Choosing the right headstone

It is important, when choosing a headstone, to take into account which any cemetery bylaws, and to consider who will be carrying out the installation. If it is going into a council owned cemetery or a local cemetery controlled by a trust it is important to check for any size restrictions. Any cemeteries managed under the Whangarei District Council, Waipu Cemetery Trust and Kaurihohore Cemetery Trust have a strict specifications and permit application processes. The Far North District Councils also have specifications that need to be followed and many private urupa have guidelines. If you intend on arranging for the installation yourself, you need to ensure that you choose a headstone that you will be able to transport and maneuver easily.

Add accessories, wording and artwork

Once you have chosen a headstone the next step is to think about what accessories you would like to add, such as vases and porcelain photos and we will incorporate these into a layout along with your choice of wording and artwork.  We will print out and/or email a copy to you so you can run this past family if you need to. 

Stencil Creations and Approval Procedure

Once you have checked the layout, spelling and dates and there are no further changes that need to be made, you will need to sign a form to state you are ready to proceed to the next step. Once signed, we will cut the stencil and apply it to the headstone, carefully pulling out each individual letter, number and pieces of the artwork. We will send you a photo along with another form for confirmation that you are happy for the stencil to be cut into the stone. Any changes, resulting from changing your mind or if you failed to check the spelling of names or dates, after we have created the stencil, will incur a fee so it is important to check these things carefully before signing the form.  Once the last form is signed we will engrave the stone.  No further changes will be able to be made.

Cutting the headstone

After your approval on the stencil we prepare the stone for engraving, this includes covering any surface of the stone that is not going to be engraved and sealing the edges to ensure the stencil doesn’t lift during blasting.  The headstone then goes into our blasting booth where it is sandblasted to get the perfect depth on the cut – this will ensure the lettering lasts longer and is easier to retouch in the future.  The headstone is then painted, stencil tape removed and the headstone is cleaned and ready for installation or collection.