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deadgoodlegacies.bsky.social
Deathwork sisters, Dr KV & artist LV. Creative approaches to mortality education. Your eco-funeral guides. Ceremony. Stories. Legacy. Zines & ltd edition merch Puny Mortal Podcast 💀 The Mortal Portal Sunderland & Macc, UK https://linktr.ee/deadgoodlegacies
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People ask us what it looks like running a full-time death education social business. Here's a rundown on what March looks like. We get paid to run workshops & give talks & we sell our merch & resources there too. open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... >KV #deathsky #deatheducation #deathliteracy

I had a videocall with Yuli of Bellacouche this morning. We were talking all things shrouds & natural burial. Yuli's setting up a green burial ground. Watch her present the case at a farming conference. www.bellacouche.com/blog/natural... >KV #deathsky #naturalburial #greenburial #woodlandburial

I'm listening to Sinead O'Connor and Tracy Chapman on repeat whilst putting together a bespoke 'natural burial play kit' for our eco-funerals family events next month. This prototype is completely made from pre-loved wooden toys. Wait til you see the woodland grave itself! >KV #deathsky

This morning, I listened to an episode of the King Ink podcast, 'Ways To Say Goodbye'. An aural pod gem on loss & grief. I was surprised to hear my own voice - cracked with grief - reading my poem for Dad at the very end of the episode. www.podbean.com/ea/pb-i96ta-... >KV #deathsky #griefsky

We're thrilled to see Humanist Ceremonies UK using images from our last modern funerals photoshoot in their national comms. Our next photoshoot for celebrants is taking place on 30th April. Booking opens on 1st March. open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... >KV #deathsky #funeralsky

"My grief showed up yesterday in the form of a tiny black fish… I haven’t cried for my dad, and yet the sight of this black angler fish solemnly heading to the surface of the ocean before taking her last breath in the sunlight. Weep." open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... >LV #deathsky #griefsky

We host 'Get Mortal' parties where friends come together to design their own farewell ceremonies & learn more about creative UK funeral options. It's our way of sparking imaginative dialogue & curious discussion about all things death & dying. www.partoflife.org/blog/get-mor... >KV #deathsky

Listen here to LV talking about our experiences of dying, death & funerals & how we support people to creatively confront mortality. LV is so articulate, natural & funny during the episode. Repping DEAD GOOD to the absolute max, the fricking ledge. open.spotify.com/episode/5Wgw... >KV #deathsky

Last month we were interviewed for a piece in the Funeral Service Journal. We share how ceramicist Grayson Perry inspired us & I love what my sister says about legacy projects not needing to be 'public & splashy, they can be quiet, intimate and powerful'. fsj.co.uk/from-get-mor... >KV #deathsky

Last year we had a go at showing how homegrown, handpicked, plastic-free flowers can be used to create a participative flower weaving ritual as part of a funeral or memorial. A collab with our local flower farmer friend, Periwinkle Barn. www.farewellflowers.co.uk/stories/maki... >KV #deathsky

When we create a deathy resource, we add it as a downloadable to our webshop. This makes it easier for our community to access, especially our international friends. Shroud zine coming next month! www.deadgood.org/shop/downloa... >KV #deathsky #deatheducation #themortalportal #punymortalpodcast

Last year Art City Radio asked us to create an advert about our work. They even paid us! LV came up with this (see below). And just like that, we have an impromtu theme tune for DEAD GOOD. Every deathy enterprise should have one. >KV open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... #deathsky #deatheducation

Yesterday I was at Periwinkle Barn planning the next modern funerals photoshoot. We designed new scenes & setups that will allow celebrants & ceremonialists to visually showcase natural, meaningful, participative & imaginative funerals. 30th April 2025, County Durham, UK More soon! >KV #deathsky

I'd like a green burial. Preferably my body wrapped in woollen shroud. No coffin for me. I hope my people will line my woodland grave with straw, branches, herbs & flowers. Then lower my body & nestle it on top. Don't be scared of my body's outline. open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... #deathsky

Just referred another intestate, no next of kin estate to the Government. Your Monday morning reminder to make a will.

