Bespoke memorial jewellery for two pets

Recently Jill asked me if I could make her both a custom designed set of earrings and necklace pendant, incorporating the fur and ashes of her two dogs Bessie and Ebony that had sadly passed away.

Jill wanted a single drop pendant to contain the fur of her two dogs, contained inside separate chambers, and similarly she wanted the ashes from her two dogs contained inside separate chambers within drop earrings.

This is the design I made for her for the memorial pendant:

Memorial pendant for two pets fur

New Range of Keepsake Jewellery for Hair and Ashes

 I thought I would highlight my new range of keepsake jewellery that is suitable for both hair and ashes. These are sterling silver and resin pendants, and they are beautiful. The pendants have curved edges to them, offering protection from daily life but these edges also provide a frame to the enclosed hair or ashes from a loved one or pet.

The first example is a sterling silver circular keepsake pendant. This example pendant measures 17mm in diameter and contains both a lock of hair and a small quantity of ashes sealed within resin. The pendant would be suitable for just a lock of hair, sample of ashes or a combination of both.

Silver circular pendant for hair or ashes

The second example is a sterling silver oval keepsake pendant. This example pendant measures 26mm x 13mm (other sizes available) and can again be used to display hair, ashes, or a combination of both.

Silver oval keepsake pendant for hair or ashes

The third example is a  sterling silver heart shaped keepsake pendant. This example measures 21m m x 18mm. Other items can be added to the pendants such as small flowers, colours, and initials.

Silver heart memorial pendant for ashes or hair

This new range of sterling silver keepsake jewellery is also available in teardrop and rectangular shapes. All pendants can be used for preserving either hair, ashes, or a combination of both. With all these pendants, the settings can be left clear or coloured to any colour of your choosing.

Many thanks for reading!

Mick

Irish and Celtic Memorial Jewellery

With St Patrick's Day just two weeks away, I was inspired to show off some of the Irish and Celtic themed memorial jewellery that I have previously made for people. I am quite often asked by customers from Ireland to incorporate Irish themes into the jewellery that I make from them, including colours and symbolic objects.

The first example below includes three bracelet charms containing cremated ashes. The three heart shaped bracelet charms are coloured green, white and orange to represent the Irish flag or tricolour.

Memorial charms for ashes in the colours of the Irish Flag

The second example is a lock of hair preserved inside a resin heart shaped pendant, with the addition of a glittery green Shamrock symbol.

Hair keepsake pendant with Shamrock

Continuing with the theme of Shamrocks, this is a real pressed Shamrock that was sent to me for preservation inside a resin paperweight.

Real pressed Shamrock paperweight

And finally, a pair of sterling silver Celtic style memorial earrings containing cremated ashes and the settings coloured green.

Celtic style earrings containing ashes

I hope that you have enjoyed looking at some of my Irish and Celtic themed memorial jewellery and that you all have a wonderful St Patrick's Day!

Mick

Jewellery for Ashes Ideas

I have been making memorial jewellery and other keepsakes containing cremated ashes for the last 10 years so I thought I would illustrate some of the options that I have available. I take pride in offering a fully personalised service when it comes to making the jewellery, however if you would like to see some previous examples, please visit my Jewellery for Ashes gallery of images.

Keepsake jewellery for cremated ashes

The resin jewellery and keepsakes for ashes have an advantage over glass jewellery because they can be further personalised with the addition of other objects. I can provide most items such as real forget me not flowers, however if the customer wishes to send their own sentimental items (for example photographs) to be included within the jewellery, that is fine too.

Resin Pendants for Ashes

The resin pendants for ashes can be made in many shapes and sizes; the pendants can be coloured, and other objects incorporated into the design (small flowers, silver lettering for names, dates etc). The resin pendants have a three dimensional appearance and really do look beautiful with the ashes suspended throughout.

Cremated ashes and forget me not flower resin heart pendant

Colourful keepsake pendant for ashes

Ashes and hearts keepsake jewellery

Sterling Silver Pendants for Ashes

As with my resin pendants for ashes, the sterling silver pendants can also be made in many shapes and sizes. These pendants however have an additional benefit; due to the silver backing to the pendants, I can also engrave names, dates and personalised messages onto the back of the pendant. The sterling silver pendants for ashes are generally smaller than my resin pendants. I can still incorporate small objects such as real forget me not flowers into the design, and the pendant settings can also be coloured.

Sterling silver cross shaped pendant for ashes

Sterling silver oblong shaped pendant for ashes

Sterling silver round pendant for ashes

Sterling silver round pendant for ashes and forget me not

Rings for Ashes

I currently make several different styles of rings for cremated ashes. The ring settings containing the ashes can be left clear or coloured to any colour; the rings are all sized to fit the correct finger size.

