Cardistry Touch Releases ESCP_THIS 2021 Deck

Cardistry Touch's ESCP_THIS 2021 is a follow-up to the popular 2020 sold-out release. The deck is the 2nd installment of this series designed by Alex Matencio of Zalem Industries.



The new deck features a complex design inspired by tech-wear and sci-fi. Using futuristic graphics, intricate shapes, and bold typography, Alex created a deck that stands out from all others, with an “underground” design vibe.



The strong contrasts between the dark backs and the bright faces make this deck perfect for cuts, and the diagonal stripes create beautiful fanning patterns with rhythms on the backs and connections on the faces.

 

ESCP_THIS 2021 sports a two-way IDENTICAL face and card back design and is packaged in Cardistry Touch's iconic swivel box. Like the previous decks, ESCP_THIS is printed by the USPCC on Premium crushed stock. Available NOW from cardistrytouch.com for €16,95 (USD$18).

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MATERIA 001 – Deep Sea by Cardistry Touch Released!

The guys at Cardistry Touch have been teasing a series of cryptic images over the past two weeks. It all started with an image of a monolith, followed by news articles of these mysterious monoliths appearing around the globe. 

This led to the discovery of a mysterious well-funded energy company called INNERGIZE. For those with a keen eye for clues, logging into the company's website is rewarded with a sample of Cardistry Touch's new deck, MATERIA. 

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So, what exactly is MATERIA? MATERIA is not just a new deck, but a new line of Cardistry Cards. According to their social media post,

We realized that our products can be expensive for some of our customers, and this is mainly due to the very high production cost of our iconic “Swivel Box”. For that reason, we decided to go with a standard box on this, to reduce those costs and be able to offer a more affordable deck.

DEEP SEA features a bold and minimal design, with a simple rectangle shape repeated on the backs and the fronts. This consistency between both faces of the cards will enhance motions and make it easier to focus on the actual moves and understand even complex cuts. To complement this idea, the strong contrasts between backs and fronts will also make packets pop out even more. The faces are also created with spreads and fans in mind, creating different rhythms depending on the way you fan. 

 

Also, the team has decided to make MATERIA unlimited. That means the deck will ALWAYS be in stock. It might not be this exact version, but if you’re willing to get a deck of the collection, you’ll be able to do so, at any time. The post continues,

Having very limited decks is also the standard in our industry, but it can be frustrating for our customers who are not able to get them on time.

MATERIA 001 – DEEP.SEA will be available now on cardistrytouch.com, for €11.95.

Article originally published on crdstry.com.

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Deck View: Offset Orange Playing Cards

Concept. Urban. Misaligned.

The “Offset Orange” deck is Cardistry Touch's bold take on the traditional deck of playing cards. The Offset Orange is inspired by the misprint of certain playing cards, and the Cardistry Touch team wanted to use the “offset” as part of the actual design.

The deck sports a bold orange/black colorway inspired by urban life, making this deck a perfect accessory to match your streetwear looks. There are 4 different card backs and resulting in 4 different directions.

The deck is packaged in a unique swivel box and are printed by the USPCC on premium crushed stock.

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Zalēm Industries Acquired! An Interview With Cardistry Touch

This week, the brand acquisition of Zalēm Industries by Cardistry Touch has generated quite a buzz within the Cardistry community. This marks the first time that two cardistry brands have combined forces. Zalēm Industries will now operate as a brand within Cardistry Touch with independent deck design and synergized vision, ideas, and visuals.

We spoke to the team at Cardistry Touch about the merged brands and what fans and cardists can expect going forward. 

What led to the brand acquisition of Zalēm Industries? 

Well… Alex’s designs are amazing. We knew that before we knew the guy. They’re different, bold, simple yet effective, but that’s not the main reason why we thought that brand had potential: after meeting and talking with Alex simply as friends, we understood that he had a vision with zalēm, more than just making cool card designs. That’s something we really appreciate in brands, and something we try to do with Touch. 

It’s a whole creative world, that offers infinite possibilities but we felt that he needed help to get his brand to the next level, and we decided to take him under our wing. Don’t get me wrong though, Alex is a great friend but we’re not doing that to “be nice”, we truly believe that this project has great potential and that it’ll benefit us all long term! Together we re-defined the vision, rebuilt the @zalem.industries Instagram from scratch so that it shows the brand’s new and clear purpose. We worked a lot to deeply understand Alex’s vision and create something practical that represents it, to be able to share it with the world.

This whole thing also simply fits one of our main mottos in life: we want to do what we love, and do it with our friends. And new projects are simply existing! 

 

How will the creative process of combining the two brands work?

Well, now that we have set up a clear vision long term of what we want this brand to be, the process will be fairly easy: we trust Alex 100% on the actual design of the decks, we work on promo ideas and visuals altogether, and we (Touch) take care of the production and “back-end” type of stuff: with Touch, we already have a very solid base, so it’s not that hard for us to implement a new project like Zalēm.

Of course, the idea is to listen and to trust each other. We will always, question ourselves, and try to improve our process along the way. 

