Review of the Psychic Tarot for the Heart Oracle Deck

On February 10, 2015May 16, 2015 By benebellIn cartomancy, deck review, oracle deck, tarot23 Comments

The Psychic Tarot for the Heart oracle deck by renowned American psychic medium and author John Holland is keenly accurate. I recommend having it on hand, whether you know nothing about tarot and oracle cards or you’re a pro. It’s great for pulling cards when a sub-issue raised during a tarot reading might need supplemental information, which is how I use it. If you’re not that into tarot, then this is a really great deck to have, because you simply ask a question, pull a card, and the keyword you get pretty much answers that question and in this deck, a picture truly does tell a thousand words. The end. You don’t have to learn any traditions or take this deck to bed and study each card symbol by symbol. I can’t put my finger on why exactly this deck works so well, but it does.

However, I’m not so sure it’s suitable for professional readers as the exclusive tool. If you’re programmed to read tarot and love tarot and eat, sleep, and breathe tarot, then I would surmise that the Psychic Tarot for the Heart oracle deck won’t be right for you. That said, I highly recommend this deck for gift-giving, especially to those who are not full-force into tarot but are looking for a go-to oracle deck that will answer questions succinctly and be really spot on in its assessment of a given situation. On a mass consumption level, it’s actually a fantastic oracle deck for asking quick questions and getting quick answers. The messages and affirmations in the accompanying Guidebook are empowering and I really mean it– it’s an extraordinary oracle deck [for someone not that into tarot] to consult everyday.

Tarot folk can get very set in our ways, which isn’t a good thing, but because of how set we can be, sometimes getting such a person to try out an oracle deck like this one may be a hard sell. If, however, you’re someone who loves oracle decks already, then without reservation I’m telling you you’re going to like this deck.

Keys 0-5 in the Psychic Tarot for the Heart Oracle Deck

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Review of the Pamela Colman Smith Commemorative Set

On January 27, 2015February 1, 2015 By benebellIn cartomancy, deck review, divination, tarot17 Comments

box set front 1

If you’re a Rider-Waite-Smith reader and you can still get your hands on the Pamela Colman Smith Commemorative Set produced by U.S. Games, then do so. I believe it came out in 2009. It’s an incredible set with two books, postcards and prints of Smith’s artwork, and an RWS replica called the Smith-Waite Tarot Centennial Edition deck. It is just a beautiful, beautiful deck. Get it.

deck with topcard

I’m not going to show all the cards because, um, I am pretty sure I don’t have to. You all know what the cards look like, I’m presuming. So let’s just talk about this amazing set.

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The Deck of the Bastard Tarot: Review

On January 12, 2015May 16, 2015 By benebellIn deck review, tarot5 Comments

The Deck of the Bastard 01 Card

The Deck of the Bastard Tarot is a self-published tarot deck by Seven Stars and you’re going to love it. You can purchase it through Etsy or at the proprietor’s website, Tarot by Seven. It’s a “bastardization” (her words, not mine) of several traditional decks– you’ve got Etteilla, Grande Jeu, Soprafino, Rider-Waite-Smith, and I swear I see Sola Busca influences in there, too. The design of the deck conveys a vintage feel, and I love that. Artwork wise, it’s a blending of many traditions, but you would read it the way you read RWS. This deck is fantastic to whip out during public readings, and is quite easy to read with for any RWS reader.

I’ve already decided that this deck has become one of my go-to “workhorse” tarot decks (terminology I’ve stolen from Jenna Matlin over at Queen of Wands Tarot). Really. It’s up there with the Golden Universal for professional reading decks. I don’t think this is an ideal deck for beginners on the RWS system, however, as it may get confusing at that stage of learning (even though the version with the keywords would make an excellent gift to a beginner), but intermediate and onward, you’re going to love reading with the Deck of the Bastard. I think it’s a great deck for pro readings.

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Review of the Wild Unknown Tarot

On December 21, 2014May 16, 2015 By benebellIn cartomancy, deck review, divination, tarot, tarot symbolism42 Comments

If you’re plugged in to the online tarot community in any way, even minimally, then you’ve been hearing buzz about this deck. It’s self-published and I’ve got to say, recently the self-published decks have been beating the traditional publishers. Hey traditional publishers: what are you people doing? Get with the program.

Even non-tarot people (many from the fashion world) have been getting into the Wild Unknown tarot deck. Imagery from the cards are just freakin’ everywhere. I remember first seeing an Instagram photo of someone’s tattoo and thinking, “That kind of looks like a tarot card” only to realize it was. What is going on?!

