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Some extremely small Tarot cards
May. 9th, 2025 12:06 amFrom top to bottom standard size Cats Rule the Earth Tarot, below that playing card sized Pocket Crow Tarot, and at the very bottom tiny Deviant Moon Tarot Borderless Mini Edition.
Catching up with this, and another 6 titles finished since my last post:
Of the new ones the Colostle solo RPG/journalling game was fun, but not something I decided I'd want to play. An original fantasy setting, with solo gaming mechanics, based on random tables.
The Tarot book was fantastic, and really got me feeling more confident about doing self readings.
I continue to *adore* the Insomniacs After School manga series, which is being slowly but steadily published in English translation.
The Doctor Who book was somewhat fun, and a new tale about River Song. But it ultimately felt a slog to read through, and was overly muddled. I'm guessing Jacqueline Rayner wrote most of it, though Alex Kingston had some input too, and got top billing.
Tom Cox's Notebook is a varied hodge podge of often amusing rambling thoughts. I loved it! I had backed the digital edition, but not read it yet. I ordered a signed paperback from Tom a few weeks ago. He has lots of his books after the collapse of Unbound (who owe him thousands of pounds) and is selling them on.
And we read Kiki's Delivery Service - the original novel the Studio Ghibli film is based on - for my book club. I've not seen the film yet. A very young read, but still charming.
- ( earlier titles )
- Colostle Complete Edition by Nich Angell
- Wild Card: Let the Tarot Tell Your Story by Jen Cownie and Fiona Lensvelt
- Insomniacs After School volume 5 (manga) by Makoto Ojiro
- Doctor Who: The Ruby's Curse by Alex Kingston and Jacqueline Rayner
- Notebook by Tom Cox
- Kiki's Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono
Of the new ones the Colostle solo RPG/journalling game was fun, but not something I decided I'd want to play. An original fantasy setting, with solo gaming mechanics, based on random tables.
The Tarot book was fantastic, and really got me feeling more confident about doing self readings.
I continue to *adore* the Insomniacs After School manga series, which is being slowly but steadily published in English translation.
The Doctor Who book was somewhat fun, and a new tale about River Song. But it ultimately felt a slog to read through, and was overly muddled. I'm guessing Jacqueline Rayner wrote most of it, though Alex Kingston had some input too, and got top billing.
Tom Cox's Notebook is a varied hodge podge of often amusing rambling thoughts. I loved it! I had backed the digital edition, but not read it yet. I ordered a signed paperback from Tom a few weeks ago. He has lots of his books after the collapse of Unbound (who owe him thousands of pounds) and is selling them on.
And we read Kiki's Delivery Service - the original novel the Studio Ghibli film is based on - for my book club. I've not seen the film yet. A very young read, but still charming.
I'm going to be using this for self reading properly soon, but was just having a look through it, seeing the style, and also assessing the package as a whole. I bought this deck some years ago, after I discovered it existed. Erin Morgenstern designed this Tarot deck at the same time she was writing The Night Circus book.
The theme is Victorian / gothic / whimsical / magical, though based firmly on the Rider-Waite-Smith standard ideas and designs. The art is painted in black and white acrylic, with many greys. There are often animals on the cards, especially cats and dogs. Numbered cards have full designs. The overall feel will be familiar to readers of The Night Circus.
The card stock is very thick, possibly overly so, making shuffling the cards in the hand harder than it might be. The deck comes in a well designed and practical box, complete with a guidebook. The guidebook includes many interesting ideas for spreads, as well as guides to the meanings of the individual cards.
A nice package, and I'm looking forward to trying this deck out properly for readings.
P.S. I had looked at this deck briefly a year ago, but am now more familiar with Tarot card meanings, and in a better position to use the cards properly.
The theme is Victorian / gothic / whimsical / magical, though based firmly on the Rider-Waite-Smith standard ideas and designs. The art is painted in black and white acrylic, with many greys. There are often animals on the cards, especially cats and dogs. Numbered cards have full designs. The overall feel will be familiar to readers of The Night Circus.
The card stock is very thick, possibly overly so, making shuffling the cards in the hand harder than it might be. The deck comes in a well designed and practical box, complete with a guidebook. The guidebook includes many interesting ideas for spreads, as well as guides to the meanings of the individual cards.
A nice package, and I'm looking forward to trying this deck out properly for readings.
P.S. I had looked at this deck briefly a year ago, but am now more familiar with Tarot card meanings, and in a better position to use the cards properly.
Got this new deck today. It's designed by Catherine Davidson and artist Thiago Corrêa.
