Here is my newest creation for my best friend. She loves my other artwork and wondered if I could combine a comic book style monogram and a coat of arms, so, I did. I almost put in the cartoon character I made for and named after her holding the flag pole (like one sees at de Bruin’s site) but I thought with the comic book style monogram it might be too much.
The monogram is in comic book style and is LMT for those who can’t read it, as it is so small and decorated like a cartoon.
P.S. She is my best friend and is Mexican-American, although her parents consider themselves Spanish and not Mexican; hence the Iberian style helmet.
http://img74.imageshack.us/img74/5223/lizcoatofarmstwo3jt.jpg
edited by member
Nice design—clean, simle, easy to see & recognize at a distance or in small scale. zothers may be able to comment on any possible "duplication" problems (i.e. prior use by others of same or too-similar design), but if there are problems along that line they can be easily overcome in any number of ways.
In the crest, not sure why you use the term "cones"—looks like a triple-mount to me.
Very nice and simple. I wonder if there is some reason you didn’t try putting the arms on an oval with the crest above it. I think these arms would look real nice on an oval. But that may just be me. I’m not too crazy about coloring the ""cones" green—why can’t they be purple? Not to make it too match-matchy, but the green is a little jarring to me. Of course, that’s just me. You also might want to consider charging the bordure with bezants (gold roundles) or some other charge—my understanding is that the spanish/portugese are big on charging the bordure.
Alright, I am working on blazoning this week, so let me try my hand at the blazon.
Purple roundles are golpes, or wounds. Since there are more than three, you need to specify their placement. Since the wreath is of the colors, there is no need to name them. A demi-sun in splendor is either a rising or setting sun in splendor; I prefer rising sun because it sounds more hopeful. Mike calls the cones a triple mount, but I think a mount looks more grassy covered, like the small hillock it represents. These look more to me like coupeaux, as used in the arms of Paul VI, which can be seen here.
Shield: Or, five golpes 2, 1, 2 all within a bordure Purpure.
Crest: On a wreath of the colors, On a rising sun Or three coupeaux Vert
Somebody let me know if I am wrong. Or inarticulate. Or lacking style. (In my blazonry, of course).
Mícheál (Mike) an Aeodh (Hugh) thanks for the comments.
The cones are cones, as in the arms of the aforementioned pope. I read that in Italian these are used to represent hills, or a rocky mount. Since they are meant to represent the Rocky Mountains of Colorado and since Liz likes the cleaner look of these cones as opposed to a more natural hill/mountain figure we went with them.
The green is because she is a native Coloradoan (her parents having immigrated a long time ago from Mexico where they ironically think of themselves as Spanish and not Mexican, though she thinks of herself as Mexican) and the mountains here are often painted green in art – even our ugly license plates are green mountains. So she said she wanted green for this reason. Even though she now lives in California and only visits here throughout the year she still considers herself a Coloradoan – this state is highly addictive in that way.
I asked if she wanted anything on the border, but she said no. Her favorite color is purple and since her last name is, or rather was before marriage, Trujillo y Martinez (in Spanish the paternal name coming first and the maternal being last) we went with a basic rendition of the arms. Given that the five different arms I’ve seen of the name have 10 to 12 hurts (blue roundels) on a gold field with a gules border charged with everything from castles to saltires and even snake heads, I felt confident that the color combination of Or and Purpure with a simple Purpure border would be sufficient differencing.
The sun is intentionally behind the cones as it is supposed to represent a sunset. So it is a sun setting and it is meant to allude to, for her anyway, the sun setting behind the Colorado Rocky Mountains.
I needed the help with the terminology and thanks on that Hugh. I thought saying in saltire was sufficient, but I’m glad you corrected me on that, as I want it to be just right. Also I had no idea what to call purple roundels! LOL. I could have looked it up in one of my copies of heraldry books, but I was simply too lazy to do so.
P.S. I am going to correct the blazon above now thanks.
edited by member for length
Dear Donnchadh,
Perhaps your friend’s crest could be best blazoned as:
‘On a wreath of the colours in front of a sun in splendour Or a mount of three coupeaux Vert’
Yours aye,
John
Donnchadh, nice arms! Clean and simple with good colors and contrast. 
Donnchadh wrote:
I almost put in the cartoon character I made for and named after her holding the flag pole (like one sees at de Bruin’s site) but I thought with the comic book style monogram it might be too much.
Why not? I’d personally like to see it. If anything it could be used as good practice.
Take care,
I think I will start to do that, or at least offer it, as it is what I do and have done for some time. And in this manner it is a way of keeping heraldry fresh and perhaps appealing to a wider audience for acceptance.
The problem with this one is I’ve already matted and framed it and set it aside for her when she comes over on Saturday. I did that today in anticipation of seeing her. I really don’t want to mess up the matting or the piece by trying to do it with the matting still attached. Sigh…I should learn to trust my instincts! Sigh…
