Kickstarter: Uusi Classic

[Update] Now LIVE on Kickstarter!

If your any kind of Playing Card aficionado you have at least one deck from Uusi Studio's in your collection. Uusi has brought the Playing Card community some of the most beautiful decks imaginable. Bringing true artistic designs and concept to functional playing cards.

Back in 2012 Uusi set out to create a 6 deck series of Playing Cards starting with the Blue Bloods, since then what they've brought to us are 5 completely unique decks with varying styles, designs and concepts, no two alike, but unmistakably Uusi.

This weekend Uusi will be bringing it's final deck in the series to Kickstarter, it's very bittersweet, while I'm excited to finally be able to pledge my support for the Uusi Classic's, I also have to take in the fact that this is the last deck in the series.

So please join us on Saturday November 1st, 2014 at 9AM Central to celebrate not only the latest creation by Uusi Studios, but the amazing catalog of work they've brought us over the years.

Mark your calendars, you won't want to miss this!

For more information about Uusi Studio's please visit their website at Uusi,us or keep up with the latest news and creations on their Facebook page.

Collections: Classic by Uusi Studios

Six decks ago, starting with the still sought after Blue Blood, Uusi embarked on their new project. It was a series that was to consist of 6 different decks, each with its own style, look and concept. That series came to a close with Classic. Appropriately named, Classis is exactly that, a throwback to the vintage look and feel of old renaissance artistry, the hand painted courts and hand drawn back design all show the true artistic talent that Uusi brings to all of their projects.

The tuck has a soft feel and subtle embossing to it, and the off white color helps the bold design work stand out, while still having a “Vintage” look to it. As with all of Uusi’s decks, Classic was also printed at USPC, the antique hue of the base color of the cards works really well with the Classic theme and the almost iconic large full pips feel perfect in this renaissance package.

The court cards are the stand out element of the deck in my opinion, a very strong Classic design, again pulling from the renaissance period, bold character and the perfect palette make each court look like a painting you would find hanging in a museum. The Ace of Spades has a nice regal look to it and the Jokers are playfully innocent and continue to tie the theme together exceptionally well.

Available in Blue and Red, Classic also features another Uusi staple, the two panels (Card) Diptych, adorned with mythical creatures and a banner that stretches across both cards that reads “no. VI” (No. 6) on one side. Classic is everything I would have expected from Uusi, it continues to showcase Linnea and Peters talent and commitment to producing something different than each previous deck. Classic is a bit bittersweet, closing the chapter on Uusi’s series, but they haven’t disappeared completely from the playing card world, which is good news for us.

If your new to collecting, take a moment to look up not only Classic, but all six decks in the Uusi series, you would be hard pressed to find such a divers series anywhere else.  The only real hard piece to find is the original Blue Blood, but you can enjoy the look and feel of that deck with the Redux version. The others in the series are not impossible to find, but might set you back a little. Well worth adding to your “Wish List”, and they definitely earn the title of “Must Have” in just about any collection. Enjoy the “Vintage” look of Classic, and venture into the back library as well, you won’t be disappointed.

The Collection segment is produced by Anthony Ingrassia of Kardify. No part of this article, images or video can be reproduced without written permission from the author and Kardify.com. To see more of Anthony's (Sparkz) collection and work please visit his Facebookpage or follow him on Instagram.  

Designers: UUSI's Creative Process

In the continuation of our designers series, we are honoured to have a guest post from Linnea of UUSI, creators of popular playing card decks such as BlueBlood, Bohemia, Royal Optik and Pagan. This month, Linnea shares with us about working together with Peter as a husband & wife team, the creative process behind creating a deck of cards, and how an artwork is finalised. USSI's upcoming project Hotcakes (launching on 26th April - 10am EST) will be used as examples in this article.


One of the questions Peter and I are always asked is how do you guys work together? I think this question is made up of part curiosity for the actual design / art process we use in the studio and part incredulity that we would actually want to work together as we are not only partners in a design studio, but husband & wife. Truth be told, whenever I hear that "Husband & Wife Team" moniker I cringe. What immediately comes to mind is an insanely dysfunctional, unprofessional work environment with a very combative, emotionally charged atmosphere. I've been around those situations and they are claustrophobic. But when they work, they are really fun and the environment is incredibly trusting and supportive. I think at Uusi we manage to walk that line of keeping personal issues at home (mostly!) and bring to the studio our creative energy and productive focus.

