A Sydney woman has started a unique small business borne out of a profound heart-wrenching moment: the loss of her beloved mother. 

When searching for a suitable resting place for her mother's ashes, Kristina Condous (pictured) felt the options available left her feeling disconnected with the memory of her mother. 

"We found it incredibly hard to find a funeral urn that she would have liked, which was quite heart-breaking," Kristina said. 

That experience led Kristina to a heartfelt mission: to create a collection of contemporary and beautiful urns for ashes, breaking away from the sombre and outdated designs of the past. 

As well, Urns By Atemo are 100 percent biodegradable if placed in the ground, but if put on display, they last forever. Many clients choose to put a personalised message or symbol on the urn. 

“I felt a great part of the funeral industry was stuck in the last century,” Kristina said. 

“The urns available were all mass-produced, old-fashioned metal and brass, with their designs unchanged for decades, with hardly any choice or variety. They were not tailored to someone’s loved one.  

“We customise our urns to honour the people we love, and many clients choose to put a personalised message or symbol on the urn. We had a mother who wanted her son’s tattoo painted on his urn. 

“I also had a daughter whose father had been a massive Rolling Stones fan, so she wanted the famous Rolling Stones lips applied to her father’s urn. 

“Arranging a funeral with a beautiful urn helps people on their journey. We have done many customisations and found that personalising an urn can be an important part of the grieving and healing process.” 

Kristina said she felt there was a need for urns that not only held the ashes, but to celebrate the essence of the individual they represented. 

“More and more people are choosing to live an eco-conscious life, which can continue after death as part of the endless cycle of life if the urn is placed in the ground,” she said. 

As well, what sets these urns apart is not only their design but their sourcing. They are not mass-produced; instead, they are imported from environmentally conscious family-owned manufacturers in Germany and Scandinavia. 

In 2021, there were more than 171,000 deaths in Australia, with about 65 percent of these cremations, with this number continuing to grow. 

Find out more:  urnsbyatemo.com Instagram: urnsbyatemo