How will the addition of Zalēm Industries benefit existing Cardistry Touch fans?
Since the beginning, we’ve always made the products that we want ourselves to have. Things that we think are cool, beautiful, creative, interesting… That means if you like what we do, you somehow have the same kind of taste as us. Zalēm is no exception: we wouldn’t put our name on a project that is not 100% up to our standard. 

If you like what we do at Cardistry Touch, you’ll probably like what we do over at Zalēm. Since the beginning, when we introduced our “cardistry cards”, we also had a lot of questions about making actual “playing cards”, with faces and everything, and to be honest we wouldn’t do it with “Touch”. It just doesn’t fit the vision of the brand. We don’t have anything against playing cards though, and producing them through zalēm seems like a perfect opportunity for us. 

So, what comes next, in 2021 and beyond?
Haha, not sure I can tell you a lot about future projects right now, but we do have a long-term plan for Zalēm, with a lot of great stuff coming. We also want to expand to more than cardistry for this brand, as it’s something we won’t do with Touch, and it seems like a cool challenge to take on. In short terms, I guess we’ll focus on creating beautiful decks, creative content, and try to firmly establish zalēm as a solid brand.

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Cardistry Touch Launches the DÉRIVE Collection in 3 Colorways!

This week, the cool guys at Cardistry Touch just teased THREE new colorway of the DÉRIVE deck- Honey (yellow), Prune (purple), and Pepper (dark orange). The DÉRIVE Collection features a minimal back design with simple white lines creating the illusion of movement. 

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The face cards have a repeating design on each card and showcase an abstract art with various shades of color combo. 

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The strong contrast between the card backs and the faces defineitly makes packet cuts pop! The new colorway and color combo definitely gives the deck a fresh twist and maintain interest amongst cardists.

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Like Cardistry Touch's previous releases, the cards are kept secured in a unique swivel tuck box. Printed by the United States Playing Card Co. and limited to 2,500 decks for each colorway. Available in February 2021.

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Cardistry Touch Releases Offset Orange Concept Cards for Pre-Order

Now available for pre-order, the “Offset Orange” Concept deck is Cardistry Touch's bold take on the traditional deck of playing cards. The deck sports a bold orange/black colorway inspired by urban life, making this deck a perfect accessory to match your streetwear looks. 

According to the product page,

In cardistry, our mistakes are often a starting point to come up with new moves. We took that same idea to create this deck: inspired by the misprint of certain playing cards, we wanted to use the “offset” as part of the actual design. 

 

There will be 4 different card backs and hence 4 different directions! Either follow the arrow or simply let them give a new esthetic to your cuts. The possibilities are endless!

Like ALL previous Cardistry Touch releases, the deck will be packaged in a unique swivel box. The deck will be printed by the USPCC on premium crushed stock. Pre-order now for €14,95 on cardistrytouch.com

This story first appeared on cardistrybeast.com and is republished with permission. 

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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.

Cardistry Touch's ESCP_TH!S Deck Sold Out in 20 Minutes!

Cardistry Touch's ESCP_TH!S Playing Cards just sold out in 20 minutes on Thursday. The fifth deck in the product line-up is designed by Alex Matencio of Zalem Industries, the deck is not only stylish but visually eye-catching with a street/tech wear vibe. Like their previous decks, ESCP_TH!S sports a one-way face and card back design and packaged in Cardistry Touch's iconic swivel box. However, unlike their previous decks, ESCP_TH!S is printed by the USPCC for the FIRST time due to the popular C9² finish that Cardistry Touch has been using is not available anymore. Watch the deck in action below:

Alex Matencio on Designing Cardistry Touch's ESCP_TH!S Playing Cards

The team at Cardistry Touch teased their latest deck on Instagram. ESCP_TH!S is the fifth deck after the 2019 release, DERIVE.
Designed by Alex Matencio of Zalem Industries, the deck is not only stylish but visually eye-catching with a street/tech wear vibe. According to Alex,

The creative brief was to focus on techwear, to adapt to the general identity of Touch and to their style. It was challenging, but that's how you learn even more :).

The faces sport a one-way design deck. On the design, Alex continued,

It was definitely tougher than expected. After multiple test ideas of the back, I started nearly from scratch again but not for the back design. I first found the idea that became final for the front face and then adapted the back using a couple of ideas the Touch guys and I kept from the previous tests.

The deck is kept secure in Cardistry Touch's iconic swivel box. Incorporating the design elements into the tuck is not as simple as it looks. Alex explained,

Designing their swivel box, while easy since I had the art done already, started as a mindf*** of graphic "continuity" for me. You may not see it from here but if you already have a Touch Swivel box home, try and tear it apart and you'll see the unexpected complexity of it. It's a 3D puzzle. Hopefully, Ladislas did his best to explain it to me so that we get it done by the same afternoon, which we did.

However, there are complexities in terms of the designing the swivel box compared to a normal tuck box. The swivel box is split into two with one part overlays the other parts. Alex continues,

Keeping the continuity of the design on all sides without a break is what was hard to figure out in the beginning.