Hotcakes Card Backs

When we decided to work on a six-deck series for Uusi we had been making art and design together for quite some time and the creative process was well established. Peter is the founder of Uusi, but his official role at the studio is Art Director and mine is Lead Creative. We both brainstorm for a deck's theme and once one is decided on my role is to explore the visual possibilities for the deck. This usually requires a lot of sketching out of ideas, color directions, medium choice, etc. During this process Peter will come in and start to winnow out what works and what doesn't until we are down to about two or three different looks from which one is finally chosen. Finding the look and theme is definitely the longest process in creating these decks.

Hotcakes Heart Court

Once a look and theme are established the deck's art work moves fairly quickly from there. The final artwork is worked on by whomever has the strongest skill in the chosen medium. With "Hotcakes" I created sketches for the characters and Peter came in to ink the line work using a traditional pen and ink technique that he is skilled in. After the sketches have been inked they come back to me and I added the color to them. This time the color was produced with markers and tempera paints as we wanted the look to be highly illustrative and playful. The final artwork is then scanned into the computer and laid into the playing card templates. Each card has its own digital file that is then converted into a working digital format for print. When all the digital files are ready they are then dropped onto USPCC's server and their Post Production team rips them into a master template for print.

Hotcakes Ace of Spades

The video embedded below is part of our soon-to-be-launched, "Hotcakes" Kickstarter video and shows both Peter and I working on the the Queen of Hearts artwork for this deck. The video begins with Peter inking in the pencil sketch and then my adding the color. Hope you enjoy it and we hope to see you over on Kickstarter next weekend for the launch of our fifth deck, "Hotcakes!"




This exclusive guest post is written by Linnea of UUSI for Kardify. No part of this article can be reproduced without written permission from the author. You can check out UUSI's work online at UUSI.us

1-ON-1: Uusi

In 2010, husband and wife team Peter Dunham and Linnea Gits opened the doors to their new design studio in Chicago Illinois with a very telling idea in mind:  that life is worth the meaningful effort, and its reward is one of discovery.

That design studio was Uusi (Finnish for “new”). Their client list eventually grew to include Herman Miller, Design Within Reach, Chronicle Books, Sharpie, Draft FCB, and Prismacolor. Their work is presented in many diverse media, from Fine Art, Illustration, Graphic & Interior Design to Photography and Woodworking.

Linnea and Peter had been collecting Playing Card decks for years as inspirational objects, and in 2012, decided to design a custom deck of their own. That deck was Blue Blood, which was launched and funded on Kickstarter with huge success and accolades from their backers. Uusi had brought a long-missing Fine Art feel back to the playing card community and opened the door for a creative surge that is still going strong today.

With the success of their first deck, Uusi released their second deck, Bohemia. Its bold “Street art meets Baroque” hand-painted design was release to much of the same success and acclaim which Blue Blood had garnered. With the release of Bohemia, the studio also revealed that it and Blue Blood were the first decks in a planned six deck series, Bohemia being the second deck in the series.

In 2013 Uusi released their next 3 installments to the series, Royal Optik, Blue Blood Redux and Pagan, all via Kickstarter, and all reaching the same success and praise their previous projects had enjoyed. Royal Optik is described as the combination of two art styles “Op Art and Woodcut – coming together to create one completely original playing card deck”. Released in two color variations, Royal Optik was deck 3 in the series.

Blue Blood Redux was the next release, and marked the return of the “Indigo Monarchs” of Blue Blood to an established and new audience that may have missed out on the original Blue Blood deck. Redux was much the same deck as the original with some minor changes consisting of a new tuck box image and some changes to the court cards. They also added unique diptych cards (a “diptych is a work of art in which two image “panels” create one continuous image when joined together) and two new Aces. Redux was not meant to be one of the planned six-deck series, but more of a “companion deck” to Blue Blood. I guess we can call it deck 1B in the series. That is not an official statement, by the way. ;)

The fourth deck in the series is Pagan, returning to one of the oldest mediums in art: oil painting, and drawing inspiration from a personal place for Linnea and Peter:

“Our inspiration for Pagan came from our love of the great forests and lakes of Northern Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The smell of the woods, their silence and the enormous beauty of the forests and lakes in that region of the US has always inspired us. When you are deep in the forest, the feeling of wilderness is intense - and it was that feeling that became the creative starting point for our new deck.”

