Final Hours on Kickstarter, MPC';s Gods Playing Cards

Currently seeking funds on Kickstarter, MPC’s Gods Playing Cards are based on a Greek mythological heroes theme where 12 renowned Greek heroes are used to represent all 12 characters in the court cards. 

Generally, the king cards are gods, the queens are goddesses and the jacks are young gods. According to the campaign page,

Each character was studied to ensure we had a good understanding of the character before we went into the sketching stage. And as on standard playing cards, we wanted the characters to be holding an artifact which is related to themselves such as the king of diamonds holding a cornucopia which symbolizes abundance and wealth and on the jack on clubs is Dionysus who is the god of wine so he is holding some grapes and a cup of wine. 

The card back comes in a mirrored design of Zeus, the father of all gods and ruler of Mount Olympus.

The aces took a bit of design time and they feature mythological children outlining the shapes of the 4 pips. Zeus and Hades are featured on the jokers.

The deck is kept secure on a special tuck box to compliment the Gods deck where there is an extended tongue on the back side of the box as opposed to the standard tuck-in box found standard on playing cards. 

Also, this will be the first deck of cards under the MPC brand which uses double foiling on a color carded box where gold and silver are foiled onto the artwork areas.

The deck will be printed on MPC‘s M30 linen light card stock coupled with the super smooth BETA finish. Pledge starts at $13 on Kickstarter.

On Kickstarter, Grand Tulip Playing Cards

Our friends at the Dutch Card House Company have launched new editions to the TULIP series; the Grand GOLD Tulip and the Grand RED Tulip.

The Grand Tulip is a mythological flower from Holland. The Grand Tulip bulb is very rare and hard to find. You never know what color it reveals when it blooms. The color of the grand Tulip is a reflection of the personality of its owner. If you are lucky enough to find a bulb of the Grand Tulip, you plant it and take good care of it, it will bloom forever and brings prosperity to the owner’s life. 

Inside, the card backs have been redesigned from the ground up with floral ornamental details in multiple layers to give it a 3D look. 

The face cards have been adjusted as well. The courts and other faces are enhanced with a whole new set of artwork to give it the same magical feeling as the grand tulip myth itself. The Grand Red Tulip edition will have an old pink-colored background and comes with the same design as the Grand Gold edition.

The Jokers showcase the artwork of the lovely Amsterdam canal houses and the renowned Dutch windmills.

For the tuck case of the Gold edition (1000 print run) comes with an ultra-thin gold foil laminated to the brown paper stock, after which the decks are printed with full-color ink. 

The limited (500 print run) Crimson Red edition tuck features beautiful Red Rose foil stamping, and the strategic embossing gives the tuck-in a luxurious feel. The cards for this edition will all be GILDED! The same Red Rose foil used for the tuck will dress up the edges of the cards. 

The GOLD edition will be printed by Legends Playing Card Co. and the RED edition by WJPC. Pledge starts at $20 on Kickstarter.

The Lepidopterist (Pink Edition) Playing Cards

Nature. Beauty. Elegance.

The Lepidopterist by Kowaleski & Co. is a strangely beautiful deck of playing cards with inspiration coming from the Sunset Moth, a beautiful and brightly colored day-flying moth, found all throughout Madagascar. In collaboration with Art of Play, the limited edition pink Lepidopterist deck combines the natural beauty of nature with architectural details inspired by the elegant Art Nouveau era of the early 1900s.

The elegance and beauty begin with the tuck box featuring gold foil accents, letter-pressed and embossed. Inside, the deck is semi-custom with special attention being given to the beautiful ace and joker cards. The face cards are standard but come with rearranged pips and recolored courts to match the color palette of the deck. 

Printed by The United States Playing Card Company and available NOW from artofplay for $20.

On Kickstarter, Grid Series Five- Typographic Playing Cards

Grid Series Five – Typographic Playing Cards is the latest deck in the Grid collection which has become synonymous with UK-based designer Luke Wadey‘s playing card design style. Following the popularity of GS1-4 and the special editions along the way, Luke wanted the latest deck to have maximum impact, with oversized typography at the heart of its design.

The Grid collection focuses on the design of text, otherwise known as ‘typography’ and takes influence from graphic design styles such as Swiss and Bauhaus which make up the foundations of almost all graphic design as we know it. 

