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.

Keepsake Urn vs Full-Size Urn: What’s the Difference (Sizes, Uses, and How to Choose)

Keepsake Urn vs Full-Size Urn: What’s the Difference (Sizes, Uses, and How to Choose)

When you’re holding the phone after “the cremation is complete,” the questions that follow can feel surprisingly practical—almost jarringly so. Where will the ashes rest? Who will want to be...

Best Urn Materials: Stainless Steel vs Wood vs Ceramic (Durability, Display, Burial & Travel)

Best Urn Materials: Stainless Steel vs Wood vs Ceramic (Durability, Display, Burial & Travel)

When a family begins looking at cremation urns for ashes, the first questions often sound practical—“Will it last?” “Will it look right at home?” “Can we bury it later?”—but they...

Pet Urn Size Chart by Weight: Dogs (with Breed Examples) & When to Size Up

Pet Urn Size Chart by Weight: Dogs (with Breed Examples) & When to Size Up

There’s a moment many families remember with surprising clarity: the day you bring your dog’s cremated remains home. It can feel quietly grounding to have them back with you, and...

Can You Cremate Two Pets Together? Options, Ethics, Costs & Provider Policies

Can You Cremate Two Pets Together? Options, Ethics, Costs & Provider Policies

If you are asking can you cremate two pets together, you are usually not asking out of curiosity. You are asking because love and grief are arriving at the same...

What Happens in Communal Pet Cremation? Where the Shared Ashes Typically Go (and What to Ask)

What Happens in Communal Pet Cremation? Where the Shared Ashes Typically Go (and What to Ask)

When a pet dies, grief often arrives first as a feeling, and only later as a set of decisions you never wanted to make. You may be choosing aftercare at...

Keepsake Urns Explained: What They Are, How Big They Are, and When Families Choose Them

Keepsake Urns Explained: What They Are, How Big They Are, and When Families Choose Them

Most families don’t start out knowing they’ll need a second urn. They begin with one practical question—what happens after cremation?—and then, a little later, another: what do we do with...

Pet Aftercare for Apartment Dwellers: Memorial Options Without a Yard (Urns, Jewelry & Rituals)

Pet Aftercare for Apartment Dwellers: Memorial Options Without a Yard (Urns, Jewelry & Rituals)

When you lose a pet in an apartment, grief can feel oddly boxed in. There’s no backyard to walk out into. No familiar “place” to return them to. Maybe you...

When You Have Multiple Pets: How to Help the Surviving Pet Adjust After a Death

When You Have Multiple Pets: How to Help the Surviving Pet Adjust After a Death

In a multi-pet home, grief rarely arrives as a single event. It arrives as a shift in the whole household ecosystem. The quiet where a familiar presence used to be...

Mailing Pet Ashes (USPS 2026): Packaging Rules, Label 139, Costs & What to Expect

Mailing Pet Ashes (USPS 2026): Packaging Rules, Label 139, Costs & What to Expect

If you are reading this, you are probably holding something that feels heavier than it looks: a small container of cremated remains, and a decision you did not ask to...

Sympathy Gift Etiquette: What to Send, When to Send It, and What Actually Helps

Sympathy Gift Etiquette: What to Send, When to Send It, and What Actually Helps

When someone you care about loses a loved one, the first instinct is often urgency: Do something. Say something. Send something. And yet grief has a way of making ordinary...

Chain of Custody in Pet Aftercare: Tags, Logs, Tracking & Transparency (What to Ask For)

Chain of Custody in Pet Aftercare: Tags, Logs, Tracking & Transparency (What to Ask For)

When you lose a pet, you’re often asked to make decisions while you’re still in shock. You may feel steady enough to choose a service type, sign a form, and...

Memorial Necklaces Explained: Types of Memorial Jewelry and How to Choose the Right One

Memorial Necklaces Explained: Types of Memorial Jewelry and How to Choose the Right One

There’s a moment many families recognize after a cremation—sometimes days later, sometimes months—when the immediate logistics quiet down and a different question rises up: What do we want to carry...

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

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)...

Wyoming Pet Cremation Guide: Laws, Costs & Options

Wyoming Pet Cremation Guide: Laws, Costs & Options

Updated December 27, 2025 for 2026. Pet Cremation Overview in Wyoming Losing a pet is never easy, and making decisions about aftercare can feel overwhelming. This guide explains your options...

Wisconsin Pet Cremation Guide: Laws, Costs & Options

Wisconsin Pet Cremation Guide: Laws, Costs & Options

Updated December 27, 2025 for 2026. Losing a pet is never easy, and making decisions about cremation can feel overwhelming. This guide explains pet cremation in Wisconsin in clear, compassionate...

What Metals Are Cremation Jewelry Made Of? Stainless Steel vs Sterling Silver vs Gold

What Metals Are Cremation Jewelry Made Of? Stainless Steel vs Sterling Silver vs Gold

There’s a particular kind of quiet that follows cremation. The arrangements are done, the calls slow down, and then you’re left with decisions that don’t feel “urgent” in the paperwork...