First Look: Omnia Perduta Playing Cards by Thirdway Industries

[Update] Omnia Golden Age now available on Kickstarter!

In the third and final part of our first look at the upcoming Omnia: The Golden Age series by Thirdway Industries, we will look at the Omnia Perduta, the third deck of the campaign. In the first part, we looked at the unlimited deck of the campaign - Omnia Antica and in the second part- Omnia Magnifica, the limited deck of Omnia: The Golden Age campaign.

Perduta means "Lost" and represents an era of war and destruction, when everything has collapsed. As this is the final deck of the campaign, it will only be available as a stretched goal. According to Giovanni Meroni, not much will be revealed until the stretched goal has been unlocked during the campaign. Here's what we know,

Perduta will have Green Foil on the new EPCC Dark "Stardust" paper. The cards will have light green and gold metallic inks. Green is the key color of Omnia Perduta, and the courts are be aggressive and malicious. You can consider it as the "dark side" of the Omnia past.

As mentioned in our previous first looks of Omnia: The Golden Age, all three decks will be different, no color swaps.

Here are the tuck boxes:

Omnia: The Golden Age will be launched on Kickstarter the 6 January 2016 - UTC 14:00 - EST 9:00 (New York) - CET 15:00 (Milan). You can subscribe the Thirdway Industries newsletter to recieve a notification.

Oh... Giovanni promised there will be a lot of early birds available and surprises planned! Don't miss out!

Top 12: Playing Cards of 2015

It's been another busy year for playing cards. From big magic companies to independent designers, 2015 has been filled with excellent new releases, and to celebrate we've compiled 12 of our favourite decks right here. Compiling the list has been a lot fun but really challenging as there are just so many amazing decks this year. If you think we left your favorite deck out, let us know in the comment section below. :)

Note that the selection expressed in this top 12 are solely those of the author and the list is in no particular order.

Avernum

Produced by Passiones Playing Cards and designed by Stefano Protino, Avernum is inspired by Italian poet and philosopher Dante Alighieri's eerie vision of the afterlife seven centuries ago. His vision has been included into one of the masterpieces of the Italian culture: the Divine Comedy (La Divina Commedia). Fully custom, each court card is a work of art by itself and weaves metaphor into an intriguing visual that captures the imagination.

Draconian

Designed by Randy Butterfield, this mesmerizing deck of playing cards are inspired by a time of legendary dragons and features beautiful dragon scales, gorgeous colours and borderless back design. Also, the Faces incorporate a clean design that keeps them very functional and provides the highest level of playability. Draconians are available in 2 different edition, the Lightning (blue) and Spitfire (red) decks.

Omnia Suprema

From Thirdway Industries the Omnia Suprema Playing Cards are meticulously designed by Italian graphic artist, Giovanni Meroni. This stunning deck represents the dimensional plane where Gods live in the Omnia Universe. The gorgeous courts in Suprema depict the ascendency to the divine and show their power with elaborate armors, jewel and wings. Also, the tuck features an elegant red foil plus embossing giving it a very luxurious look and feel.

Heretic

Another incredible deck masterfully created by Stockholm17. Heretic Playing Cards features intricate design and artwork based on alchemy and the hermetic world. The deck is fully custom, from the pips, backs to the court cards. The back design is bright and embellished with intricate sphere's and ribbons in the negative space, making the back very eye-catching. The tuck has a subtle embossing on it with a unique long flap design that tucks into a lip on the tuck. A nice elongated Red seal wraps itself around the bottom of the tuck to secure the flap and features sequential serial numbers.

Scarlett Tally-Ho

Kings Wild Projects has brought us some of the most beautiful, collectible decks in the industry in the last few years. The Scarlett Tally-Ho does not disappoint! Inspired by the iconic brand as well as Jackson Robinson’s daughter (Scarlett), the deck is a beautiful reworking of the classic Tally Ho’s. The Tuck is a deep red with Gold Foil accents and embossing as well as a “Lattice” like pattern that embellishes the interior of the tuck to complete the custom case. The cards themselves have completely custom courts with 2 gold metallic ink accents on the face cards as well as 1 gold metallic ink accent on the back design presented in the bold, intricate design style that we’ve come to expect from KWP. The Ace of Spades as well as the Jokers design, are an homage to the original key card design and concept.

