Kickstarter: 3 Questions with Ryan Cossey of Fibs Playing Cards

From LVCardistry, Fibs Playing Cards is a Limited Edition inspired by the Mathematical Beauty of the Fibonacci Sequence and the Golden Ratio. Headed by Ryan Cossey, LVCardistry is a family run business out of Las Vegas. Ryan's love of cards started as a child exploring the wonders of Magic. Although Magic didn't stay with Ryan over the years, the ephemera did. After some time of heavy collecting and buying and selling on eBay, Ryan realized that he had amassed quite a large number of decks and decided to start LVCardistry.com. This month, LVCardistry will sell its 15,000th deck of cards. Ryan told Kardify,

What started as a way to help me pay for my addiction of collecting playing cards turned into a full time passion and business. I can't believe the love and support we've gotten; it's such a wonderful community to be a part of.

Fibs Playing Cards will be LVCardistry's first crowdfunded campaign. Fully custom, the intriguing geometric design is prominently featured throughout the deck. For example, the full bleed card backs are based on the geometric representation of the Fibonacci Spiral, and the custom pips are designed using the Fibonacci Sequence and the Golden Ratio. The courts have been updated to utilize on the standard design with updated color palette and background patterns to complete the distinct but classic look of the FIbs courts.

We had a quick chat with Ryan last week on the inspiration behind the Fibs deck, the community, and their favorite cardist, flourish and deck.

What is your inspiration for the FIBs deck? How did you guys come up with the idea?
I have always had a soft spot for math. It always came naturally and I found its rules, patterns, and applications to the real world fascinating. Fibonacci's sequence always stood out in particular because of its almost intrinsic value in nature. The ability to locate that series in all kinds of places, from biology to the stock market, constantly surprised me. Its importance could not be ignored. Added to this fact that the Golden Ratio is assumed to be the basis for what humankind finds "perfect" or "beautiful" and I figured if it could make DaVinci's art stunning, why not a deck of cards? From there, the math does the rest. Fun Fact: I opened LVCardistry.com on 11/23 of 2016, in honor of the Fibonacci Sequence. :)

We first noticed FIBS deck on Instagram. What do you think of the playing card community in terms of the feedback and support that you’ve been getting so far on the social media platform?
Social media has definitely been the bloodline of Cardistry. The ability to instantly share, collaborate, and interact with the community is a necessity for a growing art form, especially one like Cardistry. Not many Cardists are local enough to each other for meet-ups, and Cardistry is best presented in short clips, so naturally, Instagram takes the foreground.

It's an easy, quick way to easily identify others who enjoy Cardistry and share and see the newest moves, clips, and news all in one place. We would love for more Cardists to become aware of and utilize the Cardistry Discord Server. LVCardistry is proud to Sponsor/Admin this social server that allows for real-time chat, exchange and sharing of images, gifs, videos, and even live video streaming and jams! Discord is well known, free to use, and is available on PC/Mac and Mobile. Click on "Cardistry Chat" on LVCardistry.com, or click here! to join the Cardistry Server!

Finally, what are your favorite flourish and playing card decks?
My favorite flourish is probably snake charmer. It's not super flashy, but when it's done correctly with the right rhythm and cadence, the theatrical value of the flourish is shown. When Kevin (from Virts) does it, you can see the snake, you can feel the charm; it's more like a puppet show than cardistry. Beautiful. As for the favorite deck, that's truly a tough one! I have always collected and focused on the rare and hard to find decks, so I rarely get to open and use them. Of the decks that I have used regularly, I would say that Wynn Casino decks and Virtuoso Spring/Summer 16 decks have been the top two in my rotation. Cartamundi's B9 True Linen finish is quickly taking over as my new favorite decks, though!

Thanks for your time, Ryan and congratulations on hitting the funding goal!


Fibs Playing Cards are available NOW for $13 on Kickstarter and will be printed by Cartamundi on the super smooth Superlux Stock with B9 True Linen finish! Fibs will be limited to 1123 decks.