The fifth deck in the series, Hotcakes, which is currently Live on Kickstarter, draws its inspiration from traditional 17th Century, full-figure (non-reversible) court cards combined with a mix of Pop Art, such as Andy Warhol’s playful style and Charles Pry’s one-off art decks and Italian designer Emilio Pucci’s pattern work. All these elements combine for a playful, colorful vision of courts of old.

Peter and Linnea were and are very busy with their current project, but still found the time to discuss aspects of their work as designers as well as what Playing Cards mean to them and what the future holds:

Uusi is about much more than Playing cards, which non-playing card project have you been most excited about, either past or present?

Peter and I began as artists and transitioned in to design about ten years ago. Our first design job was with Herman Miller, the renowned US furniture and design company, where we were contracted for a series of murals for their showroom in Chicago. They loved the work so much that we were given the job of creating murals for their National Design Centers in LA, New York and DC as well as their company headquarters in Zealand, Michigan. They also commissioned Peter for site-specific cabinetry and myself for added graphics and desktop items for their showrooms and headquarters. We continued to work in the commercial design market for private clients and large companies like Draft FCB, before starting Uusi in the fall of 2010. Our decision to start our own design studio rose from the desire to get back into the studio process again; focusing on material exploration, craftsmanship and the luxury of refining an idea outside the mainstream of the marketplace. Creating Uusi and this kind of environment has really been our favorite overall project to date!

Do you have a "Creative Process" you go through when taking on a new project?

Our Creative Process depends largely on whether it is a job for one of our clients, or a project for our own company. Client jobs come with their own set of limitations, expectations and deliverables that structure the creative process from the very start. Work for our own company tends to unfold more slowly, and is guided mainly by our passion for a genre and our intuition for what we want to see come to life there. Once we decide to pursue an idea for an object, we start by researching its history. It is important to know where something came from in order to take it somewhere else – we want to continue the conversation (so to speak) within a genre instead of just echoing what is already there.
For the playing cards we have created for Uusi, we used this research process which included not only reading about playing cards and their history, but collecting vintage decks – mainly from Europe. As we began to understand the deck's specific uses and the many ways the artwork had been created, ideas began to take shape on how we wanted to contribute to that story by adding something new to it and making it uniquely our own. At the time we got into designing custom decks – about three years ago – almost all of the new decks we saw were created using computer-based artwork. What we wanted to see was artwork created by hand and using traditional art mediums with a modern theme.

Given our Fine Art backgrounds, this was a natural path for us to take and we decided it would be cool to use as many mediums as we could to fully explore the hand-drawn line and color in the decks.

Another thing we wanted to do was change the way the tuck box was presented. So many decks use the traditional "banknote" design approach – borders that contain imagery and copy. When done well it is very appealing and just what you expect a deck's tuck to look like, but if you push the borders off the box you move into a different packaging realm and can create a more unique look and style that is distinctly your own.

Once we had decided how to approach our own contribution to this genre we were off and running. Knowing our approach to the overall process meant that each deck would have its own unique theme and a new art medium would be chosen to express that theme. The sketch process is the first step in resolving the theme and is often the longest one. Once a final direction is realized though, things move fairly quickly; final artwork is created with small adjustments in design getting worked out along the way and lastly, all artwork is transferred into a digital format for print.


Who are some of your artistic inspirations? Whose work do you really enjoy?

We draw artistic inspiration from so many things!! The natural world is a great source of inspiration as is the Fine Art world. Peter is a big history buff and also loves the mechanical side of the design process – figuring out how things work and the craft involved. With playing cards we are mostly drawn to old European decks. The colors, line work and patterns are really beautiful on these decks as were the processes that created them – chrome lithography, hand-brushed and stenciled colors right down to the way the paper was made – and led the way for so many of the decks we see in use today. We were some of the first designers to employ hand drawn imagery for the artwork in our decks and it has been very cool to see many of the designers that have entered the market after us appreciate that approach and try to incorporate an element of hand drawn work in their decks as well. But ultimately, the way you make your art really doesn't matter as much as your ability to express what it is you want to say successfully – for us it just so happened that a more traditional process was the best one.