Instead of focusing on standard style faces, GS5 can be read in multiple different ways, with a large focal value taking centre stage and other details working on a grid that is hidden on the layout of the card. 

With full-bleed black and red faces and diptych jokers, the fronts of the cards are guaranteed to stand out in your collection and catch the eye of the spectator during flourishes too, whilst also being usable for gameplay.

The one-way back design uses an overlapping pattern created with G S and 5 to produce a stand-out fan and spread visual, the black and white contrast using negative space for maximum impact.

As ever, Luke always wants to take time to thank everybody who has supported his work and the campaign,

I’m a small, part time creator, so to have such incredible support, not just on this campaign so far, but my work over the past six years of running Kickstarter campaigns, truly is humbling and means the world to me – I can’t thank you all enough.

The deck will be printed by USPCC and pledge starts at $12 on Kickstarter.

Only 3 More Days on Kickstarter, Cherry Pi Playing Cards

Cherry Pi playing cards is the latest deck in Kings Wild Project‘s Pi Series. Started over two years ago with the original Pi deck, designer Jackson Robinson has followed it up with Plum Pi and Chocolate Pi with great success. Most recently, Apple Pi was successfully funded on Kickstarter in February this year.

Like previous decks in the series, Cherry Pi is definitely eye-catching with a complimentary pink, maroon, red and green color palette. colorway. Inside, the cards come with fully custom faces and repeated circular cherry pattern card back. 

Consistent with the theme, the Ace of Spades, Jokers and pips on the face cards are updated with the pink, maroon, red and green color palette. The deck is kept in custom tucks with embossing, foiling and a matte laminate finish.

The Cherry Pi deck will be printed by the Kings Wild Playing Card Company. It will be printed on black core cardistry stock with an embossed finish for exceptional handling. Pledge starts at $12 on Kickstarter.

Dealersgrip’s Smoke & Mirrors The Last Machine Edition Drops Today!

The latest collaborative effort between Dan & Dave and Dealersgrip, “The Last Machine” emerges as an abstract continuation of the Smoke & Mirrors series. This blue edition introduces striking visuals and dualistic ideas of human versus machine while accelerating the mechanical aura first established with v5 Denim.

Private early access via Dealersgrip mailing list (May 25) at 4:52 PM UTC. This deck will go FAST! Don’t miss out!

Pre-Order The Goldsmith Playing Cards by Kevin Cantrell X TGW NOW!

The Gentleman Wake‘s (TGW) previous crowd-funded project, The Successor Playing Cards, received positive feedback from the playing card community. The brilliance of Kevin Cantrell’s work never ceased to impress.

After the success with the third series in TGW’s lineup, Kevin invited TGW to establish his own luxury playing cards series – called “Cantrell A Priori” (shortened as CAP). It will be a four-deck series line-up, with each coming with a thematic theme and two different color variants. Kevin will design these decks, while TGW will produce them. To start the CAP series, here is the first one- to pay homage to the father of modern printing, Johannes Gutenberg. Introducing The Goldsmith Playing Cards.

The Goldsmith Playing Cards come in two main colors: black and white. The tuck box features premium matte stock with fully detailed artwork done in metallic foiling and embossing. The front side of the box features an illustration of Gutenberg with his assistant using the printing press at nighttime complete with a beautiful intricate border and a scroll presenting the title of the deck. The left side of the box is made to look like a book’s leather-bound cover. The back side of the box mirrors the card back design.

The top side of the box features a small shelf filled with books and an open book. The flap features an icon of the printing press, the machine which Gutenberg invented that revolutionized the world of printing. The box will have an interior pattern made of gold foil. The tuck box is printed with Studio Pression

The card back design features a two-way illustration of a side profile of Gutenberg embedded into the beautiful luxurious border filled with leaves and flowers. There is a ribbon banner with Latin text. The background color is based on the respective edition: black/white.

All of the Aces have fully illustrated power pip, all are made in reference to the life achievement of Gutenberg. The number cards feature customized pips based on the illustrations of the Aces complete with small symbols on the small spaces between the arrangement of the pips. The court cards are illustrated as two-way figures in illustrious clothes in the style of the era.

