David Blaine Releases TWO New Gatorbacks!

David Blaine's Gatorbacks are one of his most collectible deck series. They have sold out faster than any other deck David has produced and are among his favorite. The Green Gatorbacks remains one of the most highly sought-after rare decks.

David has been intimately involved with the design and feel of these decks. Like most of his decks, the artwork is realized by acclaimed artist, Mark Stutzman. Two new editions of the Gatorbacks have been released on David's online store- the Silver Gatorbacks and Rose Gold Gatorbacks.

The Silver Gatorbacks is an alluring deck featuring Silver and White Foil on White Soft Touch stock. Multi-level sculpted embossing offers intricate textures, while silver foil glints beside icy white foil.

The eye-catching Rose Gold Gatorbacks are the first from USPCC with Rose Gold Foil, the first with Metallic Rose Gold ink, and the first tucks crafted from premium 'Leather' stock. The contrasting Rose gold foiling beside black foil blazes with rich, fiery tones, as multi-level sculpted embossing offers intricate textures. Stunning!

Inside, the court cards and a new joker design command attention with metallic trim, complimenting card backs designed with reflective MetalLuxe ink on both editions. The thin crush cards printed on premium stock handle brilliantly and provide subtle artistic features.

Available NOW from shop.davidblaine.com for the next 6 hours for a discounted price of $15.

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Deck View: Gatorbacks (Silver Edition) Playing Cards

Intricate. Magic. Attention.

David Blaine's Gatorbacks are one of his most collectible deck series and the brand new Gatorbacks did not disappoint! The Silver Gatorbacks is an alluring deck featuring Silver and White Foil on White Soft Touch stock. Multi-level sculpted embossing offers intricate textures, while silver foil glints beside icy white foil.

The Silver Gatorbacks designed by long time Blaine collaborator Mark Stutzman produced a truly beautiful and functional deck of playing cards. The court cards and a new joker design command attention with metallic trim, complimenting card backs designed with reflective MetalLuxe ink. The deck also features a custom Ace of Spades depicting an alligator rising out of the water to in an attempt to catch a bird.

Produced by the USPCC on thin crush cards printed on premium stock.

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David Blaine Launches RED BLACK With Two Deck Releases

David Blaine's RED BLACK is live! What exactly is RED BLACK? According to David Blaine's latest newsletter,

The new website customer experience to reflect our appreciation for your support. We are putting extra care into fulfillment and customer service. Quality, aesthetics and intrigue define our design priorities. We’re incredibly excited to share our work. Join us as we redefine the methods of magic.

TWO new decks were available during launch- the foiled Green Gatorbacks that David's teased on social media and the signed Silver Gatorbacks. 

Green Gator Backs are the rarest printing of the coveted Gator Back series. These playing cards by David Blaine and artist Mark Stutzman feature fine Soft Touch dual-foiled tucks in white and green that are enhanced with multi-level sculpted embossing for a distinct texture. The card backs include Green MetalLuxe on thin crush premium stock for excellent handling. 

The Signed Silver Gatorbacks will be the first signed release of the sought-after silver Gatorbacks. The white and silver dual-foiled tucks are crafted from Fine Soft Touch stock featuring multi-level sculpted embossing. As part of the first Red Black Inc release, these highly limited signed decks will be a must-have for collectors. 

This will be the only release ever of the autographed Silver Gatorbacks. David Blaine signed 750 decks, which were then factory sealed by the United States Playing Card Company with a red tear strip to protect the authenticity of David’s signature.

However, due to shipping limitations during the pandemic, this will be a USA release only.

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David Blaine to Release Gold Foil Gatorbacks on Black Friday

David Blaine is bringing a new colorway of the popular Gatorbacks playing cards as a part of his Black Friday line-up.

A video posted by David Blaine (@davidblaine) on Nov 18, 2016 at 4:10pm PST

The Gold Foil Gatorbacks feature a stunning Gold-on-White custom tuck and like it's predecessor, beautifully embossed and finely detailed, on both the inside and the outside.

From one of David's post on Instagram, the card will feature the eye-catching Metaluxe back.

A photo posted by David Blaine (@davidblaine) on Nov 9, 2016 at 6:32am PST

The Original Gatorbacks release sold out within hours. We expect these to go fast as well. Available at shop.davidblaine.com this Black Friday.

David Blaine Teases Blue Metallic Gatorbacks. Stunning!

David Blaine posted a product placeholder on davidblaine.com of the "Blue Metallic" edition of the Gatorback series. The deck will be released on July 3rd at 4PM EST.



David Blaine's Gatorbacks are one of his most collectible deck series. They have sold out faster than any other deck David has produced and are among his favorite.



The Blue Metallic Gatorbacks now comes with a fine Soft Touch dual-foiled tucks feature art in White and Blue foil that pairs with multi-level sculpted embossed textures. According to the product page, the blue metallic changes hues in your hands making these David's favorite deck to date.



The deck will be printed by the United States Playing Card Company on thin crush premium stock cards handle brilliantly and provide subtle artistic features. The supply is limited. Available July 3rd on davidblaine.com for $15.

