Monthly Archives: April 2022

Keepsakes For Life Celebrations

When you have cremation services in Dallas, TX for a loved one, the options for what kind of service you are going to have after that is completely open. You are going to want to honor your loved one in some way, most likely, and some people appreciate life celebrations. They can look over their loved one’s life and celebrate it for the good times and what they meant to the family. Once that service is behind you, you might want some kind of keepsake to help your memorial continue. Here are some things you might consider getting.

Remembrance Jewelry

There are a variety of jewelry items that can help you remember your loved one in a special way. You can get cremation jewelry, for example, that allows you to place a piece of your loved one’s ashes inside the small urn that you can wear like a jewelry item. You could also get something like a locket where you can place your loved one’s picture. Or, get a charm for the charm bracelet you already have that is an angel with your loved one’s birthstone in it. You can decide what you like and what would honor your loved one and keep their memory alive in your heart.

Personalized Clothing

There are a number of clothing items that you can personalize and those things can help you to remember your loved one as well. You can get something in their favorite color and have their name or birthdate embroidered onto it. You can get a jacket for every family member with something embroidered as well. Personalizing clothing items gives you something you can wear and remember your loved one by at the same time.

Engraved Picture Frames

You will likely want to have your loved one’s photo in a frame somewhere in your house. Whether you hang it somewhere, place it by your bedside, or situate it near their urn if you keep their ashes, you could do so within an engraved picture frame. The frame could say their name, it could say ‘in loving memory,’ or something else of that sort.

Memorial Garden Stones

If you have a garden or landscaping area that you love, you may get a memorial stone for your loved one. You can get a nice stone that has a saying on it, has a butterfly on it, or even something customized that shares your loved one’s name and a poem your family member wrote for the life celebration. The possibilities are endless and every time you see the stone, you will think of your loved one.

Dried Flower Arrangements

If there are flowers at the life celebration after cremation services in Dallas, TX, you might want to keep some of those arrangements, dry them out, and display them in your home. It can help you to remember your loved one, but also the way you honored them in such a lovely, celebratory way. It can be a nice way to give your family something nice to look at in their memory.

Details Included In Life Celebrations

When you are planning a final service for a loved one after their Dallas cremation, you can do something somber that feels more like a funeral, or something that feels more light-hearted and celebratory. Life celebrations are very special and can help you to honor a life well-lived instead of dwelling on death. There are plenty of details that you might want to include in the service. Here are a few items to consider. Keep in mind that the cremation services in Dallas are there to help you with the planning when you are ready to move forward.

Consider Flowers Or Other Decorations

Depending on where you are having the service, you might want to have decorations or flowers of some kind. Happy flowers, like daisies, bright colors, and other such arrangements can be fitting for the celebration you want to have for your loved one. Depending on what you do for the event, you can also decorate. You might decorate like for a party, with streamers and balloons. OR you might cover tables with confetti and table cloths of a certain color. There are endless options.

Create A Pleasing Guest List

You are going to have to think about who you are going to want to invite to the celebration of life. You can go in several different directions. You might have something that is just for family and close friends. It can be nice to keep things small and intimate. Or, you can have something for extended family and friends. You can even open things up to the public so anyone who wants to join in on honoring your loved one’s life can do so. Consider your location, what you want for your family and your loved one, and what kind of budget you have to help you figure out what you’d like to do and whom you’d like to invite.

Decide On A Location For The Event

The type of service you want to have will help you figure out where you want to locate the event. Some people have intimate events, like a family meal, in a family home. Others have something large, like a concert in the park for the entire community. Once you know what you want to do, you can find a venue to suit it. Or, you can go the other way around and get a venue first and that can help you determine the other details if you know where you want to have the event right off the bat.

Organize Food And Activities

Many life celebrations have food and other activities included and you will have to organize that or appoint someone to do so. You might have snacks or even a full meal along with drinks. There might be games, dancing, or other activities included as well.

Use Music To Enhance The Mood

Music is also a big part of any service, especially a celebration of life. Include uplifting, light-hearted music that your loved one enjoyed and that your family will appreciate. That can make the Dallas cremation and the celebration that follows that much more special for everyone who is able to attend. Music can make the day memorable and bring up certain memories, too.