The Jokers feature two illustrations of a scene painting with a small bookshelf: one features the Pilgrim’s Mirror, and the other features the Black Plague. All of the painstaking details of the card artwork will have gold cold foil – to create the luxurious aspects of the decks. To add more, the cards will be gilded with gold foil. 

The decks will come inside a custom-made deck case made with walnut wood. It has an acrylic cover to keep the decks closed in it, complete with neodymium magnets to keep it tight. The case is complete with a custom-made coin, which it is slotted on the centre of the cover. The coin for the series features the same look as the card back design artwork – it will be made with 24k Gold. This display format will be applied for the next three deck series in CAP.

The cards will be printed with Cartamundi. The set is priced at $100 – there are only 1000 sets made, with each person having a limit to get 3 sets. The Pre-Order is live on TGW’s site NOW!

Bicycle Factory 52 X Agar Playing Cards Sold Out!

The limited edition custom Bicycle Factory52 playing cards, designed in partnership with AGAR, were released and quickly sold out on Bicycle’s website for $20 per deck (only 200 made available).

These limited-edition cards, crafted with precision and style, are a testament to the collaborative efforts of Factory 52 and Agar.

It all started in 1867 as the Russell, Morgan & Co., a printing manufacturer making mostly circus posters, placards, and labels, and later, playing card decks. Due to growing success, in 1894, the manufacturer was renamed The United States Playing Card Co.

In 1900, they moved their factory from downtown Cincinnati to a newly built location in Norwood. And after sitting vacant for decades, it’s now the permanent address of Factory 52 and its infamous (and newly restored) clock tower – thriving as it once did in past years. As a key piece of American history, The United States Playing Card Co. has been reimagined into a place to gather, to play, to experience, and to be part of something special.

The residents lucky enough to call Factory 52 Apartments home received their very own custom Factory 52 branded deck of Bicycle Playing Cards last month. A limited number of these special edition decks were created and made available for purchase on Bicycle’s website.

Deck View: Fulton’s Arcade Playing Cards

Retro. 8-bits. Arcade.

From Fulton’s Playing Cards‘s the Fulton’s Arcade is the ultimate homage to the 1980s- where coins and 8-bits of adrenaline reigned supreme in your local arcade. Designed in collaboration with Dan Phillips, deck designer, and current video game designer, this rad deck is infused with details from the 80s. All designed into this deck!

If you grew up with 80s video game culture–or are a retro gamer today that sadly missed the greatest era- this deck will bring back the nostalgia. Printed by the USPCC using Pantone Metallic Inks and packaged in a matte black-coated paper tuck box with deep red foil.

Kardify Magazine Issue 72 Now Available on Patreon

We have just dropped Kardify Magazine issue 72 on Patreon!  Patrons who pledged $3 or more will be able to download the latest issue from our Patreon page. This issue compiles selected articles published from mid-April to mid-May. 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 tiers include monthly desktop and smartphone wallpapers, a mystery deck shipped to you every 4 months of ongoing contributions, 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 bring new quality content to you. Our aim is to support designers by backing crowdfunded 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:   

+ The Cat’s Diary: For the cat lovers! This cute deck features adorable art that tells the story of a kitten who enjoys a wide range of hobbies.

+ Basquiat: Theory11’s stunning trubute to Jen-Michel Basquiat’s artistic legacy. The deck captures the essence of Basquiat’s unique style.

+ Maidens Foil Edition: From Joker and the Thief, the new edition of Maidens now comes with stunning copper foil on the card back design. Check it out!

+ Fantasma: Learn more about Giovanni Meroni’s latest out-of-this-world deck series, Fantasma Playing Cards successfully funded on Kickstarter.

+ Flower of Fire: Inspired by vintage Japanese fireworks catalogs, Kings Wild’s Flower of Fire playing cards is a stunning representation of the explosive beauty of traditional fireworks.

+ Orchestra: If you love classical music, check out Riffle Shuffle‘s latest release. The deck design is an ensemble of musicians and musical instruments that can be found in an orchestra performance!

 + Card Shark: Tired of the same old card games? Card Shark might just be the breath of fresh air you need. Card Shark is all about cheating your opponents and getting away with it. Find out more!

