It was a cutesy art trend. This is the first artist I noticed doing it: https://berkleyillustration.com/ https://berkleyillustration.com/ It spread from there

It was a cutesy art trend. This is the first artist I noticed doing it: https://berkleyillustration.com/ https://berkleyillustration.com/ It spread from there and became ubiquitous, at least in the Pacific Northwest.