All-natural end to the circle of life

Think you've lived a pretty green life?

You may wish to consider a biodegradable funeral urn.

A Bay of Plenty woman has designed a range of urns made from natural materials, after she realised many people were fed up with the plastic ones commonly handed out by funeral homes.

Tricia Haine says her silk, wood, leather and paper urns can be kept as keepsakes after the ashes are scattered. Each one comes with a biodegradable ash container, which will dissolve when it gets moist.

If you prefer to spend eternity with the fishes, Ms Haine has thought of that too.

She has designed a "deep ocean" urn that will sink and break down in water, after first bobbing on the surface for a few minutes to allow your loved ones to say farewell.

Ms Haine said she got the idea after helping a terminally ill friend plan her funeral. She realised that many people disliked the idea of their ashes being put in a "plastic box".

Unlike coffins, urns had been left out of the craze for more sustainable design.

When Ms Haine did some market research, she discovered that many people had distressing urn-related horror stories.

"I could write a book," she said. "Some people have got more than one of these plastic boxes sitting in their garage or in the glove box of their car because they literally don't know what to do with them."

Ms Haine said her urns, modelled from antique tea chests, were designed to make the ashes look like a part of the household, "not all locked up like it's radioactive."

And if the ashes are scattered, the urns can have a jewellery tray added to become a "family treasure memory box" for the deceased person - perhaps proving that recycling can carry on even after death.