Personalised star sign birth print — baby’s constellation

No. The sign comes from the date: it is where the Sun was that day. On twelve days a year, one per sign, the Sun changes sign during the day; without the time, the editor shows when the change happens and you pick one of the two signs — otherwise it is the sign at noon. With the time (and the place, for a birth abroad), the calculation decides on its own.

It is the constellation the sign is named after, drawn from the real stars of the Hipparcos catalogue. It is not a view of the sky that night: at the birth, the Sun sits right next to this constellation — precession has even nudged it towards the neighbouring one — so it rises and sets with the Sun and cannot be seen, or only just, low in the west at dusk. For the real sky above the maternity hospital at the exact time, there is our birth star map.

The real moon on the day of birth, at its exact illumination, worked out for the time given or, without a time, for noon. The name of its phase is written beside it, with how much of it is lit.

Neither: you choose Night, White, Ecru, Sage or Powder pink to suit the room. The “Daughter of” or “Son of” wording is set separately and only changes the text.

The first name, the date, and depending on the design the time, the weight, the length, the place and the parents’ names. Everything is optional except the name and the date (and, on the star map, the time and place): empty medallions disappear rather than leaving a hole, and the layout stays balanced. A short free line can be added on four of the seven designs.

Yes, and not by resemblance: the print file is made by opening this very page with your values and capturing the poster. There is no second drawing that could drift from it. If a computed line were missing, production would stop rather than deliver an incomplete print.

Yes, up to twenty-four characters including accents and hyphens. The name shrinks by itself to stay on one line; if it is genuinely long it breaks at the hyphen, never in the middle of a word. “Maximilien-Alexandre” and “María de los Ángeles” fit on all seven designs.

250 g matte paper, pigment inks, printed to order in France, in our workshop in the Aveyron up to 40 × 60 and by our printer beyond that. Five sizes matching standard frames: A4, 30 × 40, 40 × 60, 50 × 70 and 70 × 100 cm, with an optional wooden frame on the A4 and 30 × 40, in black, white or natural.

Yes: the print-ready file contains all five sizes, each as a PDF and a 300 dpi PNG, delivered by a download link after payment. It suits people who print locally or who are giving the print from a distance; the link does not expire.

No: a print carrying a name and a date cannot be resold, and the right of withdrawal does not apply to goods made to your specifications (art. L.221-28 3° of the French Consumer Code). Read the preview before confirming — it is exactly what will be printed.