The process of incorporating your DNA inclusions into your special keepsake has several steps. My goal with this blog post is to explain my process because your DNA inclusions are sacred. As a former breastfeeding mother, I realize how precious they are & my promise to you is to treat them with the respect they deserve. I began Everlasting Heart Keepsakes when I weaned my youngest son so I could have a tangible reminder of our breastfeeding journey & the bond that we share. Part 1 ~ CHOOSING THE PERFECT KEEPSAKE. Please b rowse through my online store HERE to find the perfect setting for you. During the step you will choose the inclusion(s) you're sending, your size (when necessary) and you can design your keepsake with your choice of pigment, shimmer and/or flakes. If you don't see what you like in my online store, I do also create custom keepsakes. Please e-mail me at info@everlasting-heart.com to discuss your vision. Part 2 ~ RECEIVING PREPAID MAILER. I will send you a prepaid mailer within 7-10 business days of your order. Once you receive the prepaid mailer, please follow the instructions provided to return your inclusions to my shop. If you are having a breast milk keepsake created your breast milk can be fresh or even frozen for months/years. I have successfully preserved milk that was frozen for over 8 years! INCLUSION AMOUNTS NEEDED FOR YOUR KEEPSAKE ~ Breast Milk - 5ml to 1 ounce Cremation Ash - 1/4 teaspoon Dried Flowers - 1-2 petals of each flower you'd like me to incorporate Hair - 1/2 - 1 inch of a lock, tied together with a bread tie or thread. Pt 3 ~ DELIVERY OF INCLUSIONS & STORAGE. Upon delivery of your inclusions to my shop, they are securely stored until I am ready to create your keepsake. Your inclusions are already labeled from Pt. 2. I create each keepsake in order by the date when they were delivered to my shop. If you did not send breast milk, your inclusions do not require preservation before molding them into your DNA stone. Pt 4 ~ PRESERVATION. Breast milk does require proper preservation as this prevents your milk from spoiling, discoloring or becoming moldy. The preservation process can take 24-72 hours. Once your breast milk is preserved, I use my mortar and pestle to grind it up into a powder to mold into your unique breast milk stone. See photos below for a peek into the process. Pt 5 ~ CREATING & PACKING. During this step your inclusions are molded into a one-of-a-kind DNA stone for your keepsake. This is also the step where I add the pigment, flakes/shimmer, hair, dried flower etc. into your DNA stone. This step can require 24-48 hours to complete. Once finalized, I polish your keepsake for added shine & package it for shipment! I sanitize my creative space and all equipment in between each order to ensure no cross contamination occurs. Pt 6 ~ SHIPMENT. Once shipped, your keepsake should typically arrive within 5-7 business days (considering there are no delays with USPS). I do keep any unused inclusions (except of cremation ashes*) if you decide you'd like to order again in the future. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me ~ my e-mail is info@everlasting-heart.com

Happy Saturday! I added a new Category to my shop called "Clearance." I have several ring settings that are extras lying around, so I thought I would post them heavily marked down to clear out some space in my shop. If you're interested in seeing the rings available, please click HERE . The process to have a keepsake created is: STEP 1. Order your keepsake. Customize your keepsake stone with your choice of pigment, shimmer or flakes HERE . Step 2. After I receive your order, I will send you a prepaid mailer within 5-10 business days with a leak proof container & instructions so you can send me your inclusions. INCLUSION AMOUNTS NEEDED : Cremation ring: 1/4 teaspoon. I will return any unused ashes back to you with your keepsake. Breast milk ring: 5ml-1 oz Hair: 1/2 inch - 1 inch Dried Flower: 1-2 petals Umbilical cord: The piece that fell off. I will return any unused cord back to you with your keepsake. Placenta: 1 placenta capsule. STEP 3. When I get to your order in the queue I will create your keepsake and then mail it to you. Please feel free to email me (info@everlasting-heart.com) if you'd like to consult me with any questions and so I can learn more about you, the person I am creating a special keepsake for. Because your own inclusions are used in your keepsake, each one is custom, made to order especially for you. Thank you for supporting my small, mama owned business! By placing an order with Everlasting Heart Keepsakes you are agreeing that you consent to all terms & conditions. Please refer to the Client Responsibilities tab for all information.

