Ellusionist Releases the Republic No. 3 Artists Edition

After 7 years, the Republic series by Ellusionist is BACK! Republic No. 3 will be as unique as it's predecessors but maintains some similarities to the second deck in the series. The Lost Angelus Edition deck was sold out in just 4 days! 

What Ellusionist didn't mention was that they printed more than one color of Republics- the Republic Artists Edition in a black-backed colorway. Unknown to anyone, the deck was originally made available as the mystery deck on the site.

Compared to Republic No. 2, there are a few updates to the design, the pips are smaller, self-assured by their unique layout, but with a hint of modesty due to their size.

The tuck box is simple but wrapped in a raised-text signature black cigar-sleeve, nestled around the tuck.  The Republic series logo is prominently displayed with the words, 'Artists Edition' and 'Accept No Limitations'.

Printed by Cartamundi on a luxury pressed E7 stock. Available NOW on ellusionist.com for $10.

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Art of Play Launches Black Market Decks

From our friends at Art of Play comes a new online marketplace to procure the most sought after decks from the brands you love, blackmarketdecks.com. The brand new site is THE premier online marketplace for collectible playing cards. Their mission,

... to offer collectors a reliable source for rare, out of print, and limited edition playing cards at fair market prices.

blackmarketdecks.com will be launching on May 1st with early access on April 29th to those subscribed to artofplay's newsletter. Meanwhile, you can head to Instagram (@blkmktdecks) for 24-hour auctions for EXCLUSIVE decks not available on the site.

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7 Questions with Fedir Bakhchyvanzhy of American Eras Playing Cards

American Eras Playing Cards is currently seeking funds on Kickstarter with a goal of $9.9k. Only 41% funded at the time of writing, the fully custom-designed decks are inspired by the history of the four most famous American eras: Literary themes of the 20s that inspired Dreiser and Fitzgerald, Midwest Indian culture that was widely known outside the United States, Wild West, which has spawned many topics in literature and cinema and African South America (New Orleans).

ArtLibra spent more than a year of painstaking and hard work on the creation of this project. All the historical details of the four most famous American eras have been studied. As such, every part of this deck has been worked out to the smallest detail and done at the highest quality level. Inside, the card backs feature an intricate, mirrored design, the hand-painted courts are beautiful and the Aces are gorgeous! American Eras is presented in three different colorway- Red, Blue, and Black, each enclosed within a tuck box in the same style.

Late last week, we had a quick chat with Fedir Bakhchyvanzhy of ArtLibra, about the design, inspiration and design process behind American Eras Playing Cards.

For those of us who don’t know, can you tell us about yourself and what is your design background?
Hello! We are a small team of ArtLibra, which involves several people. I have been engaged in e-commerce and fulfillment for many years. And often I produce my own products. One of the most important roles in our team is played by our painting artist. He is professional in his field and knows how real art deck of cards should look. Thanks to our common efforts, we have released our first deck of American Eras cards. We did not stop there and are working further, and in the near future, we will please many more with our art playing cards.

Can you describe American Eras Playing Cards and why you’re passionate about it?
America has a very rich palette of cultures and different eras. And this is what we should have done first. Since about the Wild West, for example, or about the culture of the Indians, a lot of people around the world know about them, thanks to the cinema. Due to the wide popularity and a large selection of interesting historical eras of America, we decided to make this deck.

Walk us through the process you took to design the deck. How did you come out with the idea and how did you get to this finished product?
It all started with meeting with the artist, he showed me the Queen of Clubs (Indians). I liked it so much that we decided to continue to draw, and study the history of American Indians. Then came the Wild West, and then everyone else. After the completion of the characters, we began work on the tuch-box and shirt design. So the American Eras deck of cards was born.

What was your most brilliant breakthrough when designing the deck?
When the artist finished his work and showed all the paintings. It was amazingly beautiful.

With so many playing card projects competing for funding, why should potential backers choose your deck?
I think our deck is unique and beautiful. A lot of the history of the United States is connected With our deck, which cannot be uninteresting. We did not want to make the deck completely designer. We made her classic and attractive.

