A memorial figurine of your pet

When a pet dies, the photos you have are rarely the ones you would choose. The most recent are often from the last months, when they were older or unwell, and a memorial figurine does not have to follow them. This is something people have asked us for, so here is how it works: we sculpt your pet from your photos as you want to remember them, with the coat, the markings and the way they used to sit, at their healthiest.

What to send us

• As many photos as you can find, from as many years as you have. Older photos of them in good health are as useful as recent ones.
• At least one clear photo of the face, taken at their eye level in even light.
• Photos that show the markings on both sides, the tail, the paws and anything else particular to them.
• A note on the pose you would like, and which photos show them the way you most want to remember them.
• The exact wording for the base, copied as you want it engraved.

Getting the likeness right

Likeness in an animal lives mostly in the shape of the head, the set of the ears and eyes, and the pattern of the coat. We build the sculpt from all of your photos together, using the clearest recent ones for proportions and the earlier ones for how they looked when they were well, so the figurine can show them fuller in the face and brighter in the coat than the last photos did without stopping being them.

You see renders of the sculpt before anything is printed, and you can ask for changes before it goes near a printer. The figure is then printed in resin, hand painted to match the real colours and markings, and fixed to its base.

If this is hard to put into words, that is fine. Send the photos and tell us a little about them. It genuinely shows up in the sculpt.

Size, material and finish

Size

Standard, around 15cm, suits a cat or a small dog. Large, around 20cm, gives a long coat or a big dog room for detail.

Colour

Hand painted, full colour, matched to your photos.

Material

Resin, for the finest detail in the fur and the face.

Base

Engraved with the text you give us, exactly as you write it, or plain if you prefer.

Finish

Matte usually looks most like real fur. Gloss is there if you want it.

How long it takes

A quote comes back within one working day. Sculpting and hand painting are what take the time, and the quote gives you a lead time before you commit. If there is a date that matters, such as an anniversary or a family gathering, put it in the form so we can tell you honestly whether it can be met. The finished figurine is posted tracked anywhere in New Zealand.

Questions

Other figurines people ask us for