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The 10 Best Keepsakes Made from Ashes

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Many of us ponder how best to honor and cherish the memories of those who have passed. We are searching for the perfect keepsakes made for ashes: a way to memorialize loved ones in a manner that feels both personal and profound. It opens up a world where the essence of loved ones can be kept near in daily life, not just in spirit but in form. 

Cremation ashes can be scattered in a special place, kept in an urn, or immortalized within a keepsake for ashes. For many, having a keepsake for ashes is a comfort, allowing them to always have the ashes of their loved one nearby and safe. While an urn can be a lovely place to store ashes, small ashes keepsakes can be kept with you at all times or taken to different places within your home.

A keepsake for ashes can also allow you to add an element of music, art, or writing to your remembrance of a loved one, all of which can be of comfort during a period of grief and help you feel connected to them. There are many meaningful memorial keepsakes for ashes, but the important thing is to choose something that feels right for you and your loved ones.For those contemplating this choice, here are a few keepsake for ashes inspirations:  

1. Keepsakes for Ashes: Paperweight

An object with a sense of elegance, longevity, and strength. A paperweight keepsake for ashes can be a nice option if your loved one was a keen writer or academic.

2. Keepsakes for Ashes: Glass Ornament

Glass ornaments can be infused with the cremation ash of your loved one, making it a lovely keepsake for ashes to make sure that they are home for the holidays. Ornaments can be made in all different shapes and designs, giving you an item that is poignant and symbolic keepsake for ashes. 

3. Keepsakes for Ashes: Artwork

Remember your loved one, and memorialize them forever by commissioning artwork that mixes your loved one’s ashes with paint to create a beautiful memorial painting.

Whether used for a portrait of your family member, a picture of their favorite place, or a contemporary piece, a painting can be a centerpiece of your home to look at whenever you want to remember your loved one.

4. Keepsakes for Ashes: Vinyl Record

Music is very emotive and can be a lovely way to remember special times and people. If a favorite track or album holds fond memories of your loved one, press their ashes into a vinyl record and create an audio  memorial your family will cherish for generations.

5. Keepsakes for Ashes: Hourglass

With an hourglass keepsake for ashes, you can see the ashes, which helps some people feel closer to the person they have lost. You could have a full-sized hourglass to display in your home, or a small hourglass on a chain, always keeping your loved one nearby.

6. Keepsakes for Ashes: Teddy Bear

Some companies will place ashes into a metal heart to be tucked inside a teddy bear. This might be a nice idea for children or grandchildren, who might find warmth and closeness with the comfort a stuffed toy can bring.

7. Keepsakes for Ashes: Buttons

If you’d like to feel as though the person you have lost is still close by, buttons containing their ashes can be a nice option. Either stored in a safe place at home, at the end of a necklace or attached to a special item of clothing, you can have your loved one by your side.

8. Keepsakes for Ashes: Writing & Tattoo Ink

Commemorative ink created from the ashes of your loved one is another special keepsake for ashes.  This can be done with traditional ink for grief journaling as well as tattoo ink  as a celebration to their unique and wonderful life.

9. Keepsakes for Ashes: Pencils

If your loved one was an artist, or if you find comfort writing to connect you to someone you’ve lost, you can have the ashes made into pencils. Coming in a box inscribed with your beloved’s name and the years of their birth and death, the pencils are used one at a time and sharpened into the box, slowly creating a box of shavings that eventually becomes an urn.

10. Keepsakes for Ashes: Stained Glass Window or Suncatcher

One of the best keepsakes made from ashes could be a stained-glass window. The sunlight passing through the glass, creating beautiful patterns within the room, is a lovely way to be reminded of someone dear on a sunny day. If a window is too difficult, you could instead have a glass suncatcher made, which is easier to move to different places.  

A Better Place Forests urn for ashes displayed in a peaceful memorial forest before a ceremony.
There are keepsakes for ashes that you can create

Is It OK to Divide Cremation Ashes?

Yes, you can divide up the ashes of a loved one. It’s not uncommon to scatter a loved one’s ashes outdoors and reserve a small portion to memorialize in a keepsake. When planning your cremation ashes keepsakes, you should also bear in mind how long it will take to receive the ashes after cremation.You might decide that a cremation ashes keepsake isn’t the right option and that you would rather scatter the ashes somewhere meaningful instead.

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