Mum of four Kirsten Boisvert has created a handy AI tool to help tired parents find the magic this Christmas
Elf Watch app uses AI to put Christmas elf into your home
Elf on the Shelf… you either love it or hate it. But, whichever way you swing, for many families it’s a key part of the Christmas countdown in December. So what is it? “Elf on the Shelf” is a Christmas tradition where a family “adopts” a scout elf who watches over the home and reports back to Santa on whether children are being naughty or nice. Each night, the elf flies to the North Pole, and every morning, the children wake up to find it has moved to a new, hidden spot, often in a new and creative scene.
Yet, while some parents relish the chance to get creative, setting up different scenes for their children to wake up to, others feel it’s just yet another thing to do. Well mum of four Kirsten Boisvert has created a handy tool to help. Yes, Kirstin, 40, who lives in Essex with partner Jay, 46, an entrepreneur, and their four children, Sofia, 11, Leo, nine, Myla, six and four-year-old Sienna, has harnessed the power of AI to make an app that adds a naughty elf making mischief to pictures from your home. Enter, Elf Watch.
She says: “A few years back my son was desperate to catch the elf on camera. We have a ring doorbell in the lounge and he kept saying, ‘Why can’t we catch it, I want to see?’ We worked out a way to add a moving elf to a still picture.” And so Elf Watch was born. And with Dec 1 looming, there has never been a better time to sign up.
“All my children still fully believe in the elf thanks to the videos, even my 11 year old who is in year six,” says Kirsten. If she comes back from school and says, ‘My friends don’t think it’s real’ – we just show her another video of ‘proof’. I think I can keep her as a believer for at least another year.”
So how does it work? Well after you’ve downloaded the app and registered, there are 25 prompts to try, from tinsel, socks, bananas, sparklers, sharpie, crayons – things you’ll have around the house. There are some more extravagant ones too, like bubbles and spilled milk too, and one where it looks like it’s snowing in the house.
The parent simply uploads a picture of the room they’d like the elf to appear, and then the app creates a scene, adding the elf dancing and making mischief. All the parent has to do then, is place whatever prop they chose in the same place, like cotton wool balls, or a banana. In the morning, children will find the elf, the banana, and then can be shown a funny video of their elf interacting with it while they were asleep.
“If you have elf on the shelf fatigue, this is for you,” says Kirsten. “I’ve been doing it for seven years, and we have another seven to go probably. It’s hard to think up new things. But this year, you don’t have to!”
Elf Watch: One video is 99p, 10 cost £8.99 and a full season pass is £19.99.
