Choosing an urn to store the ashes of someone you’ve lost after their cremation involves asking yourself several questions. How much does an urn cost? What size urn is right for my needs? Do I want an urn I can display or one I can travel with? What material should it be?
Jump ahead to these sections:
- What Are Hand Blown Glass Urns?
- How Much Do Blown Glass Urns Typically Cost?
- Types of Blown Glass Cremation Jewelry
- Types of Blown Glass Cremation Urns for Display
- Types of Blown Glass Urns for Pets
- Where Can You Purchase a Blown Glass Urn for Ashes Online?
If you’re still considering your options, but haven’t yet found anything that strikes you as ideal just yet, you may want to learn more about blown glass urns. Such urns are extremely visually-striking, and they can come in a wide range of shapes.
This list will familiarize you with some of the more popular types of blown glass urns. Keep these options in mind as you seek out the right urn for your loved one.
Tip: If you're looking for something very unique (think a game, their motorcycle, or instrument of choice), you can custom order an urn from a store like Foreverence. You submit a design idea or sketch, then the company designs and 3D prints your urn, so you get a 100% unique container.
What Are Hand Blown Glass Urns?
Glassblowers create various items by heating up glass and then inflating it into a bubble. When the glass is in this state, glassblowers can then form a wide range of shapes with it. The finished products also tend to include various attractive colors. These colors can blend together in abstract patterns, or resemble specific shapes.
Popular hand blown glass items include bowls and vases. Hand-blown glass urns for the cremains of lost loved ones are also available in multi- or single, solid colors.
How Much Do Blown Glass Urns Typically Cost?
It’s impossible to say precisely how much you might expect to pay for a blown glass urn without knowing exactly what you’re looking for. Numerous factors, including the size of the urn and whether you request any custom or unique designs, will contribute to the cost.
That said, the average cost of a typical glass urn ranges between $50 and $500. However, because the process of designing and manufacturing a blown glass urn is sometimes more complex than the process of designing a basic glass urn, prices for blown glass urns tend to be somewhat higher.
A comparison of prices for blown glass urns from various suppliers and designers indicates they usually start close to $450. From there, depending on the complexity of the design, they can reach prices of over $1,000.
Luckily, although you may end up spending slightly more than you otherwise would have if you choose to purchase a blown glass urn instead of a simpler one, there are still several ways to save money when making a purchase. They include the following:
Don’t Request a Custom Design
If you have a very clear vision for how you want an urn to look, you may decide it’s worth your money to commission a custom design. However, if this isn’t necessarily that important to you, you might be perfectly satisfied buying a premade blown glass urn.
Shop Online
Further down, this blog will list a few websites and platforms through which you can buy blown glass urns online. Shopping online gives you more freedom to compare prices and find bargains than you would have if you limited yourself to buying from local suppliers and funeral homes.
Buy in Advance
Buying a loved one’s urn in advance gives you more time to consider your options. This can reduce the likelihood of you rushing into the purchase and ultimately spending more than you should have.
Types of Blown Glass Cremation Jewelry
Cremation jewelry is becoming increasingly popular because it allows people to keep the cremains of those they’ve lost by their side in the form of small urns that also serve as jewelry beads or pendants.
Additionally, with blown glass techniques, designers can infuse pieces of jewelry with someone’s cremains, so that the cremains are actually part of the jewelry itself. If you think you might want a blown glass jewelry urn, consider these styles.
Tip: Memorial diamonds are created from the ashes of loved ones, and are another beautiful option for keeping someone's memory alive. Some companies, like Eterneva, create lab-grown diamonds and allow you to pick from several cuts and colors for your gemstone.
1. Circle pendant urn
Many suppliers offer blown glass urn pendants in the shape of a basic circle. This is a simple design that’s nevertheless very common. That’s because the colors of blown glass are often so gorgeous that a complex pendant shape isn’t necessary. A circle is enough to make a strong impression.
Additionally, talented designers can also combine the colors inside the pendant so they resemble specific images or scenes, from sunsets to galaxies. With a little searching, you could likely find a pendant whose colors form an image that you’d associate your lost loved one.
2. Teardrop pendant urn
A teardrop is another popular urn shape for cremation art jewelry, as it perfectly represents the emotions of mourning.
Many designers create such pendants out of hand-blown glass. It’s often the ideal material for a pendant of this shape because the result can look very much like an actual teardrop.
3. Heart pendant urn
Blown glass urn jewelry pendants also come in the shape of a heart. As with the teardrop example, some mourners choose to store the cremains of loved ones in heart-shaped pendants to symbolize the love they still feel for someone who’s passed on.
This is particularly common among those mourning a partner or spouse, but it’s an option for anyone in mourning.
Types of Blown Glass Cremation Urns for Display
Displaying the urn of a lost loved one in your home or in a dedicated memorial space is a way of honoring their memory by keeping a clear reminder of their spirit in full view. Fortunately, there are many blown glass jewelry urns that are ideal for this purpose.
4. Traditional vase urn
A popular shape for an urn you might display in your home resembles a vase. You can find such urns in a wide range of materials, including ceramic, metal, and blown glass. You might choose blown glass over another material because it often features a blend of dynamic and striking colors, which could represent the dynamic personality of a lost loved one.