But the few glimpses of cards I saw here and there made me think that this deck would be one of those “its own unique system” decks where I’d have to do a lot of learning before I did any reading. And I’m getting to that age (sadly) where I don’t know if I want to learn any more “new tarot traditions.” So at first I thought I was going to pass.

And then the imagery. The card’s artwork kept drawing me in, beckoning. “You want me.” No I don’t! Go away. “You want me.”

Then a few weeks ago I set a goal for myself (unrelated to this deck, and totally unrelated to tarot) and said if I met that goal, I’d reward myself with the Wild Unknown tarot deck. I met the goal and the first chance I could, bolted for the computer and placed my order.

And wow. WOW. Best decision ever. The Wild Unknown is easily one of my favorite tarot decks now.

This is one of the highest quality decks I have come across in a long time in terms of the cardstock, the matte finish, and the box packaging. Kim Krans renders the images in hand-drawn black ink illustrations, with just a touch of color here and there so beautifully and intuitively done that they are sure to activate chakras while you read with this deck.

I’d categorize the Wild Unknown as a Marseille-based tarot deck. After all, Key 8 in the Wild Unknown is Justice and Key 11 is Strength (as opposed to the standard RWS, which is 8/Strength, 11/Justice). However, going through The Wild Unknown Tarot Guidebook that Krans graciously included when I purchased this deck, I see a lot of card interpretation crossover from both the Rider-Waite-Smith and Thoth. In that sense, the Wild Unknown would work very well as a beginner’s deck, though such a beginner would have some work to do if she were to later try to learn the traditional Tarot de Marseille, Rider-Waite-Smith, or Thoth. So in that sense, the tarot practitioners who are calling this deck its own interpretive system have a point.

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Dame Darcy’s Mermaid Tarot Deck Review

On December 13, 2014March 25, 2016 By benebellIn cartomancy, deck review, divination, tarot, tarot symbolism27 Comments

I should tell you something. I’m not that into mermaids, or sailors, or ships, nautical imagery, or 18th century colonial dress (you’ll see– like in the Two of Wands, Nine of Cups, Page of Cups, Page of Swords, Ten of Cups, etc., pictured below).

And yet I’m VERY INTO Dame Darcy’s Mermaid Tarot deck. My fingers and my head are bursting with excitement as I type this. I don’t know how she did this, how she can get someone like me to be so enamored with this tarot deck.

I first saw the deck’s vibrant images in a vlog deck review by The Four Queens, and while watching, didn’t realize it was called the Mermaid Tarot. I just saw the images and said with quite a bit of conviction and brattiness, “I want that. Now.”

Then I watched Elora Tarot’s vlog on it and, learning more about the deck, realized it’s all about mermaids and sailors and stuff. I kind of thought to myself, “but I’m not that into mermaids and sailors and stuff.”

Whatever, it didn’t matter. There was something drawing me to this deck. I don’t know what kind of spell Dame Darcy put on this deck but hey, it worked on me. It was a bit pricier than most commercial decks out there and with self-published tarot decks you don’t always know what you’re getting into, but you don’t understand– I needed to get this deck.

So I got it, and now I don’t know whether to be a good Samaritan and use it as a professional reading deck to share the beauty of Dame Darcy’s artwork with everyone who gets readings from me or be selfish and horde this deck all to myself and not let anyone else touch it, ever.

Usually with tarot decks I hear word of it buzzing about for months and then at some point, I buy. With Dame Darcy’s Mermaid Tarot, it went from “I’ve never heard of it” to clicking “Add to Cart” in, like, I think less than an hour.

The above photo shows what I got with my purchase order. Two extra cards came–an extra Ace of Cups and an extra Wheel of Fortune, which is why they’re set off to the side like that. More on that later. No box, but that’s totally okay with me. I love the black velveteen drawstring bag. It’s even got a sailor’s anchor on it, going with the theme. *Love*

As she noted in her review of the deck, Kelly-Ann of The Four Queens got a stunning handwritten, hand-drawn page with a vegetarian recipe while Elora Tarot got one on seed sprouting, so that kind of got me excited about the prospect of a freebie, but alas, I guess the freebies only go to the VIP. I, however, non-VIP that I am, got no handwritten, hand-drawn page. Aww. Shucks.

