Deck View: Requiem (Autumn) Playing Cards

Beautiful. Dark. Gory.

One of our most anticipated 2014 project, Requiem Playing Cards is a stunning deck masterfully crafted by Lorenzo Gaggiotti. This unique deck is 100% custom and features darkness & pain as a theme.

The illustrations for the Courts, Jokers and Aces are very dark. The suits are made out of broken Hearts, Clubs with thorns, cracked Diamonds and dry leaves as Spades. Pips are unique and the gold metallic ink on this blood red deck gives it a touch of elegance.

Limited stocks available! Available from JP Games.

Kickstarter: 7 Questions with David Verburg of the Thunee Deck

The Thunee Deck is an exotic deck of playing cards that embodies various elements of Indian culture, heritage and tradition. Inspired by an age-old South-African game named Thunee, each card has been meticulously designed and produced to evoke the feeling of a bygone era.

The design of the deck has been well researched by the design team of Patrick and David to encapsulate the historical significance, Hindu legacy and script and to commemorate the Indian Indentured Labourer in South Africa.

Earlier last month, we had a chat with David about his business, Trumpmen, the Thunee Deck, and Kickstarter.

Could you introduce Trumpmen to our readers? What is your design background?
Trumpmen is a cooperative venture that specializes in designing and printing premium custom and collectible playing cards. With the resurgence, growing awareness of magic and with the growing number of poker players, cardists and magicians, a significant consumer market has emerged and evolved for bespoke high end playing cards. With a magician as one of the partners, we have recognised that a deck of cards is not just a tool, but in the hands of a skilled player, magician or cardist, playing cards become a work of art to be revered and admired. Our team synthesises the design expertise with the experience of a magician.

Our team consists of 4 professionals that are working in the field of graphic design, 3d design, marketing, finance and magic. We aim to create cards with functionality in mind but we wish to harmonise our design skills with traditional games to enhance the playing experience. Our strategy is to design and produce thematic decks with historical or contemporary significance which will not only appeal to the target market that play specific games, but also the market for collectors, cardists and magicians.

This will be the first Kickstarter project. Why Kickstarter? 
We have identified that Kickstarter represents a unique crowd funding channel to access purveyors of high end playing cards. We have a financial specialist as part of our team and we thought that it would be unique to finance the production of the deck through kickstarter instead of going the tradiotional funding route. We also have an established bricks and mortar distribution channel within our main target market, so funding through kickstarter will allow for the production and holding of stock for wholesale and retail purposes.

Can you describe the Thunee deck and why you’re passionate about it?
The card deck is inspired by the South-African game named Thunee. Thunee has been part of South African culture for 140 years. Thunee, which means water in the Tamil (South Indian) language, is a popular trick-taking card game that originated in Durban, South Africa. The game was invented by indentured Indian Labourers who were brought to South Africa in the 1800's from India to work on the sugar cane plantations. Since then the game has developed a cult following and is played by family and friends and on a competitive basis. It occurred to us that despite the long history of the game, no deck has been designed that captures the historical significance of the game. We therefore decided to design a deck and meticulously researched the history to incorporate the elements into a deck that commemorates the inventors of the game. For example the joker design embodies the authentic dress of the indentured labourer. And the background is symbolic of the sugar cane plantation. The sixes have special significance because they are used as "ball" cards to keep the score in the game. So special attention has been accorded to the sixes in the deck.

Preba Moodley said “I grew up playing Thunee. Some of the best memories I have are of playing Thunee with my father at family gatherings and with my friends at school and university. It was a tradition to meet in the cafeteria after lectures to play Thunee. Whilst the world is converging on the internet and mobile apps and electronic media, it is wonderful to combine my love for card magic to design and produce a deck of cards that symbolizes the game of Thunee.”