Contraband

A beautifully crafted deck by Theory11 and designed in the United Kingdom by Joe White, Contraband Playing Cards were inspired by secret societies, conspiracy theories, and everything unknown. Each card within the Contraband deck are custom, from the Aces, Jokers, to the court cards and the backs. The Contraband tuck case features gold and black foil and the interior, an elegant black foil design.

Hive Limited Edition

Stunning! The Limited Edition Hive 2 Playing Card is designed and illustrated by Brendan Hong. Hive 2 does a wonderful job in picking up where the original Hive decks left off. The style and design connects them without being the same. This gorgeous deck features all new custom courts in Brendan’s signature style as well as custom pips, Jokers and Ace of Spades. The tuck is fully embossed with Gold Foil accents and the interior features a gold foil, repeating, “Honeycomb” design that is very striking.

Arcana

One of the most funded deck of the year, Arcana Playing cards blend the traditions of standard playing cards with the secrets of the Tarot. This stunning deck is intricately illustrated by Chris Ovdiyenko. Each royal is illustrated with an unprecedented amount of detail in an engraved style. Elements in the deck includes 12 uniquely crafted Royals and Aces, 4 Major Arcana cards (The Fool, The Lovers, Death, and The Tower), and standard pip number cards. Also, Arcana features a natural pearlized tuck, with embossing and a luxurious blue foil on the tuck interior.

Superior Brand Classic Reserve

Recently available as a limited offering few weeks ago from the Expert Playing Card Co,  the Superior Brand features EPCC's new Robusto Finish and tucks designed by Jackson Robinson. What truly made this deck impressive is the full foil, shimmering back design. Truly eye-catching! Also, the tuck was stamped with a very expensive matte red foil followed by gold foil on top of that.

Tendril Ascendant Special Edition

From the mind of Paul Carpenter, the elegant Tendril: Ascendant playing cards incorporate all the refinements over the years and mixes those with the organic symmetry first seen in the original Tendril. The colors are bold, the borders are intense, the faces are dark and the level of detail has been increased. The Special Edition tucks are individually hand made with personalized die cut on a soft-touch black paper with gold foil.

Joker & the Thief

The Joker and the Thief playing cards is an impressive deck! The design invites attention while striking a balance between style and functionality. The tuck is peppered with lavish touches, and adorned with incredible silver foil. It is embossed on all sides and has a foil stamped interior. The back design is not only intricately beautiful but aesthetically and sentimentally appealing. The themes and connotation from back design continue throughout. The court cards are all fully custom and the Ace of Spades is unique, bold and iconic of this design.

LUXX Palme

From JP Playing Cards and designed by Rick Davidson, creator of the beautiful Origins Cards, Palme is a deck inspired by the beautiful Paisley pattern, which has roots and heritage across the globe. The Palme backs features full-bleed, borderless design, giving this deck a unique look and style which is carried through the deck and onto the tuck. The eye-catching tuck box features a wrap-around design and embossing complete with matte foiled LUXX logo.

Honorable mention: SEASONS by Alex Chin, Classic by UUSI, Antler by Dan & Dave, Kings of India by Humble Raja, Golden Spike Black Ink by Black Ink Playing Cards and Fuego! by Cellar Window.

Season's Greeting 2015

Merry Christmas.

Firstly, special thanks to Giovanni Meroni for his gorgeous artwork made exclusively for us here at Kardify for the Holiday season.

2015 has been an amazing year for Kardify, with significant growth on our social media channels and the number of you visiting the site has also increased accordingly. As such, we at Kardify (Anthony Ingrassia and Ivan Choe) would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all the support you have given us. We couldn't have done it without each and every one of you.

We hope you all have an amazing Christmas and incredible 2016!

First Look: Omnia Magnifica Playing Cards by Thirdway Industries

This is the second part of our first look at the upcoming Omnia: The Golden Age series from Giovanni Meroni's Thirdway Industries. In the first part, we looked at the first, unlimited deck of the campaign - Omnia Antica. In this first look, we will focus on the Omnia Magnifica, the limited deck of Omnia: The Golden Age campaign.

