You may already know that cremation services in West Seattle, WA are way less expensive than funeral and burial services, and they are. They take a lot of the products and services out of the picture that you just don’t need when you go with cremation instead of burial. However, just because cremation costs less doesn’t mean it is any less valuable. In fact, it is just as honorable and respectful as a traditional route.

They Are Less Expensive

Cremation doesn’t cost less because it is worth less. It costs less because you don’t have to have as much involved in the process. You don’t have to embalm your loved one. You don’t need a burial plot in the cemetery. You don’t have to buy a headstone. You don’t have to have a funeral, and the list goes on and on. Taking all of those things out means the process isn’t going to cost as much, but that doesn’t take any of the honor away from the procedure.

Services Can Be Added

Cremation services can still give you the closure and final goodbye you need because you can indeed add services to a general cremation. You can have whatever kind of memorial you want after the cremation process is complete. You can still honor your loved one in a unique way and gather your family to mourn for them, or even celebrate their life. That’s very valuable.

Ash Scatterings Are Possible

There are things you can do with cremation that you just can’t do with the traditional route. For example, you can place your loved one in a special location through an ash scattering ceremony. These ceremonies are often small, intimate, and very meaningful. You can place your loved one in a location they loved when they were around when you and that will give you a spot to visit when you want to think about them or even talk to them.

There Are Permanent Memorial Options

It’s also possible to give your loved one a permanent memorial, though you don’t have to buy a headstone for them because there is no cemetery plot. You can have a plaque put on a park bench or you can buy a brick in a walkway where they spent a lot of time. There are plenty of options to consider to honor your loved one in a permanent and meaningful manner.

When you are working on cremation services in West Seattle, WA, if you are even a little uncertain about the process, remember that it is just as honorable and respectful as a funeral service and that it brings a lot of value to the table itself. The professionals at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory encourage you to take your time in deciding as cremation is a permanent process that cannot be reversed. But it is a great choice that is used in about half of the cases today. Families can find nice ways to honor their loved one that are unique and special after cremation is complete.

One of the things to remember about cremation services in Bellevue, WA is that when you have your loved one cremated, you get to choose what kind of container they get for their remains after the cremation process is complete. Choosing a cremation package means they can automatically get a simple container from the funeral home, but you might want something more for them. There are a variety of urns on the market, many of which are unique, but there are other choices, too, that feel even more customized and unique. Here are a few to consider:

A Planter Pot

If your loved one had a green thumb, why not have their remains placed in a planter pot. You will think of them every time you see the pot and the plant that you grow in that pot will be all that much more special. New life will be growing out of their death and that can be meaningful to your whole family.

Wind Chimes

If you like the sound of the wind chimes in the breeze, it can feel right to you to have your loved one’s remains placed inside the chimes or in another part of the fixture. Your loved one is always present and blowing around in the wind on your porch, making beautiful music. Perhaps you spent a lot of time having chats with them out there and that’s fitting for you.

Hollowed Out Books

If your loved one always had their nose in a book, or if they had a favorite they adored, having a hollowed out book might be a nice way to keep their ashes safe and in a special location. You can place the book on a shelf with other books or in a special place of honor in your home. It’s a nice way to honor that person and keep them in a location that is unique and special.

Memorial Jewelry

Cremation jewelry is becoming more popular and it’s a nice way to keep your loved one as close as possible. You can get jewelry in many different materials and styles, but in general, they are usually pendant, heart, or cross shaped. You can put a little bit of your loved one’s remains in the jewelry and actually wear it to keep them close to your heart.

Stuffed Animals

If you have lost a child, or if your child has lost someone special to them, having remains placed in an urn within a stuffed animal can give you, or them, something to snuggle and hug when you want to think about that person.

There are lots of other options for unique urns and final resting containers for your loved one. You could place them in holiday ornaments to hang on the tree, within a musician instrument they adored, or even in a tackle box. The options are endless. After cremation services in Bellevue, WA, talk to the professionals at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory for even more choices and you can find something fitting for your loved one.

When you decide that you want to have cremation services in Tukwila, WA for a loved one, you will get a cremation package from the funeral home. That is really all you have to have for the process. The packages include everything you need. But the funeral home will also have plenty of product options in case you want something else outside of the package. Here are some of the product options you have that you can add to the package, if you so choose.

Urns

One of the most popular things you might want to add to the cremation package is an urn. While the package will include a simple container for your loved one’s remains, having an urn can make the process feel more special and customized. You can choose an urn of any kind and you can have it engraved, get a certain color or material, and other such things. There’s a wide range of options on price and style.

Scattering Tubes

If you know you want to scatter your loved one’s ashes, you can do so from an urn or a simple container from the funeral home. But the process is easier with a scattering tube, which is designed to help you with that scattering process. If you look at the options through the funeral home, it can make things simpler when you go about the scattering process.