There is a question that seems to be on many Playing Card aficionados’ minds as of late. Uusi had gone into this card series stating it would consist of six decks. Well, we're getting close to the end of that series...will we see Uusi deck designs after this series reaches its end?

Well...I guess the rule of thumb here is to say, "never say never"! But in all honesty, this series has taken an enormous amount of time to create and there are definitely other projects we have been itching to get to at the studio. We just signed a licensing contract with the wonderful, Brooklyn-based design manufacturer, Areaware, for our wood animals sets that we are really excited about and for whom we will also be designing other objects and functional items for the home. So I think when deck number six is finally finished and shipped we will feel a great sense of accomplishment in having created such a considered catalog of work, but we will also feel an equal amount of relief to be at its end. I am sure we will always remember this experience as one of the most enjoyable we have had as designers – but since we are not at the finish line yet! - and we are still very much immersed in this community, we are mostly just enjoying it as it is unfolding and whatever the future brings it brings. We hope after we are finished with this series though, we still can participate on some level with the people and companies we have gotten to know and respect and who have made this whole journey so much more enjoyable!



I can’t thank Peter and Linnea enough for their time and collaboration on putting this piece together. Uusi truly has its own unique vision and style, and it’s evident not only in the five decks that they’ve brought to us so far, but in their non-playing card work as well.

If you would like to learn more about Uusi and the work they do, you can visit them on their website or on Facebook.  And don’t forget to check out the newly released Hotcakes Playing Cards now Live on Kickstarter!

This exclusive 1-on-1 is written by Anthony Ingrassia for kardify. No part of this article can be reproduced without written permission from the author. You can check out Anthony's awesome collection at sparkzcollector.

Collections: Hotcakes by Uusi Studios

Uusi's Hotcakes may not appeal to everyone, but one thing is for certain, every deck Uusi produces is trully a work on it's own, each having it's own unique styls and concept. Hotcakes is the fifth deck in the 6 deck series by the designers and draws it's inspiration from the full figure court cards of the 17th Century. From that inspiration the concept took a bit of a "Naughty" twist on its style using a more "Pop Art" pallet and burlesque look to its figures. With that being said, Hotcakes does end up a bit more in the "Art Deck" catagory compared to Uusi decks of the past, but that's fine. I really like the illustrations and overall theme of the project very much. The tuck imagery is a bit bold in its reveling corset design, but the campaign did offer a "Modesty Sleeve" for those who preffered to keep the revealing tuck under wraps. The deck itself, as always, is completely custom and the back design has a bold pink and black pallet with a nicely balanced borderless design that ties everything together. Uusi's Linnea and Peter are designers and artists, and Hotcakes continues to show how much the two strive to push in new directions.

Hotcakes was produced in two colors, a standard Red version and a Limited Edition Black version (Pictured) Only one deck remaines in the Uusi series and I for one hope that Uusi occasionally returns to Playing Cards as a medium, their concepts and visions are just superb.    

The Collection segment is produced by Anthony Ingrassia of Kardify. No part of this article, images or video can be reproduced without written permission from the author and Kardify.com. To see more of Anthony's (Sparkz) collection please visit sparkzcollector.com 

Junkanoo Playing Cards by Uusi Sold Out!

Out of nowhere... an UUSI deck! This is an Uusi exclusive commission for Baha Mar Casino, "Junkanoo" is a playing card deck that pays homage to the storied, folk festival of the same name held every year in the Bahamas by the local island residents.

This First Edition Junkanoo playing card deck was printed as a Limited Edition of 1000 decks for the High-rollers, friends, and patrons of the Baha Mar casino. According to the product page, the casino has shared 225 of these special decks with Uusi to make them available to collectors, magicians, flourishers, poker players and all who enjoy the artistry and beauty of rare, custom playing card decks.

"Junkanoo" playing cards are fully custom with original artwork by Uusi and reflect the beauty and creative abundance of this local community and truly embody the Baha Mar catchphrase, Life Spectacular.

The deck is packaged in a gorgeous tuck box, with gold foil details and embossed. Printed by the Expert Playing Card Company in Taiwan and recently sold out on uusi.us. Originally priced at $45.