The Omnia Magnifica represent the legendary, remote past of the Omnia Universe, full of God and Heroes. When everything started. The deck features the most ancient reincarnations of the Omnia courts, and will probably be the most baroque deck designed by Thirdway Industries.

In terms of the design, Omnia Magnifica will have a strong symbology inspired by Moon and Sun, probably one of the first things that the men idolized in their history. They will be very important in the Golden Age campaign. Like Omnia Antica, every suit represents an ancient civilization (Egyptian, Greeks, Babylonian, Roman) in their heroic and ancient form.

Omnia Magnifica will NOT be a color swap of Omnia Antica- everything is redesigned from scratch. The tuck features a double-layered foil, Red and gold, on a special dark paper that will be revealed during the campaign. The cards will have a very dark brown/black background and 2 metallic inks, golden and bronze.

Omnia Magnifica will be limited and mainly reserved for Kickstarter backers. According to Giovanni,

There will be a lot of "Magnifica" early birds available, so if you can try to catch it on day one ;)

Join us next week when we look at the third deck in the Omnia: The Golden Age series, the Omnia Suprema!

The provisional launch date for the campaign will be 6 Jan 2016. Stay tuned! Subscribe to the Thirdway Industries newsletter to keep up-to-date on the campaign launch date.

Deck View: Contraband Playing Cards

Elegant. Gold. Unknown.

A beautifully crafted deck by Theory11. Designed in the United Kingdom by Joe White, Contraband Playing Cards were inspired by secret societies, conspiracy theories, and everything unknown. With over a year in the making, each card within the Contraband deck are custom, from the Aces, Jokers, to the court cards and the backs. The face cards are pretty much standard except for a faded look to the spots and this effect is carried over to the custom court cards.

The Contraband tuck case features gold and black foil and the interior, an elegant black foil design. The intricate line work on the tuck back mirrors the eye-catching back design which depicts a world map of sorts. Theory11 state that secret imagery is hidden within the design: the lines of the inner flap construct a face of mystery.

Printed by the USPCC, this deck handles beautifully and perfect for any card enthusiasts, sleight of hand artist and cardist. Available at JP Games.

First Look: Superior Brand from the Expert Playing Card Co.

Available in a limited offering tomorrow from the Expert Playing Card Co. the Superior Brand. The decks feature EPCC's new Robusto Finish and tucks designed by Jackson Robinson, I have to say they are quite impressive.

The Pre-Release will be tomorrow December 17th, with a wide release some time next year. There will only be 200 Standard Edition decks available and 100 Private Reserve Edition (Limited to 1000) decks for sale tomorrow and they will ship immediately and directly from Taipei. Deck will be available through Conjuring Arts.

The Private Reserve decks will be priced at $24.95 upon their regular release, but tomorrow's pre-release batch will be available for $19.95. The Standard Edition will be priced at $9.95 upon their regular release with an early pre-release price of $7.95.

The Superior Brand is our newest brand joining Exquisite, Zen, Global Titan and our others from EPCC. It represents our never-ending effort to both create the greatest cards and offer them to you at the most reasonable prices.

New Features:

Robusto Stock: Both editions of the new Robusto Classic share this new stock from Expert PCC, and simply put, it’s the thickest, strongest, most elegant stock ever used for playing cards. Be ready to use some serious hand strength when using these. They are not flimsy, spongy cards like many other decks on the market. Much like a baseball batter might swing two bats, the thickness of this stock makes for an outstanding practice deck. If you can do poker deals, shifts, springs or fans with this deck, handling one of our Master Finish or Classic Finish decks will be a breeze. 

Foil on Foil: We believe that this is the first time foil has been applied directly on top of other foil. This opens up the world to an amazing array of effects that could not have been done before. The Reserve deck tuck was stamped with a very expensive matte red foil followed by gold foil on top of that.

Full foil backs: We were the first to use foil on the backs of cards when we introduced the Exquisite Bold last year. Our modest little star was a cool feature and proved to the world that first-class cardistry and sleight-of-hand level playing cards could also have foil on the backs. Since that revolutionary technique was launched we have produced XX different decks with foil on their backs and are now ready for the piece de resistance: the complete back pattern in hot stamped foil. We are aware that about 18 months after we introduced foil on card backs other manufactures “invented” the process and now are claiming something original. Not only did we actually do it first, we do it best. Our full back design in gold foil on our Robusto Classic Reserve is now the reference standard.

