OUR PROCESS
CONFIRMATION OF ORDER AND COLLECTION OF ASHES
When you have placed your order, you will receive an order confirmation email, detailing all about your pieces and containing your order number. If you have any questions, you can get in touch with our team. We will send an order collection pack, containing everything you need to return the ashes or hair to us, and a ring-sizer if you need one.
MAKING YOUR JEWELRY
As soon as your order is placed, we can start to work on your jewelry. 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
When we receive the ashes or hair in our UK studio, we will reach out via email to let you know they have arrived with us safely. If you have sent your ring size with your pack, we will also update this on your order.
HALLMARKING
Once your jewelry has been made, we send it (without the glass gemstone or ashes) to the UK 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
Whilst your jewelry 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 GEMSTONE & SEALING THE CHAMBER
As soon as we receive your hallmarked jewelry 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 jewelers 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 JEWELRY
At this stage, your cremation jewelry 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 jewelers can add the final, finishing touches to your order to ensure it is perfect, and then we are done making.
GLASS ART MEMORIAL 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 have 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 color and fire it 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
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
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 uses our decades of experience to approve this and we always prioritize careful quality over rushing the process.
CERTIFYING YOUR CREMATION JEWELRY 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
Once everything is ready, we carefully wrap each individual piece, assuring they are beautifully presented and set for delivery. We will then get in touch with your delivery and shipping details, so you know when to expect your order.