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A Review of the Radiant Rider-Waite Tarot

On November 29, 2014May 16, 2015 By benebellIn cartomancy, deck review, tarot20 Comments

01 Radiant Rider Waite deck

The Radiant Rider-Waite Tarot is aptly named. The colors are brighter and there is a wholly modern feel to this deck. The deck is laminated, glossy, and is printed on relatively sturdy cardstock. Holding the box, there’s a cheery vibration I get from it. The deck has a lot of great energy to offer a tarot practitioner.

I purchased the Radiant Rider-Waite because it comes highly recommended by some of the most acclaimed tarot professionals of this decade. I was looking for a professional tarot reading deck in the RWS tradition, one that would strictly be a Rider-Waite-Smith clone. I’ve started to get antsy about having too many random folk fondle with my original Rider Waite deck and my Golden Universal has been getting a lot of mileage, wear and tear as well. So I need a new professional reading deck I can use and let people play around with.

I was really, really hoping the Radiant Rider-Waite would be it.

Unfortunately, no.

02 Cartoony

Why not? It has nothing to do with the artwork, by the way. The artwork by itself is lovely. Compared to the original art by Pamela Colman Smith, this version, which are updated, vibrant recreations of Smith’s art by Virginjus Poshkus are superb. Poshkus thinned out the harsh black outlines from the Smith deck, added subtle shading, and recolored the deck so that now the images pop. There’s a bright, positive energy here, and I can see how it’s a great energy for young beginners in the RWS tradition to be working with. (And I do mean young beginners. I’m doubtful how well received this deck would be to mature beginners.)

03 Vivid

See, there’s also a cartoony vibe going on that I’m not sure works for me in a reading deck. The cartoonish renderings are distracting to me. Yes, Smith’s art isn’t fantastic, but the original RWS serves its purpose. The two-dimensional imagery in the original RWS and austere lines help me tap into my intuition. The vibrant cartoons in the Radiant Rider-Waite? Not so much.

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Mystical Cats Tarot – Deck Review

On September 11, 2014March 24, 2015 By benebellIn deck review, tarot14 Comments

The Mystical Cats Tarot by Lunaea Weatherstone and illustrated by Mickie Mueller is my favorite feline tarot deck to date. Aeclectic, as usual, provides close-up image files of the cards. The art is soft, has a children’s book feel to it, and most importantly, is spot on in capturing the expressiveness of cats. All cat lovers are going to love this deck.

Now one thing I did note right away is the crappiness of the box packaging. Sorry. This isn’t a box I want to keep, but also this isn’t exactly the kind of tarot deck I’d make my regular reading deck, which means such a deck is one where I’d normally keep the box, but this box is just awfully thought through. I’m assuming the cards are supposed to fit in that smaller space, but it doesn’t, and a few always slip down where the book is supposed to be. The only way this box works is if you have a tarot bag to commit to this deck. Then it’ll fit in that space without cards accidentally falling through the crevices.

The deck doesn’t come with a little white booklet, but rather, a very nice 5.20″ x 8.00″ perfect bound book that I enjoyed reading cover to cover. There’s a ton of information in there, though nothing new for the seasoned tarot reader. Still, it’s definitely nice to have. Oh, and shouldn’t that title be Tails of the Mystical Cats instead of Tales? Kidding.

The cover of the book features the Earth King card, featuring a kitty who looks just like my little Prince (there are always photos of him on my Twitter). The book consists of tarot basics, card meanings, suggested spreads, and–my favorite– an appendix of rough sketches from the artist during the brainstorming phase for the deck.

The cards are 2.75″ x 4.60″ in dimension, borderless, with rounded corners, matte, but on somewhat flimsy cardstock. They’re very easy to shuffle, fit snugly in my hands, and are overall a very efficient deck to work with physically speaking.

It’s not exactly a clone of any of the traditional tarot systems, but it’s also very easy to read for anyone with tarot reading background. The Minors are divided into four “cat clans” (love!): the Fire Cats, Sea Cats, Sky Cats, and Earth Cats. The Fool is just The Cat. The Magician is Cat Magic. The Hanged Man is The Floating Cat. The Devil is Demon Cat. Judgment is Good Kitty. And there are other minor differences here and there, nothing difficult to follow.

The courts? Kitten, Tom, Queen, and King! Awww! I love it!

I love how they structured the book. “The Cat’s Advice.” In a deck review by Barbara Moore published in The Llewellyn Journal, it’s mentioned that Mueller, the artist, used “special herbal infusions in all her watercolors . . . based on [the herbs’] magical properties.” And all of the artwork for the card images incorporated catnip!