How much time did you spend working on the deck? Also, can you briefly go through the evolution for one of your unique card designs?
The idea was first conceptualized 3 years ago when one of our team members was performing magic to commemorate 150 years of the arrival of Indians in South Africa. Floowing a chance meeting in a restaurant 5 months ago, we were just discussing the concept and the idea behind it. We had no idea what we were getting ourselves into, what followed was a roller coaster of different visions, ideas, moods and expectations. A month of researched helped us on the right path, a path all of us were happy to take, moods ands styles were set. From then on we were able to go ahead full throttle.

We’ve spend 5 months in total working on the cards, from courts to number cards, to the joker and finally the tuck box. In the process we’ve decided to begin with The Original Thunee deck and at a later stage when that deck becomes successful start on a Limited edition deck, which has more premium inks and finishes. On a singel court card we would spend 3 to 4 days till the final design. The start of a court card would mean; diving into our research, looking at the necessary images of ancient Maharajas, Rajas and Maharani, colours, indian art and paintings, all to get the decoration and the expression right. Then the sketching phase started where we sketched out the specific court cards in the proper dimensions. After weeks of sketching followed the implementation of the design in the computer where we trace that sketch and amended the design where necessary. Obviously the design is it's initial phase, we will take in account all the comments we'll receive since we brought the design online for everyone to look at.

From the project page, what are a few of your favorite reward levels and why?
During the setup of our campaign we’ve always said to ourselves ‘what reward would we like to have personally? With that mindset we’ve carefully made a selection of beautiful items that we would offer our backers out there. One of these items is a beautiful crystal block with 3d engravings of the indentured labourer joker card. I personally have never seen that before and it would definitely would be a nice item to have on any desk. Also the Skype session with magician Preba Moodley where he personally teaches 2 of his favourite magic tricks is interesting and quite unique.

Playing card projects on Kickstarter has grown expotentially over the past few years? What are your thoughts?
We believe that playing card projects will continue to grow on kickstarter. We have identified multinational corporations with strong brand identities who are willing to use kickstarter not only as a platform to lend their brand to high end playing cards, but also as a platform to get into the business of high end playing cards which may complement the product range whilst utilising the crowd funding platform as a means to create brand awareness and an alternative source of funding. A playing card project in the eyes of a multinational is not a significant project in terms of funding, however the added benefit of brand awareness makes the platform interesting. These elements combined with a global resurgence in magic and cardistry will continue to propel the growth of playing card projects on kickstarter. We have already planned three more thematic decks with a specific target markets in mind.

Finally, what are your three favorite playing cards?
As a designer I always look for balance and harmony within the design of a deck of cards, also the concept and the story behind it is a very important factor for me when I consider backing up a project. Obviously the cards of Jackson Robinson are truly a work of art. The idea behind it is simply genius. It’s probably the simplicity of the idea that make it so strong.

Our team member Preba who has been a magician for a long time says his favourite deck has been the Bicycle Masters Edition. However these have been discontinued. For performing purposes his favourite pack to work with would be the Red Bicycle deck. Whilst these are not kickstarter launched decks, The Bicycle shadow masters deck is also a firm favourite as well as the Bicycle Black Tiger.

Thank you for your time and all the best, David! I love the vibrant colours of the deck.


The Thunee Deck will be printed by the USPCC and is available on now on Kickstarter for $13.60. There are multiple add-ons available such as artwork print, t-shirts, uncut sheets and our favorite, Thunee card guard. Stunning!

Discourse Deck Design Contest : 7 Questions with Giovanni Meroni

Stage 2 of the Discourse Deck Design Contest (DDDC) has just begun and you can officially start submitting your designs here. Final entries have to be submitted before 1st July 2014. Sponsored by the Expert Playing Card Co. (EPCC),  the winner will get their deck design printed by EPCC for sale and you will get three gross (432) of you decks... FREE!

So far, there has been one official entry... the Evil Deck by Italian graphic artist, Giovanni Meroni. We reached out to Giovanni and had a chat about his background, the inspiration & idea behind the Evil Deck and DDDC.

Can you tell us about yourself and what is your design background?
My name is Giovanni Meroni. I am 31 years old and I am a web art director, vector illustrator and graphic designer. I've been working in the graphic design industry since 19 years old. During the day, I design ecommerce websites in a big italian company as a senior art director. I love illustration and I usually work on my illustration project by night. I love to draw crazy characters in vector style. You can check out some of my works here.