[post_ad]

UUSI Releases the Second Edition of REPUBLIC Playing Cards

I was browsing UUSI's store page and stumbled on this deck! After more than five years since their OG playing card release, the team behind UUSI continues the story of REPUBLIC Playing Cards with a newly released Second Edition.

Named after Republic, Michigan... the home of the UUSI studio and a community with strong Finnish roots, the deck celebrates the Finnish and Nordic folk art traditions that have long influenced UUSI's design work.

The original REPUBLIC deck features a restrained beige and black colour palette, with a seamless card back inspired by traditional Finnish patterns. Custom court cards, Jokers, and the Ace of Spades reinterpret familiar playing card imagery while maintaining the deck's distinctly Nordic character.

The Second Edition is limited to 1,000 decks and retains the minimalist aesthetic and craftsmanship of the original release. Each deck contains 52 playing cards and two Jokers, printed on premium linen-finish playing card stock and housed in a luxurious heavy-paper tuck box featuring an embossed design and custom seal.

Available now for $30 on Uusi.

Analytics: Why Top 2012 Kickstarter Playing Cards Project Shipped Late

This is a follow up to the analysis of 2013 projects on Kickstarter we published last week. Word of advice: if you have pledged for a crowd-funded product, be prepared to be patient, very very patient. We examined the 2012's top 30 most-funded projects on Kickstarter and found that 57% missed their target delivery dates.

The Numbers

Collectively the 2012 top 30 projects raised $1.03 million from more than 29k backers.

Raising money, though, is only half the battle. The most successful projects convince thousands of supporters to buy into their vision. If it fails to become a reality - at least in the expected timeframe - Things.Can.Get.Ugly.

Going through the 2012 top 30 highest-funded campaign, only 11 hit their deadline. 9 projects left the warehouse months late and 8 were partially delivered or in most case hadn't even shipped!

Median delay is 6 months, although some outliers will take much longer, for example the Ultraviolet ($19k) Playing Cards project, which is 16 months overdue with no expected shipping date.

The Delay

Here's the troubling question: Why are so many playing card projects blowing their deadlines? Over and over in our interviews, the same pattern emerged. What happens after the idea is successfully funded is always a big surprise for most first-time Kickstarter creators, mainly because many of the Kickstarter creators are individuals and inexperienced start-ups. The learning curve to set up a system for shipping hundreds of packages at one time while simultaneously dealing with outside vendors and manufacturers as well as customer service to backers, is incredibly steep and time consuming.

Also, inexperienced creators launched a project that they expected would attract a few hundred backers. It takes off, raising vastly more money than they anticipated- obliterating the original production plans and timeline. Managing projects of this size and structure requires full time attention and if creator only does this on a part-time basis, they will get caught out. Compounding the problem.

The problem is, when plans get pushed, not all backers are understanding. Quicksilver ($51k) was funded in November 2012 - 10 months later, the rewards were partially shipped and from the comment section of the project page, a number of frustrated and angry backers are still waiting for their pledge to be fulfilled. Failing to deliver will impact a creator's reputation and backer's trust making it hard to launch future projects. The Internet never forgets.

Let's change gear. Instead of focusing on the negatives, we look at how some of the 43% top 30 project meet their target delivery date.

The Delivery

Elite Playing Cards launched their first project, RITUAL ($23k) on September 2012. With full time commitment, knowledgeable staff and well organized distribution network, they have met their delivery target date. Since then, they have launched 5 other projects and successfully shipped DIVINE ($32k), Majestic ($21k) and PLATINUM ($27k) on time.

"We have been in business for almost 10 years. Our brands are our full time job. We have warehouses with permanent staff in California and in Europe," said Jay from Elite Playing Cards. "Our brands are our full time job. We have warehouses with permanent staff in California and in Europe. We eat and breath playing cards and magic tricks. Because of our background in business we are able to run a project from the beginning to the end without almost any bumps along the way."

The Blue Blood ($19k) playing cards was the first project for the popular design studio, UUSI. This beautiful deck was over 200% funded- more than anticipated. Once again, with experience, good systems and tried & tested distribution network in place they were able to efficiently get the playing cards to their backers on time.

