Custom Ceremonies & Offerings
Gathering Space Offerings
Gather with friends and family in-person or virtually in our light-filled, urban sanctuary
Cedar Sessions
Use this serene space for unstructured time, private viewings, and hands-on care before or after soil transformation
Package Add-ons
Tailor the experience to fit your needs and traditions by adding on to our packaged offerings
Gathering Space Offerings
This beautiful, modern room is a welcoming space for friends and family to gather for ceremonies and small services. Floor-to-ceiling windows in shades of green and yellow, along with a large tapestry of the forest, invite nature into this urban sanctuary.
The room has a lectern for speakers and a screen for slideshows. At the center of the room is a white, hexagonal threshold vessel—a passageway to the Greenhouse, where human composting occurs.
What to Expect
Our Services Specialists are licensed funeral directors who help with planning the event, including organizing speakers, selecting music and readings, and weaving in cultural or religious traditions if desired. They will ensure the event runs smoothly and are available to lead the ceremony or service.
In the Gathering Space, your person rests on a dark green bed called the cradle, draped in natural fabric. You and your guests can add plant materials or bring organic items, such as favorite flowers, to lay on the cradle. At the end of the ceremony or service, the cradle is placed into the threshold vessel.
The threshold vessel serves as a doorway between the Gathering Space and the Greenhouse, where active composting takes place. You and your guests are welcome to help move the cradle into the vessel.
After the cradle is placed inside the threshold vessel, the vessel is closed. Similar to the moment of earth interment in a burial, this closure marks a moment of transition, from a living person to ancestor, and begins their physical transformation from human to soil.
Ceremonies Guide
Download full details on our spaces, packages, pricing, and additional offerings.
Ceremony
For those who wish to have a funeral with friends and family, this package allows time for multiple speakers and can be customized.
Features
- Services Specialist to plan, coordinate, and lead the ceremony
- Time for multiple speakers
- Threshold vessel laying in with plant materials provided
- Use of Moss, a private, cozy room with comfortable seating and warm lighting for those who need a retreat or quiet moment
Small Service
For those who wish to gather a small group before soil transformation begins, this package allows time for one or two speakers and can be customized.
Features
- Services Specialist to plan, coordinate, and lead the ceremony
- Time for one or two speakers
- Threshold vessel laying in with plant materials provided
Virtual Service
For out-of-state clients and those who can’t make it to Seattle, this package allows time for one or two speakers and is entirely online.
Features
- Services Specialist to lead the service
- Zoom livestream setup, including streaming music of choice
- Threshold vessel laying in with plant materials provided
Cedar Sessions
Cedar is a room whose design was informed by the traditions and practices of home funerals. It’s a serene space where clients can spend unstructured time with their person before transformation into soil begins. It can be used for personal time, private viewings, or hands-on care, like bathing or shrouding. Clients also use Cedar to connect with their loved one’s soil after transformation is complete and before it is returned to the earth.
We recognize that for many, this is a new experience. Our licensed Services Specialists are available to assist and serve as guides as requested.
Before Transformation
This Session offers an opportunity to be with your person in whatever way you choose. Our licensed Services Specialists will prepare your person’s body and be available to guide and assist with direct care as requested.
Features
- Guidance from Services Specialists
- Select amenities like shampoos and soaps, essential oils, hairbrushes, linens, and a sound system
Examples of Use
- Personal time to say goodbye
- Fulfilling religious or spiritual needs
- Prayer, song, or vigil
- Hands-on care: style your person’s hair, paint their nails, or apply their makeup
- Adorning your person with flowers and special items
Note: You are welcome to bring any special items like cosmetics, perfumes, or custom shrouds you wish to incorporate.
Before Transformation – Virtual
For out-of-state clients and those who can’t make it to Seattle, this session is entirely online. Our licensed Services Specialists will prepare your person’s body and set it up for remote viewing.
Features
- Guidance from Services Specialists
- Setup of livestream including camera, music, and microphone
Examples of Use
- Personal time to say goodbye
- Fulfilling religious or spiritual needs
- Prayer, song, or vigil
After Transformation
This Session is designed for those who wish to connect with their person’s soil before it is returned to the earth.
Features
- Guidance from Services Specialists
- Select amenities, a wash basin, and a sound system
- This session can be booked once your person’s soil has completed transformation
Examples of Use
- Mixing in a loved one’s ashes before the soil is packaged
- Personal time with soil before donation to the Recompose Land Program
- Marking the transition and acknowledging the Earth’s natural cycles
- Prayer, song, or vigil
Note: Recompose packaging of soil is completed separately from Cedar Sessions and is not part of the booking.
Package Add-ons
Extended Time
30 minutes of additional time for custom setup or a longer ceremony, service, or session.
Livestream
Zoom livestream added to an in-person ceremony, service, or session. No recording provided.
Slideshow Creation
Creation of photo slideshow including up to 150 photos.
Ritual Bathing
Preparation of the body and guidance for a ritual bathing in Cedar.
Additional Rooms
Pebble
Use of kitchenette, including plateware, silverware, coffee, tea, and water for the duration of a ceremony.
Thistle
This room is ideal for staging food, memorabilia, and additional seating for the duration of the ceremony. If bringing in a caterer, Thistle must be booked to stage food.
Request Information
To learn more about a custom ceremony with Recompose, please fill out this form and we will be in touch shortly.
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