Introduction

Headstones have been used to mark the death and burial of people since ancient times.  They have acted as a memorial and reminder to loved ones and the society in general of the life and importance of the deceased.  Initially, they were made of timber, but, with the passage of time, materials with greater longevity have been used.  Today, the most common materials used are granite, marble, stone, concrete and sometimes bronze.

Headstone Construction

Our composite, personalized headstones, made with passivated 316 marine grade stainless steel with a full inlay panel of laser etched granite have been designed to overcome the many problems experienced with current materials and yet maintain much of the appearance of traditional granite headstones.  The stainless steel surround of our headstones will not fall apart, crack or disintegrate with land movement or the passage of time as do current cemetery headstones.  Consequently, our headstones will not pose a structural safety hazard for cemeteries nor a maintenance headache for the families of the deceased.

The stainless steel surround is in the style of our light transmitting headstones with tapered sides and polished top.  The leading edges of the tapered sides are also polished.  The laser etched granite inlay is recessed in from the front and rear of the stainless steel surround and is fully supported on all edges by the stainless steel surround.  The granite inlay is visible from the front and rear of the headstone.

Headstone Base

This style of headstone is available in a number of shapes and sizes.  Headstones can be supplied with or without a black granite or stainless steel base.  The bases can be supplied with or without flower vase holders.

Cemetery Requirements

Various cemeteries have different requirements and limitations on the size of headstones that they allow to be installed on their property.  There is no reason why a Forever Shining stainless steel/granite composite headstone cannot be installed in any cemetery.  Before an order is placed for one of our headstones these issues should be discussed between the customer and the cemetery to ensure that the needs of all parties are satisfied.

Designing Your Headstone

Each customer has the opportunity to personalize the design and layout of their laser etched granite images on their headstone using the exclusive headstone design section of our web site.

Within this very simple design system, the customer selects their preferred headstone shape and size and then drafts their personalized inscription and uploads it onto their headstone design where it is sized and positioned appropriately by the customer.

The customer may then upload their own image or images onto the headstone design and or upload one or more images/art from the thousands of images in the Forever Shining web site library.  Once again, the customer sizes and positions the images to suit their design.

In addition to the laser etched images mentioned above, the customer may add one or more lifetime images, stainless steel motifs, ceramic photos. laser etched granite overlays and raised glass backed motifs to the design, provided space is available on the headstone.  The customer nominates the colour of the raised glass backed motifs.

When the customer is happy with the design of their headstone they may purchase that headstone after saving their design by clicking the “save” icon and following the prompts at the shopping cart.

The customer may determine the price of their design at any time during the design process by clicking the “Check Price” icon on the design screen.

Ordering Your Headstone

When you have finished your design, you may save the design to our server.  You will be asked whether you wish to upload some extra images and whether you wish to email your quotation to friends and relatives.

You may then purchase your design from our online store.  Full instructions are given about the ordering process.

Trademarks and Copyrights

If there is a trade mark or copyright associated with an image or logo that is required on a headstone, please ensure that written permission for us to reproduce the image or logo is provided by the owner of the trademark or copyright and that permission is supplied with the order.  The order will not be processed without that permission.

Remembrance

A beautiful stainless steel/granite headstone is a permanent and lasting memorial to your loved one and a place for you and others to visit in the cemetery to reflect on and remember the life of the deceased.