In addition to these new features this pair of decks also offer other wonderful elements that you have come to regularly expect from an EPCC deck: embossing multiple foil colors, spot UV, numbered custom seals and more.

If you want to have the decks that changed everything, buy your Robusto Classics today.

We want to thank Expert Playing Card Co. for the opportunity to bring you a first look of this beautifully innovative and functional deck. It's truly impressive the way the deck handles and feels, well worth picking up a few.

Keep up to date with all of EPCC's innovations and new releases by following them on their Facebook page as well as their Instagram Feed.

First Look: Omnia Antica Playing Cards by Thirdway Industries

Back in June 2015, Thirdway Industries, founded by Italian designer Giovanni Meroni, launched the Omnia Series on Kickstarter. Omnia had three decks, Oscura, Illumina and Suprema, and every deck represented a different dimensional plane: Oscura was the dark side, Illumina the bright one and Suprema was the plane where the Gods live.

Coming in January 2016, the ancient planes of the Omnia universe will be revealed, with a new campaign "Omnia: The Golden Age". Here's Giovanni to tell us more,

Accordingly to Omnia Mythology, the courts of this series will be the ancestors of the "classic" Omnia courts. The upcoming campaign will include three different decks again. This is an exclusive sneak peek of the first, unlimited deck of the campaign - Omnia Antica.

This deck represents an era of abundance and wealth, with emperors, conquerors, priestess, sultans and pharaohs. All the cards are designed from scratch, it won't be just a color swap.

Omnia Antica will be printed by Expert Playing Card Co. and features copper foil on a dark red / brown tuck box and a lot of metallic inks on faces and backs. Design will be intricate and fully-custom, with a new symbology based on the "classic" Omnia: the eternal return, Uroboros and a lot of new hidden symbols.

The suits are inspired by ancient cultures: Hearts are Egyptian, Clubs are Greek, Diamonds are Roman and Spades Babylonian/Persian. Some courts are inspired by some important personalities of the past, for example, the Queen of Hearts is inspired by Cleopatra.

You probably already saw the pictures, but I have to officially confirm this: the queens will be sexy and beautiful - and, in Thirdway Industries tradition, there will be a different female and a male joker in each deck.

The others two decks of the campaign, Magnifica and Perduta, will have completely different backs, tuck boxes, courts and aces.

Stay tuned for the second part where we reveal the limited edition Omnia Magnifica.... and Giovanni promised that it will be the most baroque deck ever produced by Thirdway Industries!

To find out more about OMNIA and anything Thirdway Industries, visit them at thirdway.it or follow them on Facebook.

Card Gear: From Stockholm

Card Gear is our monthly feature dedicated to discovering new inventory, setup and accessories used everyday by card designers, cardists, magicians, and collectors. The concept originated from the popular social media site, Instagram: #passthepockets. Whenever one of these hashtags come up on the social news feed, there's always something new to discover, no matter who that person is.

For this month, we have the everyday gear of Lorenzo Gaggiotti, founder of Stockholm17 and designer behind Requiem, Heretic, No. 17 and the beautiful Le Chat Rouge. Lorenzo began his journey in the playing cards industry in late 2013 with Requiem Playing cards. Since then, he has become a prominent name within the industry, releasing three other playing card series to-date. His next deck will be a collaboration with Swedish Magician, Caroline Ravn for RAVN Playing Cards in 2016. Lorenzo's gear:

+ Soft rubber
+ 0.5mm mechanical pencil with 2B lead (for sketching and details)
+ double pencil red/black (for quick sketching)
+ business card, face
+ business cards, backs
+ Ravn Playing Cards Prototype (for testing)
+ Iphone 5s black, with custom No.17 Crown Edition skin
+ various keys with Sterling Silver Ace of Spades as a keychain
+ Wallet (with a couple of cards needed daily)


What’s yours? If you would like your card gears to be featured on Kardify, contact us.

