Emoji makes "a pumpkin pie with a happy face, cute style", and Image to Emoji turns a family member's photo into an illustrated sticker.
- Share early: add them to a pack and tap Install Pack for WhatsApp, or send them in iMessage a week ahead so the family has them on the day.
First, plan the set
A holiday pack gets used when every sticker answers a message people really send. Most Thanksgiving chats cycle through the same moments:
| Moment | Sticker idea |
|---|---|
| Planning | A clipboard turkey: "Who's bringing what?" |
| Travel | A turkey with a suitcase, or a car full of pies |
| Cooking | A nervous turkey, a timer, the famous family casserole |
| The meal | Pumpkin pie with a face, a gravy boat, "Seconds?" |
| After dinner | Food coma on the couch, a football, a nap |
| Gratitude | A warm "thankful for you" leaf or heart |
Add one or two that only your family gets: the dish that always burns, the uncle who carves, the dog under the table.
Method 1: Real-photo stickers with Photos
Last year's photos are full of sticker material. The iPhone's own cutout turns them into stickers in seconds.
- Find a photo with one clear subject on a plain background: the pie, the turkey on its platter, the dog in a paper hat.
- Open it in Photos, touch and hold the subject until a glowing outline appears, and let go.
- Tap Add Sticker. It is saved to your stickers, in the Messages sticker drawer and the emoji keyboard.
- Tap the sticker and choose Add Effect for a white outline, which reads well on busy chat backgrounds.
Cutouts work best with food shot from above on a plain table, and with pets and people against a simple wall. A crowded dinner table usually cuts out as a jumble. How to turn a photo into a sticker has more tips.
Method 2: Illustrated Thanksgiving stickers with Pixmoji
For stickers that look like a matching set, and for scenes you do not have a photo of, Pixmoji draws them, on any iPhone with iOS 15 or later.
- Open Pixmoji and tap the plus button to open the Create Emoji sheet.
- Choose Text to Emoji and describe the sticker with its style in the same sentence:
- "Roast turkey giving a thumbs up, cute style"
- "Pumpkin pie with a happy face, cartoon style"
- "Sleepy cat in a pilgrim hat, kawaii style"
- "Autumn leaf holding a small heart, warm colors"
- Generate. If it is close but not right, change one word and generate again. There is no style menu; the style lives in your description.
- For the family themselves, choose Image to Emoji with a clear photo of one person, then describe the extras in a Text to Emoji sticker to pair with it.
- Tap Add to Pack on each keeper and put them all in one pack called "Thanksgiving".
Keep the style words the same across the set, for example "cute style" on every sticker, so the pack looks like one family of stickers rather than a mix. The group chat sticker pack guide has more on planning a set people actually use.
Method 3: Mix both
The best family packs combine the two: the real pie cutout next to an illustrated "food coma" turkey, Grandma's actual dog next to a cartoon of the dog in a pilgrim hat. Real cutouts carry the memories; illustrations fill in the moments nobody photographed.
Get the pack to the family before the day
- WhatsApp: open the pack in Pixmoji and tap Install Pack. It appears in your WhatsApp sticker tab. When you send one, relatives can tap it and add it to their favorites, so send a few in the family group a week before.
- iMessage: Pixmoji stickers are in the sticker drawer. In a chat, tap the plus button, then Stickers. Touch and hold to peel a sticker onto a message, which is perfect for reacting to the turkey photo. See adding custom stickers to iMessage.
- Android relatives receive stickers in WhatsApp as normal stickers and in Messages as small images, so nobody misses the joke.
Planning further ahead? The same approach works for birthdays, and last month's seasonal set is in Halloween stickers on iPhone.
Quick answers
How do I make Thanksgiving stickers on iPhone?
Cut subjects out of your own photos with Add Sticker in Photos, or describe them in Pixmoji's Text to Emoji, such as "pumpkin pie with a happy face, cute style". Add the results to one pack and install it in WhatsApp or use it from the iMessage sticker drawer.
Can I make a sticker of my family for Thanksgiving?
Yes. Use a photo with one person against a plain background. Photos makes a real cutout; Pixmoji's Image to Emoji makes an illustrated version. One person per sticker gives the best results.
How do I send Thanksgiving stickers on WhatsApp?
Add the stickers to a pack in Pixmoji and tap Install Pack. The pack appears in the WhatsApp sticker tab in every chat, and anyone you send a sticker to can save it.
When is Thanksgiving?
In the United States, the fourth Thursday of November. In Canada, the second Monday of October. Make and share the pack a week ahead so everyone has it on the day.
Do I need a new iPhone?
No. Add Sticker in Photos needs iOS 17 or later, and Pixmoji works on any iPhone with iOS 15 or later.
A pack for the whole table
Plan the moments, make a few from photos and a few from words, and send them out a week early. Download Pixmoji, free to download, and give the family chat its own Thanksgiving stickers.