Deck View: Prime Playing Cards

Striking. Primary. Cardistry.

In collaboration with Dan & Dave, PRIME is Art of Play's first custom deck designed and illustrated by Ben Newman in the United Kingdom. Using only primary colors and simple shapes, this deck is striking and simple. The face cards features a collection of custom illustrations featuring minimal court cards designed from nothing more than shapes and colors.

The bold and borderless design has already proven to be popular with cardists. The unique design and color enhances displays and card flourishes making fans, spreads and cascades look absolutely stunning!

PRIME is printed by Expert Playing Card Co and limited stock available from Art of Play.

Collections: Rarebit by Theory 11

The Rarebit Playing cards were produced by Theory 11 for The Rarebit Restaurant and Lounge located in Charleston South Carolina. The original Green foiled version is what you can pick up at the restaurant IF your meal purchase hit's the $100.00 mark, that alone should put the asking price of this deck these days in perspective........but at least you got a nice meal out of it if your able to make the road trip.

The tuck case is in a matte black finish making the intricate foil line work just pop off the black background, the tuck also includes a nice custom seal. The deck itself has the same back design as the tuck in a yellowish-green pallet, the face cards, courts and jokers are completely custom and draw inspiration from the restaurants logo of a Rabbit or Hare. The Jokers feature two mirrored rabbits in the center of the card and "Joker" in the two corners. The custom Ace of Spades has some cool little codes on it such as the number 474 over a crown indicating the street address of the restaurant, 474 King Street. The courts are for the most part custom, although each court card features the same face on them, that of the Rabbit logo. The dress on each court is varied in the center design and each court has it's own weapon or item in hand.

The Rarebit deck handles very well and continues Theory 11's standards of striking tucks with semi-custom to fully custom yet functional decks. Theory 11 re-released a Limited Edition Copper version of The Rarebits that sold out in a matter of days, but they can be found on the secondary market quite readily. The Copper version while identical in design does feature metallic inks. The Original will definitely appeal to collectors due to it's rarity, and  I think the design and concept is well worth adding it your collection...even if it's the Copper version. The "Pros" for the Copper version, you won't mind opening it due to it's smaller price tag so you can enjoy the cards. The Original, well, if your a collector, it's worth adding it to the list of decks to look out for at the right price...........or head to Charleston on your next vacation.

The Collection segment is produced by Anthony Ingrassia of Kardify. No part of this article, images or video can be reproduced without written permission from the author and Kardify.com. To see more of Anthony's (Sparkz) collection please visit sparkzcollector.com 

Coming Soon: The Innovation Playing Cards

[Update] Innovation Playing Cards are now LIVE on Kickstarter. Pledge starts from $11. Don't miss out!

Designed by Jody Eklund, the Innovation are a beautifully crafted deck of playing cards featuring innovators who pioneered and shaped the world on a global scale. Launching on Kickstarter on 3rd March, the Innovation deck will be Jody's third campaign after the very successful Golden Spike playing cards and will be the first part of the Inventors series.

Defined by a combination of beautiful hand-illustrated artwork, elegant design and intricate details, the Innovation was initially revealed on Instagram and this has generated an interest amongst the playing cards community.

Represented in the Innovation deck are the royalty of Innovation, categorized into four suits: Illumination, Transportation, Communication, and Aviation. This deck is filled with great characters like Henry Ford, who changed the world by making the automobile affordable to everyone. The Wright brothers, who revolutionized transportation, and others that have their own unique impact and story to be told.

Here's what Jody has to say about the inspiration behind the deck,

A few months ago I watched a documentary on the History channel called, "The Men Who Built America". In that documentary the stories of John D. Rockefeller, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford and J.P. Morgan were told. I was glued to the TV... I was hooked. Their stories were inspiring and I was struck by the spirit and ingenuity they showed. I decided that I should do a series of playing cards that celebrated the spirit that these kind of men demonstrated. The Inventors series was born.

Innovation Playing Cards will be printed by Legends Playing Card Company (LPCC) will be available in three editions- Innovation Standard, Innovation Black (which will have foiling, metallic Ink and embossing) and Innovation Signature edition.

The Signature edition will be numbered and limited to only 1000 decks. It will feature a completely new design from the other two decks for the tuck and back, and have gold foil and embossing on the tuck.

Pledge starts from $11 for the Standard edition, $13 for Innovation Black and the Signature edition will only be sold as a set in an eye-catching 3 Deck Collectors Box.

To keep up to date with the Innovation Playing Cards, follow Black Ink Playing Cards on Facebook or Instagram.

Deck View: ICON Playing Cards

Minimal. Cute. Cardistry

ICON Playing Cards is created by talented young cardist, Benji Taylor. This minimal, simple and quirky deck came together when Benji realised that some weird random icons could make a stylish deck design when put together.

