Sure to draw a chuckle from my friend and graphic designer was my emphatic promise upon delivering illustrations, “I promise! None of them will have crowns on their heads.”
This, of course, was a sweet little industry joke we shared about the proliferation of crowns, various pointy hats and not-to-be-overlooked-wings on nearly every trendy illustration in the marketplace.

And now, I come to the crowning all heads party late. Unhappy with a piece I was working on I muttered to myself, sounding every bit like an old curmudgeon, “I might as well put a jester’s cap on that head.” The head of reference was mine – at barely three, on my tricycle. (The tricycle that expanded my experience of the world by three square blocks – a rather hefty piece of real estate for almost three).
On goes the jester’s cap. Next thing you know I’m putting a crown on a bee. Well, THAT makes sense, doesn’t it? Queen Bee and all. But then, the real trouble began. It was the crown on the crow that made sense of it all. There are so many crowns, pointy hats (and for that matter, wings) on things because it’s downright fun. Go ahead. You skeptics out there – go ahead. Try putting a crown on something. I venture it will not be your last.