What’s next? Can we expect more deck designs in the future?
We are hard-working on the following decks. We have pictures for the next project. And only specially for Kardify we will show one of them.

Finally, what are your favorite playing cards?
I really like Vittoria Playing Cards by Nicolai Aarøe. At now these are the best I've seen among playing cards.

Thank you for your time Fedir and all the best! At the time of writing, the American Eras is only 41% funded with 19 days to go. If you like what you've read here and would like to support ArtLibra, head on to the Kickstarter page here!


American Eras Playing Cards will be printed by the USPCC with Air-Cushion Finish. Pledge starts at $15 for a single deck. Add-ons such as art deck, dealer coin, companion booklet, collector card case, and brick boxes are available during the campaign.

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Deck View: Aphelion (Black Edition) Playing Cards

Elegant. Journey. Custom.

The Black Edition Aphelion Playing Cards is an elegant deck created for the collectors and magicians in mind by Raffaele Ianzano and Paolo Tisato of Parama Playing Cards. The deck is inspired by the journey of the Earth around the sun.

Crafted for the collectors and magicians in mind, the deck features a custom back design, gorgeous Ace of Spades and unique jokers. The court cards are standard with an updated color palette to match the overall theme of the deck. Also, Pantone metallic gold ink will be featured on the cards giving it a touch of elegance.

The deck is packaged in a striking black tuck box, embossed and accented with stunning gold foil and the interior is printed with an elegant repeating pattern design. Printed by Legends Playing Card Co.

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Cardisty Touch's Hold My Brain Book is Available FOR FREE!

What goes through your mind when your cardistry creativity kicks in? Dimitri analyzes and understands the mechanics of creativity when it comes to cardistry in his book, «Hold My Brain». Originally published back in 2016, the digital version of the book is available FOR FREE during lockdown. According to the Cardistry Touch on their Instagram post,

Hopefully that’s a good enough reason for you to stay home during those strange times :) It’s also in our opinion a great read to improve the way you create cardistry. Stay safe.

Hopefully, the book will help you create better moves or just be more efficient in your creative process. Check it out on the link here!

Article originally published on cardistrybeast.com.

Kickstarter: Leaves Playing Cards

The Dutch Card House Company is back with their biggest and boldest project to date. As you may know, climate change, seas full of plastic waste, and the destruction of rainforests are hurting our planet and the animals that live on it.

Over the past months, the Dutch Card House Company has put a lot of effort into producing a deck of cards that combines the love for playing cards and care for the environment into one harmonious package.

To complement all these environmentally friendly characteristics, the Leaves design is completely nature-inspired. According to the team,

The traditional-looking layout of the back design is reminiscent of nature and its dark and olive green colors. The court cards maintain their traditional designs but are merged with the color composition to create a whole, fully custom deck of cards. 

Perfect for every card enthusiast, magician and cardist, these cards maintain a classic and professional look. The Dutch Card House Company has worked closely with the USPCC to produce a truly extraordinary deck of cards. Using vegetable-based inks, each card is printed on sustainable forest paper and finished with starch-based laminating.

All decks come inside a tuck box made out of responsibly farmed forest paper. Also, this deck of cards contains absolutely zero plastics. Instead of the traditional cello wrap, the team has opted to go for a custom paper seal. This makes Leaves playing cards fully and easily recyclable.

Join the project today on Kickstarter to make a small but meaningful difference for the environment. Pledge starts at $12.

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Celebrating Beauty, Art and the City of Florence with Florentia Playing Cards

Florentia Playing Cards is a gorgeous deck designed by Elettra Deganello and produced by Passione Playing Cards, currently funding on Kickstarter. The custom deck celebrates the birthplace of the Renaissance- Florence.

Florentia Playing Cards has two main “souls”: Florentia Antica ("antica" means 'ancient' in Italian) and Florentia Nova ("nova" translates to 'new'). Antica and Nova represent two different visions on the same concept: to overwhelm collectors and playing cards lovers with a notable abundance of breathtaking art, history, and beauty... just like the city of Florence does with its visitors. Elettra explains,

Florentia Antica represents a classic and balanced vision of beauty, in which architecture and rationality play a predominant role.

