I made cupcakes using regular liners and an ice cream scoop - they weren't huge or anything. Just the regular size I remember from childhood. But 2 different people commented on how small they were. Is this because of those huge, softball sized ones they sell now or do you think it was because mine didn't have a crown?

I have the relaly big liners (from Wilton because I wasn't sure I needed them in bulk) and I have alot of trouble getting those to bake equally without burning. The standard size bakes perfectly so that's what I use. I also like the size vs. price point. They can comfortably sell for $1 un-iced and $1.50 with a rather large swirl of icing.

Also, is there any way of adding an ingredient to existing cupcake recipes to produce a crown? Or does it simply vary with each recipe?

Does anyone know what size cupcakes the more popular cupcake shoppes make? thanks

We live in a super-size-it! world so that's what people are used to seeing.

CakeDiva, when you say crown, it means dome? I preheat the oven at 400 and when I put the cupcakes in I lower it to 350, this makes them dome up. Got that tip from cupcake blog. Also depends on the recipe. Some recipes just don't dome, which is good if you want a flat top.