It comes in a very oversized box, though that accommodates the relatively large guidebook nicely. One of my cards was slightly bent at the edge in the box, but it's ok now. The cards are a little flimsy, but shuffle well.
The guidebook is good. Very clear, easy to read, a good introduction, and looks comprehensive. Also has some nice ideas for spreads, including cat themed.
The card art is *gorgeous*. Some of the choices are a little off, but many look solid. And full of character. I laughed a lot when I saw the Four of Cups ...
I think I will find this deck more approachable than the traditional illustrations. Though it is based on those.
It comes in a very oversized box, though that accommodates the relatively large guidebook nicely. One of my cards was slightly bent at the edge in the box, but it's ok now. The cards are a little flimsy, but shuffle well.
The guidebook is good. Very clear, easy to read, a good introduction, and looks comprehensive. Also has some nice ideas for spreads, including cat themed.
The card art is *gorgeous*. Some of the choices are a little off, but many look solid. And full of character. I laughed a lot when I saw the Four of Cups ...
I think I will find this deck more approachable than the traditional illustrations. Though it is based on those.
I dug this out again, and had a go drawing some cards. Here are the ones I drew tonight.
Note this is not any standard layout or spread, just something I drew up impulsively. I wanted to draw more than 3 cards, but not too many more. In particular I wanted enough that I could choose to ignore some if I wanted. Equally I don't want cards in particular positions to have any special significance. So it's 5 cards drawn, at random, of which I can choose to ignore several in my musings, if they don't feel right for me now.
The artwork is gorgeous. It's woodblock based, by Spanish artist Tomas Hijo. On the downside the Minor Arcana cards are mostly just pips-style, like ordinary playing cards, so lacking individual illustrations. But the court cards have proper individual illustrations, as do the Major Arcana.
The biggest downside for me using this deck is that the accompanying guide is akin to a foldout map/poster rather than a little booklet as you often get with Tarot decks. I can ignore that guide, using other references for help with interpretations. But I do like the extra information the foldout guide has relating the cards to the Lord of the Rings theme. And I don't want to miss those. I could easily see me getting tired of battling with the foldout poster though.
Here are the 5 cards I drew tonight:
Top left - The World (The Fellowship)
Middle - The Fool (Frodo)
Top right - The Eight of Rings (the deck replaces Pentacles with Rings)
Bottom left - Justice (Legolas)
Bottom right - The Magician (Gandalf)
Of these Eight of Rings relates to study and learning. I'd like to use that to remind me that I need to return to my Gaelic language study. It's easy to keep meaning to do something in future, but never get round to it in a reasonable time. I need to make a deliberate effort to prioritise this.
Frodo's Fool card relates to great opportunities being offered, the chance of an exciting adventure. This doesn't resonate with me at the moment. I am too limited, even considering more cerebral adventures. And trapped for now in a never-ending cycle of many extended neurological flares. But it's a gorgeous card.
The Fellowship card is, if anything, even more gorgeous. The guide with the cards suggest this is about having nearly reached a goal, and a sense of community. Well this does resonate. IFComp 2024 is going to open for judging in a fortnight. I have a new game all finished, entered and ready for the competition. And I am really looking forward to taking part in the closed IFComp authors' community on the IF forum this year. Just excited about it to be honest, however my game fares. Which is a nice place to be in.
Justice - which I thought at first glance was Faramir not Legolas, yes I missed his ears! - seems to be about keeping your vision true and clear. Which I could apply to lots of things. But I'm rather in a muddle of different projects and interests at the moment. And it doesn't really resonate.
The last card, a gorgeous Gandalf illustration for the Magician, reminds me that I need to think of others and not just my own priorities. Obviously paramount in this is Martin, supporting him. But also my friends and family. We hope to have a visit soon from in-laws. Which will be lovely. That's using the interpretation provided in the guide for this deck, rather than a more traditional one.
So 5 cards drawn very loosely, and of those 3 resonated with my current situation a lot. I *adore* the art, though that's on the fully illustrated cards. The simpler pips based cards are disappointing. And I could definitely see the foldout guide becoming a menace. I might have to convert that into a different format. But an interesting experience drawing these.
And yes, I really need to sort out a Tarot/oracle card icon for posts like these!
Note this is not any standard layout or spread, just something I drew up impulsively. I wanted to draw more than 3 cards, but not too many more. In particular I wanted enough that I could choose to ignore some if I wanted. Equally I don't want cards in particular positions to have any special significance. So it's 5 cards drawn, at random, of which I can choose to ignore several in my musings, if they don't feel right for me now.
The artwork is gorgeous. It's woodblock based, by Spanish artist Tomas Hijo. On the downside the Minor Arcana cards are mostly just pips-style, like ordinary playing cards, so lacking individual illustrations. But the court cards have proper individual illustrations, as do the Major Arcana.