Elegant Memorials Take Planning

When you decide to have a memorial service with funeral homes in Dallas, TX after your loved one is cremated, or perhaps directly buried, it takes a lot of planning to get things lined up and into place. You are going to want to put even more thought into the process if you want things to have an elegant touch to them. Here are some of the planning details you will want to think through.

Choose The Proper Location

There are some locations that are going to feel more elegant than others. Perhaps you will want to book a ballroom for your loved one’s celebration, for example. The funeral home can also give you space and you can decorate in a fine manner that puts off that elegant feel, too. The location will make a big difference in the way the event feels, so you will want to book things that fit the ambiance you want for that event.

Create Classy Invitations, Programs, and So On

Not everyone creates invitations for a life celebration memorial, but you certainly can do so. You can make them classy and inviting so everyone knows what type of event they are going to attend. The look of those invitations is going to make a huge difference in the ambiance of the event as well. You can also create programs and other items for the service that will help you to dictate the feel of the service as well as the order of events. You might create a menu, for example, so everyone knows what you are serving, how many courses there are, and what they are in for.

Decorate In Sophisticated Manners

You probably won’t use streamers and balloons for a classy event, but you could use linens, candles, and other sophisticated decorations. Perhaps keep the lighting a little lower and more romantic and infuse other classic colors into the space. It can help to keep the event elegant in every way.

Have Family Wear Certain Attire

It may be a good idea to request your family to wear certain attire in order to keep the event classy. You might want dresses and suits, not for a funeral-type event, but rather for a classy affair, perhaps more like a wedding. The attire they are wearing will help them to inform the style of the event as well.

Celebrate The Life Well-Lived In An Honorable Manner

Once you have the event set up, you are going to want to celebrate your loved one’s life in an honorable manner. Perhaps you will play classical music or have live musicians. You can also have people speak about your loved one in a nice manner. There are plenty of options and the funeral homes in Dallas, TX can help you get the tone you want to be lined up at the right time. Since there’s no timeline on the process, you are able to do things whenever you want and that can help you to do things with less stress on your side.

Hiring A Celebration of Life Planner

There are many different things you can do for a loved one when you need to plan a final service. You will likely enlist the help of Dallas funeral homes so you can ensure your loved one has their needs covered. Once you decide on cremation with the funeral home, you might want to wait a bit to plan a life celebration. You can take your time with the process, let your family know what you are planning, and give them a warning as to when they are going to have to travel. IT can also allow you to get something really special together. Another thing you might consider with the process is to hire a life celebration planner. Here are a few benefits of that.

Have Someone Experienced On Your Side

Having a celebration of life planner on your side allows you to have someone experienced who can help you with the plans from start to finish. It’s nice to know that they have done this a number of times before. They know what you have to decide, what you need to put into place, and how things are going to operate. They can alleviate your fears and allow you to feel better about the things you are planning.

Cover Every Detail Needed

No planner is going to make decisions for you. Rather, once you make the choices you have to make, they are going to implement them for you and cover those details and needs. It’s nice to know that once you make decisions, you can hand them over to the professionals. You don’t have to worry that things aren’t going to come together or that things aren’t going to be done in time or correctly. Rather, you can hand things over and rest assured that things are going to line up perfectly, just as you want them to.

Think Of Things You Wouldn’t Have Otherwise

The planners know what others have done and they have a lot of ideas as well. They might suggest something that you hadn’t even thought of, like hanging out a memorial gift to the guests who attend the services. They have lots of ideas and that can help you to think up things that you wouldn’t have considered otherwise. You don’t have to take on any of those suggestions, but you might hear something that fits your service, your loved one, and your family as a whole.

Hand Off The Plans To Someone Else

Planning a celebration of life can be complicated when you have ideas and then have to put them into action. With a celebration of life planner, you can hand the ideas to someone else and let them get the details together. It’s much easier on you and simpler, overall.

Spend More Time With Your Family

Since you have someone helping with the planning implementation process, you can spend more time with your family, where you belong. Dallas funeral homes will tell you that you need your family support now more than ever. Being with family can help you create a new sense of normal as you move forward together, support each other through the grieving process, and honor your loved one.