Sterling silver memorial ring for ashes

Sterling silver rings for ashes and locks of hair

Sterling silver ring for ashes (suitable for a male)

Bracelets for Ashes

My sterling silver bracelets for ashes are formed by linking sterling silver oval charms containing the ashes together. The sterling silver bracelets can be sized to suit and I can engrave the back of each charm with names, dates and messages. The bracelet charms can hold ashes, photographs, a lock of hair, small flowers etc.

Personalised sterling silver bracelets for ashes

Alternatively, any of my pendant shapes and designs detailed above can be supplied as hanging bracelet charms. The charms containing the ashes are all fitted with a silver jump ring that can be connected directly to a bracelet or alternatively I can also add a lobster clasp clip.

Hanging bracelet charms for ashes

Cufflinks for Ashes

The sterling silver cufflinks settings containing the cremated ashes can be coloured, left clear, and other objects included if required (small flowers, initials, hearts, stars etc).

Sterling silver cufflinks for cremated ashes

Earrings and Ear studs for Ashes

My resin pendant shapes can be supplied as drop earrings containing the cremated ashes and other objects such as real flowers.

Ashes and forget me not flower drop earrrings

Alternatively I can make several styles of sterling silver ear studs for ashes.

Sterling silver ear studs for ashes

Keyrings for Ashes

Any of my pendant shapes and designs illustrated above can be supplied as keyrings for ashes. The resin keyrings have an added benefit being double sided. The ashes and other objects can be encased within one side of the keyring and a photograph or personalised messaged displayed on the reverse side.

Colourful keyring for ashes

Personalised keyring for ashes

Paperweights for Ashes

My memorial paperweights containing ashes can be made as an alternative to a piece of jewellery. The paperweights can be made either domed or square and I can incorporate other objects such as flowers, photographs and personalised messages into the paperweights.

Domed paperweight for ashes

Custom made paperweight for ashes

Many thanks for reading this page containing ideas for jewellery containing ashes, if you have any questions or designs in mind, please contact me.

Celebrating 10 Years of Shpangle Jewellery

In 2019 I celebrate 10 years of making custom jewellery so I thought I would record the event and publish my highlights and favourite jewellery items from each year.

2009 - The Beginnings of Shpangle Jewellery

In 2005, after spending 20 years as a systems engineer I decided to make a positive change in my life and become a full time house husband and carer for our son. A few years later in 2009, our son was starting school and I contemplated starting a business.

I had always had an artistic side and wanted to develop this further; I was also interested in taking everyday objects and turning them into pieces of art and hence Shpangle Jewellery was born.

I decided to use resin as a medium for my jewellery and my first items of jewellery incorporated sweets and other small items such as fabric, flowers, confetti and even bubble-wrap. These were sold at local craft fairs and at my local market.

Resin pendant containing a Jelly Tot sweet

This was one of the first pendants I made, an orange jelly tot sweet and seed beads made into a resin pendant.

2010 - Name on Rice Jewellery

The previous year was mainly devoted to making and expanding my range of resin jewellery. I decided to expand this range into another form of jewellery and began to learn the art of rice writing – The writing of names onto grains of rice.

Name on rice jewellery

This saw my name on rice jewellery appear in a short film by Canon, showcasing their macro lenses.

2011 – Jewellery Incorporating Hair or Ashes

Throughout the last couple of years I had received many requests to incorporate sentimental items (flowers, photos and other small objects) into jewellery. However this year was the beginning of what I became reputable for; preserving hair from horses, pets and loved ones into items of keepsake jewellery.

Keepsake Jewellery for Hair

My lock of hair jewellery was featured later this year in a Daily Mail newspaper article and I was also interviewed by Radio 4 as part of their documentary about remembrance jewellery.

After many requests later this year, I expanded the range of jewellery for hair to also incorporate ashes.

Keepsake Jewellery for Ashes

Both the hair and ashes jewellery has become extremely important to me and I am extremely grateful for those people that have entrusted me with something so sentimental and important to them.

2012 - Custom Made Paperweights

My custom made paperweights were developed to accommodate the many requests I received for preserving larger items. The paperweights were also ideal for those people who wanted to display the sentimental item rather than having an item of jewellery.

Custom Made Paperweights

2013 - Magazine Article

In 2013 a lovely article about Shpangle Jewellery was featured within a magazine. The article appeared in the ‘Bunny Mad’ magazine and was part of a special feature about coping with pet loss.

Shpangle Jewellery Magazine Article

This article means so much to me; it was the first time that I had been featured in a magazine. To be chosen to be part of this subject made me realise even more how important my jewellery is to people.

2014 – Lovely Customer Feedback and Gifts

I always feel over the moon whenever I receive lovely customer feedback for my work and it is one of the main reasons that I make the items; knowing that I have made somebody happy is so important to me.

