Category: Articles

An obituary is one of the many ways that you can honour a loved one after death. Importantly, it also allows those who the deceased has lost contact with to be made aware of their passing.

In the modern day, obituaries appear both in local papers and online. Today’s more experienced funeral directors are also adept at ensuring online obituaries are easily found by those known to the deceased. Social media may also be used to share an obituary at the appropriate time.

Obituary Essentials

Most obituaries are shorter than 50 words and may be as brief as 20 words.

A budget funeral service in Brisbane can take into consideration the expressed wishes of both the deceased and those who are mourning the passing of a life. An obituary is usually included in the funeral service cost.

The three most critical pieces of information in the obituary are:

1. Name of deceased
2. Date of passing
3. Funeral details, if applicable.

However, most obituaries will include other information.

Information about Loved Ones 

Our family is often our greatest legacy and funeral celebrations are as much for them as they are for us. Most obituaries will include information about loved ones left behind. This includes information about the spouse, children, parents and grandparents.

Where Donations Can Be Made 

When a loved one passes away, support is essential but even well-meaning gestures can sometimes be overwhelming. This is partially why families ask for donations to be made in lieu of giving flowers.

You may choose to donate to a cause that your loved one was passionate about, associations that assisted in their care, faith-based charities, or organisations that promote prevention and awareness for a specific illness.

Information about where donations can be made may be included in an obituary.

Life’s Work, Achievements and Interests 

For obituaries that are more than 200 words, the deceased’s life’s work, achievements, travels and even interests may be mentioned.

This option is most often used for prominent persons, but you may wish to explore it with your funeral director anyway. 

Keeping Funeral Costs Reasonable 

Obituaries are yet another way to honour, celebrate, mourn and remember a loved one. To plan and prepare for an affordable funeral in Brisbane, consider talking to a funeral director at Cremations Only.

Our team can assist you with an affordable funeral in Brisbane or Gold Coast and we can provide cheap funeral options and low cost caskets in various designs. Call us on 1300 311 747 to discuss or email us to learn more.

Eco-friendly and green funeral services are becoming increasingly popular. If cremation is part of your eco-friendly or green funeral plans, here are some cremation urns that may be ideal.

Shell Urns

You may have a desire to have a deep water or sea burial for your ashes. If this is the case, finding a suitable urn that is biodegradable and eco-friendly may be a bit tricky. You may want something that looks appealing for the seaside memorial service but will degrade properly to release your ashes. If this is the case, you may want to consider shell urns.

Shell urns are exactly what they sound like. They are shells that allow the ashes to be placed inside of a cavity in some way. Conch shells, clam shells and recycled materials shaped like shells are the most common shell urns. Each either become part of the underwater environment or break down slowly over time to release your ashes.

Tree and Planting Urns

If you want an option that allows your cremated remains to give back to Earth, then a tree or planting urn may be ideal. These urns are made of a recycled material similar to paper or thick cardboard. The urn is shaped in a capsule-like manner and contains some soil and a tree or plant seed. Your ashes are added to this capsule.

Once you have the capsule ready, you can plant the urn in a suitable location. Though some people will consider having their urn planted in a family area plot. If you decide to have the urn planted in a private area or a state forest, make sure you have the proper approval before the burial. The urn will degrade, releasing your ashes, and allowing the plant or tree to grow in place.

Sand Urns

Sand urns are made out of a sand material that is moulded to hold your ashes. The sand will slowly break down over time and become part of the Earth in the area you choose. These sand urns are usually used in wooded areas or near beaches and lakes. The natural erosion for rain and weather will break down the urn over time.

Something to keep in mind about sand urns is that they may degrade at different rates. For this reason, the area the urn is placed should be marked if it will be a memorial site for family members and loved ones to return to at later dates.

Small Memorial Stones

When you got a traditional cemetery, some of the more common sites are headstones or granite grave markers. These markers can actually be made in much smaller options that can be placed in the home. The stones are made in a similar way to traditional larger headstones. The memorial stones can sit on fireplace mantles, or as part of a memorial area in a home.

The stones may contain the date of birth, date of death, small inscription, and an image. The ashes are either part of the stone or can be placed in the back of the stone under a small hatch door. If the cremation will be an unattended cremation, the ashes can be sent to the company making the stone so that the stone is received as a finished memorial. This is easier emotionally for some families.

