I just got back from taking my son to the dentist, and for the hundredth time, I wondered who on earth makes all of the "dental art" you see in dentist offices across America. You know what I'm taking about: the piece of stained glass in the shape of a molar; the needle-pointed smiling mouth; the dentist figurine holding a little sign that reads, "I was dentist of the year and all I got was a little plaque."

I have been in a dozen dentists' -- and orthodontists' -- offices, and every single one of them has some sort of "dental art." What makes it slightly perplexing is that I know hundreds of artists, and have never heard of one who specializes, or even dabbles, in tooth art. Nor have I ever seen any of these anti-cavity crafts for sale at a craft show.

It must be friends and family members of the dentists who make this stuff, but for all I know, there's a huge dental art movement going on, and I'm the last to know.