Customer Thank You Gifts

In 2014 I received through the post a gift of chocolates, wine and a thank you card for making an item of jewellery. So extremely thoughtful and I will never forget this act of kindness.

2015 - Hedgehog quills

From the numerous items of jewellery and paperweights that I made in 2015, I tried to think of one item that sticks out in my mind. A very difficult decision however it has to be this pendant containing hedgehog quills.

Hedgehog Quill Pendant

This was the first and only time that I have worked with hedgehog quills and incorporated them into a necklace.

2016 - Pandora Style Beads

After many hours of experimentation in 2016 I finally discovered a way of incorporating either hair or ashes into Pandora style beads. This became another popular way of preserving both hair and ashes into an item of jewellery.

Custom made Pandora style beads

2017 – Jewellery for Teeth

The year 2017 saw me produce my first pendant containing a tooth! After several years making jewellery for ashes, flowers, hair etc I am surprised that I have not done this sooner (i.e. keepsakes for a child’s first tooth, puppy tooth jewellery etc).

Jewellery containing a tooth

2018 - Rings

In 2018 I expanded the range of rings available for holding ashes and locks of hair. I now supply seven different styles of sterling silver rings for ashes/hair.

Custom made rings for hair or ashes

2019 – Sterling Silver Jewellery Range

This year has seen me release a new range of sterling silver pendants for ashes, hair and other keepsakes. I can now make the sterling silver pendants in most shapes, including hearts.

Sterling silver pendants for hair or ashes

More sterling silver pendant shapes will be released in 2020 and I look forward to the next 10 years of Shpangle Jewellery!

Mick

Keepsake Jewellery for Ashes Questionnaire

I was approached this week by a lady from Goldsmiths University of London who is doing a degree in Anthropology and Media. One of her courses at the moment is 'Anthropology and the Visual' and this year she has been asked to base her projects on the theme of 'The Body'. She has chosen to think about the boundaries and limitations of the body after death, focusing on the subject of creating something out of ashes.

Keepsake pendant for ashes

She was hoping that I could answer some questions concerning my Keepsake Jewellery for Ashes which she would be able to include in her report. I am always glad to help and share my experiences so here are the questions and my answers!

When did you first start offering this service of preserving ashes inside the jewellery?

I hadn’t thought of offering a service encapsulating ashes until someone rang me to ask if I could do it. It must have been a few years ago now, but when I was asked, I felt so honoured to have been approached in the first place, I couldn’t turn down the honour so I provided the service. It has been a big part of my work ever since.

Why did you choose to offer this service?

Preserving ashes is such a personal thing. It gives me a real sense of pride and humility knowing I have helped a family in some way help their grief at what is such a sad time for them. Knowing they have that small part of someone special with them gives me such a warm feeling, and the families are always so grateful for my help, it is humbling.

Memorial cufflinks for ashes

Have you noticed a rise in the amount of people interested and requesting this service?

Absolutely. I hadn’t realised what a popular service it would be, but I am happy that people feel they can come to me and ask. I treat every order as such a precious and personal thing. At the end of the day, you are being trusted with someone very special, so you want to make the family proud.

Do you think this way of preserving ashes is more personal than using the ashes to create, for example, a diamond?

I do actually. There are some very interesting ways of treating ashes, but I think preserving ashes this way is so unique and special, and it is often in ways that mean people can take their special momentum everywhere with them such as the pendants I offer.

Personalised keepsake jewellery for ashes

Do you think the jewellery you produce, and other similar (for example, making diamonds for rings out of ashes) help the grieving process, disallows people to truly ‘let go’ of their loved ones?

Grief is a delicate process. People deal with the loss of a loved one in many ways. A lot of the families I have worked with have been so happy that they have their special something and I really do think it helps the process of grieving. It’s not about letting go, it’s about remembering the good things, and often that’s what my jewellery evokes in people. That is something very special.

The idea of using ashes for jewellery (and other objects) is still arguably a taboo situation; do you think it will become more common over time?

I don’t think it is as taboo as people think. There used to be a time where I think most of us would have thought it was odd. A lot of people had ashes in containers from their loved ones on the mantle-piece. Now it is more commonplace to want to do more than just scatter ashes somewhere special. That is of course, a wonderful thing for those who want to do that, but I also think people don’t feel that it is strange to want to keep a part of someone with them. It feels very natural for a lot of people and I think it is a lovely way of just having something you treasure from someone you loved right there when you feel you need it.

Custom made paperweight for ashes

Any other comments or points you would like to add...

I always feel privileged to work with the people I do, and make my jewellery and keep sakes knowing the joy and happiness it will bring people. It’s always a personal thing for me, and I love that I can provide the service for people.

Mick