Burial Vaults

If, instead, you have decided that you want to bury your loved one’s urn in a cemetery, you might want to get a burial vault to put around their urn to protect it. Some cemeteries even require these vaults so the grounds’ integrity is held up over time. This box will go around the urn in the ground.

Cremation Jewelry

There are some families that want to scatter some ashes, and keep some ashes. Cremation jewelry is a nice way to keep ashes as close to you as possible. The small urns on the jewelry pieces hold a little bit of ashes and they can be a real keepsake. They are also nice to share parts of your loved one with other family members.

Thumbies

If you want something special of your loved one to keep, you can have a thumbie made. This is a piece that includes a finger or thumb or even handprint of your loved one. It can become something really special that you pass down through generations to remember your loved one.

If you are organizing cremation services in Tukwila, WA for a loved one, it’s important to get the cremation package lined up first as that will take care of any needs they have. You also want to at least consider the other things you need for their services, or things you just want to add on for your own peace of mind. The professionals at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory have plenty of options for various products and you can also get these items from other vendors and we will still use them.

When you are trying to figure out what you want for your own cremation services in West Seattle, WA, or you have to plan for a loved one who has passed on, it’s important to budget your way through the planning process so you don’t end up with charges that are way above and beyond what you can afford. Here are some tips to help you figure out what you need to get, and how much you can spend on each thing.

Organize Items

There are several things that you are going to need for a memorial service and you might want to organize the items, separate them out, and decide how much of the budget goes to each. For example, if you want to have an urn for your loved one, you will want to have that as part of the budget. You might put food in the budget as well as chairs if you need to rent some, decorations, or other such things.

Describe What Is Needed

Putting ‘chairs’ or ‘an urn’ on the list of things you need to budget for is a start, but you need to know more about what you want in order to truly budget for it. One urn can cost very little while another costs a lot. What do you want in the urn? How many chairs do you need and what style do you want to rent? Describe the items you want and need to make it easier to find the right thing at a price point that works for your budget.

Figure Out Amount Necessary

It’s a good idea to take each thing you are going to need and figure out what a relatively reasonable budget is for that item. You don’t want to budget something way lower than you can get anything for. Look up some urns, chair rentals, food options, and so on and see what amounts are reasonable. Then, you can set a budget that will actually be worthwhile for your purposes.

Estimate Final Costs

Once you know the cost ranges, you can estimate what you need for each and set a budget. That will help you have a generic final cost range that will help you to gather the money you need, whether you have it in savings or you need to ask loved ones to help.

Figure Out Real Costs

As you choose items within each budget price range, you will build the final costs and figure out what you are going to end up with. Some things may cost at the top of the budget range you set for that item while other things might cost closer to the bottom of the range. You won’t have an exact number until everything is in place.

When you are ready for memorial services after cremation services in West Seattle, WA, the professionals at Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory are there to help you through the ideas and options, including the various prices that you need to figure out for your budget.

When you lose a loved one, it can be hard to decide on cremation services in Bellevue, WA on their behalf if you didn’t know what they would have wanted. But there are certain circumstances that might make you feel better about that option over a traditional burial. Here are a few to consider. 

Your Loved One Was Disfigured 

If your loved one was in an accident that left their body disfigured, you might not want to have an open casket at a funeral anyway. That can make you feel good about cremation as the better option. You don’t have to worry about the state of their body in any way. You can cremate them and remember them for the wonderful person they were before the accident. 

Your Loved One Suffered A Long Illness 

If your loved one’s body wasn’t very good to them in that they had a long illness, you might want to rid them of their body entirely by going with cremation. Their body was riddled with an illness and you want that illness to be completely eradicated through the cremation process. It can be a cathartic way for you to rid them of the illness and let them go in peace. 

You Want To Remember Your Loved One As They Were 

It is helpful for the closure process, for some people, to see their loved one in the casket. You can easily recognize that the person is gone and not coming back. It is also a chance to say a final goodbye. However, not everyone likes to see the person they loved in that state. They are never going to look exactly the same as when they were alive. If you want to remember them how they were during their life, cremation might feel like the better fit for you. Go ahead with cremation and you can place pictures of them in their prime around the service and remember them that way. 

Your Loved One Wanted Cremation 

Whether you want cremation for your loved one or not, if you know they preferred that as their final disposition method, it will make you feel good about using the option on their behalf. You want to make sure their needs are met and you want to go along with their final wishes. 

When you are trying to decide what kind of services to have for your loved one, cremation services in Bellevue, WA are an honorable, respectful choice to make. You might feel good about that option in certain circumstances and it might feel like the perfect fit for your loved one’s situation. At Columbia Funeral Home & Crematory, we aren’t going to make any decisions for you, but we will offer you idea and options until you make a choice for your family. Then, we will support your plans with compassion and carry them out however you see fit. We want you to be able to honor your loved one in the way you want.