A personalized memorial cross is a carved stoneware cross that carries a person’s name, their dates, and the words that meant the most to them. It hangs in the home where the family passes it every day, a quiet reminder of a life and the faith that held it.
At The Potter’s Hands Studio in Oxford, Mississippi, April Dupuis makes these crosses by hand as part of her memorial pottery. Each one is thrown, carved line by line and fired, and each is one of a kind.
Here is what goes onto a memorial cross, how the carving works, and how to begin one whenever your family is ready.
What makes a carved memorial cross different
Many memorial crosses are cast, printed or engraved by machine. A cross from the studio is made the slow way.
April works in sgraffito, a decorating technique whose name comes from the Italian for “scratched.” She coats wheel-thrown stoneware in a layer of white porcelain slip, then carves through it by hand to reveal the darker clay beneath. Where she cuts, the clay shows through.
That means the name, the dates and the verse are not printed or painted on. They are part of the piece itself, carved into its surface. After carving, the piece is glazed and kiln-fired twice. You can see the whole process on The Craft page.
The result is a cross or plaque made to hang in the home for generations, the kind of thing a grandchild will one day ask about.
What to carve: names, dates and a verse
Most families include three things. You can include all of them or only one.
- The name. Use the name people actually called them. If everyone knew her as “Mimi” or him as “Brother,” that can sit alongside or in place of the full name.
- The dates. Birth and passing dates are the most common. Some families choose a single meaningful date instead, like a wedding day or a baptism.
- A verse or hymn line. A few words that carried them, or that carry you now. Shorter lines usually carve more cleanly and read more easily from across the room.
If you are not sure which verse to choose, scripture verses for memorial and sympathy gifts gathers passages families often pick, with notes on keeping the words short enough to carve.
Adding the flowers they loved
April’s carving draws on Southern gardens and faith. Her motifs include magnolia, dogwood and cotton blossom, camellia and garden florals, lilies and blooming vines, along with faith-inspired and symbolic imagery.
On a memorial cross, those flowers can do a lot of quiet work. A camellia for the woman who grew them by the back steps. A magnolia for the man who planted the tree in the front yard. A spray of lilies wrapped around the name.
You can also go one step further. Dried flowers from the service can be preserved in resin and inlaid into a carved cross, so the actual blooms from the funeral become part of the piece. If the service has already passed, pressed or dried flowers you have kept work as well. How to save and preserve flowers from a funeral explains how to keep them in the meantime.
How a memorial cross is made, step by step
- Share their story. Tell April about the person you are remembering: a name, a date, a verse or hymn line, the flowers they loved. Share as much or as little as you like. There is no deadline on this step.
- April designs with you. She sketches a design and works with you until it feels right. The piece is then thrown, coated in porcelain slip and carved by hand, every line drawn from what you shared.
- Made to keep. The cross is glazed, kiln-fired twice, and carefully packed and shipped.
Most memorial commissions are finished in 4 to 6 weeks once the design is settled. The design conversation can take as long as your family needs.
Who a memorial cross is for
A carved cross is often a fit for a spouse or grown children to keep in their own home. It can also be a meaningful gift from a church family or a group of close friends who want to give something together.
A few situations where a cross fits especially well:
- A parent or grandparent whose faith shaped the whole family.
- A church member whose name belongs on something lasting.
- A family that wants one piece to hand down, with room in the design for everything that mattered.
If you are giving to someone else and the loss is very recent, a ready-made piece or a gift card may be kinder for now, with a cross begun later. Sympathy gifts that last longer than flowers covers those options.
Questions people ask
What can be carved on a personalized memorial cross?
Names, dates, a verse or hymn line, and florals can all be carved by hand into the porcelain slip using the sgraffito technique, so they are part of the piece itself rather than printed or painted on.
How long does a memorial cross take to make?
Most memorial commissions are finished in 4 to 6 weeks once the design is settled. The design conversation itself has no timeline, and many people begin months after a loss.
Can flowers from the funeral be added to a cross?
Yes. Dried flowers from the service can be preserved in resin and inlaid into a carved vessel, platter or cross. April will walk you through how to dry and send them.
When you are ready, share a name and a few words through the memorial and sympathy page or start a commission. April will reply personally with ideas, pricing and a gentle timeline.