Many people also take inspiration from the natural world when choosing colors for this type of blown glass urn. For example, they might use colors that evoke the aurora borealis (northern lights), the ocean, a sunset, or another natural scene they believe embodies the spirit of the deceased. For instance, if your lost loved one was an avid hiker, you might choose a glass blown urn featuring colors of the mountains.
5. Ocean wave urn
The ocean has symbolic meaning for both many individuals and many overall cultures. The ocean can symbolize the boundless energy of life, the soul, nature, and so much more.
Thus, some people find urns that immediately make them think of the ocean to be ideal for storing a loved one’s cremains. Such people may choose blown glass urns, as designers often create them in the shape of ocean waves.
6. Tree illustration urns
Trees have also inspired many creative urns in a variety of styles. The constant growth of a tree can symbolize the idea that someone’s spirit continues to live on even after their death.
That’s why many blown glass urns consist of basic shapes, such as circles, with the gorgeous blown glass colors combined to form an illustration of a tree rising in nature. Such urns look like true works of art, perfect to display in a home.
7. Flame urn
Just as designers can manipulate blown glass to make urns in the shape of waves, they can also make urns that resemble candle flames spiraling into the air.
This is yet another design option to consider, as we often associate candles not only with funerals, but with the idea of someone rising from the ashes as well. It’s easy to understand why that makes a flame-shaped urn for ashes of a loved one appealing to many.
Types of Blown Glass Urns for Pets
The companionship a pet offers is so pure that when a pet dies, it’s natural to feel deep pain. You can cope by honoring the memory of a lost pet the same way you would do so for a lost family member or friend. These blown glass urns for pets can help.
8. Pawprint urn
You’ve probably realized by now that blown glass is a versatile form of art that gives designers the freedom to create a wide range of images. For example, if you’re looking for a blown glass urn for a dog or cat that’s passed on, you can find many featuring the image of a pawprint. These urns can also come in the form of necklace pendants, small keepsake urns, or larger urns that you would display in your home.
Some of these urns come in basic shapes, with the pawprint effect resulting from the combination of the colors inside. Others come in the actual shape of a pawprint. It all depends on your preference.
9. Curled up cat urn
Are you mourning a beloved cat who, like so many cats, enjoyed spending much of their time curled up in their favorite cozy spots?
If so, you can find blown glass urns that resemble curled up cats. You could place this type of urn in or near your cat’s favorite napping spot, ensuring you always remember them whenever you see it.
10. Dog urn
Dog lovers can also find blown glass urns in the shape of their furry friends! Although blown glass dogs are often popular as mere decorations, some designers create blown glass dog figures that can also serve as urns.
11. Bird pendant
Again, blown glass urns for pets can come in a variety of shapes and sizes, depending on how you want to store or display the urn. For example, many smaller blown glass urns resemble birds, which can serve as pendants.
You could also use such an urn as an ornament. For example, if you were comfortable doing so, you might want to hang a blown glass urn in the shape of a bird from a tree in your yard, evoking the idea that the soul of your pet bird has taken flight. You’d have to accept that the urn could sustain damage when exposed to the elements like that, but it’s still an option to consider.
Where Can You Purchase a Blown Glass Urn for Ashes Online?
Again, buying an urn online makes it easier to find the perfect item without spending more than you can afford. Some of the best places to buy blown glass urns online include the following:
SoulBursts
Although many general online urn suppliers provide blown glass cremation urns for ashes, SoulBursts is unique because the team here specializes in this type of urn. Thus, when shopping here, there’s no risk that you’ll waste any time browsing through options that don’t appeal to you. In addition to blown glass cremation urns, SoulBursts also supplies glass cremation jewelry.
Etsy
Etsy offers a wide selection of blown glass cremation urns. Additionally, you may have an easier time finding a designer who’ll make a custom urn based on your own design ideas if you shop on Etsy. Once more, this may cost a little more than buying a premade urn, but that might not be a factor that bothers you if your budget is high.
Just be sure you’ve conducted thorough research when buying a blown glass urn on Etsy. You want to confirm any seller from which you purchase an urn has a reputation for delivering quality products in a timely manner.
Memorials.com
Memorials.com is one of the top online destinations for customers purchasing urns. One of the reasons this is the case is the fact that Memorials.com carries upwards of 10,000 urns. Thus, if you’re looking for a blown glass cremation urn here, there’s a good chance you’ll find one that suits your preferences and budget. Along with blown glass urns, Memorials.com offers such funeral products as caskets, keepsakes, and much more.
Cremation Solutions
Cremation Solutions is another supplier offering a relatively extensive selection of blown glass urns for ashes. Buying one from this site can potentially help you save a little bit of money, as Cremation Solutions offers free ground shipping to customers in the United States. In addition to glass urns, they also offer fingerprint jewelry and various other cremation products.
US Urns Online
US Urns Online isn’t merely a supplier of blown glass cremation urns. Often, this website provides detailed information about the inspiration behind an urn’s style and its construction. This can allow a customer to make a more informed purchase than they could make if all they had was a picture and some basic technical details to go off of when placing an order.
Blown Glass Urns: Beautiful Tributes to Those Who’ve Passed
Blown glass urns appeal to many for their beauty, versatility, and practical functionality. These are just a few styles to consider as you try to find the perfect urn to honor the memory of someone you’ve lost.
If you're looking for more urn ideas, read our guides on brass urns, rose-shaped urns, and stuffed animal urns.