How to Fill Your Cremation Jewelry

Cremation jewelry pieces are beautiful and tangible ways to remember a loved one who’s passed. These unique jewelry pieces are designed to hold a small portion of cremation ashes and by wearing them, a piece of your departed loved one is always with you. With cremation pendants, the most common cremation jewelry, your deceased beloved is close to your heart.

But what do you do once you have your cremation jewelry? In this article, we’ll go through how to put ashes in a necklace step by step.

Push Pause on Distractions

The first step in filling your cremation jewelry is to find a time where you won’t be distracted. So, for example, don’t do this while doing other chores or helping the kids with homework. Filling your cremation jewelry might be an emotional process, but you’re also dealing with human remains, so it’s essential to be careful. While this process is relatively straightforward, set yourself up for success, so you avoid spilling ash or damaging your jewelry. So lock up your curious pets, put your phone on do not disturb, and perhaps wait until the kids are in bed to start the process of filling your cremation jewelry.

Prepare Your Station

Clean off a large, flat surface to work on, such as a table or countertop. You must wipe away any crumbs or dirt so they don’t contaminate the cremation ashes or find their way into your jewelry.

Gather Your Supplies

1. A large, soft cloth.
2. The urn or container with cremated remains.
3. A spoon of any material.
4. Toothpicks.
5. Screwdriver or flat head screwdriver if the jewelry has screws.
6. Your cremation jewelry.
7. A small funnel or paper and tape.
8. Superglue.

Next, lay out the soft cloth on the clean surface and arrange the rest of your supplies in easy reach. Wash and dry your hands thoroughly.

Open Your Cremation Jewelry or Pendant

Lay your jewelry out on the soft cloth. Like any other piece of jewelry, cremation jewelry is delicate and needs to be treated with care. The soft cloth protects both your jewelry and the work surface if there are any sharp edges on the jewelry, like the prongs that hold a jewel in place. The cloth also makes for easy clean-up.

Next, open your jewelry. Cremation jewelry is secured in a variety of ways. Screw caps are common and need to be opened with a flat head screwdriver. However, a lot of cremation jewelry can be opened by hand, such as bail caps and corks. Put the screw or topper in a safe place.

Make Your Funnel 

If your jewelry came with a funnel, use that funnel and skip this step. Or, if you have a small funnel, that might work for your jewelry. If you don’t have a funnel, you can make one using a simple piece of paper. Depending on the size of your jewelry, cut out a shape that’s a little taller than a credit card. Next, roll a bottom corner diagonally towards the opposite corner of the paper. Once you have a loose cylinder, shape it into a funnel by inserting your pinky finger into the cylinder, and moving the top corner to make the bottom hole smaller. Use tape to secure the bottom corner of the paper. Here is a link to a video about making a funnel with paper. It’s for a large piece of paper, but the principles are the same. Small funnels can be purchased online or at kitchen supply stores.

How to Fill Cremation Jewelry 

Open your urn or the container holding your loved one’s ashes. Make sure the opening is as wide as possible if you have a plastic bag. Hold your jewelry gently but firmly with the opening facing up. Insert your funnel into the opening. Using your spoon, carefully scoop a small amount of ash and pour it into the funnel. Tap the funnel or shake it gently until the ash flows into your jewelry. You can also use a toothpick to push the ash through the funnel hole. Repeat until your cremation jewelry piece is full (or until you place the desired amount of ashes into the jewelry piece.

Insert the Top

If you fill your jewelry too full, you won’t be able to secure the lid. If that’s the case, gently shake out excess ash back into your urn or container. Do this until you can securely screw in the topper or press in the cork.

Secure the Top

Find your glue and toothpicks. Take out a toothpick and open your glue. Next, unscrew your topper about halfway, or remove your cork altogether. For screw tops, use the toothpick to apply about half a drop of glue around the threads. Screw close and use the soft cloth to wipe away any excess glue. For corks, apply about half a drop of glue around the middle of the cork, and reinsert. Wipe away any excess glue.

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