The main element of the back design is the stylized rose window of Florence Cathedral, S.M. Del Fiore. Tangled decorations balance the rationality of the geometric shapes and stylized architectural elements complete the composition. Elettra continued,

Florentia Nova instead was born as a free and dynamic artistic expression, without constraints or fear of the contrasts between ancient (or classical) and modern.

The back design combines a clean geometric basis with dynamic elements. Its beating heart is the coat of arms of the Medici family, which is supported by two cherubs and surrounded both by a dancing ribbon and laurel leaves frame.

The court cards of Florentia Antica and Florentia Nova are all different... and definitely full of surprises. The courts represent some of the most iconic sculptures and monuments that one will remember after visiting the Italian city. The artwork inspired by sculptures are gorgeous and incredibly detailed.

The Jokers of Florentia Antica are Giotto, one of the most famous Italian painters and architects and the "Marzocco", the heraldic lion and symbol of the city of Florence.

The deck is kept secure in a beautiful tuck box. Florentia Antica features purple foil on the box with gold metallic ink touches inside. While Florentia Nova showcases a beautiful holographic foil on the tuck with yellow neon ink within.

It has become a tradition for Passione Playing Cards to produce a luxury double-deck tuck case, shaped like a book, which is a work of art on its own. Florentia Aeterna will hold both Florentia Antica and Florentia Nova cards together in a limited, hand-numbered edition. Florentia Aeterna will be printed on cotton paper with gold foil and hot impression. The limited-edition tuck box will be hand-made in Italy by letterpress experts.

Pledge starts at $16 for a single deck on Kickstarter. Printed by WJPC or USPCC according to stretch-goals progression.

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Kickstarter: Nerds vs Jocks Playing Cards

Nerds vs Jocks Playing Cards is a collaboration between Randy Butterfield of Midnight Cards and Mike Wilson. This is their third collaboration after the OCULUS deck and POLLOCK Playing Cards.

On the Kickstarter page, Mike explained,

After the success of OCULUS and Pollock, Randy and I decided to go in a different direction. We tossed around the idea of a vintage vibe. As 80s pop culture began to reemerge on TV with Stranger Things, and the retro fashion styles began to make a comeback, it wasn’t hard to decide on an 80s theme filled with brains versus brawn.

In terms of design, Nerds VS Jocks decks are bold, colorful, and unique. The look is inspired from classic 80s movies that are lighthearted and fun, and occasionally center on a Nerds VS Jocks storyline.

This includes lots of nods to some 80s characters found on the fully custom court cards including outfits, and props, plus references to the overall flashy vibe that made the 1980’s so grand.

Both Decks feature the same set of face cards. The Spades and Clubs represent the Nerds. The Hearts and Diamonds represent the Jocks. If you look closely, the Spade pips contain a floppy disk within, and the Spade Courts are representative of some prototypical Nerds of the 80s. The Club features a D12 dice graphic inside the pips, and the Club Courts are the gaming and sci-fi Nerds of the Deck.

The Heart pips contain a football goal post, and the Heart Courts represent the ultimate sports Jocks of the 80s - football players and cheerleaders! Finally, the Diamond PIPs feature a set of football threads within, and the Club Courts are the partying and workout Jocks of the 80s.

The tuck box and back design of the Nerds Deck features a closeup design of a dress shirt and, of course, the pocket protector that holds the tools for the quintessential “Nerd” of the 80s. The “Embroidered Patch” Nerds Logo is given a place of prominence on the shirt pocket.

Meanwhile, the tuck and backs for the Jocks Deck feature a closeup design of a letterman’s jacket. We chose “M” as the Varsity Letter, which stands for Midnight Cards and Mike Wilson. The “Enamel Pin” Jocks Logo is positioned on the large “M” Varsity Letter.

Both tucks will be printed on a premium Matte paper stock and include clear UV Spot Ink in strategic areas of the designs. The NERDS VS JOCKS Decks will be printed by Expert Playing Card Co., with their Taiwan printer on their Classic Finish.

