Cremation has overtaken burials as the go-to way to put a loved one to rest. Estimates suggest that 56% of people are cremated, and people have found a lot of interesting things that they can do with cremains.

If you have the cremains of a loved one and are interested in what you can do with them, the following are great options:

1. Scatter Them at the Deceased’s Favorite Locations

One of the most obvious and common things to do with a person’s cremains is to scatter them at the person’s favorite location. Some loved ones go the extra mile and travel the world with their loved one’s ashes.

You can scatter the person’s ashes in a variety of places:

• Parks
• Backyards
• Beaches
• Mountains

The laws on scattering ashes may vary from location to location, so be sure to check the legality of the final destination for your loved one’s ashes. If you want to really disperse the person’s ashes in a way that is completely unique, there are now options to shoot ashes into space.

Memorial experiences are being offered by a company called Celestis that will put your loved one’s ashes literally among the stars. But if you don’t want to go to this extent, there’s also the option of scattering them out of a plane.

2. Store Them on the Mantle

If you’re not quite ready to let go, there’s always the option of storing your loved one’s cremains in an urn on the mantle. We offer a variety of urns that are beautiful centerpieces and will remind you of your loved one every time you enter the room.

And this is also a popular option when you want your ashes to be mixed with the deceased and placed in a final location.

When spouses pass on, it’s not uncommon for the remaining spouse to ask their children or loved ones to spread their ashes out together. Of course, you can also hold on to the cremains and choose to do something with them later on in life if you wish.

3. Get a Tattoo with Their Ashes

Tattoos are permanent, and if you want to keep cremains close to you, there are tattoo artists that are using cremains in their works. These artists are hard to find, but they’ll mix the cremains with the ink for your tattoo.

If you want to memorialize someone, getting a tattoo in their memory and with their ashes is one of the best ways to do so.

You’ll need to talk with tattoo artists in your area to see if they’ll be willing to work on this unique memorial tattoo.

4. Turn Them into Cremation Jewelry

If a tattoo is a little too permanent, there is also cremation jewelry, which is a great way to keep your loved one close to you. There are a lot of options available, including:

• Pendants
• Beads
• Bracelets

We offer a wide range of cremation jewelry to pick from. The jewelry includes a hidden compartment where you’ll add your loved one’s ashes. From necklaces to bracelets and even pendants, we have options for everyone.

You can keep your loved one’s cremains in a butterfly pendant, in a heart or hundreds of other options.

5. Plant Them with a Biodegradable Urn

People are starting to think about the way that they’re buried and their final resting place’s impact on the environment. If you or a loved one are trying to find a way to lower your impact on the environment after death, biodegradable urns are a good option.

From seashells to sand dollars and even turtles, there are biodegradable urns that will allow your loved one's ashes to rapidly go back to earth.

And the pricing is similar or cheaper than a traditional urn.

Click here to see our selection of biodegradable urns.

6. Go Out with a Bang

Want to go out with a bang? Well, there are now companies that will add cremains into custom fireworks just for you. These fireworks offer an amazing display and the opportunity for the deceased to brighten up the sky one last time.

Heavenly Star Fireworks is one company offering this service (we’re in no way affiliated with the company) and allow you to:

• Choose colors
• Choose the fireworks used

There are displays that will go off for two or three minutes at a time while shooting your loved one’s ashes into the sky. Multiple options and price ranges are available, too.

7. Garden Burial

Sometimes, simple is best. Burying your loved one’s cremains in the garden is a nice send off if the person had a special attachment to the space. For example, if he or she spent a lot of time in the garden or built the home, burying in the garden may be a good choice.

But we do recommend biodegradable urns if you want to bury the cremains rather than scatter them.

There's also the option to turn the person’s remains into compost, although this is a little different than scattering their remains.

8. Plant Them with a Tree

Want to take the last option to an entirely different level? You can also plant the person’s cremains along with tree. The way this works is to plant a sapling along with a biodegradable urn.

You'll want to make sure that you do some prep work before choosing this option, including:

• Identifying the site where you want to plant the tree
• Examining the soil and ensuring that there’s ample drainage and sun
• Making sure to plant in the optimal season
• Verifying that the tree matches the hardiness zone that you live in

When someone has a strong attachment to their property and land, planting their cremains with a tree is a sendoff that can provide beauty for decades to come.

~~

Saying goodbye to a loved one and finding something to do with their cremains is always difficult. But the options above offer an opportunity to do something unique with the remains of a loved one or even options to choose from for your cremains.