On the art direction, while designing ESCP_TH!S, Alex described,

Also, for my clients, be it @cardistrytouch, had a pretty good understanding of graphic design in general and of their own visual identity, hence making working for them a delight where they would understand my propositions and arguments very easily. The way they bounced back on my ideas made me enjoy every part of the process and allowed me to challenge everything I was doing and propose better and better ideas. Last but not least I'm also glad I decided to restart nearly from scratch in September since my new ideas came out, in my opinion, much better than my first ones that were too messy.

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A post shared by Cardistry Touch (@cardistrytouch) on Mar 20, 2020 at 11:30am PDT

ESCP_TH!S will be printed by USPCC for the FIRST time. This is due to the C9² finish that Cardistry Touch has been using is not available anymore. The team is currently working closely with Cartamundi to find a brand new finish, even better than the last one, which will take time.

The deck is scheduled to be released on March 26 at 19:00CET.

Cardistry Touch Releases DÉRIVE Playing Cards for Pre-Order!

The cool guys at Cardistry Touch just released their new deck, DÉRIVE. The cardistry deck features a minimal back design in a black colorway, with simple white lines creating the illusion of movement.

The face cards have a repeating design on each card and showcase abstract art with a shade of blue and white color combo. The strong contrast between the darker card backs and vibrant blue on the faces makes packets pop out even more, even in complex cuts.

This is a departure from the geometric design used in previous releases. This is definitely a good thing to keep the brand fresh and contemporary in order to maintain interest amongst cardists.

The cards are kept secured in a unique swivel tuck box. Printed by Cartamundi on the popular on Superlux paper using the C92 “Touch finish”, This will be the last deck ever to use this finish. Limited edition of 5,000 decks.

Available for pre-order on cardistrytouch.com for €16.95. Decks are in production and will ship in November.

Article first published on crdstry.com

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Cardistry: Thoughts on the Cardistry Touch PULSE Deck

Recently we managed to get our hands on the Limited Edition Cardistry-Con PULSE deck by Cardistry Touch to see how they look and feel. Visually, the deck sports a darker tone to the ORIGINS and instead of the repeating triangular red/blue patterns, the deck features diagonal speed line patterns with a contrasting orange/yellow accent on the right corner.

Due to the darker contrasting colors, PULSE is definitely more eye-catching. Displays, fans, and springs stand out more especially with the orange/yellow accents.

Like Origins, the face cards have a unique one-way repeating geometric design on each card. However, the darker color palette means the geometric shapes are muted and subdued. A red/orange pattern in the middle and the bottom right give the face cards a touch of fun and youthful energy.

Printed by Cartamundi on the popular C9 stock, the handling is incredible- smooth and snappy! Fanning and springing the cards feel really satisfying especially with the sound of the cards springing through the air.

The cards are kept secured in a unique swivel tuck box. Personally, I am not a fan of the swivel box as I find the motion of opening the tuck and removing the deck a little unnatural. However, it does look really cool and sure to turn heads when you pop those PULSE cards out of the tuck.

Overall, an excellent deck that handles incredibly well with an eye-catching design that is sure to turn heads for your card flourishes.

Original article posted on crdstry.com

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The Circle-YANG CHAN vs LUNZI, Hosted by MyTurn

Check out this cool head-to-head performance video featuring Yang Chan and Lunzi, filmed by the cool guys from Cardistry Touch at this year's Cardistry-Con. The video showcased some of Yang and Lunzi's incredibly smooth flourishes, all done with a single take effect. Check it out below:

Deck featured: Cardistry Touch PULSE.
 

Original article posted on crdstry.com


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Cardistry: Cardistry Touch PULSE Pre-Order now LIVE. Drops INSANE Trailer!

Pre-Orders of Cardistry Touch PULSE are LIVE on cardistrytouch.com! Along with the highly anticipated PULSE deck, the team has surprised everyone with the release of the limited edition PULSE Blue, sold exclusively on their website.

The PULSE decks sport a darker tone featuring diagonal speed line patterns prominently featured throughout with contrasting accents on the corners, giving flourishes, displaying a cool new experience with stunning, unique patterns. The face cards have a unique repeated geometric design on each card. The deck is kept secured in a unique swivel tuck box. Printed by Cartamundi on the C9 stock.

Pre-order ends November 15th. The estimated shipping time is January 2019. Also… Check out their new performance video below:



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Cardistry: Cardistry Touch Pulse Announce Pre-Order Date

Mark your calendars! Cardistry Touch has confirmed the date for the pre-order of their latest deck, Pulse on social media: 25th October! The deck was initially teased at Cardistry-Con HK last month and a small quantity was made available for sale.

The deck sports a darker tone to the original (Origins) and features diagonal speed line patterns with a contrasting orange/yellow accent on the right corner. Like Origins, the face cards have a unique repeating geometric design on each card.

The deck is kept secured in a unique swivel tuck box. Printed by Cartamundi on the popular C9 stock. Check out the awesome teaser trailer below:

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PULSE Cardistry Cards. Pre-orders on October 25th. #CardistryTouch #cardistry #cards

A post shared by Cardistry Touch (@cardistrytouch) on Oct 15, 2018 at 6:05am PDT

Original article posted on crdstry.com

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