ICON has already proven popular with cardists. The courts and pips are standard but the unique back design and colour enhances displays and card flourishes making fans, spins and cascades look striking!

For more cool playing cards, check out JP Games.

Kickstarter: Buskers by Erik Mana

[Update] Buskers are now LIVE on Kickstarter. Don't miss out!

Erik Mana has produced some of the most beautiful playing cards over the last few years. From his original Oracle Playing cards to his recently completed Sybil campaign on Kickstarter, each deck is a wonderfully intricate work of art.

Erik's latest project, Busker's is a slight departure from what we've grown used to from the Canadian artist. Inspired by street artists and magicians, Buskers is an homage to the many talented street performers we so enjoy.

"I was once a busker early in my magic career. I fell in love with the culture and the people.  The Busker deck wass created in honor of all the amazing street artists that perform all over the world. Each court card represents a particular type of busker from the magician, juggler, musician, mime, contortionist, and many others."

Erik Mana

Luna

Sol

Buskers will be printed by the United States Playing Card Co. on their Air Cushion Finish. The decks will feature an intricate back design set on a borderless edge in two colors. The Luna Deck (Dark) and the Sol Deck (Light). Taking some time to look at the back design closely will reveal its true composition.

The decks will also feature hand illustrated court cards, Jokers and a special diptych honoring street performers. The deck has a beautiful "Vintage" look to it that will appeal to both collectors and working professionals.

Buskers is scheduled to launch on Kickstarter on February 21st at 10:00AM EST. 

The campaign will include some attractive stretch goals, special add-ons including a link to Teespring for a T-Shirt purchases.

Erik has never disappointed his fans, and I'm sure Buskers will continue that trend, it's nice to see a fresh approach by Erik that is inspired by so many hard working performers.

We wish Erik the best of luck and don't forget to mark your calendars for Buskers!

Analytics: Kickstarter January 2015

Due to the increased interest in crowd-funded playing card projects on Kickstarter, we are publishing a monthly tracking report as part of our popular Analytics series. The goal is to give an analytical insight into the month-on-month performance of projects and how these numbers are tracking cumulatively year-to-date.

After an incredible year for playing cards, there is no sign that the momentum is slowing. The number of successful projects have ended higher than those of last January. The chart below shows how 2015 is tracking against the numbers from 2014 as (new) benchmark.

Playing Card Projects 

The number of unsuccessful projects fell to 10% this month while the percentage of successful projects ended at 18% for January. This is predominantly due to a large number of projects being launch at the beginning of the year.

Here is what January looks like in numbers:

Majority of the projects were launched towards the end of the month. Chart below:

Here's a look at how projects performed over the month. Generally, the percentage of successful projects increased while the number of unsuccessful projects ended at the 10% mark. Meanwhile, the number of cancelled projects dropped significantly to 8%.

Funding

An incredible total of $678k was raised by all projects in January, up $271k from December 2014. The majority of the funds raised are in the Live projects.

Here is a look at the top 5 most funded playing cards:

As expected the Zach Mueller's Black Fontaine and Elite's Collectors finish above the $60k mark.

The average 2015 funding goal of successful project has started with an impressive $11.5k, above 2014's number of $9.9k. We maintain that the average funding goal to stabilise around the $10k mark.

Backers 

This month, approximately 15.1k backers were recorded across all projects. The average pledge per backer for successful projects ended at $44.24, slightly higher than the previous month but below last January14's average. As the number of playing card projects continue to increase the lower average $/backer trend will persist.

Line chart below is a month-on-month comparison for 2015 with the 2014 average spent curve used as benchmark.

Top 5 funded Projects by backer numbers below:

Launched Projects 

Here are the top 10 most funded projects launched in January:

At the moment, Chris Ovdiyenko's Arcana is the most funded this month and on track to become the second most funded Playing Cards project of all time. Amazing! Overall, an impressive start to the year carrying the momentum carried from last year. If the 38 projects launched this month is any indication how the year is going to go, it will be another busy one!


Data provider:

Collections: Heretic by Stockholm 17

The Heretic decks by Stockholm 17 and Lorenzo Gaggiotti, feature intricate designs and imagery based on Alchemy and the Hermetic world. The Kickstarter campaign featured two versions of the deck. The Heritic and the Noctis, there really isn't a limited edition, both decks were produced in realatively equal quantaites, but the Noctis has a slightly smaller print run (Heretic 4400 & Noctis 4100).

Both deck features completely original work, every aspect has been touched from pips to court cards. The Heretic tuck has a subtle embosing on it with a nice "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. Unfortunately you will need to eaither remove the seal or trim it around the lip for it to work, but this deck is well worth opening. The back design is bright, but again works well with the overall theme of the deck. Intricate sphere's and ribbons in the negative space make the back very eye-catching.

