Kickstarter: 5 Things You Didn't Know About Cutters (Deep Blue Edition) Playing Cards

Currently seeking funds on Kickstarter, Cutters Playing Cards by JM Authentics is a love-letter to the golden age of playing cards- a Casino deck designed for intricate card work. Headed by Jordan Murphy, the idea of Cutters is to craft a deck to the highest standard possible for the magicians in mind. Jordan tells Kardify, "This is a deck made with a purpose in mind, not made aesthetic for the sake of it, but each design choice suited to what the deck will be used for. I really hope we’ve been able to do the old styles justice while incorporating the latest production technology. Every design choice has been made to make The Cutters a true homage to the decks that came before."

Here are 5 things you didn't know about Cutters Playing Cards:

1. The borderless backs are influenced by Steamboats and Bee Casino Playing cards. The stars that make up the back design are based on the North Star and the constellations used by sailors to guide their way home since the first humans were able to sail upon the seas. Jordan explained, "We have two Cutter sailboats separated within two casino styled ovals, you can imagine that maybe you are looking at them through a spyglass or a porthole. Also, You can see if you look closely, a bird flying alongside the sailboat. In maritime lore, it is good fortune and favorable to sail whilst followed by an Albatross, and so we included one alongside our Cutters."

2. If you know your ships you may notice that the ships used on our Jokers are not traditional Cutters. This is because they are based on the Merchant Ship Bethia/HMS Bounty which was classed as a Cutter, not due to its size, but it's small armament. "The Merchant Ship Bethia which later became the HMS Bounty has a rich history culminating in betrayal and mutiny, we couldn’t not include it in this deck." 

3. The Cutters Tuck Case is a hybrid of styles- combining the face of the Steamboat box and the back of Bee Casino decks with Cutters theme. The rich contrast of blue on white and bold fonts make the artwork pop from the box whilst maintaining that classic feel. "Perhaps the point I'm proudest of is that I believe we will be the first custom deck of cards to have the casino windowed tuck case. Originally the window in Casino decks allowed the manufacturers to know which deck was within the box, as they were a generic print, but this window can also serve a purpose for covert peeks! Having the tuck case printed by Gambler’s Warehouse has also allowed us to have the production date for the cards on the box. For the first time, this information will be made available to card technicians and collectors to whom it is vital."

4. Jordan has opted to keep the court cards standard. At their core Cutters are not just for practice but for performance, especially at the table. "We have changed the color palette to match those used throughout the deck. In past designer decks one reason some people opt not to use them in performance is that it can be difficult to quickly distinguish between custom pip colors during peeks. For this reason, we have kept the standard high contrast red and black pips."

5. Jordan's personal experience with table magic didn’t start until he was given his first Steamboat and Bee Casino decks. "I fell in love with the feel of these decks and how they made me want to progress in card magic. After delving into table magic more I began making close-up pads and eventually started JM Authentics. Without those initial decks JM Authentics wouldn’t exist and I wouldn’t have had the experiences, opportunities, and friends that I have today and most importantly I wouldn’t have met amazing people who I was then able to build close up pads for and help them progress their magic. Steamboats and Bee Casino decks are very special to me, Cutters even more so, I hope they can be for other people too."

Cutters will be printed by the US Playing Cards Co on Crushed paper stock, with a traditional cut. If you like what you've read and want to support Cutters Playing Cards, you can find it on Kickstarter Here! Pledge starts at £8.