Felicity Flowers

I saw that a few people had found my blog by searching for funeral ribbon wording so I decided that I should write a little bit about it today.

Funeral ribbon inscriptions are just that. They are the words that are placed onto the ribbon on the casket spray or other sympathy tributes. The words that are used should be the relation of the deceased to the person or persons ordering the flowers. If the lettering is on a casket spray it should be all of the things that the deceased was. For example, if your mother passes away it would be appropriate to have “Mom” or “Mother” placed on the ribbon. Also, if her parents are still living “Daughter” would be appropriate, as would “Wife” and “Sister”.

When it’s too much…

There are times that there could literally be fifteen or twenty inscriptions that could be used. Let’s take the Mother example. She could have been an Aunt, Sister, Mother, Grandmother, Great Grandmother, Friend, Wife, and Niece. While it is tempting to use all of those inscriptions it also takes away from the beauty of the flowers. Four ribbons are the average amount that are used on a spray. If there is a need for more it is usually wise to purchase two side easels and a casket pillow. Again, back to the Mother example: One side easel may have the inscriptions “Sister” and “Aunt” another may say “Niece” and “Cousin” and then the pillow would say “Grandmother” and “Great Grandmother”. This leaves the casket spray with the “Daughter”, “Mother” and “Wife” inscriptions. That way, everyone gets included and the inscriptions are easily read and understood.

It’s always best to speak directly with your florist anytime you have any questions on inscriptions or lettering. Some florists hand write their lettering, others use pre-made stickers, and others print their lettering. The inscriptions that you can use will all depend on what method the florist uses to create the banner.

If a florist hand writes their banners then they can use any wording that you wish such as Mamaw or Mommy. The pre-made stickers only come in certain words but can be cut apart to create your choice. The foil types are not able to be cut apart and adhered together so the choices on those are even more slim.

Whatever wording you choose for your loved one will be appreciated and meaningful. Hopefully we provided you with a little more insight on your choices and the “etiquette” for choosing banners.