Your loved one’s cremated remains may be among your most prized possessions. They have great sentimental value, and you can display them in a beautiful urn. But what if you’d like to try a more unique option? What if you’d like to keep your loved one close to you?
Dealing with ashes is a difficult topic, as everyone wants their loved ones to be treated with the utmost care and respect.
Jump ahead to these sections:
- 1. Cremation Blown Glass Art
- 2. Cremation Jewelry
- 3. Memorial Diamonds
- 4. Cremation Lamps
- 5. Cremation Lockets
- 6. Gazing Balls
- 7. Paperweights
These days, there are many options for displaying people’s ashes after they're cremated. If your family is open to it, you can investigate options for cremation art.
This art form uses small portions of your loved one’s ashes to create something gorgeous. From necklaces to lamps, there’s a wide variety of options. By doing it this way, everyone can keep your loved one close to their hearts.
1. Cremation Blown Glass Art
The creation of blown glass is mesmerizing to watch and also produces beautiful things. From items to hang on your walls to beautiful sculptures, blown glass is a popular and revered art form with history. One option is to include your loved one’s ashes in blown glass.
Creating a blown glass container or piece only requires a tiny amount of remains, so you can easily honor the person's last wishes.
Another option is having a blown glass urn to display your loved one’s ashes. These are handcrafted, which means each one is a little different. Or you can include a little of your loved one’s ashes in the actual makeup of the urn. Different artisans will charge you a wide range of prices, but $450 is a good starting estimate.
Share your final wishes, just in case.
Create a free Cake end-of-life planning profile and instantly share your health, legal, funeral, and legacy decisions with a loved one.
2. Cremation Jewelry
Custom cremation jewelry is a great option. You can talk to your local jeweler or find one online. Either option can provide some comfort and trust before handing over your loved one’s ashes. There are a wide variety of options available.
A typical decision-making questionnaire starts with memorial questions. Would you like your loved one’s actual ashes in the jewelry? If so, would you like those ashes to be visible? In some forms of memorial jewelry, the ashes are woven into the design. Other jewelry types are created to showcase the ashes.
Once that decision is made, it’s time to decide on the capacity. How much of the ashes would you like to include? The range here is limited, however. Some jewelers can fit less than a teaspoon in most jewelry. While it’s not a lot of ashes, it is still rather meaningful. After that, you can decide on things like style and aesthetics.
3. Memorial Diamonds
One of the most astounding parts of the human body’s makeup is potential. Upon death, each human being’s ashes can be turned into diamonds, thanks to the carbon elements in the body. After all, diamonds are made of compressed carbon.
Your loved one’s ashes can be similarly compressed, based on the type of diamond you order. This option has gained popularity in recent years, given its incredible versatility. You can use this gem in a ring, a necklace, or anything else.
With the option to compress ashes into diamonds, it may take a long time to develop the gem. If you’re not in a rush, memorial diamonds can truly be a unique memorial to your loved one. Most companies give a time estimate of three to nine months. Depending on the carat size you choose, the price can range from $1,250 to $13,200.
Tip: We recommend using Eterneva for a custom memorial diamond made out of the deceased's ashes or a lock of hair.
4. Cremation Lamps
It’s a common statement to say that someone was a "light in your life," and now, that can really be true. This is a fairly inexpensive option, ranging from $100 to $150 dollars.
Artists can handcraft a stained glass lamp or another type by using the ashes you share with them to create a one-of-a-kind light source. Lamp styles can vary from basic to antique, with some including stained glass elements made from the ashes. Others are reminiscent of high-end Tiffany lamps. No matter what style you choose, this is a great option for your loved one’s ashes.
5. Cremation Lockets
There are a few different types of cremation jewelry. You can get storage-type jewelry, or even tiny brooches are made to hold quantities of ash. With delicate jewelry, there will usually be less than a tablespoon of ashes in the container. However, it is still a great way to keep someone close to your heart. In this case, no ashes are actually interwoven or used to create the material to hold said remains.
You can also go the locket route. A tiny locket or mini metal cylindrical container will be suspended from a chain. You can wear it around your neck after filling it. There are other options, too. Miniature stained glass canisters, or those made out of precious metals, are both great options.
You can also have some other unique jewelry made, like the lamps mentioned above. Your loved one’s ashes are worked into the material of your jewelry. This piece of jewelry can also include two mementos. One can be your loved one’s ashes. Then, on the other side of the locket, you can include a photograph. Hanging this around your wrist or neck is a great option. These are fairly inexpensive, ranging from $20 to $40.
6. Gazing Balls
Have you ever seen a gazing ball? If it’s hung in someone’s house, it catches the sunlight and throws multi-colored beams onto the floor. It can be a gorgeous piece of decor. You can also have a gazing ball created out of your loved one’s ashes. In that way, they can continue to bring beauty to the world around them.
It’s best to carefully think about this option. Do you have children or small pets? Do you live in an area that’s prone to earthquakes? Carefully think about everything that could happen before you hang a gazing ball up.
If you prefer, you can also hang it outside. Gazing balls belong anywhere there’s sunlight. Just take the potential dangers into account. Outside, your gazing ball will be exposed to the weather. Is that something you’re comfortable with? If so, find your favorite tree or birdhouse stand and hang it up!
7. Paperweights
When someone dies, it’s easy to feel like they left you behind. How can you keep them close? To figure out the answer to this question, think about what you do every day.
What activities would keep them close? If you work with whirring machinery, a memorial ring might not be the best idea. But if you work in the office, a paperweight might be a great idea. As an organizational tool, paperweights are incredibly useful. But it’s also a way of keeping your grandmother with you, on your desk at all times.
Some people might be sensitive about doing this, for obvious reasons. Unique paperweights may be designed to be subtle and can be roughly handled by other folks such as coworkers. However, a paperweight can be a special secret that allows you to stay close to your loved ones. These cost around $150. But since they’re custom-made, the price can range wildly.
8. Cremation Stones
If you want an option that can incorporate all of your loved one's ashes, you might consider solidifying the remains into cremation stones. These stones are the perfect size for displaying at home, placing anywhere in nature, and holding in your hand. They give you the opportunity to connect to a loved one's ashes in a way you often can't when the ashes aren't solidified.
If your loved one enjoyed spending time in nature, turning their remains into natural-looking stones can be even more meaningful.
Tip: We recommend Parting Stone, a unique service that solidifies human or pet cremains into beautiful, one-of-a-kind stones. If you send in all of a loved one's ashes, you can receive between 40 and 60 solidified-ash keepsakes.
Finding the Perfect Piece
It’s easy to stress over finding the perfect piece of art, especially when it’s made to memorialize a loved one. There are so many decisions to be made during this season of your life. This is especially true if they didn't leave instructions or an end-of-life plan behind.
What would they have wanted? What burial alternatives would they have wanted? Are you doing what they would have wanted? Without clear instructions, there’s no way to answer this question. All you can do is follow your heart. This is true when it comes to finding the perfect piece of art.
It’s helpful to step back and gain a little perspective. If you’d rather wait and do something special with your loved one’s ashes in a few months, that’s also a great option.