The biggest downside for me using this deck is that the accompanying guide is akin to a foldout map/poster rather than a little booklet as you often get with Tarot decks. I can ignore that guide, using other references for help with interpretations. But I do like the extra information the foldout guide has relating the cards to the Lord of the Rings theme. And I don't want to miss those. I could easily see me getting tired of battling with the foldout poster though.
Here are the 5 cards I drew tonight:
Top left - The World (The Fellowship)
Middle - The Fool (Frodo)
Top right - The Eight of Rings (the deck replaces Pentacles with Rings)
Bottom left - Justice (Legolas)
Bottom right - The Magician (Gandalf)
Of these Eight of Rings relates to study and learning. I'd like to use that to remind me that I need to return to my Gaelic language study. It's easy to keep meaning to do something in future, but never get round to it in a reasonable time. I need to make a deliberate effort to prioritise this.
Frodo's Fool card relates to great opportunities being offered, the chance of an exciting adventure. This doesn't resonate with me at the moment. I am too limited, even considering more cerebral adventures. And trapped for now in a never-ending cycle of many extended neurological flares. But it's a gorgeous card.
The Fellowship card is, if anything, even more gorgeous. The guide with the cards suggest this is about having nearly reached a goal, and a sense of community. Well this does resonate. IFComp 2024 is going to open for judging in a fortnight. I have a new game all finished, entered and ready for the competition. And I am really looking forward to taking part in the closed IFComp authors' community on the IF forum this year. Just excited about it to be honest, however my game fares. Which is a nice place to be in.
Justice - which I thought at first glance was Faramir not Legolas, yes I missed his ears! - seems to be about keeping your vision true and clear. Which I could apply to lots of things. But I'm rather in a muddle of different projects and interests at the moment. And it doesn't really resonate.
The last card, a gorgeous Gandalf illustration for the Magician, reminds me that I need to think of others and not just my own priorities. Obviously paramount in this is Martin, supporting him. But also my friends and family. We hope to have a visit soon from in-laws. Which will be lovely. That's using the interpretation provided in the guide for this deck, rather than a more traditional one.
So 5 cards drawn very loosely, and of those 3 resonated with my current situation a lot. I *adore* the art, though that's on the fully illustrated cards. The simpler pips based cards are disappointing. And I could definitely see the foldout guide becoming a menace. I might have to convert that into a different format. But an interesting experience drawing these.
And yes, I really need to sort out a Tarot/oracle card icon for posts like these!
Tried a 3-card spread, past/present/future Tarot-like. The cards that came up are not going to foretell anyone's future. But I like to think about how they might relate to my situation, and opportunities.
In this case the cards that came up at random were Sacred Space, Anomaly and Abundance. The first can indicate those things I'm most comfortable with, or my core beliefs (and not necessarily religion). Anomaly is uncertainty, something unexpected. And Abundance can indicate good results.
You could apply this combination to lots of things, e.g. personal attitudes, life/work problems, or a quest for wealth. But in my case, bearing in mind my extremely limited life circumstances due to my neurological illness, I'm thinking of recreational and academic things I pursue. It's often easiest to play it safe, and stick to familiar things. But often it's really rewarding to try new things, or follow unexpected opportunities that show up. So that's how I'm feeling looking at this spread.
I *love* the artwork on these cards.
In this case the cards that came up at random were Sacred Space, Anomaly and Abundance. The first can indicate those things I'm most comfortable with, or my core beliefs (and not necessarily religion). Anomaly is uncertainty, something unexpected. And Abundance can indicate good results.
You could apply this combination to lots of things, e.g. personal attitudes, life/work problems, or a quest for wealth. But in my case, bearing in mind my extremely limited life circumstances due to my neurological illness, I'm thinking of recreational and academic things I pursue. It's often easiest to play it safe, and stick to familiar things. But often it's really rewarding to try new things, or follow unexpected opportunities that show up. So that's how I'm feeling looking at this spread.
I *love* the artwork on these cards.
Oracle cards
Jul. 23rd, 2024 03:54 pmInspired by a recent read I've picked up M.J. Cullinane's "Urban Crow" oracle deck - I love the artwork, and the theming. And also the "Seasons of the Witch" Mabon oracle deck - the one of that series that appealed to me the most. I have never tried Oracle cards, but have been starting to work with Tarot cards for personal reflection and creativity. And the various Oracle cards look like a nice variant on that. And also, frankly, probably easier to make sense of, without knowing/learning a mass of deep meanings behind each Tarot card!
