OUR TRIED AND TESTED PROCESSES


Here at Ashes With Art we have developed our process across the last 30 years. We ensure that from the minute you choose your glass art memorial or cremation jewellery, you understand what happens next and feel safe in the knowledge that your piece is being created by experts who respect and understand the impact of a lost loved one within a relationship, family and community. Below is an overview of our processes.  You can see our processes in action by either visiting in person or watching our insights video.

CONFIRMATION OF ORDER AND COLLECTION OF ASHES

CONFIRMATION OF ORDER AND COLLECTION OF ASHES

When an order is placed, we will give you a call to confirm we have received it and answer any questions you may have. If you need an Order Pack or ring-sizer, we will send this out to you. The Order Pack will contain everything you need to return the ashes or hair back to us, including a Freepost returns envelope.

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MAKING YOUR JEWELLERY

MAKING YOUR JEWELLERY

As soon as your order is placed, we start work on your jewellery. All of our pieces are expertly handmade by our master craftsmen. We start the process by making your piece to the size, chosen design, and precious metal of your choice. When we receive the ashes or hair, we can continue work.

RECEIVING ASHES OR HAIR

RECEIVING ASHES OR HAIR

When we receive the ashes or hair here, we will send you an email to let you know. We will contact you on the email address you have used to place your order, so keep an eye on your inbox for updates.

HALLMARKING

HALLMARKING

Once your jewellery has been made, we send it (without the glass gemstone or ashes) to the Birmingham Assay Office, where it is officially hallmarked with our very own Ashes With Art makers mark and precious metal hallmark stamp.
MAKING THE CREMATION ASH GEMSTONE

MAKING THE CREMATION ASH GEMSTONE

Whilst your jewellery is being hallmarked, the glass specialist team will hand-craft your cremation ash gemstone. This is a highly skilled process and takes years of learning to perfect. Each stone is shaped, hardened, and polished. Each ashes gemstone is unique and created independently in our dedicated work area.
SETTING ASHES GEMSTONES AND SEALING CHAMBERS

SETTING ASHES GEMSTONES AND SEALING CHAMBERS

As soon as we receive your hallmarked jewellery back from the Assay Office, we can begin setting the glass gemstone or sealing the secrets chamber. For all of our gemstones, each piece is set by hand using traditional techniques that have been used for hundreds of years. We don’t cut corners and use glues or resin, as using cheap processes like this could result in stones falling out.  For Secrets Collection pieces, we create the hidden chamber and place the ashes or hair within. Our expert jewellers laser-weld the chamber closed, ensuring the ashes or hair is safe within your piece. We mark this area with a small engraving called a chamber marker.

ENGRAVING YOUR CREMATION JEWELLERY

ENGRAVING YOUR CREMATION JEWELLERY

At this stage, your cremation jewellery is ready for engraving and any final details. We have two in-house engraving machines. We engrave rings on the inside of the band, pendants and cufflinks on the back, and beads on each side of the bead cap. When complete, our jewellers can add the final, finishing touches to your order to ensure it is perfect, and then we are done making.
GLASS ART MEMORIALS AND KEEPSAKES

GLASS ART MEMORIALS AND KEEPSAKES

With your ashes or hair safely received, we can start work to make your cremation glass art. For artwork, we hand-cut and arrange up to 200 individual pieces of glass. Once the design, cutting, and arrangement has taken place, your artwork is fired in our kilns for 3 days to ensure optimal quality and strength. For memorial glass keepsakes such as our Rainbow Bridges, Butterflies and Comfort Pebbles, we can also start work upon receiving the ashes. We hand-cut the glass in your chosen colour and fire in the kiln. When ready, we can detail the finishing touches of your piece, such as engraving for the Comfort Pebbles.

FINISHING YOUR GLASS ART MEMORIAL

FINISHING YOUR GLASS ART MEMORIAL

Once the glass art memorial is made, we then need to clean and polish elements of the piece. With this complete, we can then finish the artwork by mounting it on a frosted, toughened glass backing. For Keepsakes, we also add our finishing touches, whether that is tying the bow from your Christmas Decoration, or hand-sculpting the wire antennas for your butterflies into the perfect, pretty shape.
QUALITY CHECKING YOUR PIECE

QUALITY CHECKING YOUR PIECE

Each piece we make goes through a rigorous quality checking process to ensure it is perfectly finished to your specifications and of the very highest standards. Our team use our decades of experience to approve this and we always prioritise careful quality over rushing the process.
CERTIFYING YOUR CREMATION JEWELLERY OR GLASS ART MEMORIAL

CERTIFYING YOUR CREMATION JEWELLERY OR GLASS ART MEMORIAL

Once the quality checks are all complete, we certify your piece by including a certificate of authenticity within your order. This is our guarantee that the ashes or hair that have been provided are those within.  For those pieces containing diamonds over 0.2ct,  you will also have your certified IGI certificate detailing the incredible quality of your stone.

WRAPPING, PACKING, AND DELIVERY

WRAPPING, PACKING, AND DELIVERY

Once everything is ready, we carefully wrap each individual piece, assuring they are beautifully presented and set for collection or delivery. You can expect a phone call from us to arrange this. We use a signed-for courier service for delivery to ensure you receive your order on a day that suits you.

HOW TO PLACE AN ORDER