This will be your first Playing Card deck. Why Playing Cards?
I love my web art director work. I used to design websites for big italian companies and now I'm working in the best ecommerce company in Italy. However, I missed doing something tangible, like a book, a poster... or even a deck of playing cards. To be honest, I've been searching for some printed medium with a lot of space for my crazy illustration. A deck of cards offer 54 cool canvas to fill, all related with a common context. Perfect!

We noticed the Evil deck on the DDDC. When did you first start thinking about entering the contest? What made you decide to take the plunge?
The DDDC is a great opportunity because it is a way to have a lot of decks without risking a penny, and my artwork alot of exposure. You probably noticed that I'm leaning towards EPCC to produce the deck, beacuse a lot of people suggested me to go down that path. The funny thing is, I discovered that DDDC was sponsored by EPCC after I asked them a quote for a 1,000 print run. As I would have produced my decks with them anyways, I thought that will be the best for my project to partecipate at the contest.

What is your inspiration behind the Evil Playing Cards and how did you come up with the idea?
The first reason: Evil is cool. As a child I was captivated by the villains even if some of them scare me to death. I think some good people are curious about "evil" things. The second reason: "Evil" mean a ton of monsters for me. I have fun drawing creatures, and because I had to draw 54 of them, I needed a theme that would be fun for me, otherwise I may get bored and leave the project because I don't have much patience and I often don't finish what I start.

How much time did you spend working on the deck?
I started this project in June last year. When I started, I just gathered all my unused characters, but I realized I can't use them to produce an original and organic deck. So, I started to draw. The first card was the queen of hearts. After the queen, I started with some numbers- the 7 of clubs, one of my favourites.

I drew one card a day throughout summer, mostly after work. By September, I wasn't too happy with the result and I stopped drawing them. During the Christmas holidays, I felt sad for my cards being buried without any use, and I decided to finish them. 2 months later, I managed to complete the deck, redrawing the ones I didn't like before.

I opened the site/socials/etc in February and I started getting feedbacks. People wasn't so passionate about the result: they said "cool", but the deck lack of uniformity and the court cards are less "powerful" than the numbers.

At first I was discouraged, but I decided to hang in there and re-draw almost every card, changing the themes: Hearts are evil passions, Diamonds is violence and only clubs and spades stayed "nature" and "magic". I finished the last one (King of Spades) some days ago. Now I'm happy of the result.

What are some of the 'Hidden Meaning' behind the playing cards?
When I posted the old Evil Deck on a forum, people tell me "Why the Jack of spades and hearts aren't one-eyed?" So, when I redesigned them, I put a patch on their eyes. The deck is inspired by a lot of fantasy monsters and myths, some of the Ancient Greece. I'm a big fan of the minotaur, hydra and harpies. The 7 of clubs have 7 cats and it's named "7 lives". In Italy we think cats have 7 lives instead 9. Probably Italy is more dangerous for them.

Finally, what are your favourite playing card decks?
The Federal 52,  Requiem and the Borderline deck are really cool decks!

Thanks Giovanni and all the best! This looks like a fun deck.

Check out the Evil Deck's home page to find out more. If you have a deck design or an aspiring designer or artist, check out the DDDC. This is the kind of contest where you can win without actually being the winner, just from the exposure that your design receives. Also, you might get an indication of the responses for that Kickstarter project you've been thinking of, or perhaps you'll catch the attention of a design house that's interested in your work! Head on over to the Discouse and start your journey!

Kickstarter: 7 Questions with Valerio Aversa of Memento Playing Cards

Memento is a unique Playing Card is inspired by the history of playing card design. Each card in a playing card deck has evolved and gone through many changes over the centuries. Designed by Valerio Aversa, this intriguing deck addresses these changes by going back to basics and using prominent works of art as templates.

For example, the standard court cards of today trace their design roots back to the 16th century. The individuals portrayed on each card are figures of historical significance, heroines and heroes from antiquity, Biblical sources and latter European history.

