Ashes Jewellery

Ashes jewellery ranges from under £10 to several thousand pounds, depending on who makes it and how. Self-filled pieces from Amazon or eBay start at around £6.99 — base metal with a small screw-seal chamber you fill yourself, simple and affordable. The next tier, typically £30–£300, covers individuals or companies who add ashes to ready-made pieces using resin. Worth checking their refund and warranty terms carefully before ordering.

The next option which would cost £30 - £300 is to use an individual or company that does not make their own jewellery pieces, but charge you to add ashes to them using resin or in the same way as above. You can google for that type of service and you will quickly see the quality of the finished pieces that are possible for this type of price range. Just check what their refund and warranty policy is, if anything at all. Typically these individuals will only have access to silver or sometimes 9k golds. You won't find them working in 18k golds or platinum. 

Then there are jewellers like me, who make every piece from scratch in their own workshop. That means I can work in 18ct gold and platinum, take on fully bespoke commissions, and recycle your existing jewellery into something new. Prices start from around £100 and reflect the materials and craftsmanship involved — not a mark-up on a mass-produced blank.

Turning cremation ashes into a diamond typically costs between £1,000 and £10,000. However, I’d urge real caution here — there is growing evidence that several companies offering this service are not being transparent with their customers. Multiple independent studies have concluded that it is not possible to recover enough carbon from cremated remains alone to make a diamond, with one company admitting on their own website that the majority of carbon used comes from an external source, not the ashes themselves.

I can’t endorse or recommend any company offering ashes-into-diamonds.

My personal test: if I had a machine capable of turning someone’s loved one’s ashes into a diamond, I’d put it in a glass room, offer tours, and stream it live. What you’ll find instead is that the machines are always in undisclosed locations you can’t visit. Make of that what you will. Buyer beware.

Just a teaspoon’s worth — and in practice, even less. A small pinch of ash is all that’s needed for a single piece, so one teaspoon could comfortably produce a dozen items. You’ll never need to send more than that, and every grain of unused ash is returned to you with your finished piece.

Just a teaspoons' worth of ash is required. Actually only a pinch is required to make most rings, so a teaspoon's worth of ash is more than enough.  All unused ash is returned with your commission. 

Pet cremation ashes work in exactly the same way as human ashes — they’re chemically the same material, just varying in volume depending on the size of the animal. Whether you’ve lost a horse, a dog, a cat, or something smaller, the ashes can be used in any of my standard techniques: fused into metal, set in resin, suspended in glass, or incorporated into a gemstone.For most people, a pet is every bit as much a member of the family as anyone else, and I treat every commission with the same care. Browse the full range of pet ashes jewellery to find the right piece.

The jewellery itself is not affected by plain water, however it is best to remove the jewellery when swimming or showering. The sea has a degree of salt in it, which can affect silver jewellery. Swimming pools and jacuzzis have chemicals added that can affect 925 sterling silver and make it tarnish. When bathing, you may use a beauty product, shampoo or suchlike that might tarnish silver or chemically damage the resin in cremation ash jewellery. So whilst water itself is OK, it is the chemicals in the water that could damage your jewellery. 

Yes — I can incorporate hair into most pieces using the same techniques as cremation ashes. Hair can be set in resin, fused into a glass element, or sealed within a void in the metal, depending on the design you choose. It works particularly well in pendants and rings, and many people choose to combine a small amount of hair with ashes in a single piece.If you’d like to discuss a hair jewellery commission specifically, book a free consultation and we can talk through which technique would suit your chosen design best.

Absolutely — and more people do than you might think. There’s no rule, no etiquette, and no wrong answer when it comes to how you carry someone with you. If wearing a piece of ashes jewellery brings you comfort, that’s reason enough.

From a practical standpoint, pieces made in precious metals and set correctly will stand up to daily wear. I’d just suggest removing your piece before swimming or showering (more on that above), and storing it carefully when not being worn. Beyond that, wear it as often as you like.