How Funeral Homes Prepare a Body for a Viewing

Posted on April 18, 2022 by McVeigh Funeral Home, Inc. under funeral home
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Guilderland, NY funeral homeIf you’ve ever been to a viewing at a Guilderland, NY funeral home, you probably wondered how they managed to keep the body looking like it’s just asleep.

A funeral home recognizes the significance of a final impression and does its utmost to make the deceased look as close to the person their loved ones knew as possible.

Here are some of the measures they take to achieve this:

1. Embalm or refrigerate the body or both

A vital step that funeral homes take as soon as possible following a death is preserving the body’s integrity.

A funeral home may allow for only refrigeration for a closed-casket service, but many providers require embalming for public viewing for best results.

Depending on how long it’ll be from the viewing service, one might be required to have a mix of both to keep the body’s appearance ‘fresh.’

2. Bathe the body

Once the body is preserved, some time can pass in preparation for the viewing and other aspects of the funeral service.

The body is washed and disinfected during the embalming process or before placement in the freezer. It is then bathed again in preparation for viewing.

3. Groom and/or apply cosmetics, as required

The mortician improves the body’s appearance by setting the face into a natural expression, keeping the jaw shut with invisible stitches, etc.

Then comes cosmetic parts like grooming and makeup, done carefully as necessary or requested to help the body look its best.

This is a simplified version of the cosmetic part of the process, and it is ideally handled by the expert.

4. Dress the body in clothing the family provides

The deceased’s family will typically bring an outfit they want their loved one to be buried or cremated in. The funeral director carefully dresses the body in this clothing.

Unlike a living person, dressing a dead body can be complicated. Not just because it’s immobile but also due to rigor mortis – a stiffening of the joints and muscles that sets in after death.

Between rigor mortis and possible swelling, a non-expert can easily snap or puncture a body part or worse at this stage.

To achieve the right fit, specialists sometimes have to tactically rip the clothes at spots that will be out of sight to viewers during the service.

5. Place the body in a casket provided by the family and position it accordingly

Guilderland, NY funeral homeIt doesn’t end at dressing, however. The body still has to be successfully placed into the casket, which is trickier than you might imagine.

Following placement, the funeral director adds the final touches, such as making sure the body looks comfortable with hair, face, and hand positioning looking just right.

As you can see, preparing a dead body for viewing is just a bit more rigorous than in instances where it isn’t required.

It is imperative to note that this isn’t a do-it-yourself guide but rather a peek into how funeral homes in Guilderland, NY, manage it. Preparing a body for viewing is only one of the many funeral services we can help you with, call us today or visit to talk more.