Consider it the most fashionable way to spend the afterlife; as a diamond. LifeGem, a British firm, is offering a new service to those who lose a loved one. With just a sample of human ashes, LifeGem can produce a synthetic diamond for families to cherish and perhaps display. While the process is a relatively new way to memorialize loved ones, its services come with a heavy price. Many families around England and the United States are shocked at the notion, yet some are jumping at the chance to have such a rare token of remembrance.

LifeGem's process for turning humans into diamonds involves heating ashes to produce graphite, then placing them into a diamond press and subjecting them to high pressures, according to BBC.com. The result is a raw diamond, ready to cut and polish. The process takes about six months. The company guarantees that the diamond produced comes only from the relative's ashes, which are dispatched by secure courier to America and given a 16-digit tracking number. The company asks for 11,000 British Pounds for the service, a mere $21,463.20 in American dollars.

While many people cringe at the idea of turning a loved one into a showpiece, the Tandy family, of Reading, Berkshire was thankful for the opportunity.

Gayle Tandy, 24, had the remains of her father Brian turned into a diamond after he succumbed to heart disease in 2003.

The family gave an interview to BBC news, where Gayle stated, "I miss dad every single day, and I see having a part of his ashes made into a diamond as a way of keeping him close to me."

The managing director of LifeGem's UK division, David Hampson, believes the decision to turn a loved one into a diamond is similar to other traditions, such as the Victorian mourning jewelry. Victorians used to cut a locket of the deceased's hair and keep it in a locket around the neck as a personal memorial.

Hampson states to BBC.com, "It's all about personal choice. People visit headstones and memorials because they act as a focal point. This gives people a mobile focal point. It's something that will never have to leave their sight."

It's not hard to imagine that a mourning family wants their loved one nearby; just not in an old fashioned urn. The process of turning a loved one into a sparkling diamond serves as a fitting tribute to our modern era of "bling." In a world where rock stars and rappers have diamonds in their teeth, perhaps the trend of memorial diamonds will catch on. After all, diamonds are a girl's best friend, or in this case, family member.

The article above was found on Google and was published originally on The West Georgian