"As a small design studio, Uusi has always had an online presence, so we had a shipping & customer service system in place when we created our first Kickstarter project, but it was still a huge surprise to us how intense fulfilment was on a project," Linnea from Uusi told us. "We also designed and in many cases produced products for large companies like Design Within Reach, Herman Miller and Anthropologie and have dealt with shipping large quantities of a single product at one time. This manufacturing & wholesale background and pre-existing shipping system allow us to handle our Kickstarter projects efficiently."

UUSI went on to launch 4 more projects, Bohemia ($45k), ROYAL OPTIK ($51k), Blueblood Redux ($29k) and PAGAN (currently live). All of their project were delivered on time. If you ask me, it is definitely not an easy task considering all of UUSI's projects were at least 200% funded. Also, the high quality of the final delivered products were maintained. Keeping backers happy. That is what makes UUSI one of the most respected name in the industry and backers keep coming back for more.

At Encarded, Paul Carpenter launched his first project Tendril ($42k) on February 2012. At that time, being new to the concept of crowd-funding with no experience in printing a deck of cards and never bought shipping materials in bulk or even assembled 1,000 packages, Paul managed to get Tendril ($42k) to all his backers on time. This is attributed to understanding and defining all of these various elements before he felt comfortable to launch his project. Only when he knew that he had accounted for all facets did he decide to make the project real.

"As to my projects, Tendril came in on time for a very simple reason. Planning. At the time there were very few playing card projects on Kickstarter and I spent many weeks researching the process of making cards," Paul explained. "This involved talking with USPCC, learning about their timeframes and the flow of their process, looking into Kickstarter and how long it took to receive the funds, checking with the Postal Service to see what rates were, what packaging was optimal for each tier, how many supplies I would need, what technology I could use to expedite the postage process, etc. Even after shipping well over 3,000 packages I am constantly refining my process and finding better ways to get my cards into customer hands."

The Black Swan

Even with all the planning experience, systems and knowledge, things can still go wrong. According to Linnea "...no matter how good you think your system is, shipping to hundreds – and for some of the larger funded projects, thousands of people– at one time, as well as shepherding your work through the manufacturing process successfully, is always a challenge and mistakes are bound to happen."

"The only thing that usually can happen is a delay of 2-3 weeks because of USPCC's busy schedule." said Jay.

Paul had a much interesting experience with his latest project Deco ($29k), "I took all that I learned in my first projects and ran my latest card project, Deco, the same way. As with Tendril, I planned out everything and had the advantage of knowing much more about the process and was fully prepared to have everything complete and shipped well before the deadline that I had set. I received the cards right on schedule and was all prepared to get them to my backers, when completely unforeseen circumstances appeared that I never would have accounted for. "

USPCC had been lax in their quality control and Paul recieved decks with blemishes that made them impossible to sell. Many creators assume that once they got delivery of the cards, it would be perfect but for Paul, that is not the case.

"Because of this I had to negotiate their replacement and this added nearly 7 weeks onto the process," Paul continued. "I felt that in this case, sending defective items to my customers was not a viable option, and the delay was the lesser of the two evils. In the end I got a much better product and was able to get those to my customers, late, but better than the first printing."

Black Swans do occur and these are things or events that are unplanned and beyond control but with solid experience,  dedication, reliable systems and good knowledge & understanding will steer you back on track.

Jay added, "...  thanks to our fantastic warehouse team that can ship hundreds of packages a day very easily. This allows us to stay on schedule. We don't sleep until everything is shipped out."

The Trust

At the end of the day, it is all about the backers "What we have found to be the core elements in keeping our backers happy and getting their rewards out to them as fast as possible," said Linnea on what she learned from her Kickstarter experience.

If a project has been delayed or timeline is behind schedule, creators should communicate that to backers. Backers are generally patient and more acceptable of the truth. Keeping quiet and creating smokes screens, creators risk a backers revolt if they do not treat backers with respect or take backers for granted. No one wants that experience.

In Paul's case, the key to the Deco ($29k) situation was to communicate to his backers promptly and transparently describe what was happening. "I didn’t try to hide it and made sure to tell everyone why things were happening and why I had made certain decisions," explained Paul. "I felt that clearly and honestly telling everyone was the only way to make the situation acceptable and the response from the backers was that the delay was unfortunate but made sense, and everyone appreciated the lengths I took to get them a perfect product."