Hello 👋 Can you believe were entering the holiday season already?! 🤯 I wanted to share the Christmas Order deadline so you can get your orders placed to have them delivered in time for Christmas. There are about 3 more weeks until the deadline! I am currently having a sale on 11 out of 20 of my rings AND l will be hosting some other promo before the deadline date as well, so keep your eyes peeled 🤩 www.everlasting-heart.com

If you're unfamiliar with breast milk jewelry, look no further for a simple explanation of the process. I am Alyssa, the artist & owner at Everlasting Heart Keepsakes. I am passionate about breastfeeding, so when I was weaning my youngest son, I knew I wanted a tangible keepsake of my breastfeeding journey. After lots of experimenting, testing, failing lots of times & ultimately *finally* succeeding at preserving my own breast milk, I knew I had to do it for other moms too. With only 5ml-1oz of your breast milk, I can create a custom keepsake just for you. The store here on my website has all the pieces available, but I can create custom jewelry as well. Once I receive your order, I will send you a prepaid mailer within 5-10 business days with instructions & a leak proof container so you can mail me your breast milk. The container holds up to 1 oz, but I only need 5ml if that's all you are able to provide. When your prepaid mailer is delivered back to me, my turnaround time begins. During the turnaround time your milk is naturally preserved by me. The preservation process can take 24-72 hours, depending on the milk sample. The point of preserving the milk is so that it can be encased into your jewelry. Putting liquid milk into jewelry would spoil, stink & discolor within weeks. My preservation method ensures that your precious milk is conserved forever so it can be a special token for you to remember & celebrate your breastfeeding journey. Once your milk is preserved it is ready to be encased into the jewelry you chose, along with any added inclusions such as umbilical cord, hair or pigments and shimmer. I would love to create a special keepsake just for you too! I am a one-woman business, so every e-mail, social media post, piece of jewelry, wrapped package is done by me - another mama. It's my honor & my passion to be here, creating keepsakes for moms everywhere to adore forever.

I wear my breast milk jewelry almost every day. Today I swapped out my wedding set for my Celeste ring 💍 I love jewelry and I am always switching out different pieces depending on my mood or outfit 🤗

Madison says ~ I did plan to breastfeed! It was something I was very adamant about and wanted to do no matter how hard it was! With that being said, we had a rough start! The hardest part for me was thinking it would be this magical thing that we would both know how to do automatically. Also, I was NOT prepared for it to hurt at first. And the mastitis! I battled that quite a few times. The best part of my journey has been the bond I’ve created with my son. Breastfeeding for us sometimes just feels like a break where it’s just him and I getting time to ourselves and it’s so calming! I wanted a piece of jewelry to just tie everything together and be a reminder that breastfeeding is HARD but so rewarding!

