Make a Family Crest

A crest is a part of heraldic history. Knights wore crests on their helmets in battle and tournaments as identification, along with a painted shield. Crests also served the purpose of making them tall. Both the crest and shield were also incorporated into the coat of arms. If you're wanting to create a coat of arms, you usually incorporate a crest, as well.

Steps

Choosing a Crest for Your Coat of Arms

1. Understand the crest. The crest appears on the top of the helmet on a coat of arms.
   • Crests are sometimes used as a stand-in for the coat of arms as a whole, especially if the coat of arms is too intricate.
2. Know what a crest means. Crests are usually born by one person, and then they are passed down through the male line. Therefore, they are not necessarily associated with a a whole family name. In addition, crests and coats of arm are heavily regulated in some countries, such as the United Kingdom.
3. Think about what would be appropriate on your crest. That is, what symbol would best represent you or your family. Think about your history, your profession, the number of children you have, your hobbies, and your interests. Any of those can be used as a symbol for your crest. Narrow it down to a few specifics.
4. Choose symbols to represent your ideas. For instance, if you're a writer, maybe you want a feather as your crest to represent a quill. If you value bravery, maybe you want an eagle as a crest.
5. Stick with traditional colors. The traditional colors for coats of arms are purple, red, blue, green, and black. You also have two options for metals, silver and gold.
   • You can also use colors found in nature if you are using a natural symbol. For instance, if you are drawing an eagle for your crest, you can use brown for the wings.
6. Pick or draw a stylized form of the symbol. Remember, the crest usually goes on top of the helmet. Therefore, it will need to be somewhat simplified and not too detailed.
   • Pay attention to symmetry. Though not all crests are symmetrical, many have symmetrical elements. For instance, you may have an eagle with it's wings outstretched, and it's head turned. In that case, the turned head makes it not symmetrical, but the wings and other parts of the body should be symmetrical.
7. Remember that your crest will sit on a helmet. That is, it shouldn't overtake the helmet, but be small enough to sit on top of it.
8. Place it on your coat of arms. Usually, the helmet sits above the shield, so the crest's colors should blend in with the other colors on your coat of arms.

Making a Fun Coat of Arms as a Family Activity

1. Gather your materials. You'll need items such as construction paper, stickers, markers, glue, and scissors.
2. Gather everyone together. This activity is meant to help bring your family together and brainstorm about what makes you unique.
3. Brainstorm ideas. That is, talk about what makes you special. Do you like to laugh? Are you a nature-focused family? Maybe you have three dogs.
4. Think of symbols to represent your ideas. That is, maybe if you like to laugh, you can include part of a favorite joke in your coat of arms, such as a banana peel. If you love nature, you could include a favorite flower or tree, and dogs could easily be part of a coat of arms.
5. Create the background shape. Most coat of arms use a shield, but you can use other shapes, such as triangles or squares.
6. Pick a person to design each piece. Each person can design a symbol to go on the coat of arms. You can also let someone design the mantling and the helm. The mantling is a decorative piece that drapes above the shape, such as leaves or ribbon, while the helm is the centerpiece of the mantling. The helm is often a knight's helmet, but you can use whatever you want.
   • Don't forget the crest for the helm. The crest can be another symbol that represents your family.
7. Divide the shape. If you want the shield or shape to have more than one color, divide it up and color it in. Because this activity is just meant to be for fun, you can use whatever colors your family likes best.
   • Traditional colors for a shield are exclusively red, blue, purple, green, and black, with silver and gold as metals. However, traditional shields also allow for "natural" colors to create certain symbols.
8. Glue the pieces onto the crest. Glue each piece on to create a complete crest. Often, the shield has a centerpiece, called a charge, but you can also put several symbols inside the shape, especially if you divided it into sections.
   • You can also create supporters, which go on either side of the shield. Generally, these are two animals that help create balance within the design.
9. Add a motto. If your family has a motto, you can create a banner to go across the top of the crest. Write the motto on the banner.
10. Place your family name on a banner. Place that banner across the top of the crest.

Warnings

• In places like the United Kingdom, crests and coats of arms are taken seriously. To commission one and use it, you must meet certain eligibility requirements, generally set by the government.

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• Create a Crest
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Sources and Citations

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• Create Your Own Coat of Arms
• Have a Good Family Life