Kickstarter: 5 Most Anticipated Playing Card Projects for 2014

As impressive as 2013 was for the playing card industry, we look forward to 2014 to see what is in store for collectors, cardists and magicians across the globe. Many (including me) were caught off-guard by the the boom of crowd-funded playing cards this year, but 2014 is looking damn exciting with a few projects already being teased and announced. Here's what we know so far: 

Requiem Playing Cards Deck by Lorenzo Gaggiotti

So little is known about designer Lorenzo Gaggiotti but this mysterious and unique set of playing cards will definitely be a hit based on interests generated by our preview here on Kardify. The deck is gory and dark but beautiful in a weird way. It will not be to everyone's liking but the project will no doubt reach it's funding goal.

Click here to read the story behind Requiem.

Uusi's Fifth Deck 

We love everything Uusi! All four of their releases are masterpieces! Uusi's fifth (of six) deck will be launched on Kickstarter sometime in 2014. Without giving too much away, we can expect intense colors, an unexpected theme and a big surprise that Uusi haven't done before but are excited to add to the upcoming project. As with all their previous decks, all the artwork will be created by hand. I am really looking forward to this one!

United States Army Playing Cards Deck by Kings Wild Project

There is no stopping Jackson Robinson! In 2013, all 3 of his Kickstarter projects finished in the Top10 most funded playing card projects of all-time (2010-2013). What an achievement! Recently teased on Kings Wild site, this project will be launched on Kickstarter and will be a followup to the Federal 52 series. Not to be missed!

Clipped Wings Transformation Playing Cards by Emmanuel José

After the success of the Curator Deck, artist Emmanuel José will launch his second deck- this time on Kickstarter. Like the predeseccsor, Clipped Wings will feature the unique papercutting technique where all the elements and imagery are cut out of paper. Everything is drawn and cut by hand. The Clipped Wings deck will be dedicated to birds.

Origins Playing cards by Rick Davidson

Designer and illustrator Rick Davidson has spent many hours working on this masterpiece. Inspired by the elegance of 16th century originals, the designer aim to produce a premium quality deck merging today’s standards with yesterdays elegance. Beautiful theme, elegant tuck box, intricate back design and gorgeous court cards. I can't wait for this one!

Did we miss any? Let us know which 2014 playing cards project you are waiting for?

Kickstarter: Pagan Playing Cards

The genius that is Peter Dunham and Linnea Gits, designers and artists behind the Chicago-based design studio, Uusi launched their fourth Limited Edition deck on Kickstarter yesterday called Pagan. With no surprise, the Pagan Playing Cards was successfully funded in just 1.5 hours!

Oil painted entirely by hand, Pagan continued Uusi's trend of using a new medium for each deck they've created thus far giving each one its own distinct look. The artwork for the first, sold-out deck, Blue Blood, was created entirely with color pencil. The second deck, Bohemia has a velvety look of gouache to give the artwork a lush, expressive quality. The recent Royal Optik deck was all about the line, using pen & ink to create a woodcut style with the intense geometric patterns of Op Art.

Pagan was inspired by the great forests and lakes of Northern Wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula. The Pagan era theme was used for this deck because it was a time in history when religious belief went hand in hand with people’s everyday interaction with nature. This can be clearly seen on the beautifully hand-painted court cards. Enchanting!

The Ace of Spades is an important card in the deck as it sets the tone and look of the deck. For this reason, Uusi chose a young woodland tree that has been felled for use, but continues to live on and epitomizes the phrase: Bowed but unbroken.

For the back design, Uusi decides to return to one of the original playing card design elements – the borderless back. This is the first borderless back deck in the series and it suits the theme and looks perfect on the deck. Finally, the tuck box has minimalistic look, rich with details and textures designed to reward the senses with it's intricate embossing and elegant gold pattern work. The shimmering gold look of the Pagan tuck box and card backs was achieved by carefully replicating the look of gold leaf with oil paint.

The deck will be printed by the United States Playing Card Company on Bicycle playing card stock with an Air Cushion (linen) Finish. There are two decks on offer to backers- One Limited Edition Dark Brown deck and an Unlimited Light Cream coloured deck. Pledge starts from $11.

The first deck is due out to the backers by April 2014.