Having to relactate twice within six months of my first child's life was certainly not what I had anticipated in my breastfeeding journey. My welcome to motherhood was filled with pain and struggle that started when my daughter Joy, had severe food allergies, systemic eczema, and impetigo that were triggered by an injection when she was six weeks old. This led me to start an elimination diet and also do an intensive detox for her and myself which required that I actually not breastfeed during that detox phase. During that time frame my friend supplied donor milk for her while I was detoxing, and of course my supply completely depleted and I had to relactate afterwards. Despite cutting out all of her food allergens and detoxing, she still had issues with her skin. Shortly after this, my daughter then contracted herpes (HSV1). It not only spread all over her body, but she passed it to me through breastfeeding. The sores began on my nipples and spread throughout my whole body until I was hospitalized with a very rare and lethal form of HSV1 called "eczema herpeticum". It was throughout those two painful months of recovering that my friend became her exclusive milk donor again! I finally healed and relactated for the second time, but again, my child regressed into severe allergic reactions whenever she had my breastmilk. It was heartbreaking when none of us nor the medical professionals could figure out what was going on. Even after blood work for the both of us, elimination diets, and detoxes, she still was greatly impacted by my breastmilk and only moderately handled the donor milk. It was when we had to travel out of the country and couldn't bring donor milk that we sampled a hypoallergenic formula and her skin got immediate relief. While we truly didn't want her to be on formula, at that point it was the only thing that helped her sleep, heal, and not claw at her bleeding and oozing skin every waking moment. Fortunately, she got at least six months worth of antibody-rich breast milk from two separate mommas. It was because of these struggles that I vowed that I too would become a milk donor to other mommas going through their very own trials when I had my next child. Fast forward 2.5 years while I was 40 weeks pregnant with my second child, I heard God tell me that He would heal my heart through this child, and that was before I knew I was carrying a boy. And here came my homebirth redemption baby came at the peak of Covid... Josiah, which means "God is healer", the name my husband had already picked out years prior. I braced myself for an unknown journey ahead, but I was filled with faith that I'd see God fulfill His promise. Now I'm writing today to share that: 1.) God has completely healed my heart and even my body. Josiah's first latch was on the breast where the herpes started, where I still have scars from almost losing one of my nipples. Also, Josiah is completely injection-free and has zero food allergies! 2.) I have now breastfed Josiah for one year, and it looks like he won't be stopping any time soon! Even my daughter gets to drink my extra breastmilk from a cup and still loves it. 3.) I have officially donated over 5,000 ounces of breastmilk to 12 babies, and even got to directly breastfeed one of them! After having gone through such struggle and sacrifice in my first breastfeeding journey and having seen it redeemed in my second, I knew I needed something extra special to commemorate those life-changing milestones. And that's what led me to find Everlasting Heart Keepsakes - I was even gifted this ring from a family I donated to! I specifically chose the Celeste ring for its symbolism: the two bands intertwining are my two children and their breastfeeding journeys crossing paths in their redeemed purposes, and the milk stone tear drop shape with the gold flakes resembles the "liquid gold" breast milk I've been able to produce and donate. This is my most valued piece of jewelry and it will forever have a place in my heart as a constant reminder of everything my children and I have been through, but also everything we have overcome

I wanted to breastfeed all my children, but was never actually able to because I never produced enough. Bentlee is my last baby and I was determined to make it work this time. I have eaten special cookies, had special tea, medicine, and a BUNCH of water. This time I was determined. I love that it gives us a special bond. This is something no one else in the house can do for him, plus it means extra snuggle time. To any mom that wants to breast feed, I encourage you not to get discouraged. Talk to your ob or your pediatrician. There are so many things that can help. My ring means so much to me. He is my last baby out of 5, and the only one I have been able to share this journey with for this long. How long we can continue is unknown, but we always have this.

My breastfeeding journey was both hard and wonderful. I had always planned on breastfeeding, but my son was born a month early, and after 22 hours of a very scary labor, I delivered him via c-section. Due to him being premature he had trouble latching, and we really struggled. The nurses had me pumping after each nursing session, and after 2 days I was in too much pain to even hold my son anymore. I felt like a failure, and so I decided to become dedicated to pumping in order to keep my supply. I very quickly produced way more than he needed, and that in itself was challenging and uncomfortable. For 3 months I exclusively pumped and bottle fed, and my whole life was overtaken with making sure I pump on time. After 3 months I mentally struggled and wanted to give up, and start giving him formula. However, I decided to give breastfeeding one last shot, and go from there. It took us a couple of days to find a position that worked best for us, and finally we found that laying down helped us best. He is now 15 months old and we are still going strong. My advice to any new mommas that want to breastfeed is to not give up! Breastfeeding is the hardest and most wonderful thing you will ever experience. It can take its toll mentally and physically at first, but when you get the hang of it, it’s the most amazing thing, and you will be so proud of yourself and your body. If pumping and bottle feeding is all you can do, then do it! If you can only nurse for a couple weeks or months then that’s fine to. Everyone’s journey is different, and you shouldn’t let any struggles discourage you. Do what is best for you and your baby, and don’t be afraid to reach out to someone if you need help! My ring signifies the struggles, and success that my son and I endured on this journey, and the bond that we have shared.