Now on Kickstarter!

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5 Things You Should Know About THE ART OF THE CON deck by 3rd Dominion

Currently funding on Kickstarter by 3rd Dominion, the Art of the Con Playing Cards are inspired by famous con artists throughout history. The semi-custom deck features portraits of famous con artists, gamblers and scammers of the 16th-20th centuries, each with their respective stories.

Here are 5 things you should know about the Art of the Con Playing Cards:

1. The theme
According to the designer, Andy Kurovets,  "The history of playing cards is closely connected with con artists, gamblers and scammers. Playing cards were often used to make money fast. Deception is as old as humanity. This artistic project is inspired by famous con artists."

For example, do you know who is the king of con artists? Who sold the Eiffel tower? Twice!
Victor Lustig. He convinced the scrap metal dealers that the upkeep of the Eiffel tower was too much for Paris and that the government wished to sell it for scrap. He sold them the Eiffel tower. TWICE

2. The biggest secret
The biggest secret of the deck is hidden in a simple but effective marking system on the card back

3. Marking system
3rd dominion has used unique, but clever and easy to read marking system, based on special symbols. "We have developed unique symbols that allow you to determine The Numbers, Indexes, and Figures quickly and easily. Card marking is the process of altering playing cards in a method only apparent to marker, such as adding visible marks to a card. It may be used for magic tricks."  The early concept here, of the marking system.

4. Idea and artwork.
The idea of creating these cards is to combine the system of marking cards on the back and portraits of famous con artists, gamblers and scammers of the 16th-20th centuries on the court cards. The marking system was designed by Andy, where the main theme in the design are watches and the original idea comes from the watch industry.




5. Cards design
The court cards are decorated with portraits of famous con artists, gamblers and scammers of the 16th-20th century.

Spades: famous con artist of the 20th century
Hearts: famous con artist of the 19th century
Diamonds: famous con artist of the 18th century
Clubs: famous con artist of the 17th century and early.


The Art of the Con Playing Cards will be printed by the United States Playing Card Co. and pledge starts at $14 on Kickstarter.

Kardify Magazine Issue #35 Now on Patreon!

Issue #35 of Kardify Magazine is now on Patreon! Patrons who pledged $3 or more on will be able to download the latest issue from our Patreon page. This issue compiles selected articles published from mid-March to mid-April. Deck images, articles, and news to keep you informed and up-to-date with the latest playing card news, releases, and previews. If you love playing cards, you will love Kardify Magazine! 

Also, don't forget to check out our other cool reward tiers on Patreon! The new tiers include monthly desktop and smartphone wallpapers, mystery deck shipped to you every 4 months of ongoing contribution, social media shout-outs, and multiple sponsorship tiers! Check it out!

Funds received from the magazine will help us keep the site running and growing, and bringing new quality content to you. Our aim is to support designers by backing on crowd-funded projects and supporting magic and playing cards retailers with their new releases. If you want to support us, please head over to our Patreon page. If you have an idea for an article you would like us to pursue, do get in contact with us. We hope you enjoy the read. In this issue:

+ Rock & Roll: A look at Will Roya’s new deck. Fully custom based on the popular music genre designed by Juniardi Satyanagara.

+ Brain Dead Fontaines:  The surprise Fontaine drop that sold out within minutes. It is unlike Fontaine's previous releases... it is fully custom design with a more grungy look and feel taking cue from the post-punk, underground comic, and skateboarding subculture. Check it out....

+ Meadowlark: Q&A with Jonathon Lamarque, co-founder of Meadowlark Pharmacy on their first, inau- gural crowd-funded deck.

+ Hops & Barley:  Five things that make the Hops & Barley the most curious Jocu project yet on Kickstarter.

+ Carvers: Find out more about Organic Playing Cards' vibrant new deck released just in time for Spring!

+ Gold Maduro V2: Check out this gorgeous hand-illustrated playing cards designed in the colorful style of cigar band and cigar box art by Kings Wild Project.

