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hummingbird urn for ashes

No Funeral, No Flowers: What I Learned Planning a Memorial Service

August 24, 2018 urngarden.com

We recently had a death in the family. Our family matriarch. Grandmother. She lived a long, rich life and had made a list of specific wishes before she died.

  • Cremation was preferred over burial.
  • No funeral.
  • No flowers.
  • Have a party at the boat house at the lake.
  • She had two songs that she wanted sung at the service.

The Healing Power of Flowers at the Funeral

We carried out her wishes, but had to bend the rules on funeral flowers. Flowers are so healing and we knew that a wreath would help soften the appearance of the metal urn we displayed at the memorial service.  The florist we used is practically across the street from the crematory, so we arranged to have them deliver not only the flowers, but the urn, the printed memorial package, and death certificates to the venue.

Grandmother was known as Grandma Birdy, as she loved all things feathered. Our collection of bird themed urns are inspired by her. We chose a white and gold hummingbird urn for her. Crafted from cloisonne, this sturdy metal urn has a delicate design, but is suitable for burial, which we did a couple of days after the celebration ceremony.

The wreath was created with white roses and lilies with a few lady bugs added for good luck. The burial followed a couple of days after the service, and with the advice from the florist, we lightly misted the arrangement and kept it cool, which kept the flowers fresh in the August heat, and we were able to transport to the cemetery and place it on the grave.

hummingbird urn wreath

Choosing cremation did allow for a little more flexibility. We held the service a couple of weeks after she passed to allow friends and family from out of town to make travel arrangements. The ceremony was held on a Saturday and burial occurred on the following Monday. The venue had table seating for 80, full kitchen, large flat screen monitor, and overlooked the lake. We arranged for audio for our vocalist and catered mini sandwiches, chips, cookies, and drinks from Hy-Vee.

We tried to keep the theme in check with her colorful personality. We used bright and cheerful table covers and decorated with bird statuary and trinkets that grandmother had collected and then we invited the guests to take one as a keepsake or remembrance.

Not knowing what to expect in the way of guests, we were touched when we realized we probably had 100 in attendance.

Let the Funeral Director Help You

The funeral home was gracious during the arrangement process and never pressured us. They actually saved us several hundred dollars when we discovered that the cemetery required a concrete vault for the burial of the urn. We were able to order it from the funeral home at considerable savings and they offered to deliver it to the cemetery.

We bought a memorial package from them that included a guest register book, 100 personalized funeral programs that fit our theme, 25 laminated obituaries, and thank you cards. The cost for this package was over $200 and after the service we realized that we had many programs left over.

The funeral director also arranged for the vocalist from a list of recommended contacts that they worked with on a regular basis. Even with a two week notice, scheduling conflicts created challenges in securing someone to sing. We did finally have success and she did a beautiful job.

The funeral director also educated us as to what the appropriate fees were to pay both the vocalist and the minister and we appointed a family member to take care of payment at the service.

The two weeks leading up to the event were a little stressful and we were starting to wish grandmother had ordered a traditional funeral, but in the end it was a beautiful day with a couple of touching eulogies, letters read from far away family and friends, and memories shared with loved ones who took the time to come celebrate the life of one of our greatest generation.

Filed Under: Confessions, cremation, funeral service Tagged With: funeral flower arrangements for urn, funeral planning, hummingbird urn for ashes, planning a celebration of life ceremony

The End of Summer Series: Nature Urns

September 18, 2017 Kim Stacey

Nature's Beauty Cremation Urns for Ashes

If your loved one enjoyed being in the outdoors, you may want to celebrate his or her life with one of our nature urns. Our collection of urns for ashes includes some stunning examples of nature urns featuring trees, flowers, birds, and deer –even turtles.

where to buy cremation urn

For many people, the bounty of the natural world is one of our biggest joys. Trees, plants, animals; mountains, sky, sun and moon; nature lovers are everywhere. In celebration of nature’s beauty, our last post in the End of Summer Series puts our attention on nature urns.

“There is pleasure in the pathless woods, there is rapture in the lonely shore, there is society where none intrudes, by the deep sea, and music in its roar; I love not Man the less, but Nature more. Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished” ~ Lord Byron (Source)

Bird Urns

happy hummingbird cremation urn for ashes

Our collection of nature urns wouldn’t be complete without a few bird urns. Here are two of our most popular hummingbird urns. Classic in styling with delicate images of hummingbirds, these two urns for ashes are the epitome of elegance.

deer urns

Eagle Urns

 Eagles are a very popular motif – and we’ve got a wide selection of eagle urns to choose from.

