How to Customise Your iPhone With iOS 26 (and Match It to Your Case)
If you want your iPhone to feel truly yours — not just protected, but fully styled inside and out — this is for you. With iOS 26, customising your iPhone lock screen and home screen is easier than ever, and when it matches your phone case? That’s when the whole look comes together.
In this post, I’m going to show how I matched my lock screen, wallpaper, widgets, and icons to my Christmas Bows phone case, one of my favourite designs for a soft, styled look that works beyond the festive season. You can also download the exact images I used directly from this post to recreate the same aesthetic on your own phone.
This bows phone case isn’t just for the holidays. It’s festive without being over the top, elegant enough for everyday, and perfect if you’re doing a New Year refresh but still want something cute. Think: soft, styled, and very main-character energy — all year round.
If bows aren’t your vibe, you can explore the rest of my phone case designs here — all made to blend protection with personality.
1. Start With a Wallpaper That Matches Your Case
The first step is picking a wallpaper that complements your case design. I created this one so it matches my Christmas Bows phone case, and my lock screen and home screen feel connected to the art on the outside. Using the same colour palette and details instantly makes your phone feel intentional. If you want the exact wallpaper I used, you can download it here:
Download Matching Wallpaper
Once it’s saved the image you want to your phone, set it up like this:
1. Go to Settings → Wallpaper → Choose New Wallpaper
2. Select the image you downloaded
3. Move & Scale to fit how you like it
You can also experiment with clock font size and colour in iOS 26, I chose the “glass” option for an elegant and modern look.
2. How to Customise Your iPhone Home Screen (Pages, Widgets & Apps)
Once you are happy with the lock screen you can go ahead and customise the inside. I used the same image for both my lock screen and home screen.
To keep things organised I created a page where I don’t have any apps, just all my important widgets and the other pages are with all the other apps I want to use on a regular basis and I want to have an easy access to.
On the page with the widgets I have added a cute calendar with the date, time and an image, a motivational quote and I also have ’TO DO’ lists for each day of the week, which I set in Reminders, so I can check them off as I go.
You can download the matching images for the calendar and quote widgets here, or swap them for your own visuals:
Download Matching Widget Image here
Download Matching Quote Photo here
The calendar widget I’m using is from Widgetsmith, which is great if you want something customisable and aesthetic-friendly, so go ahead and check them out.
To add widgets on iOS 26:
1. Go to your home screen
2. Press and hold the background until the icons jiggle
3. Tap + in the top corner
4. Choose the widgets you want (Calendar, Reminders, Photos, etc.)
5. Tap the widget again to edit and customise it
You can add apps too, wherever they make the most sense to you.
To add apps on your iPhone hoe page:
1. Swipe to the App Library
2. Press and hold the app you want
3. Drag it onto the page you want it on
4. Place it where it feels balanced visually
You can also group apps, move them between pages, or remove apps from the home screen entirely (without deleting them) to keep things minimal.
And of course once you have chosen all your apps and widgets you can move them around and rearrange them as you like. And that is your phone done.
Customising your lock screen and home screen to match your case makes your device feel intentional and cohesive. It’s the little details that make your iPhone feel like your space — not just a tool.
And if you love a fully coordinated setup, the same bows design is also available as a matching desk mat, so your phone and workspace can actually vibe together.