A memorial shadow box
A memorial shadow box holds the things a family keeps after someone is gone: a garment, their handwriting, a photograph, a folded flag, something they used every day. Each piece is held from behind so it can come out again, the box is deep enough that nothing touches the glass, and everything behind it is acid-free.
There is no list you have to follow, and nothing has to be decided before you come in. None of it has to be valuable; it only has to mean something to someone.
What do you put in a memorial shadow box?
Whatever still carries the person. It can be a garment: a jacket, a uniform, a christening gown, the garments a family keeps. It can be handwriting: letters, a card, a grandmother’s recipe with its oil marks left in, because they are part of the story. It can be an object: a photograph, a folded flag with the medals beside it, a cap with an inscription inside, a grandfather’s license plate with a small engraved plaque beneath it. One customer brought in a part from his father’s airplane, which had crashed in Alaska, recovered on a trip back to the site, and we found a way to display it properly.
How are the pieces kept safe?
Gently, and in a way that can be undone. Each object is supported from behind rather than glued, because gluing can permanently alter it. The box is built deep enough that nothing touches the glazing: fabric pressed against glass marks, and the mark does not come out. Our store is completely acid-free, mats included, so nothing behind a letter or a sleeve burns a brown line into it over the years. Museum-quality or UV-protective glazing is chosen with you for the piece, because daylight fades color slowly and unevenly.
Why is it designed in person?
Because the box is built around the actual jacket, letter or medal, not a picture of it. An in-person design consultation is required for framing 3-D objects, since so many variables must be taken into consideration. The depth of the box, the way each piece is held and where it sits are decided with everything on the counter, and corner samples, mats and glazing are held up against the pieces themselves. A piece made in someone’s memory is designed with you at the counter, and if you are not sure what you want, that is what the counter is for.
“This piece was made in honor of my Uncle who just passed so it meant a lot to us,” Ashley A. of Long Beach wrote on Yelp in July 2022.
Can everyone in the family keep a piece?
Yes, for letters and photographs, and the originals can stay together. Our print lab scans an original at up to 600 dpi on its large-format flatbed, so a copy can be printed and framed for each person while the original stays safe; a second copy is one more print and one more frame. A recipe book can also be taken apart and shared out one framed recipe at a time, so the cousins each keep a piece of a grandmother’s history. Art scanning explains how an original is reproduced without leaving the building.
Is a memorial shadow box a good gift?
It can be, when it is made from what was theirs. A piece like this is a way to honor someone, and it often goes to another member of the family as a gift. For the first holidays without someone, it can be the gift the whole family shares. If it is meant for a date, tell us the date when we design it with you: everything is specially ordered and cut to size, the turnaround is quoted at the counter, and if the date is tight, call first.
Bring what you have to 1671 Placentia Avenue in Costa Mesa, Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm or Saturday 9am to 1pm. No appointment is needed, and if you would rather not wait, booking simply holds a time with a designer. You can also call (949) 791-8780 or send the quote form. Each shadow box is quoted in person once we have seen the pieces; there is no published price list.
