Cardistry: First Look at the International Cardistry Open (ICO) Deck

In conjunction with Season 3 of the International Cardistry Open (ICO) this year, Expert Playing Card Co. and Kardify are releasing a commemorative ICO deck to celebrate the tournament’s third year of existence. This bold and eye-catching deck has been meticulously designed by artist Brendan Hong, who is well known for the gorgeous Hive and Dynasty Playing Cards.

The ICO deck has been crafted with cardists in mind, embracing the movement and beauty of motion of each card in the deck. On the design of the ICO deck, Brendan explained,

The back design for the ICO deck started with a very simple idea to have a diagonal line as a very prominent part of the design. A lot of playing card back designs tend to be very much designed around a quadrilateral symmetry and that works well, but sometimes it's interesting to take a challenge to try something different. It started with that line and the goal to design a deck that cardist would want to use. The latter part is a tough idea to work with as there are quite a few decks out that work really well with cardistry from really simple designs to very complex one. I think the most important thing out of all those designs was how the card design moved in motion whether it's a single card or a few cards or the whole deck. Regardless of what the design was, it moved and looked beautiful in motion. 

The dynamic back design visually accentuates card flourishes and displays, making fans, spins and cascades look incredible. Brendan added,

The last and important part of it all was colours. Colour is so simple to write off, but it plays such an important part in the overall design; having the right colours could make or break a design. This back design was very much a collaborative effort and there was a lot of back and forth with the team at Kardify and myself about what colours we should use. Once we hit upon the 4 colours we had for the back, we all knew it was the right one: something that looked good and something very unique.

Together with the bold and eye-catching colourway, the ICO deck commands attention while striking a balance between style and functionality. Neatly packaged in a durable synthetic tuck, the deck is crafted by Expert Playing Card Co.

First Look: The Neon Deck by Sansminds

[Update] The Neon Deck now available on Sansminds.

Here's something really cool from the creative minds at Sansminds, the Neon Deck! Designed for cardists of all levels in mind, the Neon Deck is not your regular acrylic trainer...

It is specially made to glow under black light! Check out the awesome video by Anna DeGuzman:

Neon Deck by @sansminds Coming Soon. #cardistry

A video posted by Anna DeGuzman (@annadeguzman) on Aug 4, 2016 at 9:02am PDT

We have been playing around with the sample for a few weeks and it does take a couple of days to get used to the trainers. However, these cool trainers ARE eye-catching and sure to turn heads even without the glow. Many were impressed by the quality and the sleek finish of the trainers.

Inside each deck, you will receive 9 packets. Way more than the usual trainers currently found in the market.

Each packet is 2 millimetre thick, with the length and width of a standard poker sized playing card, 2.5 inches by 3.5 inches. Ideal to help build muscle memory and perfecting your card flourishes.

The Neon Deck will be available on September 9th in 4 different vibrant colors: Red, Blue, Yellow and Green. These will definitely add colors and style to your cardistry vids. The possibilities are endless.

[Update] The Neon Deck now available on Sansminds for $24.95.

News: Bicycle 25 Years of Magic

Produced by USPC the 25 Years of Magic decks were given out to registered visitors of the 2016 Magic Live Convention in Las Vegas this past August. The design has a bit of a Art Deco look and feel, from the tuck design to the card backs. The deck has standard spot cards and court cards along with the iconic Bicycle Ace of Spades and Jokers. Included in the pack are two gaff cards.

Celebrating 25 years of magic, the deck not only celebrates the convention, but also the end of one of the longest running Magic magazines in the industry, MAGIC. After 25 amazing years MAGIC is now in it's farewell printing. It's last 25 issues being released in a more exclusive and limited run as Magic - Legacy.

The 25 Years of Magic deck represents a true piece of magical history and will appeal to a wide range of collectors, magicians, cardists and aficionados.

Kickstarter: Bicycle Wood Rider Back Playing Cards by Max

Our good friend Max of maxplayingcards.com has just launched his new deck in the Texture Series, the Bicycle Wood Rider Back Playing Cards. The Wood deck is the second deck of the series and a reinterpretation of the classic Bicycle Rider Back deck using a set of textures to simulate a wooden look.

On the design inspiration, Max said,

When I thought about designing playing cards with textures I immediately thought about wood. One of my favorite hobbies in the past was making small pieces of furniture. I have always been in love with the wood. With such a variety of colors and textures, the wood has that ability to become anything in the correct hands. Industrial, elegant, ornate, minimalist... any atmosphere can be decorated with this noble material.

A little-known fact, the wood deck was conceptualized even before the Metal deck. Max started designing the wood deck but wasn't satisfied with the results. He then decided to start a second deck (the Metal deck) instead to give the wood deck a little more thought. Max continued,

The metal deck creation and production were long and hard, and it was my very first important project so I knew nothing about the paying cards industry and business. After that, I was a bit tired and went through a quite complicated personal and professional process that literally emptied my mind of creativity.Some months ago, I felt I needed to begin from the scratch, to clean everything and I simply decided to delete the old files (well, I renamed the folder, I am not so brave) but I have to say I never went back to the previous designs. And that worked!

The cards have been customized with the wood theme using burned, carved and printed wood effects. Every detail has been carefully designed to make this deck a realistic wooden deck. Designed with the working magician in mind, the deck features the famous Rider Backs and several cool reveals. Max added,

I wanted to keep some of the original spirit already shown in the Metal deck. My love for magic and collection was the key. Being a Bicycle deck, the idea of having several features for magic tricks and routines really amazed me so I created several reveals, big aces, corner motion and a double back card. I also wanted the deck to look like a block of wood so I decided to include inner printing and debossing. After many different designs, the cards were ready so I showed them to Mike from Collectable Playing Cards and we decided to release the deck in Kickstarter.

This Bicycle branded deck is printed by the USPCC on their famous air-cushion finish and the tuck case will be printed inside and debossed to give it a realistic wooden look. The project is currently 74% funded with 26 days to go.

If you want to support the Wood deck, you can find it on Kickstarter here! Pledge starts from $14.