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Considering Buying an Urn for ashes?
The loss of a loved one is one of the most profound events in life. Your world is changed forever.
In times of grief, we often seek something to hold onto – ways to keep the love and memories of those we’ve lost alive. For many, an urn becomes a meaningful symbol. Not just a keepsake for ashes, but a tangible reminder that allows you to hold on to the love that was – and still is.
At Memories to Keep®, we believe every memory is worth honoring with love and care. To us, an urn is not a standard product, but a deeply personal object. A tribute to life, to love, and to the unique bonds between people. That’s why we don’t produce mass-market items. Instead, we create urns that truly express something – about who someone was and what they meant to the people around them.
A way to offer you a tangible keepsake of your loved one’s memory and love.
Choosing the Right Urn: Take Your Time
There is no rush in choosing an urn. Selecting the right one that suits your loved one is an emotional decision. You don’t have to decide immediately after the cremation. In fact, taking your time is often best. In the days and weeks following the farewell, your grief settles in, and your heart may better sense what suits your loved one – and you.
Some people are immediately drawn to a specific design. Others want to explore options or choose together with family. Whatever you do, trust your feelings. Sometimes, a (mini) urn resonates in a way that’s hard to put into words. That feeling is often the right choice. “I had tears in my eyes when I saw it. Then I just knew.”
Want to know more about choosing or buying an urn? Or interested in engraving options? Feel free to contact us – we’re happy to help.
Or explore our products – made with care and respect, for a meaningful and loving tribute.
What Types of Urns Are There?
There is a wide variety of urns available. Different shapes and sizes for either a small amount of ashes or the full remains. It’s good to have options, so you can discover which (mini) urn speaks to you most.
Here are some common types:
Traditional Urns
Often vase-shaped, made from ceramic, metal, steel, or glass. These classic urns are timeless and chosen for their serene, elegant appearance.
Modern Urns
For those seeking a contemporary design. These may feature sleek lines or organic shapes and often serve as both artwork and meaningful memorial.
Mini Urns – Large Urns
How much ash you wish to keep is personal. Mini urns hold a small portion and are often used when ashes are divided among family members. Large urns are designed to hold all the ashes of a loved one.
Urns with Tealight Candles
These urns hold ashes while also offering the comfort of a lit candle – a warm light for someone dearly missed. A gentle ritual for difficult moments.
Biodegradable Urns
These urns are designed to naturally decompose and are suitable for burial in a natural setting – beneath a tree, in a field, or scattered on water. Symbolizing the circle of life, they combine farewell with a return to nature. Today, there are also biodegradable (mini) urns available as sustainable options.
Pet Urns
There are also (mini) urns for beloved pets, crafted from various materials. Because animals often play a huge role in our lives – and deserve a special place too.
Curious about our full collection of mini urns, small urns, tealight urns, or biodegradable options? Get inspired here.
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is an Urn?
An urn is a specially designed memorial object that holds the cremated remains of a person (or pet). After cremation, ashes are typically handed over by the crematorium in a temporary container, giving families time to find a unique and meaningful urn.
A (mini) urn serves two purposes: it provides a secure place to keep the ashes, and it creates a space for remembrance – a place to pause, reflect, and feel. For some, it's a daily moment of reflection. For others, it’s part of a memorial space, such as a home altar or garden tribute. Some people place their urns at home, others choose a columbarium, urn garden, or family grave.
However you choose, selecting an urn is an intimate and emotional process. What matters is that it feels right and honors your loved one’s memory.
An urn in the home: is that allowed?
What Should You Consider When Choosing an Urn?
Size / Capacity
Our urns come in various sizes, from 6 ml to 4 liters. An average adult’s ashes amount to 3–3.5 liters. Knowing how much you wish to keep helps guide your choice.
Style and Symbolism
Some prefer a traditional urn, while others are drawn to symbolic shapes like a heart, butterfly, tree of life, or a personalized engraving with a name, date, or quote. We offer engraving services – read more under “Buying a Unique Urn – Personalization.”
Our wooden urns offer deeper emotional comfort than traditional ones. Their organic forms and natural materials make them feel like luxury home accents – understated, beautiful, and easy to integrate into your living space.
Ash Placement
Think about what you want to do with the urn. Will it be placed at home, buried, or stored in a memorial wall? This can influence the material and design you choose.
Choosing a meaningful urn can be challenging, especially when you’re grieving. Here are a few emotional and practical aspects to consider:
Material
Urns can be made from wood, leather, wool felt, gold, silver, glass, or natural stone. The material affects whether it’s suitable for indoor or outdoor use. It also shapes the overall look and feel.
At Memories to Keep®, we consciously choose wood, leather, and wool felt – natural materials that offer warmth and life. Each tells its own story:
- Wood is a living material, full of character. The unique grain, texture, and color differences ensure no two urns are the same. Timeless, warm, and pure.
- Leather is strong yet soft. It gains beauty over time and adds depth and emotion – like a cherished leather item you carry for years.
- Wool felt has a soft, calming nature. It cushions, soothes, and invites touch. It symbolizes warmth and protection.
These materials make our urns feel approachable and comforting. They remove the heavy and distant feeling some associate with urns and replace it with softness and meaning.
Our Vision: Unique Urns with Meaning – by Memories to Keep®
At Memories to Keep®, we believe every memory deserves to be captured with love and care. An urn isn’t just a product – it’s a deeply personal object. A tribute to life, love, and connection.
Crafted with Skill and Care
Each urn we make is handcrafted – from raw material to refined piece. We slow down, feel, and shape with attention. No production line. Just craftsmanship.
From sanding the wood to cutting the leather and shaping the wool felt – every detail is handled with care and respect for the material. And you can feel that – in the way the wood lies smooth in your hand, or how the wool felt soothes with its softness.
High-Quality Memorials
Each urn is made with care and dedication. We know how important they are. Every step – design, shaping, finishing, and shipping – is done with precision. So when you receive your urn, you feel the love and care behind it.
An Urn That Feels Right – Inside and Out
When you hold a Memories to Keep® urn, you feel the difference. The thoughtfulness. The peace. The love it was made with. These urns don’t demand attention – they are quietly present, just like memories often are.
They’re made of natural materials that breathe, change over time, and bring softness to the rawness of grief. That’s what we aim to offer: a place of remembrance, crafted from materials that feel right – from the inside out.
"So you can pause each day for the one who’s no longer here – yet forever close."
Buying a Unique Urn – Personalization
More and more people choose a personal urn – something they can make uniquely their own. It adds even more meaning.
At Memories to Keep®, we offer engraving of names, dates, or meaningful text. All urns in our collection (except the biodegradable Cocoon) can be engraved.
The engraving is placed on the metal lid that seals the urn. This keeps the wooden body and design calm and refined, while giving the text its own subtle space.
Have questions or want to discuss options? Contact us – we’re happy to help.
