Burke's General Armory

[Cygnus]

As you can read in the thread kindly linked by ShaunMaxwell, coats of arms are regulated by law in the UK (as well as other countries), though the United States has no such laws. The thing to keep in mind about coats of arms, especially in Scotland, is that they are individual - while coats of arms of members of a particular family are similar, they are unique to each individual. While the eldest son of a family will inherit his father's arms, to ensure they're unique while his father lives, a heraldic charge called a label is used on the heir's shield until the arms become his upon his father's death, while any younger brothers will bear slightly different arms that show their position in the family. Because of this, there's really no such thing as a "family" coat of arms.

I'm a traditionalist deep down and am planning to petition my own arms from Lord Lyon at some point in the future.

That said, seeing that you are in the United States, there's nothing to stop you from creating a coat of arms (often called "assumed arms" because they're not granted by a heraldic authority) and using it on stationery, home decor, etc. Just keep in mind that using that coat of arms might not be legal outside the United States, so check local laws should you decide to travel abroad with luggage emblazoned with your "assumed" arms!