If you sell to buyers in the US, your calendar is set by American gift-giving dates rather than Turkish ones: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Christmas, Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, Father's Day and the 4th of July. Some of these are celebrated in Türkiye too, some are barely known there, and for every one of them your products need to be live before the weeks when buyers place their orders.
This is for sellers in Türkiye who list on Etsy for US buyers, especially those starting out with print on demand. A buyer shopping for a gift needs it to arrive by a specific day, and that day may not be on the calendar you grew up with. Who buys on Etsy? Understanding gift shoppers covers the buyer, and this article covers that buyer's calendar: which day, what people buy, and how early to prepare.
Dates Türkiye shares: same day, different products
Three dates will feel familiar. Valentine's Day is "celebrated annually on February 14" (Wikipedia). In the US, Mother's Day is the second Sunday in May, which is May 10, 2026 and May 9, 2027 (Wikipedia)). Anneler Günü in Türkiye is also the second Sunday of May (Wikipedia), so the two fall on the same day. Father's Day in the US is the third Sunday in June: June 21, 2026 and June 20, 2027 (Wikipedia)), the same day as Babalar Günü in Türkiye (Wikipedia).
The date matches, but the products differ. For Mother's Day, US buyers look for "mama" shirts, grandma gifts with the grandchildren's names, and personalized mugs. For Father's Day, dad-joke shirts, grilling aprons and fishing gifts are common choices. Valentine's Day brings couple shirts and personalized mugs. If you also sell to the UK, note that Mothering Sunday there is a different date and falls on 7 March 2027 (Wikipedia).
American dates less familiar in Türkiye
Halloween is "observed in many countries on 31 October" (Wikipedia). In the US it is more about fun than fear: shirts that stand in for a costume, teacher and office shirts, pet designs and funny pumpkin art.
Thanksgiving is probably the least familiar of these dates for sellers in Türkiye. In the US it is a big family day built around a shared dinner. It falls on Thursday, November 26 in 2026 and Thursday, November 25 in 2027 (OPM). Buyers look for "thankful" and "grateful" shirts, aprons for the family meal, autumn colour palettes and matching family sets. Thanksgiving shirt and decor ideas collects designs.
Black Friday is "the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States": November 27, 2026 and November 26, 2027 (Wikipedia)). Cyber Monday is the Monday after: November 30, 2026 and November 29, 2027 (Wikipedia). These are shopping days rather than celebrations, and they fall in the run-up to Christmas, so your Christmas listings should already be live that week. Black Friday and Cyber Monday on Etsy for POD sellers covers the preparation.
Christmas is observed primarily on December 25 (Wikipedia), a Friday in 2026 (OPM). In Türkiye it is easy to blur it with New Year, but for a US buyer the gift day is December 25 and the gift must be in hand by then: matching family shirts, personalized ornaments, knitted stockings and sweater-style sweatshirts. In summer comes the 4th of July (Independence Day): red, white and blue designs, family reunion and barbecue shirts. 4th of July shirt ideas and when to list them has more.
US shopping holidays on Etsy for the next 12 months
The dates in the table come from the sources above. The last column is our suggested publishing time, not an Etsy rule.
| Day | Date | What US buyers buy | Our suggested publishing time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Halloween | October 31 | Costume shirts, kids and teacher designs | September |
| Thanksgiving | November 26, 2026 | Thankful shirts, aprons, family sets | Early October |
| Black Friday and Cyber Monday | November 27 and 30, 2026 | Early Christmas gifts | Late October |
| Christmas | December 25, 2026 | Family sets, personalized ornaments, stockings | Late October to early November |
| Valentine's Day | February 14, 2027 | Couple shirts, personalized mugs | Early January |
| Mother's Day | May 9, 2027 | Mama shirts, grandma gifts | Early April |
| Father's Day | June 20, 2027 | Dad-joke shirts, aprons, mugs | Early May |
| 4th of July | July 4 | Red, white and blue shirts | Early June |
Why so early? Buyers order before the day, not on it, and an item has to be made and shipped. Etsy also says a new listing "may take up to 48 hours" to appear in search results and categories (Etsy Help). How long POD orders take to reach US buyers covers the delivery side.
What to watch when you sell from Türkiye
Time zones matter. Etsy requires items to be marked as shipped by 11:59pm on the ship date in your shop's time zone, and a ship-by date that falls when post offices usually close moves to the next business day (Etsy Help). Processing time is counted in business days, Monday to Friday (Etsy Help). If your orders are produced in the US, plan around US public holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas as well as Turkish ones.
If you ship from Türkiye yourself, check the duties rule. Etsy's June 2026 update says "Starting July 9, sellers outside of the US will need to account for all of their costs, including duties and import fees", and orders shipped without duties prepaid no longer qualify for Etsy Purchase Protection (Etsy Help). For anything about customs and import costs, check Etsy's help pages or a qualified professional.
Language is the last piece. Turkish is not one of Etsy's site languages (Etsy Help), and US buyers search in English. Use English phrases like "mothers day gift" and "thanksgiving shirt" in titles and tags. Etsy advises naming a holiday in the title only when it is essential to the item (Etsy Help): it belongs on a Thanksgiving shirt, not on a shirt people wear all year.
How Alomations helps with this calendar
The seller calendar in Alomations shows every Etsy shopping date of the year as a timeline, with the weeks to design, publish and sell marked for each one, and a notice the day each window opens. For a seller who did not grow up celebrating Thanksgiving or the 4th of July, that notice arrives the day the window opens, before the date can slip by.
On delivery, production for US orders of Alomations catalog products is in the US, which matters for orders that have to arrive before a US holiday. The product and support are available in Turkish as well as English, and the free video tutorials in both languages are open on every plan. More on the features page.
Frequently asked questions
Is Mother's Day on the same day in the US and Türkiye?
Yes. In both countries it is the second Sunday in May, which is May 9 in 2027. Father's Day is the third Sunday in June in both.
Are Christmas and New Year the same occasion?
No. For a US buyer the gift day is Christmas on December 25. New Year's Eve is a separate night with its own party products.
Halloween is less common in Türkiye. Should I still sell for it?
If your buyers are in the US, yes. Halloween there is a fun-focused day, and kids, teacher and pet designs come back every year.
Do I need separate products for Black Friday?
Usually not. Black Friday falls in the run-up to Christmas, so the real job is to have your Christmas listings live that week. If you run a sale, Etsy lets you offer between 5% and 75% off (Etsy Help).
You can prepare your first products for the US calendar with Alomations on the free plan.
