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| Arms of private armingers designed by the author. Rendered by Chad Krouse, 2024. |
I've been asked before to design personal coats of arms--mostly from well-intentioned individuals struggling to come up with their own design. I certainly relate to this design struggle, vividly recalling my own ordeal tearing through untold drafts with dissatisfaction. One thing, however, changed for me when I decided to research how well designed arms were pieced together with intention and meaning. When I kept stumbling on this rather odd name, Pierre de Chaignon la Rose (1872-1941), I decided this guy must know something about heraldic design and so it began. Researching a designer's work unlocked everything for me, for I knew I did not want to simply throw a bunch of charges on a field and call it a day. I wanted a design layered, abstractly true to my brand, and above all balanced and beautiful.
My journey into this newfound world of heraldry all of sudden became special and filled with purpose. While it took time and many drafts to arrive on my chosen design, I was glad for both the journey and its intended destination. Now ten years on since I finalized my arms, I'm still in love with them.
For this reason I politely decline most requests to design personal arms. In a word, these are personal. Without really knowing a person, and I mean truly knowing them, I find it quite difficult to come up with ideas that resonate and reflect the would-be-arminger. I do encourage them to take their own journey, take time, and ultimately to be patient.
That being said, the few designs I have completed have been for close friends--meaningful experiences for myself and the arminger. Will I do more in the future, who knows? My love of corporate heraldry readily holds my attention these days.
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