Creating a memorial or memory board is an important task when planning a funeral for a loved one, but something that not all of us will have had to do before.

A memory board -is usually between A4 and A1 in size and displayed at funeral services to act as a sentimental tribute to the departed. Many people opt to design their memorial board at the same time as creating funeral thank you cards or planning your order of service.

If this is something that is new to you, there are a few things to keep in mind during the design process:

● Design

The design usually follows the look and feel of the Order of Service, so they are in keeping with other and there is consistency.

● Message

Think about what you want to communicate with your memorial board. This will largely be determined by the tone and atmosphere of the funeral that you’re planning.

Funerals mean different things to different families. For some, it’s an opportunity to grieve together and to say their final goodbyes. For others, it’s more of a celebration of life, and a chance to toast their personality and spirit. The message that you want your memorial card to communicate is an important consideration, as it determines whether you should create a card that’s traditional and sentimental, or more cheeky and bold.

● Theme

A theme is a very effective way to communicate whatever message you decide you want your memorial card to communicate. And there’s a never ending list of options.

Classic themes for a memorial card are often related to nature – leaves, floral patterns, or butterflies, for example – and these themes can be very calming and comforting, highlighting the deceased’s closeness with the natural world. However, you may also like to choose a theme with a very personal meaning; perhaps relating to a particular passion or interest of the deceased, or maybe to a place that they loved to visit.

● Readability

Readability is a key consideration when creating a memorial board because it’s something that you want all mourners to be able to read reasonably quickly. This depends on where the memorial board is situated, it’s likely to begin at the entrance to the venue where the funeral is taking place, then a quick glance is all that most people will get. Before the ceremony takes place, it is usually moved to the front of the service facing the mourners. This means it needs to be read from a distance, so keeping any text to a minimum is key so that any text that is used, can be allowed the space to be made larger.

Many memorial cards feature a saying, a line or two of poetry, a special verse, or a personalised message. One important thing to think about is how longer blocks of text could look … especially for elderly friends and family who may struggle to read smaller fonts. If you do choose a longer verse, it is best to opt for a larger font size too, in order to ensure that the message can be read and understood from a distance.

This is even more important if you choose to have a smaller card, A4 or A3 which is sometimes placed on the coffin. Having lots of text will certinly not work and it will be difficult to read from afar.

● Accuracy

Memorial boards are intended to be displayed prominently, which means they’re seen by lots of people.

This means that it’s important to ensure they’re accurate. The period following a loss is often very busy, very difficult, and very emotionally draining, and it can be very easy to make errors. As memorial cards often include both the date of birth and date of death, it’s definitely worth taking a few minutes just to double – and triple – check that these dates are correct and that they accurately represent the life of your loved one.

Noami Trueman

Naomi Trueman is a writer and researcher working for Print-Print, her articles and guides offer great insight to often difficult to explain topics. If you would like get in touch with Naomi then please email her at info@print-print.co.uk .