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.

Cremation Urn Alternatives: 36 Creative Ideas (Including DIY Wooden Urns) - Funeral.com, Inc.

Cremation Urn Alternatives: 36 Creative Ideas (Including DIY Wooden Urns)

Not everyone wants a traditional urn on the mantle. Sometimes that’s an aesthetic choice, and sometimes it’s emotional: a formal vessel can feel too final when your heart is still...

Urn vs Vase: What’s the Difference—and How Urn Vases Work for Flower Tributes and Ashes - Funeral.com, Inc.

Urn vs Vase: What’s the Difference—and How Urn Vases Work for Flower Tributes and Ashes

If you’ve been searching urn vs vase, you’re probably noticing something that confuses a lot of families: many cremation vessels look like classic decorative vases, and some are even described...

Memorial Candle Lighting Ceremonies: Timing, Scripts, and Easy Ideas for Any Service - Funeral.com, Inc.

Memorial Candle Lighting Ceremonies: Timing, Scripts, and Easy Ideas for Any Service

A memorial candle lighting ceremony is one of the simplest ways to bring warmth and structure into a day that can otherwise feel overwhelming. It doesn’t require a stage, a...

Yahrzeit Candle Guide: When to Light, How Long It Burns, and What to Do for Yizkor - Funeral.com, Inc.

Yahrzeit Candle Guide: When to Light, How Long It Burns, and What to Do for Yizkor

A yahrzeit candle is one of the most familiar and steady practices in Jewish mourning because it asks very little of you, yet it holds a lot. You light a...

Why Do People Light Candles for the Deceased? Meaning, Comfort, and a Simple At-Home Practice - Funeral.com, Inc.

Why Do People Light Candles for the Deceased? Meaning, Comfort, and a Simple At-Home Practice

People usually start searching why do people light candles for the deceased at a very specific moment: the house is quiet, the day is heavy, and you want to do...

Memorial Candle Etiquette: When and How to Use Candles at Funerals, Memorials, and Celebrations of Life - Funeral.com, Inc.

Memorial Candle Etiquette: When and How to Use Candles at Funerals, Memorials, and Celebrations of Life

A memorial candle can feel like one of the gentlest parts of saying goodbye. It does not demand the right words. It does not ask anyone to be “okay.” It...

Butterflies and Grief: What They Symbolize and Why Monarchs Appear in Remembrance Traditions - Funeral.com, Inc.

Butterflies and Grief: What They Symbolize and Why Monarchs Appear in Remembrance Traditions

Some symbols arrive softly. You’re walking to the mailbox, standing in a parking lot, or sitting on a porch where everything suddenly feels too quiet—and a butterfly drifts past as...

Does Cremation Happen Before or After the Funeral? Timeline Options Explained - Funeral.com, Inc.

Does Cremation Happen Before or After the Funeral? Timeline Options Explained

One of the first questions families ask—sometimes quietly, sometimes in the middle of a dozen urgent decisions—is whether cremation happens before the funeral or after it. It’s a simple question...

Memorial Quotes & Inscription Ideas for Urns, Headstones, and Plaques - Funeral.com, Inc.

Memorial Quotes & Inscription Ideas for Urns, Headstones, and Plaques

In the middle of grief, words can feel both urgent and impossible. You may be choosing a line for an urn engraving, a headstone, or a small plaque—while your mind...

Memorials and Monuments Around the World: Famous Sites, Symbolism, and How They’re Designed - Funeral.com, Inc.

Memorials and Monuments Around the World: Famous Sites, Symbolism, and How They’re Designed

When families visit a place of remembrance—whether it’s a national mall, a hillside cemetery, or a quiet corner of a city—they’re rarely only “sightseeing.” They’re practicing something older and more...

Celebration of Life Quotes: Short, Uplifting Sayings for Programs, Speeches, and Tributes - Funeral.com, Inc.

Celebration of Life Quotes: Short, Uplifting Sayings for Programs, Speeches, and Tributes

In grief, you can know exactly who someone was and still feel stuck when you’re asked to “choose a few words.” A blank line on a program. A caption under...

What to Write on Facebook After Someone Dies: Condolence Posts That Are Respectful - Funeral.com, Inc.

What to Write on Facebook After Someone Dies: Condolence Posts That Are Respectful

Facebook is often where people learn about a death now—sometimes before a family has even had time to call everyone privately. That’s why posting feels delicate. You want to express...

How to Create a Memorial Garden: Small-Space Ideas, Plants, and Meaningful Touches - Funeral.com, Inc.

How to Create a Memorial Garden: Small-Space Ideas, Plants, and Meaningful Touches

A memorial garden is one of the gentlest ways to make space for grief without forcing it to perform. It doesn’t ask you to “move on.” It simply gives love...

How to Create a Memory Table That Doesn’t Feel Performative - Funeral.com, Inc.

How to Create a Memory Table That Doesn’t Feel Performative

A memory table can be one of the most comforting parts of a service, and also one of the parts families dread. The dread usually isn’t about photos or flowers....

The Cardinal’s Message in Grief: Meaning, Stories, and Sympathy Quotes You Can Share - Funeral.com, Inc.

The Cardinal’s Message in Grief: Meaning, Stories, and Sympathy Quotes You Can Share

Sometimes grief arrives like a wave. Other times it arrives like a small, bright flash at the edge of your vision—a red bird on a fence post, a cardinal in...

Shrines, Altars, and Memorial Spaces: From Home Tribute Corners to Famous Shrines - Funeral.com, Inc.

Shrines, Altars, and Memorial Spaces: From Home Tribute Corners to Famous Shrines

A memorial space can be as small as a photograph beside a candle on a bookshelf, or as vast as a pilgrimage site that millions of people travel to each...