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First Look: SEASON PASS Playing Cards by Cardazine

SEASON PASS is the second volume of Cardazine's playing cards series. Like EXPLORE, which was successfully funded on Kickstarter last year, it is a product designed to bring you through a visual journey.

SEASON PASS is inspired by the four seasons of the year and the cherished moments within each season. On the inspiration, Harris Sebastian Soetikno of Cardazine said,

I find it interesting that the four seasons is a cycle, from when the flower buds all the way through to when it hibernates, and then all over again. It is easy to miss out on moments within the seasons because it will happen again anyway! 

Each suit represents a different season: Spades - Spring , Clubs - Fall, Diamonds - Winter and Hearts - Summer.

The gorgeous design of the face cards are hand-illustrated beautifully, each of the court cards are custom and the standard fifty-two cards are used to represent each moment within each season, there are plenty of hidden seasonal surprises! Harris adds,

Through its organic visuals, I truly hope that SEASON PASS has captured priceless moments within each season - ready to be cherished. Kudos to Paykhan for the genius mastermind behind the creative visuals on each card, he is truly one of the best

SEASON PASS is coming to Kickstarter on Tuesday, 15 December at 9AM (PST). Don't miss out!

First Look: AVES (Second Edition) Playing Cards by LUX Playing Cards

The AVES (Second Edition) Playing Cards are now LIVE on Kickstarter!

Inspired by birds from all over the world, artist Karina Eibatova and LUX Playing Cards meticulously designed the gorgeous AVES Playing Cards. The original AVES was launched on Kickstarter back in 2014 and successfully raised over $23k. After more than 12 months, LUX Playing Cards have just announced a new version of AVES after the first sold out.

Like the original, each individual cards is a work of art by itself and face cards are amazingly detailed and meticulously illustrated by hand. The new version has been remodeled with a new card back as well as tuck cases. According to Bryan Sloan from LUX Playing Cards,

The card back retains its individuality and gives more space to make the main features and colors pop off of the cards. I've had requests for this card back when I showed both versions. Also, the tuck cases are remade, with both a Bicycle branded tuck and an unbranded tuck, called "Perspective." 

We asked Bryan to tell us more about the Perspective deck,

The Perspective deck tells two stories. I was able to do this by exacting the illustrations onto the tuck. From the front, top, and left of the tuck case, you'll see the black background and the white swan. By turning the deck opposite, you'll see the white background and the black swan from the back, right, and bottom of the tuck case. I don't know of any other cards that employ this technique in the design of the tuck. 

The AVES (Second Edition) Playing Cards are now LIVE on Kickstarter!

The new version of AVES is set to launch on Kickstarter on December 14th.

7 Questions with Joshua Jay about the Dapper Deck by Vanishing Inc

The Dapper Deck is a beautiful deck of playing cards conceptualized by Vanishing Inc. Magic, one of the largest magic companies in the world. The idea was to create the most fashion-forward, subtle, and sophisticated "look" for a deck of cards yet devised. The result is the Dapper Deck, which is an eye-catching deck of cards crafted from the finest stock and finish.

Available in two base colors, navy blue and Jerry's Nugget Orange, the Dapper Deck is fully custom and adorned with beautiful details. The details are in pastel shades of green, yellow, red, and grey, and each back design is designed to bring out the colors of your wardrobe. For each face card, there will be a random pip that matches the back design, accentuating the uniqueness of this deck. The Ace and the Jokers are very stylized and beautiful, consistent with the theme of the deck.

We had the opportunity to chat with Joshua Jay, co-founder of Vanishing Inc about the Dapper Deck, it's inspiration & design process and Vanishing Inc's next project.

For those of us who don’t know, tell us a little about Vanishing Inc? 
Vanishing Inc started because two best friends got together six years ago to pursue a dream of producing their original material. Andi Gladwin and I were both so passionate about magic, and we wanted to create what we felt would be the ultimate shop. So, we did. Six years later, we are one of the largest and most diverse brands in the world. It's been an amazing ride.

This is your first playing card project on Kickstarter. Why Kickstarter? 
Because this is where the best decks are unveiled. We really feel we have created a special deck, and we wanted to unveil it to an audience that would be excited.

