It just felt right for West Auckland mothers Deb Cairns and Fran Reilly to drop everything and become funeral directors.

Neither had any experience in the field - Cairns was a sign language interpreter and Reilly an assistant in her husband's electrical business - but by acting on their feelings, their business State of Grace is taking its place in the industry.

State of Grace in New Lynn offers a more personalised approach to death care and funeral arrangements than some traditional parlours.

The company helps families look after their deceased themselves and host funerals at home, and has a focus on environmental friendliness.

Not so many decades ago, the idea of families organising rituals associated with death was considered an honour, and a natural part of the grieving process, says Cairns. "We are pushing the boundaries but essentially we are doing what our great-grandparents did."

When a close friend died, Cairns helped the family lay the body at home and says it felt right. And when Reilly's sister passed away, the family also kept the body at home. Reilly had been caring for her at home and says she couldn't imagine doing things any other way.

A new-found interest in home-based funerals and several internet searches led Cairns to Jerrigrace Lyons of United States home funeral organisation Final Passages, and she invited her to conduct a seminar and workshop in New Zealand.

The experience was enough to inspire Cairns and Reilly to set up their own business, surprising friends and family.

They live as sustainably as possible, viewing traditional funerals - with treated timber caskets, satin liners and lavish services - as an environmentally unfriendly way of thanking mother nature for time spent on earth.

Dressed as what they are - down-to-earth "regular mums" - Cairns and Reilly collect the body in their hearse, take it back to New Lynn, wash it down with natural products and dress it in cotton clothes.

"We talk to the person the whole time," Cairns says.

This process can also be done at the home, should the family prefer it.

Using icepacks and an air-conditioning unit, families are taught how to keep the body at home, though in some instances this is not possible.

Families are encouraged to choose natural pine or willow caskets and locally produced, recycled and biodegradable inners, but State of Grace also offers lower and higher-cost options.

Many people are requesting to be buried in a cardboard box these days, Cairns says. State of Grace can provide a shiny, traditional-style casket case to slip over the cardboard casket for the service.

Cairns is no stranger to making what she calls "good money". She and her husband Chris Morrison, who chairs the Sustainable Business Council, set up drinks company Phoenix Organics in 1986, and she says the latest venture has progressed in a similar way.