MEMORIALS
Choosing what type of memorial to buy can be a difficult and upsetting experience. In my (humblish!) opinion it is usually best to use a local memorial mason to supply and install your headstone or memorial stone. Sometimes the type of memorial or the type of stone used will be dictated by the churchyard or burial ground where the memorial is going to be installed. Even the style and finish of the inscription may be subject to regulations.
A local memorial mason will know all of the regulations of all the local graveyards and be able to advise you. Furthemore you can take a quiet walk around your local burial ground and see examples of his work.
If available, take a brochure and price list from your local mason with you. This visit to your local churchyard or cemetary will be a good opportunity to clarify in your mind the type of design you would prefer for your memorial.
CHOICE OF STONE:
Granite will be the stone of choice if you are looking for a memorial that will last hundreds of years. Normally available in absolute black, dark or light grey and red. The headstone can be polished or rustic finish, though the face of the stone will nearly always be polished. Although granite is a wonderful stone for withstanding the effects of time, the rather sombre colour may not be to everyone's taste.
The most widely used stone for memorials is probably white Carrara Marble. A beautiful marble that seems always to impart a sense of quality and dignity.
Although called white Carrara it is in fact a very pale grey with darker grey veining. It is a hard marble with good erosion resistant properties and will weather the decades gracefully.
If you would prefer the more traditional look of a stone rather than marble or granite, You may have the option of Yorkstone, Portland limestone or Nabresina, a very hard wearing Italian stone. Yorkstone is a darker buff coloured sandstone, Portland a light cream colour and Nabresina a darker cream colour. Any of these stones will give excellent service. They will "weather" with the passage of time but this is part of the charm of a very traditional headstone.
You may also be offered local stone or slate, this is always worth considering especially if you are from a local family.
THE INSCRIPTION:
Almost all lettering inscriptions today are machine cut.
The cost of hand cut lettering is just too prohibitive for most people. This means that the font style of lettering will be dictated by what fonts the memorial mason has available. He(or She!) will probably have a wide choice but will try to advise you, (for the best of reasons) towards one of the more traditional fonts.
I suggest before deciding that you take a wander around your local graveyard, take a look at the different fonts and see them in situe. When you see one you like take a photo or make notes of where the headstone is and see if your mason can replicate that font.
The commonest finish of lettering is "cut and painted". The usual colour is painted black, this works well on stone or marble but less well on granite. You may be offered gold or even silver paint but in my experience even the best metallic paints fade after a few years. Stick to black or white paint, or consider real gold leaf, it may be a bit more expensive but it will stay bright and smart for decades.
Another option is to have the lettering "lead filled". This is a very traditional finish on marble headstones and will give years of service, however it may be wise to consider the future maintanance issues. Over time the lead will "blow out", caused by frost, the lead can be replaced on site, but will incur costs. I suggest you discuss this with your mason.
A final option for lettering, and a personal favourite of mine is to have the inscription letters "raised in relief". With this method a background panel is normally cut back leaving the letters standing proud. Although this may be a bit more expensive than other methods, the advantage is that it eliminates most maintanance problems. There is no paint to peel, no lead to blow, and even after the letters have weathered and worn the inscription will still be perfectly ledgible. If you like this idea you will have to discuss design options with the memorial mason.
HAND CUT LETTERING:
As mentioned before, most headstone inscriptions are machine cut today, but if you want something just that bit more special, if you are contemplating a large boulder type memorial or even a one-off sculptured memorial you should opt for hand cut lettering. It will not be cheap, its a highly skilled job, arduous and time consuming. However you will have a unique and beautiful piece of craftsmanship to admire for decades to come.