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The grief that losing a loved one can produce can be extremely difficult to deal with. During such difficult times, family, friends, and even work colleagues routinely offer their support in different ways. 

Some prefer offering their support by sending flowers and expressions of condolence, whereas others prefer offering gifts with comforting messages. While flowers may help cheer up those who have lost a loved one during a funeral, finding the right way to handle them after a funeral can be challenging.

The most common way many grieving families handle the flowers is by creating keepsakes. While keepsakes help to honor our loved ones, they also help in bringing closure.

Memorial keepsakes are a healthy way of expressing your grief creatively. Some keepsakes are not long-lasting, whereas others can be kept for a long time. It's up to you to decide whether you want to share these keepsakes with other people who were close to your loved one or not. However, given that you understand the pain that they may be going through, it would be sensible to share the keepsake with them to comfort them.

Crafting a Memorial Keepsake

Flowers are perishable. So, however you choose to create a keepsake, they should be dried and or pressed first. After this important step, you can start the process of making the keepsake. Below are creative keepsake ideas you can try.

Pressed and Dried Flower Phone Case

Smartphones are an essential part of our lives, and we carry them with us everywhere we go. Creating a protective phone cover out of the beautiful flowers given in love and support ensures that whenever you look at your phone, you see and feel the love people have towards you and your family.

Candle

Creating a memorial candle using the dried flowers is another thoughtful idea. While you are creating the candle, think back to the special times you shared with your loved one. After creating the candle, you can light it as a way of remembering your loved one in the coming days and months. However, it doesn't mean that when the candles melt, that you've stopped honoring them.

Potpourri

We tend to have good memories from our sense of smell. As such, while you are creating potpourri out of the leftover funeral flowers, remember to add your loved one's favorite scents like their perfume and oils so that the final scent makes you feel like they are present. 

Shadowbox

Shadow boxes are artistic and beautiful visual keepsakes. You can create them using dried funeral flowers and a favorite photo of your loved ones to add an emotional touch to the box. Shadow boxes are a remarkable way of honoring your loved one not only because of their beauty but also because of their durability. 

Bookmarks

If you are a book enthusiast or your loved one was, creating a memorial bookmark out of the dried flowers may be a sensible idea so that whenever you are reading, the bookmarks will make you feel like your loved one is there with you page by page.

Ornaments

Making memorial ornaments is another creative way of honoring our loved one's memory. Ornaments can be made from different materials, including flowers. Placing the ornaments on your loved one's favorite landmark like a tree is a way to honor their memory for a long time. You can also share the ornaments with family and friends as a way of preserving your loved one's memory.

Bracelets

A bracelet is a good way of honoring your loved one since you can take them everywhere you go. There are different ways of creating bracelets out of funeral flowers; by using resin or polymer clay.

Pressed Flower Initials

Pressing funeral flowers to create your loved one's name's initials is another wonderful way of honoring their memory. It also showcases the impact they created on our lives. The initials created by the funeral flowers are simple, beautiful yet a unique keepsake that you can display in your home. 

Pendant

The practice of wearing memorial jewelry is gaining popularity. This is extremely personal, but some whose loved one was cremated have had pendants made that contain a small portion of the ashes. However, since most people prefer a burial for their loved ones, dried funeral flowers can also be used to make your pendant. Whenever you want to remember your loved one, you can wear the pendant you created to honor them.

Coasters

Dried funeral flowers can be great materials for making wonderful coasters. Whenever you have guests, and they comment on the beauty of the coaster, you can tell them a short story about your loved one.

If you decide to repurpose the funeral flowers, these ideas are just a starting point. Nonetheless, there are other great ideas you can choose from to honor your loved one. Try to choose crafts that you can share with others so that they can help you to honor and remember your loved one.

If Making a Keepsake is Too Difficult

Some people find it difficult to bear the emotions of the loss and cannot create a keepsake. That's totally understandable. If this is the case with you or someone you are supporting, it is perfectly acceptable to keep the flowers in your home until they dry out and then keep a few of the dried flowers in a special place. They can also be given to friends, relatives, and colleagues to help through the grieving process.