Bronze eagle cremation urn
eagle cremation urn for ashes

Cardinal Cremation Urns

Ranking high among our bird urns are our cardinal urns.

Cardinal cremation urn for ashes

Learn about the symbolism of the cardinal in “Cardinal Cremation Urn, Symbol of Strength and Faith”. If you love cardinals, you might enjoy reading it too.

small cardinal cremation urn for ashes

Deer Urns

Lots of nature lovers find deer enchanting. For them, a deer urn could hold special significance.  Our collection of nature urns includes several deer urns, ranging from wood box styles to bronze art sculptures.

deer urn for ashes

Our second deer urn is the Bronze Deer Cremation Urn, which will be showcased in the October series on our collection of bronze cremation urns. But you can get a sneak peek: read our blog post, “Bronze Deer Urn for the Hunter”.

deer cremation urn

Fish Urns

bass mini cremation urn for ashes

And let’s not forget fish. One of our most popular nature urns is this Bass Fishing Mini Urn for Ashes. It’s just one of many in our collection of fish urns which was the focus of three recent blog posts:

“Urns for Sale: The Right Bass Urn Captures the Angler’s Joy

“A Unique Bass Urn: Perfect for Your Favorite Fishing Fan” and

“Cremation Urns on Sale: Our Two Most Popular Bass Urns

Elephant Cremation Urns

Now for the more exotic among our nature urns…our Elephant Urn. Many folks (including me!) love this elephant keepsake.

elephant cremation urn for ashes

Like the miniature deer urn, the Small Elephant Urn measures just 3 inches high and 4 inches long.

There is even a full size adult urn that comes in a couple of different colors, we engrave the elephant and will add your loved ones names, dates, or a brief sentiment.

elephant cremation urn for ashes

Fish, birds, flowers, lions, elephants, deer, and trees…just a few of nature’s gifts to us. The tree of life is an ancient representation of the life cycle and has so much symbolism. We have several Tree of Life styles in our collection ranging from hand carved wood by American artists to smaller jewelry choices that will store a tiny bit of ashes.

green tree of life urn for ashes adult size

If your loved one enjoyed being in the outdoors, you may want to celebrate his or her life with one of our nature urns. As you’ve seen, our collection of urns for ashes includes some stunning examples of nature’s bounty.

urns with birds

Filed Under: Featured Products, urns Tagged With: bird urns, deer urn, fish urn, hummingbird urn for ashes, nature urns, urn with cardinal, urns for sale

Seasons of Life: Flight of the Hummingbird Cremation Urn

September 10, 2014 urngarden.com

believe you can inspirational graphic

Stepped out last night to look at the last super moon of season, it was warm and the air was thick. As I stood in the moonlight I felt a little melancholy as I always do in September. Winding down the short summer, the beginning of 4th quarter, and a sinking feeling when I see Christmas already on the shelves in the stores.

This September I want to squeeze every last drop of sunshine and fun out it. This Indian Summer, right?  But I can’t deny the change. The leaves are falling. Flowers are fading. And the hummingbirds are bulking up, getting ready to fly out of here. They are on the feeders constantly. It’s been fun to watch as cats lay in wait by bird bath, hoping to get lucky.

Hummingbirds were sign for a client in Florida who was looking for a cremation urn for her mom. She’d been shopping online and was starting to get exasperated with the whole process. Her mother was the matriarch of the family and the client was trying to get four sisters to agree on a selection. Finally, she found this:

happy hummingbird cremation urn for ashes

She knew this was the perfect urn when she saw it. Her sisters agreed. Cool, calm blue, her mom’s favorite color with a hummingbird sipping nectar from the flowers to energize for a long flight. She was crazy about the tiny bird and loved to have coffee on her lanai in the mornings and watch them swarm her feeders.

Greet Each Day
That’s the theme for September. So instead of looking backward at the calendar, I’ll try to see (and seize) the new day and stop staring at the past. If we can help you move forward on your journey, we’re here.

Urn Garden Cremation Urns

Filed Under: Confessions, cremation, Featured Products Tagged With: hummingbird cremation urn, hummingbird urn for ashes, urns for sale

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