+ ESCP_TH!S: Join designer Alex Matencio of Zalem Industries as he explains the design process behind this sleek cardistry deck.

+ Camp Cards Red Edition:  Art of Play's fully custom deck designed for those who venture onward and live adventurously.

… and more! 53 pages of articles and deck images. Enjoy!

Deal of the Week: Butterfly Playing Cards Isolation Sale!

For the next 24 hours! For those who want to get some practice decks for the days of isolation, Ondrej Psenicka of Butterfly Playing Cards likes to make shopping convenient and pleasant. This includes NEW SVENGALI decks, ONE-WAY FORCE decks, ORIGINAL 2nd ed. decks, and REFILL BRICKS.

Also, FREE Shipping to within the USA (Standard Shipping with orders over 100€) and Europe (DHL Express Shipping with all orders above 150€) on larger orders. Use BUTTERFLYMAGIC20 for 20% OFF of your entire order on butterflyplayingcards.com.

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Deck View: Ace Fulton's Casino Femme Fatale Playing Cards

Pink. Black. Vintage.

Probably the most striking Fulton's Casino deck released by Art of Play! The highly collectible Ace Fulton’s Casino Femme Fatale playing cards come in a contrasting black and pink colorway. Inspired by vintage casino playing cards, the Ace Fulton's Casino playing cards combines retro style with a simple and refined design that adds a touch of sophistication and elegance to your collection and poker nights.

The new design features an original enlarged Fulton's logo back design, standard Arrco-style court cards, a new ace of spades and matching marquee jokers. Printed by United States Playing Card Co. with Premium Bee Casino Stock. Limited Edition of 2500 Decks.

Available from Artofplay.com for $12.

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Playing Card Brand Drops a Mysterious Deck Image

A well-known playing card brand that begins with T has dropped a mysterious deck image, with only a caption,

A sneak peek of the new project from T. - More will be revealed soon.

The image is titled "Famine". Be ready to find out what the image is in the next couple of weeks. What are your thoughts?

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Here's Your Chance to WIN a Set of Peach and Cedar Rainbow Playing Cards

We've partnered up with our friends at TCC Playing Cards to give you a chance to WIN a set of Peach and Cedar Bicycle Rainbow playing cards for our followers on Instagram (@kardify).

The Peach and Cedar Rainbow decks feature a dispersed vibrant watercolor style back design featuring a familiar yet different design with flowers, floral scrolls, butterflies, peacock feathers, and angels holding mandolin (809). The fluidity and ungoverned nature of watercolor make the deck aesthetically pleasing. Every single card is unique.

Head over to our Instagram account (@kardify) and for a chance to WIN the Peach and Cedar Bicycle Rainbow Playing Cards set sponsored by TCC Playing Cards (Instagram: @tccplayingcards)! Contest closes 18th April.

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Day of Dolls Pin-Up Playing Cards on Kickstarter

Only 5 days to go on Kickstarter, the Day of the Dolls - Pin-Up Playing Cards by Custom Gambler is the perfect combination of classic vintage pin-ups and the Mexican holiday, Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Two decks are on offer during the campaign, Bombshell Edition, and Burlesque Edition.

The art is inspired by classic pin-up artists such as Alberto Vargas and Gil Elvgren. This deck was designed by Stephen Lewis and illustrated by Michael J. Axt.

The Bombshell Edition draws inspiration from WW2 and the popularity of pin-ups in G.I. locker rooms. Pin-ups are on grayscale. This edition features subdued purple accents. Each deck contains 15 pin-up illustrations and a unique two way back design with stars and stripes theme.

The second deck draws inspiration from classic American Burlesque which is an offset of Victorian Burlesque. It has a lunar theme on the back of the deck.

This edition features bright blue accents and contains 16 different pin-up illustrations and a unique two way back design. Most of the pin-ups will be the same as the Purple Bombshell Edition deck.

The decks will be printed by the United States Playing Card Co. and pledge starts at $14 on Kickstarter. Also, add-on such as the uncut sheet is available during the campaign.

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