Crafting Your Unique Cremation Keepsake: Our In-House Process
At Encased Memories, we take pride in our meticulous, hands-on approach to creating each cremation keepsake. Our in-house glass studio is where the magic happens, transforming your Loved One's ashes into a beautiful, lasting memorial. Below, we invite you to explore the step-by-step journey of how we craft each unique piece.
The Art of Gathering: The Foundation of Your Cremation Keepsake:
Gathering is the crucial first step in the glassblowing process that creates your unique cremation keepsake. This intricate technique sets the stage for the entire creation:
Our skilled artisan begins by approaching a furnace blazing at an intense 2100 degrees Fahrenheit. With practiced precision, they dip a metal blowpipe into the furnace, where molten glass awaits. As the pipe makes contact with the liquid glass, the artisan begins a careful rotation, allowing the clear, molten material to adhere to the end of the pipe.
This initial collection of glass, known as the "gather," forms the first of four layers that will compose your cremation keepsake. It's a delicate dance of heat, timing, and skill, ensuring that the right amount of glass is collected to form the base of your memorial.
The gather serves as the canvas upon which your Loved One's memory will be eternally preserved, marking the beginning of a transformative journey from raw material to cherished keepsake.
Infusing Color: The Second Layer of Your Keepsake
With the initial gather of clear glass still glowing at temperatures exceeding 1500 degrees, our artisan moves swiftly to the next crucial step. The molten gather is carefully rolled in crushed colored glass, a material we call "frit." This process adds both color and texture to your keepsake.
Frit comes in a variety of sizes and a spectrum of colors, allowing for incredible versatility in design. As the scorching hot clear glass makes contact with the frit, it immediately begins to meld, creating a seamless fusion of color and transparency.
This application of frit forms the second layer of your cremation keepsake. It's this layer that will give your memorial its unique hue and character, setting the stage for the incorporation of your Loved One's ashes in the subsequent steps.
The choice of frit color and size is carefully considered to align with your selected design, ensuring that each keepsake is a unique reflection of the memory it encapsulates.
Incorporating Your Loved One: The Heart of the Keepsake
After the vibrant frit has been seamlessly melted into the clear glass base, our artisan moves to the most meaningful step in the process. The glass is carefully reheated to maintain its malleability, preparing it for the addition of your Loved One's ashes.
With reverence and precision, your Loved One's ashes are gently applied to the colored glass surface. This delicate process ensures that the ashes are evenly distributed, becoming an integral part of the keepsake.
Once the ashes are in place, the artisan gathers an additional layer of clear glass over the entire piece. This final layer serves a dual purpose: it permanently encases the ashes within the glass, and it creates a protective shield that will preserve your remembrance piece for generations to come.
This encasement process not only secures your Loved One's ashes but also creates a depth and dimension to the keepsake, with the ashes suspended in a beautiful, eternal embrace of color and light.
Shaping the Memorial: The Artisan's Expertise
With the final layer of clear glass enveloping your Loved One's ashes, our master glassblowers enter a critical phase of creation. Working swiftly while the glass remains malleable, they employ their years of experience and refined techniques to manipulate the molten material.
Using a combination of specialized tools and precise movements, our artisans carefully coax the glass into the desired shape. Whether it's a heart, a sphere, or another chosen form, each motion is deliberate and skilled. They rotate, stretch, and mold the glass with expert precision, ensuring that every curve and contour is perfectly formed.
This shaping process requires not only technical proficiency but also an artistic eye, as our glassblowers strive to create a balanced, harmonious form that will beautifully showcase the enclosed ashes. The result is a uniquely crafted cremation keepsake that honors your Loved One's memory in its very shape and structure.
Throughout this intricate process, our artisans maintain a deep respect for the precious cargo within, handling each piece with the care and reverence it deserves.
Releasing and Tempering: The Final Stages of Creation:
As the shaping process concludes, our artisans move to the delicate task of separating your memorial from the blowpipe. With practiced precision, they apply cold water to a specific point on the glass while delivering a gentle tap. This technique causes a clean break, freeing your keepsake from the blowpipe.
Immediately after separation, your memorial is carefully transferred to a specialized annealing oven. Set at a precise temperature of 915 degrees Fahrenheit, this oven plays a crucial role in the final stage of crafting your keepsake.
Over the next 24 hours, your memorial undergoes a meticulously controlled cooling process. The temperature gradually decreases, allowing the glass to cool evenly throughout. This slow cooling, known as annealing, is essential for removing any internal stress within the glass structure.
By eliminating these stresses, we ensure that your keepsake is not only beautiful but also durable and long-lasting. This patient process is the final step in creating a stable, resilient memorial that will preserve your Loved One's memory for years to come.
Perfecting Your Keepsake: The Final Touches
After your memorial has completed its 24-hour cooling journey, it enters the final stages of preparation. Our skilled artisans carefully remove the keepsake from the annealing oven, ready to apply the finishing touches that will bring out its full beauty.
Each piece undergoes a meticulous polishing process. Using specialized techniques, our craftsmen work to enhance the glass's natural luster, revealing the depth of color and the delicate interplay of light with your Loved One's ashes within.
Following polishing, every keepsake is subjected to a rigorous quality inspection. Our experts examine each piece in detail, ensuring it meets our exacting standards for clarity, form, and overall craftsmanship. This careful scrutiny guarantees that your memorial is nothing short of perfect.
Whether you've chosen to have your keepsake shipped or you're planning to collect it in person, you can rest assured that your Loved One's memorial has been crafted, polished, and prepared with the deepest respect and attention to detail, ready to become a cherished part of your home and heart.
