For many years I have been making little pots of memory, (mini) urns, altars and small memorial stones for at home or outside.
Time and again it is special and honorable to be able to contribute to the creation of a personal and special place for remembrance and / or commemoration.
Life, death and mourning itself are not static, which is why I like to give my work the opportunity to attach small additions of a moment or memory to it. ….. by means of a string, magnet, niche, and / or a beautiful handmade accessory from Anneke Bruin. You have probably already seen them… butterflies, leaves, a tiny picture frame, memory keeper or a souvenir jewel.
Living with nature and the seasons is a constant source of inspiration and comfort for me.
I make urns in different sizes.
The mini urns are for storing a little bit of the ashes, usually after scattering or for the ashes of very young children.
When I talk about urns, all the ashes of a grown-up loved one can be put in.
I have newly added the midi urn to my webshop because I am often asked to make a children’s urn or a smaller adult urn so that the ashes can be placed in a more modest urn after distribution, usually at home.
My altars very often also have a lockable inner space so that a part of the ashes can also be stored. Or other small memories that you don’t put in a cookie jar.
But an altar is not an urn.
My shrine provides space to disconnect from the everyday, is a place about life and inspiration, about love, consolation, nature, about commemoration and origins and about making something seemingly small big.
New is my larger altar where the pebble mini urn fits in the niche.
At the end of April 2021, the book “Funeral in your own hands” was published, written by Susanne Duijvenstein. She shows in a pleasantly written way in this book how you can design a funeral in a personal and sustainable way, in order to really connect with death and with life. One of my altars is pictured beautifully in it! Making a shrine to life is an ancient custom all over the world! And actually we often do it ourselves without even knowing it. My ceramics help you to design a special place like this! I make them standing, small and a bit bigger, or hanging on the wall. In my webshop you will see a selection and you are of course welcome to take a look in our shop to discuss options and wishes!
Do you also enjoy collecting all kinds of stones during walks? I always look for stones with white quartz lines. These are an inspiration for my pebble mini urns and together create a nice track of time.