Between his busy schedule, we were able to catch-up with Valerio for a quick Q&A on his design background, the inspiration behind Memento, the design evolution and take-away lessons from his first project.

Can you tell us about yourself and what is your design background?
Well, I've been studying design and architecture for the last 6 years. Over the course of my studies I have travelled to Portugal and Australia for year-long study exchanges. In the meantime, I've been working as a freelancer for several advertising and architecture firms here in Italy focusing on renderings and other graphics.

What is your inspiration behind the Memento deck? How did you come up with the idea?
I have always loved playing cards and when I began looking deeper into the background and studying them I came to recognise certain constants in the design across decks and time, so I asked myself the question ‘why?’. Where do these elements come from? The answer to that question is history. The real history of playing card design.

How much time did you spend working on the deck and can you briefly go through the design evolution of one of your unique card design?
I've been working on this deck since the beginning of January so it's been around 5 months so far. I would like this to be a community driven project (to the extent that it can be) and flexibility and listening to the card playing community has been and will remain key. The design process started by observing the look and style of most playing cards in the world. It doesn't take long to recognise that the court cards are all (typically) quite similar, be that on a Bicycle Deck or one by Modiano. I tried to take the vectorial feel of the drawing which everyone knows and used it to design some completely new cards, ensuring that the traditional values and meanings of each card are kept in the process.

Unfortunately, you cancelled your first project, Alpha Playing Cards. In your postmortem analysis, what are some of the things that you could have improved on?
I guess the type of minimal design which I like isn't right for playing cards (unless you are a former Apple designer, see Atelier playing cards). All the people I've been talking to told me that minimal design seems to give a lazy feel to the backers. I would counter that with the point that to achieve real simplicity is often harder than a cluttered design, however there is a fine line between the two.

One thing that could have been done differently is the amount of time devoted to the Alpha Deck, however as it coincided with my work on the Memento Deck my focus was split.

Second is price, it’s a competitive place and success is not guaranteed. The choice to go with Modiano was made with the label of ‘Made in Italy’ in mind, however the extra cost and the fact that Modiano is not as well known as USPCC or LPCC far outweighed the benefits of keeping things within Italy. Going with USPCC of LPCC, guarantees extremely high quality from giants of the playing card printing world, and will also facilitate fulfilment. Hopefully all of these benefits combined will help in securing the support that is needed.

We first noticed the Memento deck in the forums, shortly you've cancelled Alpha. What did you think of the support and feedback from the playing card community during the development of Memento?
It has been truly great. There are a lot of people who are incredibly passionate and their knowledge and experience have proven invaluable to the project. A lot of the suggestions were taken on board and incorporated into the final design. This is what has helped the Memento Deck look as great as it does, it directly reflects the feelings of the community to this project and I cannot thank them enough.

Playing card projects on Kickstarter has grown expotentially over the past few years? What are your thoughts?
I think that this growth reflects the growth of Kickstarter as a whole as well as the increasing interest in playing cards. It certainly helps that a deck of cards is to this day commonplace in almost every household, be that for poker or other games. Therefore, in trying to differentiate ourselves we always seek new, cool and otherwise exciting designs that appeal to us. Thanks to this growth and competition prices have been kept relatively low with the quality of design and materials going up, further increasing the appeal of playing card decks as something which is fairly priced, beautiful and brings people together.

Finally, what are your three favorite playing cards?
My favourite is definitely the Ace of Spades. Partly because of its meaning, but mostly for its design that differs from deck to deck. Secondly, the King of Diamonds, Julius Caesar as he is one of my favourite historical figures. Also, I really have a sweet-spot for one-eyed court cards. Lastly, it would be the Queen of Spades depicting the Greek Goddess Athena, symbolised through the book and the sceptre in her hand.

Thank you for your time Valerio. All the best! 

Available in Black and White, Memento will be printed by the USPCC. Pledge starts from $15 and there are multiple add-ons available such as T-Shirts and Uncut Sheet. Don't miss out!