Keep in mind that there are certain rules and permissions that govern the burial and spreading of ashes in certain areas.

If you are uncertain of proper disposal of cremated ashes, urn placement or urns that may fit your green funeral plan, then contact Cremations Only. A representative can help you with pre-planning, urn options and pricing.

After a cremation, you can inter your loved one’s ashes in a columbarium, bury the ashes in a cemetery or keep the ashes. You can also opt to scatter the ashes. Here’s what you need to know about that option.

1. There Are Scatter Urns

If you decide to go forward with scattering, you may want to choose a scatter urn. This is a plastic container about the size of a tissue box. Because it’s only designed to hold the ashes temporarily, it is generally less sturdy but also less expensive than other types of urns. That may be something to consider if you’re trying to keep costs low.

2. There Is No Health Risk Associated With Handling Ashes

As long as a body has been cremated by a professional, the ashes are completely safe to handle. The cremation process involves very high temperatures that remove any potential germs or toxins. If you come into contact with the ashes during scattering, you can rest assured that you are safe.

3. Scattering Rules Vary From Place to Place

Before scattering ashes, it’s important to get permission. If you want to scatter ashes on private land, you need permission from the landowners, and for public land, you should contact the local council or other authorities. Unfortunately, without the right permission, you may face fines or other issues.

4. You Can Scatter at Sea Without a Permit

If you want to bury a body at sea, you need to get a permit, but you don’t need a permit to scatter ashes at sea. However, you shouldn’t just jump on a ferry and scatter ashes. You need permission from the operator of the vessel. You may even want to hire a vessel just for the purpose of scattering your loved one’s ashes.

5. You Can Combine a Memorial With Ashes Scattering

Some people opt to have a memorial service at their church or at the funeral home and then scatter the ashes separately. Others opt to combine the memorial with the scattering. Ultimately, you need to decide what works the best for you and your family.

One tradition that is growing in popularity is “beaching.” You and other loved ones spell out the name of the deceased in the sand. Then, you gently scatter the ashes into the sand and observe several moments of silence whilst the waves come in and gently wash away your loved one’s ashes. Rituals like that can be cathartic for many people.

6. It’s Important to Note the Wind Direction

Once you find a place to scatter your loved one’s ashes, it’s critical to work with the wind. Whether you are on land or at sea, look at which direction the wind is coming from, and make sure you attempt to scatter the ashes with the wind. If you throw the ashes into the wind, you will end up covered in them, which can be an unfortunate situation during an already difficult time.

7. There Are Other Ways to “Scatter” Ashes

Traditionally, when people think of scattering ashes, they think of scattering their loved one’s ashes at a beach, in the ocean or in a favourite forest, but those are not the only ways to scatter your loved one’s ashes.

You may want to “scatter” ashes by giving small vials of the ashes to all of the deceased person’s loved ones. They can either keep the ashes with them, turn them into jewellery, make them into tattoos or even scatter them on their own.

At Cremations Only, we focus exclusively on cremations, but we can also help you with setting up the memorial service and learning more about scattering. If you have lost a loved one, contact us today.

If you’re planning a memorial service for a loved one, there are a number of ways you can personalise the service. Whether you want a religious ceremony or a secular service, there are all kinds of options. Consider the following ideas.

1. Favourite Place

Funeral and memorial services are designed as a way to say goodbye to the deceased person but also to offer comfort to those who are still living. It can help to have the service at the deceased person’s favourite place. For some, that may be a chapel or a formal place of worship, but for others, it may be a park, a beach or another place in nature.

Note that you may need to get a permit to hold a large gathering in some places, but a funeral director may be able to help you with that.

2. Memory Table

A common feature at many funerals and memorial services now is a memory table. A memory table is simply a table with a display of items that represents your loved one. That may be photograph, a special collection or just items that make others think of your loved one. You can bring all the items, or you can ask others to bring items that are meaningful to them and their memories of the deceased.

3. Memorial Book

You may also want to put out a memorial book. This is much more than just a guest book. Rather, people who come to the funeral put their memories of the loved one in the book. After the service, the person who is closest to the deceased person takes this book home. Reading those memories can be a cathartic experience through the grief process.

