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Pet Loss – I Feel Your Pain

March 13, 2019 urngarden.com

Yesterday I took a call from a pet owner who lost their sweet 16 year old Shih Tzu last week. She found the heart shaped pet urn with angel wings and had some questions about the engraving.

She sounded young on the phone, but was a “mature” woman and her story was that growing up, her mother never allowed dogs. Ever. Because she’d never had a dog, she passed that on to her child. At some point the little girl wanted a lop eared bunny and obsessed over it.

lop ear bunny sketch Charles Darwin — lop ear bunny sketch by Charles Darwin 1868

Teachers at her school mentioned to the parents that she talked about getting a bunny often. The parents decided to go bunny shopping. Well, turns out that this fluffy bunny grew into a large aggressive rabbit measuring about 14 inches long. It did not like to be handled and if you did, you better wear gloves, like the kind you would wear to handle a falcon. It was a disaster.

On shopping trips to the neighborhood pet store to get rabbit food, her daughter would always check out the puppies and plead for mom to come take a look. The answer was always “no, let’s just get the food and go.” But one day the universe shifted, and mother strolled over to take a look. She let the little girl hold the puppy. And then? She did. The puppy nuzzled and kissed her neck. She fell in love.

In the car on the way home, the two called Dad at work, “How much do you love us?” the daughter asked. “How much is it going to cost me?” he replied. After the girl pled her case, he agreed to stop by the store and take a look.

As children age and spread their wings, the dogs become our kids, and that’s what happened here. Even HER aging mom fell in love with that dog. Later in life, the grandmother moved in as she needed more care. Laying on the couch, the pup would snuggle with her and lay near her head. She was surprised that her mother allowed it. She’d been smitten too.

“Are you ready for another dog?” I asked. It’s only been a week, but with older dogs, the care they require can take a toll at the end. Physically, emotionally, and financially. “Not yet.” she said.

She’d spent the last couple of years running back and forth to the vet. This breed tends to have a lot of eye problems as they age. And after this past week, she was tired.

Believe it or not, the conversation took a turn to online shopping and she tipped me to her favorite website for clothes, which I am terrified of buying without touching and trying on. I was excited to get a highly recommended lead, and after our call, I checked it out, and hated everything! Not my style. It was interesting though, to make a solid connection with this person thousands of miles away, feel the joy and pain in her world, and be worlds apart on fashion, which most people form first impressions on. It reminded me about the old “don’t judge a book by it’s cover” adage and how true it is.

Anyway, about the white heart she picked. It’s a medium size that comes in 3 colors, white (that’s what she picked), pearl blue, and lavender.

purple heart urn for ashes pet or people

They engrave beautifully, although you are limited on how much text you can have. She was torn between paw prints and angel wings, but decided on the wings for her little angel, because that’s what she was.

Purple Amethyst Cremation Urns: Beauty from the Ashes

February 27, 2019 Kim Stacey

Today’s post began as a short look at purple urns, in keeping with this month’s focus on the astrological sign Pisces, and the birthstone associated with February, the amethyst.

But, I left something out in the most recent post. One online source, Astrology-Zodiac-Signs.com, declares the colors associated with Pisces go well beyond the pure deep purple of the amethyst; listing “mauve, lilac, violet, and sea green” (source). This opens up our selection options considerably.

Purple and Pewter Adult Urn for Ashes

Inexpensive and engraves beautifully, the Purple and Pewter urn is classically styled in deep color with contrasting black for a dramatic finish.

Purple Cremation Urn Necklace

This lovely pendant is actually a vial for ashes. I love the modern styling of the Cremation Urn Pendant with Purple Stone, with its subtle touch of purple. I think it’s both understated and very ‘classy.’ It’s a grand companion to this next full-sized purple urn.

Purple Mother of Pearl Adult Urn

The Purple Mother of Pearl Urn is a beauty. Rich, dark purple with inlaid mother of pearl chips as a decorative trim. It brings to mind the words of artist Amira, Queen of Creativity: “Purple is the color of royalties. It stands for luxury, wealth and sophistication. It is also the color of passion, romance and sensitivity” (source).

Lavender Mist Cremation Urn and Keepsakes

If purple is too strong a color for you, consider these two matching urns The Lavender Mist Urn, and its companion keepsake urn, the Lavender Mist Mini-Urn. How subtle the color; and the classic styling is very pleasing to the eye and it engraves beautifully.

Let’s Not Forget Green Urns

One of our clients was on the hunt for a green and gold urn to honor her departed husband and his love for the Portland Timbers.

This beauty is the style that spoke to her, and although she was planning a memorial service, she was willing to wait for the urn.

green mother of pearl adult cremation urn for ashes

Venturing into the realm of ‘sea green’, there’s the stunning Green Sea Breeze Cremation Urn. Hand-crafted in America by a master potter; the urn measures approximately 7.5-8.5″ high and 7.5-8.5″ wide.

If you love the styling, but want to stay in the purple spectrum, you’ll be delighted to know this urn is also available in a lovely shade of lavender.

