Memorial Ideas Beyond Flowers: Keepsakes, Tribute Pages and Videos

Flowers fade within a week. These are ideas for remembering someone in ways that last: things to keep, things to make, things to do together, and ways to mark the dates that matter, for the funeral and for the years after.

By Kate B, reviewed by Chris K · Last updated 5 October 2026 · Editorial standards

Key points

• The best memorial ideas start with what the person loved, not with what's usual.
• Some ideas suit the funeral; others work better months or years later.
• Shared ideas (a recipe book, a group walk, a playlist) let the wider family take part.
• Small yearly rituals often mean more over time than one large memorial.
• There's no deadline. Many families add a memorial idea a year or more after the funeral.

Flowers are lovely at a funeral, and then they're gone within a week. Many families find themselves wanting something that lasts a little longer: something to keep, to make, or to come back to. This guide collects memorial ideas that do that. Some suit the funeral itself. Others work better months or years later, when the first rush has passed. Take the ones that feel like the person you're remembering, and leave the rest.

How Do You Choose the Right Memorial Idea?

Start with the person, not with the list. The ideas that mean the most usually come from something they loved, did or said.

A few questions help:

• What did they spend their time on? Gardening, footy, cooking, fishing, church, music, travel, grandchildren.
• Where were they happiest? A beach, a back shed, a kitchen, a particular park bench.
• What did they always say? A phrase that makes the family laugh or roll their eyes.
• Who needs to be included? Grandchildren, friends overseas, a club or community they belonged to.
• How much time and energy is there right now? Be honest. A simple idea done well beats an ambitious one that adds stress.

You don't have to pick only one. Many families do something small at the funeral and something bigger later.

What Can You Keep?

Keepsakes are physical things to hold onto. They're often the most personal memorials of all, because they're made from the person's own belongings.

• A memory box. A sturdy box for letters, cards, photos, a watch, their glasses, a ticket stub. Add a note explaining what each thing is, for grandchildren who come across it later.
• Clothing made into something new. Shirts or jumpers sewn into a quilt, a cushion or a teddy bear, one for each grandchild.
• Their handwriting. A recipe card, a birthday card or a note, framed or copied onto a keepsake.
• A favourite object on display. Their hat on a hook, their mug on the shelf, their tools hung in the shed.
• Jewellery. Some families have a piece of the person's jewellery reset or divided between children.

A gentle tip: there's no rush to sort through everything. Many people find it easier to choose keepsakes after a few months, when they can see clearly what they want to keep.

What Can You Make?

Making something together can help, partly because it gives grief somewhere to go and partly because it collects memories from many people at once.

• A photo book. Gather photos from across the family and put them in order. It's a good way to fill gaps, because everyone has pictures nobody else has seen.
• A family recipe book. Collect their recipes, with a note about when they made each one. Copies make good gifts for the whole family.
• A memory book. Ask friends and family to write one memory each. Leave it out at the funeral or the wake, or collect memories by email afterwards.
• A playlist. The songs they loved, the songs that remind you of them, and the song they'd have hated, for a laugh. Share it so others can listen too.
• A memorial video. Photos, short clips and music put together into a few minutes that tell their story. It's often played at the service and kept afterwards. Our complete guide to creating a memorial video walks through it step by step, and Memorial Video Ideas: 15 Ways to Tell Their Story has ideas for shaping it.

What Can You Do at the Funeral?

The funeral is a chance to show who the person was, not only to say goodbye. A few ideas that work well:

• A memory table. Photos, their hat, a trophy, a book they loved, a bowl of the lollies they always carried. People gather around it and start telling stories.
• A memorial video or slideshow. Played during the service or on a loop at the wake. If you're weighing up which to choose, Funeral Slideshow vs Memorial Video explains the difference.
• Something for guests to take home. Seed packets, a printed photo, a copy of their favourite recipe.
• A dress code with meaning. Their footy colours, a bright shirt, or their favourite colour.
• A memory book or cards. Guests write a memory, and the family reads them later.
• Their music. The song they always sang in the car, played as people arrive or leave.

