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.

How Much Do Cremation Urns Cost in 2025? Price Ranges by Material & Where to Buy

How Much Do Cremation Urns Cost in 2025? Price Ranges by Material & Where to Buy

If you’re asking how much do urns cost 2025, you’re usually not looking for a “shopping answer.” You’re looking for stability. After a death, families make a lot of decisions...

Memorial Candle Etiquette: When to Light One, What to Say, and How to Set Up a Ceremony

Memorial Candle Etiquette: When to Light One, What to Say, and How to Set Up a Ceremony

There is a particular calm that comes with candlelight. In the middle of grief, when words feel too small or too complicated, a flame gives people something steady to look...

Casket vs Coffin Costs in 2025: Price Ranges, Materials, and Smart Ways to Save

Casket vs Coffin Costs in 2025: Price Ranges, Materials, and Smart Ways to Save

If you are comparing prices and feeling whiplash, you are not imagining it. In 2025, families can see one burial container priced like a major home appliance and another priced...

Why Do Casket Prices Vary So Much? What You’re Really Paying For

Why Do Casket Prices Vary So Much? What You’re Really Paying For

If you are sitting with a price list and thinking, why do casket prices vary this much, you are not being dramatic. Casket pricing can feel like a different universe—especially...

Keepsake Capacity by Item Type: How Much Ash Fits (and What It Really Means)

Keepsake Capacity by Item Type: How Much Ash Fits (and What It Really Means)

If you’ve ever tried to choose keepsake urns or cremation jewelry and felt stuck on “capacity,” you’re in the right place. Most families are not trying to measure grief with...

Urn vs. Vase: What’s the Difference (and What Is an Urn Vase for Flowers or Ashes?)

Urn vs. Vase: What’s the Difference (and What Is an Urn Vase for Flowers or Ashes?)

Families often assume there must be a clean, technical line between an urn and a vase. Then you start shopping or planning a memorial display and the language gets blurry...

Can You Open a Sealed Cremation Urn? Safe Ways to Check the Seal and What to Do If It’s Glued

Can You Open a Sealed Cremation Urn? Safe Ways to Check the Seal and What to Do If It’s Glued

It’s a surprisingly common moment: you are holding an urn that looks finished, settled, “done,” and yet you still have a practical need. Maybe you want to confirm the closure...

Meaningful Remembrance Gifts After a Loss: Memory Jars, Photo Albums, Tree Tributes, and Comforting Rituals

Meaningful Remembrance Gifts After a Loss: Memory Jars, Photo Albums, Tree Tributes, and Comforting Rituals

When someone you love is grieving, the impulse to help can feel urgent. You want to do something that reaches them, not just today, but in the weeks and months...

Candlelight Vigils and Remembrance Candles: Planning a Meaningful (and Safe) Tribute

Candlelight Vigils and Remembrance Candles: Planning a Meaningful (and Safe) Tribute

A candlelight vigil is one of those rare gatherings that can hold a lot of emotion without asking anyone to perform it. People arrive carrying their own version of grief,...

Dog Urn vs Cat Urn: What’s Actually Different (Sizing, Styles, Photo Urns, Figurines)

Dog Urn vs Cat Urn: What’s Actually Different (Sizing, Styles, Photo Urns, Figurines)

If you’re searching dog urn vs cat urn, you’re probably trying to answer a practical question while you’re grieving: do I need a different kind of urn depending on whether...

Death Anniversary Ideas: How to Plan a Meaningful Annual Memorial Service (Without It Feeling Overwhelming)

Death Anniversary Ideas: How to Plan a Meaningful Annual Memorial Service (Without It Feeling Overwhelming)

The death anniversary can show up as a simple date on the calendar and still feel like a wave. You may be steady for weeks, and then the week of...

Can You Bury Cremated Remains? Options for Cemeteries, Graveside Services, and Private Property

Can You Bury Cremated Remains? Options for Cemeteries, Graveside Services, and Private Property

When a family asks can you bury cremated remains, they’re usually holding two needs at once: the need for a clear, practical plan, and the need for a goodbye that feels...

57+ Meaningful Things to Do With Cremation Ashes (Keepsakes, Jewelry, Scattering, and More)

57+ Meaningful Things to Do With Cremation Ashes (Keepsakes, Jewelry, Scattering, and More)

After cremation, many families describe a strange quiet: the practical part is “done,” but the heart still wants somewhere for love to go. If you’re searching for what to do with...

Cardinal Sympathy Quotes: Comforting Words and Messages When a Loved One Dies

Cardinal Sympathy Quotes: Comforting Words and Messages When a Loved One Dies

Sometimes grief arrives with a quiet detail that feels too specific to be random: a flash of bright red at the window, a cardinal perched on the fence line, a...

Best Places to Keep or Scatter Cremains: Home Display, Columbariums, and Nature Options

Best Places to Keep or Scatter Cremains: Home Display, Columbariums, and Nature Options

There is a moment many families describe after a cremation that no one really prepares you for. The paperwork is signed. The phone calls slow down. The rush of decisions...

What Does Scattering Ashes Mean? Symbolism, Etiquette, and Ash-Scattering Ceremony Ideas

What Does Scattering Ashes Mean? Symbolism, Etiquette, and Ash-Scattering Ceremony Ideas

There is a moment many families describe after cremation: the practical steps are done, the paperwork is signed, and the world goes quiet again. The ashes are in a container—sometimes...