This post offers just a smattering of the dozens of purple urns in the Urn Garden Collection. I suggest using the search bar on the homepage to discover the others. Just type in “purple” and the dropdown box will deliver its suggestions.

Next week begins a new month – and spring inches closer. I see signs of its arrival in the faces of the daffodils and the swollen buds on the Japanese maple by my front door. All I need do now is to be patient…and watch the falling rain. Enjoy this time of transition!

The Eagle Usually Wins-Even at the Funeral

February 20, 2019 urngarden.com

Its eagle season here in the Ozarks, lots of sightings and photos showing up on social media photography groups . The eagle has always captured the interest of Americans, or really, humans in general. Since the beginning of time. Strong, regal, stoic, and frankly a little scary sometimes.

Indian chiefs wore the eagle feather in their ceremonial headdress and decorated the sacred pipes that were used to communicate with the Great Spirit during rituals.

This bird is featured on our coin, advertising, and even in funeral arrangements.

Yes, the eagle shows up at the funeral home too. You can get caskets with an eagle theme, as well as urns.

Eagle Cremation Urns, Wings of Freedom

Eagle Creamation Urn for Ashes — Eagle Spirit in the Sky Box for Ashes

But the item I see the most at funerals around here is the memorial card, or funeral program. Several services that I’ve been to over the years for men that have passed away, has been this eagle template. It’s a popular choice for veterans.

The image is called On Freedom’s Wing, by wildlife artist, Rick Kelley and features the eagle gliding in front of majestic mountain painted to look like the American flag. I would link to his website gallery, but it looks like it’s been hacked.

The nice thing about this program (licenced through the Messenger company, and available at most funeral homes) is that, in addition to the beautiful artwork, you’ve got three pages that can be personalized with a photo, poem, bio, and service information.

The last funeral we attended, it was actually a memorial service, was at the local Elks Lodge to honor a “missing member”. In addition to the stunning flower arrangements, they used the Eagle funeral program and on the last page it featured the Eleven O’Clock Toast that is an Elks tradition.

“You have heard the tolling of eleven strokes.
This is to remind us that with Elks
the hour of eleven has a tender significance.
Wherever an Elk may roam,
Whatever his lot in life may be,
when this hour falls upon the dial of night
the great heart of Elkdom swells and throbs.
It is the golden hour of recollection,
the homecoming of those who wander,
the mystic roll call of those who will come no more.
Living or dead, an Elk is never forgotten, never forsaken.
Morning and noon may pass him by,
the light of day sink heedlessly in the West,
but ere the shadows of midnight shall fall,
the chimes of memory will be pealing forth
the friendly message —
“TO OUR ABSENT MEMBERS”

Beauty and Bravery. Courage and Grace. The Eagle might be the perfect symbol for a someone in a leadership role.

Sky King Eagle Cremation Urn for Human Adult

Here’s 3 characteristics of the regal eagle that might resemble your loved one:

Eagles Have Powerful Vision

Evidently eagles have tremendous eyesight capabilities. From the air, or on the ground, they can spot and target prey.

Eagles Are Fearless

Flying high and sometimes soaring directly into the storm, the fearless eagle will use the power of the storm front to rise to greater heights and do battle with the fiercest of competitors on the ground. Check out the dual between the eagle and the fox in this previous post.

Eagles Take Care of Family

Nurturing the young, and teaching the babies to fly. Guiding the youth and showing them the survival skills needed to stay alive.

At Urn Garden, we’re bird watchers too and have a whole collection of bird themed urns. Several featuring the eagle of course, but also hummingbirds, cardinals, bluebirds, and owls. We love them all and so do the families we serve.

If the eagle is the spirit animal of your dearly departed, fine. You’ll have an easier time staying on point while planning the memorial service. If you’d like to explore this concept further, we have a whole collection of cremation urns that honor spirit totems. This post, written earlier this year goes deeper and gives a better overview of the spirit animal totem.

source of 3 eagle characteristics:

https://toughnickel.com/business/7-Leadership-Characteristics-of-An-Eagle-That-Man-Should-Learn-From

A New Memorial Service Tradition: Urn Wreaths

January 30, 2019 Kim Stacey

A big part of my life involves thinking about the historical roots of our modern funeral practices. Lately, the focus has been on urn wreaths, which is fast becoming a memorial service tradition. Naturally, my mind wandered into the past – to the Victorians first – and then further back to the laurel and olive wreaths of the Greeks and Romans.

natural-floral-wreath

The Symbolism of the Wreath

Venture back a few thousand years and you’ll discover the essence of laurel, myrtle and olive branch wreaths includes the concepts of victory, glory and power. Yet, as Christianity grew, the wreath came to symbolize eternity and the never-ending ‘circle of life.’ In short, during the millennia, the wreath has become deeply symbolic.

What the Victorians Did with Wreaths

When someone died, it was traditional to hang a black mourning wreath were hung on the front door of the family home. Here in the 21st century, there are some folks–like Amy Cunningham, a New York funeral director – who believe this quaint tradition should be revived – and I rather like the idea. Read her “Bring Back the Mourning Wreath” on the Inspired Funeral blog.