The Noctis deck features the same flap design but a darker color scheme along with it's own unique set of Jokers and Ace of Spade. The back design mirrors the Heretic deck, but the dark blue pallet really makes it stand out on its own. The tuck case of the Noctis is just stunning. Embossed with a Black tuck with Black foil and a splash of Gold foil accents. The tuck has the same long serial numbered seal but keeps to the Black pallet of the deck. Again keeping with the Alchemy theme the designs and imagery on the tuck are just stunning.

What I really appreciate about Lorenzo's work on Heritic is that it was well thought out, every little detail ties to the Alchemy theme. The mappings, diagrams, and "Watermarks" on the face cards to the celestial elements scattered throughout the decks just tie it all together beautifully. Both decks feature a 3rd Joker, a "Gimmick" card for use with magic and slights as well as a few "Heresies" you can discover on your own. Heretic isn't limited by any means, but it's a gorgeous deck with some nice unique features.

The Heretic decks were printed by the Expert Playing Card Company with their Master Finish which handles superbly.

The Collection segment is produced by Anthony Ingrassia of Kardify. No part of this article, images or video can be reproduced without written permission from the author and Kardify.com. To see more of  Sparkz- Anthony's collection please visit www.sparkzcollector.com

Kickstarter: No. 17 Playing Cards by Stockholm17

[Update] No. 17 Playing Cards are now LIVE on Kickstarter!

No.17 is a stylish deck of playing cards designed by Lorenzo Gaggiotti. This will be his third playing cards project on Kickstarter after the successful Requiem and Heretic. Some may already find this deck familiar. The original No. 17 was a secret project created after the Heretic project for a promotion of a crowdfunding site.

The second version features a broad range of enhancements, tweaks and improvements. Thanks to Lorenzo, we are able to have a look at the enhanced version (top) of the No. 17 Queen of Hearts compared to the original (bottom).

So, what is No. 17 about? To quote Lorenzo,

There is no specific theme in this deck, it´s quite eclectic and I let my fantasy run when I illustrated the courts. The diamonds have clearly an Egyptian resemblance, but overall they belong to a parallel world. There is a thing that connects all the court cards: the text circling the background is a part of the Aeneid, a Latin epic poem written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who traveled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of the Romans.

No. 17 will launch on Kickstarter on 17th February, 17:17 GMT and will be available in two versions: Bicycle branded and unbranded (if Stretch Goal is reached). These beautifully crafted decks will be printed by USPCC. Pledge starts from $14.

Don't miss out!

Deck View: Neverland (Unlimited) Playing Cards

Adventure. Classic. Fun.

Designed by Nat Iwata, Neverland Playing Cards is a beautifully illustrated deck of playing cards based on J. M. Barrie's timeless classic Peter and Wendy.

The deck is Bicycle branded and features fully custom courts, aces, pips jokers and rich full card backs, rekindling our memories of the stories we cherish.

For more cool playing cards, check out JP Games.

Theory11: Contraband Playing Cards

Another beautifully crafted deck brought to you by the folks at Theory11. Designed in the United Kingdom by Joe White, Contraband Playing Cards were inspired by secret societies, conspiracy theories, and everything unknown.

The Contraband tuck case features gold and black foil and the interior, an elegant black foil design. From the store description: Secret imagery is hidden within the design: the lines of the inner flap construct a face of mystery... literally. 

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.

Contraband Playing Cards is available now from Theory11 for $7.95.

Collections: Zinfandel by Erik Mana

In honor of Erik Mana's Buskers coming along real soon I thought we could look at one of his previous decks. Erik has been one of my favorite designers since the beginning. The Oracle Edition was a beautiful deck with it's metallic inks and beautiful design. The Zinfandel follows that same tradition quite well. A beautifully designed tuck case with a burgundy interior, gold embossed accents and just enough "Style" to make it eye catching. The back design is intricate and colorful, and I really like that Erik went beyond the "Straight" borders, they are fluid and have an Aristocrat look without the confines of a "Frame".

The face cards, courts and AoS are all custom, the courts and Red suits pull from the Burgundy color used inside the tuck and back design bringing the deck together really well. The deck also comes with it's own little mystery that you will need to work at to solve and unlock the decks hidden features.

All in all a striking package with a great look and feel. The Zinfandel was available via Kickstarter along with it's companion the Indigo deck. A limited print run will appeal to collectors, but the familiarity and handling will broaden their appeal to cardists, magicians and aficionados. You can still pick these up on the ManaPlayingCards website.
You can view the Mana Indigo HERE

The Collection segment is produced by Anthony Ingrassia of Kardify. No part of this article, images or video can be reproduced without written permission from the author and Kardify.com. To see more of  Sparkz- Anthony's collection please visit www.sparkzcollector.com