Above is a personal reading I did using the Mystical Cats Tarot. It’s the Celtic Cross, though yeah, the column of four cards is all crowded and clumped due to lack of table space. While I am not likely to pull out this deck for professional readings, I might be inclined to use it when I do fundraising events for animal shelters, animal non-profits, etc. How fun would that be!

Overall, I adore this deck, but I also know I’m biased– I love cats. Now, of all the kitty-themed tarot decks out there to date, this one is by far the best. If you can only buy one kitty tarot deck, then Mystical Cats Tarot is the one to get.

The Mary-el Tarot: My Personal Reading Deck

On March 28, 2014September 13, 2022 By benebellIn cartomancy, deck review, tarot15 Comments

It’s perplexing that I would take so long to acquire the Mary-el Tarot but it did, just over 2 years from its publication date (February, 2012) by Schiffer Publishing. Now that I have it, I’m even more perplexed at myself for the delay. I’ve been hearing about it here and there, reading reviews, seeing vlogs about it, and even articles in various tarot publications.

Mary-el_CoverBox

Get this deck. No wishy-washy preceding terms like “consider…” or “perhaps you might like…” or “I personally suggest…”– No. Get this deck. You should get this deck.

Unless, of course, you only like paintings of pastel rainbows and pretty little kittens and unicorns, absolutely cannot tolerate nudity for whatever reason, or you can only use the straightforward Rider-Waite tradition or you can only use the Marseille or you can only use the Thoth. If any of those are true about you, then yeah, forget it. Stick with what you know. Otherwise, Get. This. Deck.

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A Review of Doreen Virtue’s Goddess Guidance Oracle Cards

On March 8, 2014March 24, 2015 By benebellIn deck review, oracle deck25 Comments

goddessguidance_2

Here’s the thing. I’m such a snot. I didn’t want to like this deck. Oh no. I wanted to sneer at it. I wanted to toss my chin and hand up in the air and say, “What fluff!” But…

…I like it. I do. I really like this oracle deck. Deep down, I’m just a big fluffy bunny rabbit tarot practitioner. Because I really like Doreen Virtue’s Goddess Guidance oracle cards.

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The Poet Tarot: A Divinatory Tool for Poets and Writers

On March 2, 2014March 24, 2015 By benebellIn deck review, oracle deck, tarot9 Comments

0_PoetTarot

The Poet Tarot published by Two Sylvias Press has just made its debut at the 2014 AWP Conference in Seattle. It was created by Kelli Russell Agodon, who is herself a writer, editor, and poet, and Annette Spaulding-Convy, also a poet. I received an advance review copy and am loving it! This will be one of those amazing decks I use when reading for poets, writers, and artists.

There may be some debate as to whether the Poet Tarot is a tarot deck or whether it is an oracle deck, but more on that later. I tend to see it more as an oracle deck for reasons I’ll explain.

The deck comes in a yellow organza drawstring pouch along with a guidebook, and you will definitely need the guidebook. The dimensions of the cards are about 2.75″ x 4.75″, which for me is the perfect size to shuffle with. They’re very snug in the hands. The guidebook is 5″ x 8″ and while that would not bother me ordinarily, I can’t imagine using the Poet Tarot deck without the guidebook, and so for that, if both were the same size, I could put both in the same pretty cedar box and keep them together on my writing desk, no problem. I have to imagine that as writers come, I’m not alone in that sentiment. Due to the specific nature and purpose of this deck, it would just make more sense to have the guidebook be the same size as the cards, with the intention that the two will always accompany one another.

The art of the deck is in a digital collage form that blends Victorian art and imagery with poet busts in a wholly contemporary style. It’s really breathtaking to look through and has a natural appeal to most 21st century writer sensibilities. They’re borderless like many contemporary decks today, and the borderless design suits the deck well.

Once you hold this deck, you’ll know that every aspect of it was designed for the writer in mind. I just want this deck (and its guidebook) in an ornate wood box in the corner of my writing desk next to Strunk & White. You know what I mean?

The cards are subdivided into the Poets (Major Arcana) and the Suits. The Suits are Quills, Muses, Mentors, and Letterpresses, corresponding with Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles respectively. The four suits represent the four stages of the creative writing process: Quills for creation, Muses for inspiration, Mentors for revision, and Letterpresses for completion. I really love the thoughtful way Agodon and Spaulding-Convy have designed the Poet Tarot deck.

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Category: deck review