As we have discussed in previous blogs, traditional funerals are losing popularity and personalized funerals are on the rise. These personal funerals incorporate small, meaningful details into the funeral service, decorations, or even the burial itself in order to memorialize and encapsulate the memory of the deceased loved one. We have discussed some of these ways such as personalized caskets, cremation jewelry, firework displays, and much more. However, there are even more simple, creative ideas that a family could incorporate into a service in order to make it more meaningful and special for those who are mourning the loss of their loved one.
Nontraditional Floral Arrangements
Floral arrangements are a staple in any funeral service, but there are many alternate ways to display and use floral arrangements. Floral arrangements can be easily personalized, such as displaying the person’s favorite flower or birth month flower, or even using flowers that are the person’s favorite color. If the deceased person had a beautiful garden, plants taken from the garden can be arranged around the casket in a highly meaningful way. There are also many ways to use the floral arrangements after the funeral, such as giving flowers from an arrangement to each family member. Flowers from the funeral can also be dried and framed, made into bookmarks, integrated into scrapbooks, or even made into jewelry using clear jeweler’s clay. These simple, yet unique, ways to use floral arrangements make for a more meaningful experience.
Memory Boards/ Tables
The use of memory boards or tables is not necessarily a new idea, but it is still a wonderful way to memorialize a loved one at a funeral. The memory boards can have pictures of the person doing their favorite activity, quotes or sayings from the person, or even recipes of their favorite meals or desserts. The boards can sit on a table that also displays unique things about the person, such as arts and crafts, decorations, or even tools that they loved to use. The boards and tables can serve as a sweet reminder of things that made the person unique, or little quirks that other loved about them. These memory tables can be a location for people to write down their favorite things about the loved one or a memory that they have together. These things can be written in a blank book, on the back of the person’s recipes, or even on the inside covers of the person’s favorite books. The books or recipes can then be given to the family of the deceased person.
Memory Wreaths
Rather than ordering a wreath from the florist to display in front of the casket, the family can instead make their own wreath that captures the memory of the deceased person. This wreath can be made using real flowers from the person’s garden, or the wreaths can be made of other materials. Many memory wreaths are made of cloth that could be from the shirts the person wore, and then have other items incorporated into it, such as small decorations they had, jewelry/keychains they wore, or other small items of significance. These memory wreaths hold special meaning as they sit near the person’s casket and display the person’s mementos.
Themed Funerals
Similar to weddings, funerals can also have themes that make them more significant. If the person had a particular hobby or interest that had special meaning to them, the funeral can incorporate reminders of that interest. Examples of this is having pall bearers wear sports jerseys if the person was a sports fan, displays of albums and sheet music if the person loved music, fishing poles and tackle boxes if the person loved fishing, or even displays of their collections of figurines or small cars. The themes can even extend to having people wear the person’s favorite color to the service rather than traditional dark colors. If the person did not enjoy somber situations in life, guests can be asked to only wear bright, happy colors. These themes can help change the stereotype of a traditional funeral into a celebration of life that helps guests remember the wonderful things about the person that made them who they were.
Recycled Fabric
Another sweet way to capture the memory of the person is to take their old clothing, drapes, or even bedspreads, and turn them into things that helps capture the person’s memory. Old shirts or clothes can be taken and made into a quilt to display at the funeral. Guests can even be asked to write a memory on the individual squares of the quilt to create a meaningful keepsake for the family. The fabrics can also be sewn into stuffed animals that can be given to family members or even donated to charity. The Fabrics of Life is an organization that will take cloth and make it into things like stuffed animals, furniture pillows, or even Christmas ornaments.
There are many different ways to capture the life and memory of a loved one at a funeral service. Traditional, formal funerals are being replaced with unique celebrations of life that not only beautifully memorialize a loved one, but they also serve as a place of healing and comfort for those who are mourning the loss of a loved one. Small adjustments can be made to funerals services such as the decorations that are displayed, the floral arrangements that are used, and even ways that the guests are asked to participate in the funerals. These simple changes can have a large impact on the family and loved ones of the deceased person.
Blog Resources
https://www.funeralzone.co.uk/blog/creative-funeral-ideas
https://blog.funeralone.com/funeralone-products/life-tributes/personalized-funeral-ideas/
https://www.dignitymemorial.com/plan-funeral-cremation/funeral-ideas
https://www.loveliveson.com/100-best-celebration-of-life-ideas-2/