In lieu of doing a book, you may want to consider a memory tree. That’s simply a potted stick or small tree on which guests can hang written memories. Some people are also doing rock memorials where guests write memories on rocks. Those can be taken home, scattered with the ashes, laid on a grave or anything else that feels meaningful to you.

4. Elements From Other Cultures

Is there a place in the world that the deceased person loved to travel to? Is there a place he or she always wanted to go or a culture that fascinated him or her? Then you may want to integrate elements from that culture’s death rituals into your memorial service.

For instance, the ancient Egyptians used to send off their loved ones with a passport of the dead. This was a stone or metal tablet with an etching of the deceased person’s likeness and some instructions for navigating the afterlife. The ancient Greeks are well known for sending a few coins for their loved ones to use in the afterlife. You can make similar facsimiles and put them in the casket with your loved one prior to cremation.

Similarly, you could embrace the South Korean traditional of funeral beads. That basically involves turning the cremains into beads. If you have the memorial service after the cremation, you could even pass the beads out to special loved ones. In other cases, you may want to release doves.

5. Favourite Foods

Finally, if you are having a wake before the memorial, a reception after the service or a similar type of gathering, you may want to serve your loved one’s favourite foods. That can be a nice way to honour them.

If you need help planning your service or cremation for your loved one, contact Cremations Only today. We can have a celebrant come to your home and help you plan a moving tribute for your loved one.

Although cremation is becoming a more popular option throughout Australia, many misconceptions still abound about this process. Whether you’re setting up your own pre-need or planning cremation for a loved one, we’re going to help you untangle some of those myths. Here’s a look at some of the most common misconceptions and an explanation of the truth behind them.

1. Myth: Cremations Mean No Visitations

If you opt for cremation, that doesn’t mean that you have to skip the visitation. You can arrange to have the body prepared and then transported to your place of worship for a ceremony, and cremation can take place after that.

Similarly, in many cases, it’s also possible to set up a visitation at the funeral home, and many funeral directors can also arrange a celebrant for you. Many grieving people find a visitation to be a soothing and cathartic way to gather together with friends and family to say goodbye to their loved ones.

2. Myth: You Don’t Need a Coffin

This claim can be true in some cases. If you opt for direct cremation, you don’t have to worry about buying a coffin. The body can be cremated in a simple box designed for that process.

However, many people opt for a visitation or for an open-casket service at their place of worship, and in those cases, it is necessary to purchase a coffin. Coffins come in a wide range of designs at a numerous price points. The more affordable options tend to be simple but stately. More expensive options can include everything from expensive hardwood exteriors to luxurious linings. If you like, you can even find unique coffins with designs such as nature scenes, flowers or even child-like themes.

3. Myth: Mortuary Preparation Is Not Necessary With Cremation

With unattended cremations, this idea is certainly true. There is no need to embalm or prepare the body. However, if there is a visitation planned, mortuary preparation is necessary.

That preparation can involve measures like cleaning and dressing the deceased to prepare them for viewing. In some cases, it may also include embalming.

4. Myth: All Urns Are the Same

Urns can be just as diverse as coffins, and it’s possible to choose an urn that perfectly represents your or your loved one’s unique personality. Urns can be glass, metal, ceramic or even cardboard. They can be very simple or extremely ornate.

You can choose urns for display and even choose to have them engraved or fitted with a memorial plaque. There are also companion urns designed to hold the ashes of two people as well as biodegradable urns and urns designed for scattering.

5. Myth: Cremains Can’t Be Buried

There are actually a wide range of ways that you can opt to deal with cremains. They can be kept or scattered, but it’s important to note that there are restrictions on scattering ashes in public areas.

If you want a permanent marker for yourself or your loved one, you can also opt to put the cremains in a columbarium, or you can buy a plot in a cemetery. Some cemeteries even offer smaller, less expensive plots for cremains in particular.

6. Myth: It’s Not Possible to Have a Memorial With Unattended Cremation

An unattended cremation is generally the least expensive option. It does not include a visitation, and no family or friends attend the cremation. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t have a memorial. Some grieving families choose to have a memorial later with the cremains.

To learn more about cremation or to arrange services for a loved one, contact us at Cremations Only online today or call our offices. We serve all areas of Brisbane and the Gold Coast, and we take calls 24-7.