Tell us a little about the background and the inspiration behind the Dapper Deck? 
I think two things are particularly notable about the Dapper Deck. The first is that it's a BRAND that is not only cards, but also an attractive skinny tie, a pocket square, and an AMAZING wooden-polished box. It's a set, and it looks GORGEOUS on a shelf, and for magicians or card players who use the dapper deck, their entire ensemble will be subtly connected. The other thing that's really special about the deck is how subtle and restrained the design looks. Particularly on the faces (Aces and number cards), the design is ever-so-slightly present, in a cool way.

Walk us through the process you took to design this unique deck. How did you approach this project and get to this finished product? 
We consulted two experts from the fashion industry. One works in color palettes and helped us determine the color scheme for both colors of the deck. Then, we worked with a fashion designer to make sure the materials used in the pocket square and tie were of high quality, and that the accessories were considered at the cusp of fashion.

From the project page, what are a few of your favorite reward levels and why? 
You have to go with deluxe box. Whatever level you do, make sure it at least includes the Dapper Deck Deluxe box. Please, please take a chance. The decks are great--raised printing on the boxes, amazing finish, and slick design, but frankly it's the entire package and presentation of the deluxe box that sets this project apart.

What’s next for Vanishing Inc? Can we expect to see more card designs in the future from you guys? 
Yes. We have already completed the next project. It will again come with a gorgeous box (same size and shape but different design). The next series will have FIVE decks, and I am pleased to announce here for the first time the title of the series. World Tour Decks. For the details, you'll just have to wait until we post on Kickstarter in April.

Can't wait to find out more! Finally, what are your favorite playing card decks? 
Theory11 and the Buck Twins both do beautiful decks, but remember that we're magicians first, and card lovers second. So our passion is with decks that have a simplicity and elegance.

Thank you for your time Joshua and all the best! At the time of writing, the project is only 60% funded with 21 days to go. If want to support the Dapper Deck, you can find it on Kickstarter here.


The Dapper Deck will be available in two colors: Navy and Orange. Pledge starts from $8 and these beautifully crafted decks will be printed by EPCC.

Don't forget to check out the Dapper Deck Deluxe Package, which includes the Dapper decks along with a matching silk tie and a 1000 thread count pocket square. All neatly packaged in a hand-painted wooden lacquer box complete with lock, practice mirror, and Dapper Deck insignia.

Each package comes with a numbered, signed certificate by both creators Joshua Jay and Andi Gladwin. Strictly limited to 400 units.

News: The Christmas Deck by Natalia Silva

The Holidays are upon us and we're all in that giving spirit and here's a great deck to help celebrate the Holidays. The Christmas deck.

Designed by Natalia Silva and produced by Penguin Magic, the Christmas deck is a 100% custom and unique holiday vision. 54 individual works of art bring this whimsical offering to life. A beautiful back design featuring iconic holiday imagery presented in a timeless color pallet of red and green for the Holidays.

The tuck case is a simple "Packaging" for the deck, designed to look like a wrapped present it fits the theme of the deck just right. While dubbed a "Holiday Deck", the Christmas deck holds to the quality standards offered by the United States Playing Card Co. Printed on Bicycle stock with a Premium finish in Q1 quality offering the handling you've grown to expect from USPC.

The deck itself, as mentioned, offers 54 unique designs, all celebrating the Holidays, but the deck is far from a random assortment of designs, far from it. The desk does a stellar job tying each value, and court together. Meaning, the Aces share the same Christmas tree design element, while the sixes for instance are all designs based on Christmas stocking, the tens, Christmas mittens, and of course the Kings showcase Jolly old Saint Nick.

Not forgetting the working card owners, the Christmas deck also features two gaff cards to work into your Holiday routines. The Christmas decks is a fun, festive and eye-catching deck for the Holidays, the perfect stocking stuffer for not only playing card fans, but just about anyone who enjoys family time playing cards at the table.

The Christmas deck is available now at Penguin Magic for $9.95 per deck, the deck is limited so if the deck is bringing that warm holiday cheer your way, pick up a few decks before it's too late.

If your interested in Natalia's past work and future work, you can visit her site at NataliaSilva.net and stay up to date with all of her projects.

As always, we would like to thank the folks at Penguin Magic for the opportunity to showcase the Christmas Deck.