Kickstarter: 7 Questions with Andy Wethington of the A-GLO Playing Cards

Designed by 421 Creations, A-GLO 2.1 is an eye-catching deck with a hypno-psychedelic theme that encompasses the designer’s vision of bringing a new youthful look to playing cards. Printed on ultra violet ink, things get crazy when the lights go out for this “glow in the dark” deck.

Presented in two colorways, A-GLO will be printed in a more dynamic indigo and black tuck and card back, or a black and blue with neon lime accent tuck and card back. Both decks will be printed by the USPCC on Bicycle card stock with Air Cushion finish and Ultra-Violet ink.The pips and backs of each card will still be visible once they’re in the dark.

We had a quick chat with Andy Wethington prior to the relaunch of A-GLO about 421 Creations, the inspiration behind A-GLO and design evolution of the deck.

For those of us who don’t know, tell us a little about yourself and 421 Creations?
Well, I’m Andy Wethington, a 28 year old Graphic Artist and Entrepreneur, I was born in L.A and raised in a small town in Kentucky. I spend most of my time in front of my computer and I have little to no social life. 421 Creations is a company I created as a way to bring my ideas to the world. My two closest friends, whom I grew up with (RK Carter & Craig Smith), are the other two members of the team and two of the most supportive individuals on the planet. They have had an immense contribution and I could not have done this without them.

Can you describe A-GLO Playing Cards and why you’re passionate about it?
A-Glo Playing Cards are essentially the cards that fill in all the gaps. With easy to identify court cards, unique but uniform pip arrangements, large font, a colorful attitude and Ultraviolet Ink these unique cards are great for so many situations that I thought there was a real need for them in the playing card market. From adult parties to kid’s games, from people with special interest (Cardistry and Magicians) to people with special needs (ADHD) these exciting and engaging playing cards are great for a plethora of different situations…. Just not a High Stakes Texas Hold’em game :)

Walk us through the process you took to design this very unique deck. How did you come out with the idea and how did you get to this finished product?
It started as a side project; a fun, colorful, easy to read playing card. It was as simple as that. I would work on it when I needed to take a break from other projects (like our original tabletop game that is a lot of fun… but is yet to have a solid name lol). A concept as unique as this was hard to explain, so I thought it was better to just go ahead and make a rough version and (why not) put it on Kickstarter to see what people thought. I found the lowest MPO that I could and my partner RK and I created the FIRST A-Glo Campaign.

The overall response was that the concept was really enjoyed but that the designs needed work. During the first few days of the release of the first A-Glo campaign, RK and I decided to not promote the campaign in any way so we could focus on refining the cards and making them as best as we could. We re-aligned our priorities to make A-Glo our primary focus and secured one of the best manufacturers in the world, the USPCC, and created the current A-Glo campaign/design. When we learned that the USPCC could print our cards with Ultra Violet Ink, we jumped on the opportunity!

What was your most brilliant breakthrough when designing the deck?
The Court Cards are very unique and they have been refined several times, each time was an interesting part of the creative process. The idea of having symbols instead of faces or people for the Court Cards made sense when the goal is a fun, colorful, easy to identify playing card. Our biggest breakthrough was probably when we got with the USPCC. Their expert printing capabilities and ability to print with Ultra Violet Ink was a great inspiration to us. We used that to fuel the reformation of every card and are very pleased with the way they came out.

From the project page, what are a few of your favorite reward levels and why?
The benefactor is my personal favorite. It not only offers the total package; 2 Red Decks, 2 Blue Decks and an Uncut Sheet, but it gives backers a chance to be personally mentioned and especially thanked in every deck and on every sheet. Another is the Double Decker. It offers the core essentials of what we are trying to create.

With so many playing card projects competing for funding, why should potential backers choose your deck?
Our Dedication. We have met so much adversity, but all great upheavals come from tribulation and wherever there was failure, there was inspiration. We are the little guys that Kickstarter was created for. The ones with an idea, a dream, and the determination to make it possible. Sure, we have made mistakes in our previous launches, but we have been upfront and honest with those mistakes and we have and will always continue to strive to correct every shortcoming our campaign has until we have proven ourselves to be a genuine, serious creator to the crowdfunding community.

Not to mention these Cards Freakin’ Rule!

Finally, what are your favorite playing cards?
Brand, Bicycle. Design, Anything that is unusual. Deck, The Cloisters Playing Cards- A pack of 15th-century hand-painted playing cards, believed to be oldest deck in existence, sold for $143,000 to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They are one of the unique cards not on the market.

Artist, I'm gonna go with Dan and Dave. Thier art is always of the utmost quality and detail.
New stuff, I love those Pipmen Playing Cards that are being funded on Kickstarter. The creativity that the artist expressed in those cards is unparalleled.

Thank you for your time and all the best, Andy. If you like what you’ve read here and want to support these mesmerizing deck of playing cards, you can find it on Kickstarter here.