Mike's Laser Etching & Sartin Memorials

  UPGRADES: Adding A Vase      

Even after walking through a cemetery or browsing images of completed monuments online, many of our clients don’t realize just how many customized options there really are when you purchase a monument. The specific type of “upgrades” available depends completed on the type of monument you are purchasing. However, one that applies to every monument we offer is  the vase. Whether you are purchasing a single flush marker or a large custom family monument, a vase can be added to the design and often helps to complete the look of the monument.

Should I Add a Vase?

When deciding whether or not you should add a vase to your monument, there are a few things you should ask yourself. The first and most important is: Am I allowed to add a vase? I have discussed the rules and restrictions that many cemeteries place on what can and cannot be used on plots within their cemetery. These restrictions may state that a vase is not permitted. Typically, you will find that cemeteries which only allow flush markers are the only ones which may have a problem with a vase being added to the marker. In most other cases, the cemetery will allow the vase, but may still have restrictions you will need to follow. Before going any further in the decision making process, you should first verify this information. Here at Mike’s Laser Etching/Sartin Memorials, we typically advise our clients to not only request a complete list of rules and regulations PRIOR to purchasing a plot in any cemetery, but to continue to request a completed list on a regular basis. This will ensure that you are aware of all restrictions, even new ones which may have been put into place after you purchased your plot.

Once you have checked to ensure that you are permitted to add a vase, you should then ask yourself: Am I going to use the vase? Do you currently drop flowers off at your loved one’s resting place? If not, would you if you had a vase to place them in? It is also important to remember that you can purchase artificial flowers to place in the vase if you are concerned about the vases being empty in the winter or if you cannot commit to visiting the cemetery often enough to keep fresh flowers and do not want the real flowers to wilt in the vase. The artificial flowers that are available now a days look so real that this is an option that many of our clients choose. Also keep in mind that there are vase options which will allow you to only use the vase when you choose to, storing it away when there are no flowers in it. Continue reading for more information on these options.

What Type of Vase Should I Choose?

Granite Vases

In general, there are two types of vases to choose from. The first, and the most common, is the Granite Vase. These vases come in a variety of shapes, sizes and colors and can be added to existing monuments. Clients will typically place either one or two vases, depending on the type of monument and the space available on the base. A granite vase is stationary and will collect rain water. In order to prevent the water from freezing, expanding and then cracking the vase, each granite vase has a small hole in the bottom back to allow the water to drain. However, because the hole is not at the very bottom, the vase will still hold enough water to keep cut flowers fresh for an extended period of time. Because a vase is not typically required by a cemetery, it is completely up to the individual client’s preference.

Something unique to the granite vases is the ability to add designs. From time to time, a client has a picture or lettering that they would really like to be included on the monument, but that just doesn’t fit with the layout. When this happens one option is to add the picture or lettering to the vase. As with any granite, the granite vases can be laser etched or sandblasted, depending upon the color. Below are two examples of clients who chose this option:

Metal Vases

In addition to the Granite Vase, we also offer Metal Vases. All of our metal vases are designed to “drop down” in to the monument when they are not being used, as shown below:

The plus side to this is that when the vase is not in use, you can flip it over and drop it down in the monument. The cemetery may have restrictions as to when the vase can be upright. As I mentioned earlier, it is always important to request a full list of their rules and regulations. As with the granite vases, metal vases are available in a variety of shapes and sizes. However, in addition to the typical colors, such as black, gray and pink, the metal vases are also available in colors such as green, red and gold. These colors allow for a bit of extra personalized touch. Unfortunately, it is not as simple to add the drop down vases to an existing monument as it is the granite vases, as a hole must be drilled in order for the vase to sit in the monument and drop down correctly. Therefore, we only recommend the metal vases for new monuments.

Just as the granite vases have the unique option of being able to laser etch or sandblast an image or lettering onto the vase, there is a way to use the metal vase to add a little personality to the monument. Typically, the vase is either on one or both sides of the monument, or in the case of a drop down vase, it is placed in the center or in one of the corners. Instead of choosing one of  these options, you can also choose to have the drop down vase placed on the top of the monument. This option is especially useful if the base does not have ample room to add a vase on one or either side of the upright die. A picture of one such monument is below:

For a full list and images of all of the vase options, please visit the Flower Vase Options page of our website at: http://mikeslaseretching.com/headstone_flower_vases.html

Contact us toll free at 877-836-0332 or by email at info@mlestones.com for additional inforamtion or to place your order!