+ Smoke & Mirrors: 15th Anniversary: To commemorate the anniversary release of Smoke & Mirrors Dan and Dave worked collaborated with Brad Fulton to design an all-new edition inspired by 19th-century typography. Check it out!

… and more! 54 pages of articles and deck images. Enjoy!

Sirius B V5 Playing Cards

Show off your cardistry skills with the eye-catching Sirius B playing cards. The new version, The Sirius B V5 comes with an aesthetic pop of regal purple to emphasize the majestic motion of your cards. Sirius B Playing Cards series by Riffle Shuffle is inspired by the brightest star in our night sky. Like the previous versions, V5 sports a gradient of purple color. According to the product page,

We kept its original wavy designs that we’ve all grown to love. The Sirius-B V5 is here to celebrate the discovery of life in the galaxy. The layers of different color waves on the back design will be a reminder that there will always be a place for living organisms to prosper!

Inside the fully custom face cards have been recolored with the same color gradient to give it a consistent look. Since Sirius is located in the constellation Canis Major, also known as the “Big Dog,” which is why it’s known as the “Dog Star” reflected in the two jokers.

The deck is kept secured in a tuck box featuring a wrap-around design. When placing the three decks in a specific way, you will get a very cool display. The Sirius B V5 is printed by the United States Playing Card Company with Premium Bee Crushed Stock, Air Cushion Finish. Limited Edition of 2500.

Available on riffleshuffle.com for $8.95.

Jetsetter Lounge Edition Playing Cards Now in Black Colorway

Jetsetter Playing Cards has just launched the fourth and final version of the Lounge Edition series in a tarmac black colorway on Kickstarter. The brand continues to exhibit a vintage and classy feel but with modern appeal and has hit its stretched goal of $10k unlocking the MARKED back standard deck.

For the Kickstarter campaign, the classy back design showcases the Tarmac Black colorway, inspired by the runway tarmac before you take flight. The airplane pattern appears with the Jetsetter Playing Cards spade logo within the pattern. The spade logo on the back design can be found in an offset two-way vintage casino-style design.

The custom Ace of Spades exhibits the Jetsetter Playing Cards spade logo in the Tarmac Black colorway. The courts are pretty much standard but re-colored to match the look and feel of the Lounge Edition deck in the black colorway. 

All the black cards, spades, and clubs, showcase black, and silver court cards. The red cards, hearts, and diamonds seem standard. These are re-colored as well. The court cards actually showcase a vintage style of deep red, black, and gold.

Additionally, the iconic round-trip boarding passes which have become the trademark Jokers for Jetsetter Playing Cards have been revamped and modernized. The Jokers differ from other Lounge Edition decks.

The tuck box is produced with a synthetic stock providing durability beyond the standard tuck box. The tuck features a clear UV spot coating and the main Jetsetter Playing Cards spade logos on the tuck are accented with silver foil.

The deck will be printed by the Expert Playing Card Company. Pledge starts at $13 on Kickstarter.

Easy Playing Cards Mock Up by Unique

The team at Unique Playing Cards is back on Kickstarter with a fascinating project for design enthusiasts and playing card collectors. This time, they are offering a digital bundle of mockups, a deck protection case, and a limited edition Unique Emblem #3 IDD pin to celebrate International Design Day (IDD). Also, the exclusive IDD package contains various products related to playing cards and their design. 

Firstly, the Unique Emblem #3 IDD pin represents the love for design, creativity, and turning ideas into something tangible. The pin is the third addition to the Unique Emblem Collection System and is exclusive, rare, and high-quality.

Secondly, the single-deck acrylic display case by Unique Playing Cards is designed in collaboration with Carat Case Creations and comes engraved with the Unique logo. 

Thirdly, Unique Playing Cards is offering a digital bundle of mockups that includes various layouts. These versatile and affordable mockups will help bring your deck ideas to life with ease. 

The mockups are based on real photos to achieve intentionally imperfectly realistic results, and the package is designed to be used commercially, either to promote your own deck or to sell and showcase your design services to clients.

Finally, the digital booklet “Cards in Your Favor” offers a step-by-step guide for anyone interested in creating a unique and compelling deck of playing cards. The guide takes you through the entire process from ideation to marketing, offering valuable insights and practical tips to ensure your success.

The IDD package is available for $58 and the mock-up bundle for $40 on Kickstarter.