Five Steps to Designing Your Monument

Purchasing a headstone or monument is a personal and emotional matter. The headstone you choose will likely remain with the deceased for the rest of time, so it is an important decision that sometimes takes days, weeks, or even months to finalize, depending on the complexity and design of your project.

There are generally five factors you will need to consider when designing a monument, and each one is as important as the next:

Design

After you and your family have decided all of the major details, it’s time to focus on the little things that are really going to make the headstone pop. There are four basic decisions you will need to make when going through the monument design phase:

  • Layout
  • Engraving Style
  • Artwork

A few notes to consider:

  • The layout of your monument starts from scratch. This is the “blank canvas” for our artists. Anything is possible when figuring out what information is going to go where; however, we do recommend that you keep things organized and easy to read.
  • There are three basic types of engravings: flat, shape, etched. Each option has its own sense of appeal.
    • Flat – This is what you typically see in cemeteries, deep cut lines outlining art and panels. It is a classic look that looks good with almost every type of material.
    • Shape – Shape carving is a step from flat carving. Deep cut lines outline the panels and art, but the art can be hand blasted to take on a 3-d shape. This requires more experienced craftsman.
    • Etching – This process works best with granite that has high contrast. Instead of sanding deep cut lines, only the polish is removed during the engraving polish. This allows for more intricate artwork with a clean crisp look. 
  • If you want your headstone to include some sort of artwork, it is vital for you to be as detailed as possible so the artist can truly make your vision come to life.
    • Ceramic photos: One of our more popular options. We can set a high-quality ceramic photo into the stone. These pictures can be colored and come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
    • Laser etching: We have our own in-house laser engraving machine, which allows us to etch photo realistic images on high contrast black stones with the most competitive pricing in mid Missouri.

This may seem daunting, but Kevin will help guide you through the entire process to make the best monument possible to your satisfaction.

Each and every cemetery has its own set of rules and regulations that must be followed. Missouri River Monument is careful to respect these wishes, and we are happy to speak with you regarding these regulations in greater detail. For more information on how Missouri River Monument, located in Boonville, Missouri, can help make your headstone vision come to life at an affordable price, visit our contact us page. You can also call us 24/7 at 660-882-7773.