The Funeral.com Journal

Resources to help you create tributes as unique as the people (and pets) you love. Learn how engraving, photos, colors, and symbols add meaning; discover scattering rituals and at-home memorial ideas. We focus on the details that matter—because small choices can carry a lifetime of comfort.

Who Has the Right to Cremation Ashes? Custody, Next-of-Kin, and Disputes - Funeral.com, Inc.

Who Has the Right to Cremation Ashes? Custody, Next-of-Kin, and Disputes

Most families don’t expect conflict over ashes. They expect grief, paperwork, and a strange quiet when the phone stops ringing. Then someone asks, “So who gets the ashes?” and the...

Burying Cremation Ashes: Cemetery vs Backyard, Depth, Containers and Permits - Funeral.com, Inc.

Burying Cremation Ashes: Cemetery vs Backyard, Depth, Containers and Permits

After cremation, the world often gets quieter before it gets clearer. Phone calls slow down. The paperwork is mostly finished. And then you are left with a simple, heavy question:...

Cheapest Way to Be Cremated: Direct Cremation, Assistance Programs, and Cost-Saving Tips - Funeral.com, Inc.

Cheapest Way to Be Cremated: Direct Cremation, Assistance Programs, and Cost-Saving Tips

When someone dies, families often find themselves doing math through tears. The questions can feel blunt: What can we afford? What has to happen right away? What can wait? If...

Is It Legal to Scatter Ashes? U.S. Rules for Beaches, Parks, Private Land, and Burial at Sea - Funeral.com, Inc.

Is It Legal to Scatter Ashes? U.S. Rules for Beaches, Parks, Private Land, and Burial at Sea

When a family asks, “Is it legal to scatter ashes?” they’re usually asking something deeper, too: “Can we do this in a way that feels right, without getting it wrong?”...

Interment Words and Funeral Terminology: A Simple Glossary for Cremation and Burial Planning - Funeral.com, Inc.

Interment Words and Funeral Terminology: A Simple Glossary for Cremation and Burial Planning

If you’ve ever opened a cemetery contract or a funeral home price list and felt your brain go a little foggy, you’re not alone. Families often tell us the hardest...

Roadside Memorials: Meaning, Laws, and Safer Ways to Remember a Loved One - Funeral.com, Inc.

Roadside Memorials: Meaning, Laws, and Safer Ways to Remember a Loved One

There are losses that don’t stay neatly inside a home, a church, or a funeral chapel. Some losses live out in the world—in the exact place where a life changed...

Who Has the Legal Right to Cremation Ashes? Ownership, Uncollected Remains, and Common Disputes - Funeral.com, Inc.

Who Has the Legal Right to Cremation Ashes? Ownership, Uncollected Remains, and Common Disputes

When a family chooses cremation, there’s often a quiet assumption that the hard decisions are behind them. The arrangements are made. The paperwork is signed. The cremated remains are returned....

Scattering Ashes Ideas: Ceremonies, Etiquette, and U.S. Rules (Land, Water, and Air) - Funeral.com, Inc.

Scattering Ashes Ideas: Ceremonies, Etiquette, and U.S. Rules (Land, Water, and Air)

There is a particular moment many families describe after cremation: the paperwork is done, the phone stops ringing quite as much, and then a quiet question settles in—now what? The...

What Is IAOPCC Accreditation? A Plain-English Guide for Pet Families (and How to Verify It) - Funeral.com, Inc.

What Is IAOPCC Accreditation? A Plain-English Guide for Pet Families (and How to Verify It)

If you are reading this, there is a good chance you are carrying two things at once: love and responsibility. Love, because you have lost (or are about to lose)...

Flying With Ashes Checklist: TSA Screening, Airline Requirements, and What to Expect - Funeral.com, Inc.

Flying With Ashes Checklist: TSA Screening, Airline Requirements, and What to Expect

Airports have a way of turning even simple errands into something that feels high-stakes. When you’re traveling with a loved one’s ashes, the pressure can feel even heavier—not because you’re...

Pet Loss After Divorce or Breakup: Who Keeps the Ashes, Keepsakes, and What’s Fair - Funeral.com, Inc.

Pet Loss After Divorce or Breakup: Who Keeps the Ashes, Keepsakes, and What’s Fair

Pet loss can be heartbreaking on its own. When it happens during a divorce or breakup, grief can collide with conflict in a way that feels almost surreal: you are...

Headstone Requirements in U.S. Cemeteries: Size, Material & Installation Rules - Funeral.com, Inc.

Headstone Requirements in U.S. Cemeteries: Size, Material & Installation Rules

Most families don’t start this process thinking about paperwork. You start with a name you want to honor, a set of dates that still feel unreal, and a quiet desire...

Scattering Ashes in Parks, Forests, and on Hiking Trails: Permissions and Best Practices - Funeral.com, Inc.

Scattering Ashes in Parks, Forests, and on Hiking Trails: Permissions and Best Practices

Scattering the cremated remains of a loved one can be a deeply meaningful part of funeral planning, but it also raises important questions about legality, respect, and environmental stewardship. Whether...

Scattering Ashes at Sea: Laws, Safety, and Ceremony Ideas for Ocean Farewells - Funeral.com, Inc.

Scattering Ashes at Sea: Laws, Safety, and Ceremony Ideas for Ocean Farewells

For many families, an ocean farewell feels like the most honest kind of goodbye. The sea is vast, rhythmic, and steady. It holds memory without needing a marker. And when...

Cemetery Rules and Regulations 101: What Families Need to Know Before Buying a Plot or Headstone - Funeral.com, Inc.

Cemetery Rules and Regulations 101: What Families Need to Know Before Buying a Plot or Headstone

Most families don’t walk into a cemetery office expecting a lesson in contracts, property rights, landscaping policies, and concrete foundations. They walk in because someone they love has died, or...

Flying With Cremated Remains: TSA Rules, Airline Tips, and Travel-Friendly Urns - Funeral.com, Inc.

Flying With Cremated Remains: TSA Rules, Airline Tips, and Travel-Friendly Urns

Traveling with someone’s ashes can feel oddly heavy in a way that isn’t just physical. You’re carrying love, responsibility, and a plan you don’t want to mess up—while moving through...