We were surprised when Dad asked that Adagio for Strings be played at his funeral. We expected something more esoteric. Then he told us about a one-off performance of the piece where he'd played lead double bass in the Cambridge University Orchestra in 1960s. >KV open.substack.com/pub/deadgood...

This is a true story about unexpected, mundane legacy & pleasingly dull personal artefacts. It charts an activity we found ourselves doing a few months after Dad died, but a thing that was weirdly engaging & comforting. A little adventure. >KV open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... #deathsky #griefsky

Our nan died six weeks ago. Today, we received a paid arts commission for an exhibition, workshop & interactive installation about our relationships with Nan & the things she taught us. Catch us in the Peterlee pop up! What did you learn from your Nan (or a Nan figure)? >KV #deathsky #griefsky

Our dad commissioned a local artist to weave his coffin before he died. The artist invited us to her studio to take part in the weaving as a family. It didn't feel morbid. It made his dying feel more familiar. I collected Dad's coffin. Dad sat with it & said it was a thing of beauty. >KV #deathsky

These are important questions to think & talk about. I spoke with a family whose mother died. Never talked about funeral wishes. Family planned a funeral in the absence of this conversation. After the funeral they found the mum's handwritten wishes in a book on the bedside table 😞 #deathsky

Today, my sister (LV) published a love letter to the Log Lady (Twin Peaks). LV's piece explores her experience of grief (as an autistic person) & the role of fictional deaths as a conduit for IRL grieving. >KV open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... #deathsky #griefsky #twinpeaks #davidlynch #loglady

One of the things we're known for is creating bespoke funeral badges. In 2023 we supported C to design 8 different funeral badges that expressed her life mottos. One was 'LIFE'S TOO SHORT, DON'T VOTE TORY'. C wanted the badges to be a surprise for her family & friends at her funeral. >KV #deathsky

We've registered a 'travel wind phone' in Sunderland, UK. A wind phone is a disconnected telephone that supports experiences of grief. 'Phones of the Wind' are a way for people to grieve by 'talking' to someone who is dead, missing and/or missed. Who would you call? >KV #deathsky #griefsky

This is our illustrated A-Z poster of creative approaches to grief. Brilliant for shared spaces, offices, health & therapeutic settings, bathrooms, green rooms, all rooms. Or send to a friend. You can download & print for £5 Please share >KV www.deadgood.org/shop/p/a-z-c... #deathsky #griefsky

What is your favourite illustrated book on death, grief & funerals? Mine is 'Maia & What Matters' by Tine Mortier & Kaatje Vermeire The illustrations of Grandpa's death & then Maia & Grandma visiting his body & open coffin blew me away. >KV www.bookisland.co.uk/products/mai... #deathsky

What fictional deaths affected you & how did they shape your understanding of death & grief? Here we share our experiences of impactful fictional deaths. Expect deaths in Narnia, Alien & soap opera Neighbours (+ more). P.S. KV is a spoiler machine. SOZ. >KV open.spotify.com/show/2qpKoiO... #deathsky

LV came across the motto IT’S OKAY TO DECAY in AJ Hawkins' work. We began using it as a family when Dad chose a green burial over cremation. In Dad's last weeks, LV applied for a public art commission, drawing on themes of death, rot & remembrance. >KV open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... #deathsky

IT'S OKAY TO DECAY At present, our understanding is that natural burial (such as woodland burial) creates the lowest operational carbon emissions in terms of physical send-off of the dead in the UK. Would you consider an eco-ending when you die? >KV open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... #deathsky

I recorded 50 conversations with Dad in his final year. He chose the topics & drove the chat. I listened, asked follow-up Qs & recorded the convos on my phone. I heard stories I’d not been told before. Eventually our last chat happened. Have the chats. >KV open.substack.com/pub/deadgood... #deathsky

LV has always been keen that our flyers be art as well as an information. She designs the front as a mini poster. We always use recycled paper stock. And we use riso printing for both eco & aesthetic reasons. People send us pics of our flyers in their homes & work spaces >KV #deathsky #deathwork