We wanted to revive this tradition and now have the black feather mourning wreath and a white angel wing wreath that can be easily hung on the door, wall, or used to adorn a cremation urn. The soft feathers not only symbolize wings of flight, but also help to soften the appearance of a metal urn.

The Victorians took the symbolism of the wreath one step further when they began to create memorial wreaths from the hair of the deceased. Victorian hair art still fascinates us. The author of “Hair Wreaths: a Victorian Mourning Tradition,” a post on the A Grave Interest blog, wrote: “A mourning wreath could be made up of one member’s hair or a composite of an entire family. As family members died, hair was saved…when enough was accumulated; the hair was fashioned into flowers and leaves by twisting and sewing it around shaped wire forms.” The pictures alone–like the one at the left– are well worth a look.

memento moire hair art

But, as I don’t want to wander too far away from our primary subject: cremation urn wreaths, I’ll stop the history chit-chat right here.

What is an Urn Wreath?

At its most basic, an urn wreath is a circlet of flowers and/or greenery, in which the base of the cremation urn rests. Perhaps it’s only task is to be used as part of a larger – eye-catching– display during the memorial service. But with a bit of forethought, a loved one’s cremation urn wreath can be adapted for display in the home or mausoleum niche.

cremation urn wreath

Why Cremation Urn Wreaths are Becoming So Popular

Think back 50 years, when cremation wasn’t as popular as it is today. Most people chose ‘whole body burial,’ which is exactly as it sounds. The deceased would be washed, usually embalmed; dressed and casketed. His or her casket –whether open for viewing the body, or closed – would be the focal point of the funeral.

Things have changed. For many reasons, more and more people are choosing cremation over burial – which leaves a “big, empty space” at the front of any funeral. There’s no longer a casket; just an urn. The questions become “What can we do to draw the eye to the deceased who is, after all, the honored guest at this event?” And, “How can we do that in a way which honors their uniqueness and pays tribute to their memory?” Our long-standing relationship with the symbolism of the wreath, led us to come up with the cremation urn wreath.

Commonly made from greenery and fresh flowers, an urn wreath could be preserved to later adorn the urn when on display in the home or columbarium. There are many online articles regarding the best ways to dry flowers; Check out Popular Science’s online article, “The Best Ways to Preserve Your Flowers” (the link is in Sources section). There are also floral preservation services; an internet search using that phrase can get you to the experts.

How do you obtain a cremation urn wreath? Talk to your funeral director or your favorite local florist. Or, if time permits, and you’re one of those folks who love crafting, get creative. In my mind’s eye, I picture urn wreaths decorated with photos or other small memorabilia. I thought of a wreath made of model trains (for the train enthusiast); or, for the fisherman, an urn wreath decorated with colorful fishing lures. When you stop to think about it – the possibilities are endless!

Red Cremation Urns: Beauty from the Ashes

January 15, 2019 Kim Stacey

As mentioned last time, we’re having fun this year looking at astrology and birthstones – along with sideways glances at other character-defining tools, such as the lunar-based Chinese horoscope, and that fascinating mathematical approach, numerology. Today’s post looks at rich red cremation urns, seen here as symbolic of January’s birthstone, the garnet.

California Red Cremation Urn

If you browse the cremation urns in the “Red, Gold, Orange, and Brown” collection, you’ll see my favorite: the California Red Cremation Urn, it comes in two sizes: one suitable in size for the ashes of an adult, which you see here. The other is much smaller (3” high); intended to become a cherished keepsake.

This urn engraves beautifully and is also the one we use for our red Firefighter Urn that can be personalized with name and department information.

January and July Birthstone Cremation Pendant

Another in our collection of red cremation urns is also a keepsake. The contemporary design of the Red Heart Urn Pendant is what attracts me I think; it speaks eloquently of love – and the rich red is certainly symbolic of the garnet, the birthstone for anyone born in the month of January.

If you like modern and contemporary memorials, you might like the ruby vial for ashes, it’s sleek stainless pendant that holds a tiny bit of ashes and celebrates a July birthdate.

In the urn department, I think you’ll love the Red Wood Cremation Urn. Simple box design and rich coloration are the hallmarks of this 10” high cremation urn. Simple and elegant design, this vessel engraves beautifully and can be personalized further with emblems for fire department or military service.

Want to see more color choices in cremation urns? Check out our aptly-named collection of Colorful Urns for Ashes.

One more thing: around this time last year, we published “Beauty from the Ashes: White Cremation Urns.” If none of these garnet-hued red cremation urns are what you’re looking for, you might enjoy reading it – as well as the later “Our Top 3 White Urns: Expressions of Purity and Perfection.”

Next time, I’m going to look at an out-of-the-ordinary topic. We’re doing so because–more frequently than ever before – we’re hearing “horror stories” from people who have purchased cremation urns from online retailers like Amazon and Walmart. We’ll share a few of them, and then give you a few points-to-ponder when you think such a move is the right idea. Should be interesting, so stay tuned!