The Design Process
There is no charge to begin the design process, and we will move at whatever pace feels right to you. It starts with a conversation about what your Burial Blanket could look like and what role you’d like the cloth to have in your life, your home, and your burial options.
Your cloth can range from a pure white shroud of fine, crisp linen to an iridescent rainbow of soft, squishy bamboo. Thread can be shiny or matte, textured or smooth, and packed as tightly as a tea cozy or left lacy and open. Patterns and colors can be combined within the cloth to create stripes, blocks, and borders, and many have contrasting front and back sides.
As we plan, I will help you understand the choices for different design elements, and how these will effect the final look, feel, and utility of your Burial Blanket. I’m happy to lead with suggestions based on a few things that are important to you, or follow a specific and detailed vision. Many people take this opportunity to think deeply about their heritage and culture, personal style, family members, religious traditions, or spiritual practice.
Burial Blankets are fully biodegradable down to the stitches in the hem. The natural fibers you can chose from include cotton, linen, hemp, wool, bamboo, silk, and even paper thread. These are heirloom quality textiles crafted for a lifetime of use and enjoyment.
Once we have a final design I will send an estimate for materials and labor, and once you are ready to make payments I can begin weaving. You are always invited to visit my studio in Chicago to weave a portion of your Burial Blanket while it is on the loom.
About Pricing
The main cost of a Burial Blanket is labor: Preparing hundreds of lengths of thread that will be held in tension on the loom, winding and threading these individually onto the loom, programming the wooden computer that controls the pattern, weaving the cloth one line of thread at a time, hand sewing selvedges together, and hemming with a sewing machine.
The thinner the threads the finer the cloth, and the more time it takes to weave. Thicker cloth has the weight and warmth of a heavy blanket, finer cloth can feel more like a flannel sheet. Both have a lovely drape that keep their folds nicely and smooth over the contours of the body or container.
I offer a sliding scale starting at $80 / hour (plus materials) and I encourage you to pay what you can to support this art practice. A Burial Blanket starts between $2,800 - $3,400, depending on the size and thickness of the cloth. Used for a natural burial, that is most of the total cost — much less than conventional burial.
After we finish the consultation, I will send an estimate of the total labor and materials based on your design. I ask for a 25% deposit to begin the work and I happily accept payments in installments. There is no initial charge for a design consultation.
Sizes and Uses
Each Burial Blanket is unique and designed in collaboration with the artist. There are two sizes to choose from, mostly depending on how you want to use the cloth during life since both can be used for different forms of burial.
Full Size Burial Blanket
These are about the dimensions of a queen size coverlet (120” x 80”) or a large tapestry. They are big enough to fully wrap the body for burial and no other container is needed.
Prices start at $3,400
Timeline for production is 6-12 weeks. If you need a Burial Blanket sooner, please view the Current Collection.
A living model shrouded in a full size Burial Blanket
Single Pall Blanket
These are the size of a very large shawl (~120” x 40”). They are meant to cover the body or casket with a single layer of decorative cloth.
Prices start at $2,800
Timeline for production is 4-8 weeks. If you need a Burial Blanket sooner, please view the Current Collection.
A living model covered in a single Pall Blanket
Additional Mementos
We can create extra pieces of the cloth to give away to loved ones, frame and hang on the wall, finish into a baby blanket, or other ideas you might have.
Current Collection
Burial Blankets designed by the artist and available for purchase now, ideal for hospice patients and loved ones making burial arrangements after a death. Occasionally includes baby blankets for welcoming new life.
Burial Blankets are heirloom quality textiles that can be used in your home however you imagine.
Burial Blankets are heirloom quality textiles that can be used in your home however you imagine.
Burial Blankets are heirloom quality textiles that can be used in your home however you imagine.
Burial Blankets are heirloom quality textiles that can be used in your home however you imagine.
Burial Blankets are heirloom quality textiles that can be used in your home however you imagine.
Burial Blankets are heirloom quality textiles that can be used in your home however you imagine.
Burial Blankets are heirloom quality textiles that can be used in your home however you imagine.