If you're writing an obituary or a eulogy at the same time, the same details often work in both. Our guide on how to write an obituary has a free template.

What Can You Do Outdoors?

Some people are easiest to remember outside, in the places they loved.

• Plant something. A tree, a rose, a native shrub, or a vegetable patch if they were a gardener. It grows and changes, which many families find comforting.
• A walk, swim or ride in their name. Gather family and friends each year on a route they loved.
• A memorial bench or plaque. Some local councils and cemeteries have programs for these. Ask your council about what's available, the rules and any waiting lists.
• Scattering ashes somewhere meaningful. If the person was cremated, some families scatter ashes at a place they loved. Check whether permission is needed for the place you have in mind, for example a beach, a national park or private land.

How Can You Give in Their Name?

Giving in someone's name turns remembering into something that helps others.

• Donations instead of flowers. Many families name a charity in the death notice. It's often one connected to the person's illness, their community or their passions.
• Volunteering. Give time to something they cared about, like a sports club, a school, an animal shelter or a community garden.
• A small scholarship or prize. Some families set up an annual prize at a school or club. Talk to the organisation first about how they'd manage it.
• Acts of kindness. Some families mark a birthday by each doing something kind for a stranger, in the person's name.

How Can You Mark Anniversaries and Birthdays?

The first year brings a string of hard dates: their birthday, your anniversary, Christmas or another important holiday, and the anniversary of their death. A small plan for those days can help them feel less like an ambush.

Ideas families use:

• Cooking their favourite meal and eating it together.
• Visiting a place they loved.
• Watching their memorial video, or looking through the photo book.
• Lighting a candle at home at dinner.
• Raising a glass of their favourite drink.
• Sending each other a memory by message.

Keep it simple. A ritual that's easy to repeat tends to last for years, and for many families that's the whole point.

What About Online Tribute Pages?

Online tribute pages let people far away share memories and photos in one place. They can be a funeral home's online guestbook, a memorial website, or a private group on social media.

Before setting one up, think about:

• Who can see it. A public page is easy to find; a private group is more contained.
• Who looks after it. Someone needs to check comments and keep it tidy, especially in the first weeks.
• Privacy. Avoid posting their full date of birth, home address or other personal details. Our obituary guide explains why.
• How long it will stay up. Some sites close or charge after a while. Keep your own copy of anything important.

How Mixtape Memories Can Help

A memorial video is one memorial idea among many, and it's the one we know best. It brings photos, music and short clips together into a few minutes you can play at the service and keep for anniversaries. If you'd like help putting one together, you can make it yourself with our templates or ask our team to make it for you. Create your memorial video when you're ready.

Frequently Asked Questions

What can I do instead of sending flowers? Many families ask for donations to a cause the person cared about instead of flowers. You could also send a card with a written memory, cook a meal for the family, or offer practical help in the weeks after the funeral.

What are some meaningful memorial ideas for a funeral? A memory table with photos and objects, a memorial video or slideshow, a memory book for guests to write in, and a playlist of their favourite songs all work well at a service. Each gives people something personal to look at and share.

How can we remember someone on their birthday or anniversary? Some families visit a place the person loved, cook their favourite meal, watch their memorial video together, or do something kind in their name. Keep it simple enough that you'll want to do it again next year.

Is it too late to do something a year after the funeral? Not at all. Many memorial ideas, like a photo book, a planted tree or a recipe collection, are easier once the first rush of grief has settled. There's no deadline on remembering someone.

The weeks after a funeral can be hard. If you or someone close to you is struggling, our page on grief support in Australia lists free services you can call at any hour.

Planning the rest of the funeral as well? Our step-by-step guide to planning a funeral in Australia covers everything from the first hours to the paperwork afterwards.

About the author

Kate B writes and edits Mixtape Memories' guides on planning and personalising a memorial video, with a focus on the family-facing side of the process: what to include, working with limited material, and what comes after the service. The aim is always the same: practical, calm guidance that doesn't add to an already difficult week.

Reviewed by Chris K.