How to design a headstone online

Is there an app to design a headstone?

You do not need to install one. A web page can do the same job on a phone, a tablet or a computer, in any modern browser. Headstone Designer is one of these: it runs in the browser, it is free, and there is no account. Some monument companies have a designer on their own website for the stones they sell. Others work from a sketch, a photo of a stone you like, or a written list of names and dates, and draw the layout for you.

How to design a headstone online, step by step

Headstone Designer asks one question at a time, in this order.

1. Choose a stone

   Pick a shape: an upright, a companion for two, a heart, a lawn marker, a pet stone or a bench. The shape decides how much room there is for words.

2. Say who it is for

   One person, or two people sharing the stone. A companion upright and a double heart are made for two; pet stones are for one.

3. Type the family name

   On most stones it is the largest line, so type it exactly as it should be carved. On a pet stone, this is the pet’s name.

4. Add the first and middle names

   Full names, a middle initial, or a nickname in quotes are all common.

5. Add the dates

   Born and passed, written any way you like. You can switch between four styles later: March 14, 1941; Mar 14, 1941; 3-14-1941; or the years only.

6. Add a line of words, if you want one

   An epitaph, a verse reference or a single word. Short lines are cut larger and read better from a distance.

7. Choose a symbol, if you want one

   A cross, a dove, praying hands, a rose, a paw print and more, placed at the top, in both upper corners or between the names.

At the end you see the finished stone. You can change any line, try another lettering style, look at it from each side, and turn on the sizes in inches. Then copy the link and send it to your monument company, or download the proof sheet.

Standard headstone sizes by shape

Most monument companies stock several sizes of each shape. The middle column gives common ranges; the last column is the demonstration stone in the studio, which is what its letter heights are worked out from. Uprights and slants stand on a separate base that is wider than the stone, and the base size varies by company and cemetery.

Are husband and wife buried on top of each other?

Sometimes. Many cemeteries sell double-depth graves, where two caskets are buried in one grave, one above the other. Others place a couple side by side in two graves. Either way, a couple usually shares one companion stone, with the family name across the top and each person’s names and dates beneath. If one of them is living, their birth date is cut now and the second date is added later by the monument company.

What do cemetery rules usually cover?

The cemetery decides what can go on a grave, so ask the cemetery office for its rules in writing before you order. They usually cover:

• Size. The largest width and height allowed, which can differ from one section to the next.
• Type. Some sections, often in lawn cemeteries and memorial parks, allow only flat markers set level with the grass. Others allow uprights or slants.
• Base and foundation. Many cemeteries pour the concrete foundation themselves, or require one, and some charge a fee for it.
• Material and colour. Granite and bronze are the usual materials. Some sections ask for bronze, or for one granite colour, so the markers match.
• Who sets it. Some cemeteries set every stone with their own crew; others let an approved monument company do it.
• Approval. Many ask to see the design before the stone is set.

If the rules are not written down, ask your monument company. They often know the cemeteries near them.

How big should the letters be on a headstone?

Letters need to be large enough to read from the foot of the grave, and cut deep enough to last. As a rule of thumb, the studio warns when the family name would be cut smaller than 3/4 inch, or any other line smaller than 1/2 inch, and it wraps or splits a line before it gets that small.

On the studio’s demonstration stones, with an average family name and one line of words, typical heights come out like this, measured as the height of a capital letter:

• Family name: about 1.5 to 2.3 inches.
• First and middle names: about 0.7 to 1 inch.
• Dates: about 0.65 to 0.8 inch.
• A line of words: about 0.65 to 0.8 inch.

These are estimates from the studio’s own stone sizes. Your monument company sets the final sizes for the stone they cut. Long lines are the usual reason letters shrink: every word added to a line makes each letter on it smaller.

What is a proof sheet?

A proof sheet is the drawing you approve before the stone is cut. It shows the stone from the front with every line of lettering where it will go, the lettering style, the symbol, the sizes, and a line for your signature.

Headstone Designer makes a printable proof sheet from your design, and your monument company gets the same sheet when they open your link. Their own proof, drawn for the stone they will cut, is the one you sign.

How long does it take to get a headstone?

Many families set the headstone six to twelve months after the burial. The ground over a new grave settles for months, and a stone set too soon can lean, so some cemeteries ask families to wait. The design does not have to wait: you can work on it and send it whenever you are ready.

After you sign the proof, the monument company makes the stone, and the cemetery approves and sets it. Ask your monument company for their own timeline. Where the ground freezes, some cemeteries do not set stones in winter.