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Deck View: David Blaine Gatorbacks

The long-awaited release of David Blaine's Gatorbacks did not disappoint. The foiled and embossed custom tuck box and design work by long-time Blaine collaborator Mark Stutzman produced a truly beautiful and functional deck of playing cards. Metallic inks were used throughout the deck and familiar Blaine court cards return on this deck which was produced by the USPCC.

The deck also features a custom Ace of Spades depicting an alligator rising out of the water in an attempt to catch a bird. Also in the deck are two custom Jokers, one with an alligator and one with a young girl walking an alligator on a leash. It's been assumed the alligator is David's pet alligator and the young girl is a depiction of his daughter.

The Original Gatorback release sold out within hours to both fan fair and a bit of controversy. When visiting David Blaine's shop, there is a Black-backed version of the Gatorback's that still says "Coming Soon", so the assumptions have been made that another version will be released in time.

Overall the Gatorbacks have become a "Must Have" by many playing card aficionados. Available from JP Games. Use the code KARDIFY10 during check-out to get 10% off for orders over £50.

Deck View: Gatorbacks (Rose Gold Edition) Playing Cards

Intricate. First. Attention.

The Rose Gold Gatorbacks is an alluring deck featuring Metallic Rose Gold ink. The eye-catching deck is the first from USPCC with Rose Gold Foil, the first with Metallic Rose Gold ink, and the first tucks crafted from premium 'Leather' stock. The contrasting Rose gold foiling beside black foil blazes with rich, fiery tones, as multi-level sculpted embossing offers intricate textures. Stunning!

The Rose Gold Gatorbacks are designed by long time Blaine collaborator Mark Stutzman. A truly beautiful and functional deck of playing cards! The court cards and a new joker design command attention with metallic trim, complimenting card backs designed with reflective MetalLuxe ink. The deck also features a custom Ace of Spades depicting an alligator rising out of the water in an attempt to catch a bird.

Produced by the USPCC on thin crush cards printed on premium stock handle brilliantly and provide subtle artistic features.

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David Blaine To Release The Red Metallic Gatorbacks Today!

Silver, Rose Gold, Metallic Blue... the Metallic Red Gatorback is inevitable. The new addition adds a sophisticated and stylish element to any card collection. Yesterday, David Blaine added a product placeholder on davidblaine.com of the "Red Metallic" edition of the Gatorback series. The deck will be released today (September 1st, 12pm EDT).



David Blaine's Gatorbacks are one of his most collectible deck series. They have sold out faster than any other deck David has produced and are among his favorite.



The striking Red Metallic Gatorbacks now comes with a fine Soft Touch dual-foiled tucks feature art in White and Red foil that pairs with multi-level sculpted embossed textures.



The deck will be printed by the United States Playing Card Company on thin crush premium stock cards handle brilliantly. The supply is limited. Available today (September 1st) on davidblaine.com for $15.

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Issue 33 of Kardify Magazine Now on Patreon

Issue #33 of Kardify Magazine is now on Patreon! Patrons who pledged $3 or more on will be able to download the latest issue from our Patreon page. Issue #33 compiles selected articles published from mid-January to mid-February. Deck images, articles and news to keep you informed and up-to-date with the latest playing card news, releases and previews. If you love playing cards, you will love Kardify Magazine! 

Also, don't forget to check out our other cool reward tiers on Patreon! The new tiers include monthly desktop and smartphone wallpapers, mystery deck shipped to you every 4 months of ongoing contribution, social media shout-outs, and multiple sponsorship tiers! Check it out!

Funds received from the magazine will help us keep the site running and growing, and bringing new quality content to you. Our aim is to support designers by backing on crowd-funded projects and supporting magic and playing cards retailers with their new releases. If you want to support us, please head over to our Patreon page. If you have an idea for an article you would like us to pursue, do get in contact with us. We hope you enjoy the read. In this issue:

+ Monarch Mandarin:  To celebrate the Lunar New Year, Theory11 has released a brand new limited edition Monarch! Find out more.

+ Sovereign: Jody Eklund’s latest deck reimagines the courts of a standard playing cards with gorgeous illustrations. Check it out....

+ Void: A new cardistry brand by Scott Black. VOID is the first offering and explores the illusion of depth throughout the decks’ entire design.

+ Two NEW Gatorbacks: Find out more about David Blaine’s new releases. The Gatorbacks are one of his most collectible deck series.

+ Top 12 Most Funded Decks on Kickstarter: Have a look at the 12 most funded decks on Kickstarter. List updated with three new entries all breaking the $140k mark.

+ Four New Kings Wild Decks: Jackson Robinson has just released four new decks to non-Kings Wild Short subscribers. Find out more!

+ Black Dot: The team at Anyone released the highly sought-after Black Dot Playing Cards... sold out in less than 3 hours.

+ Lucky:  The fully custom deck by Doc’s Playing Card Co. and design studio Native Tongue. Lucky Playing Cards is luxurious yet practical and functional.

… and more! 56 pages of articles and deck images. Enjoy!

Top 12: Playing Cards of 2016

What an incredible year for playing cards! From big magic companies to independent designers, 2016 has been filled with amazing new talents and incredible innovations. To celebrate we've compiled 12 of our favorite decks right here. Compiling the list has been especially challenging with all the amazing decks released this year. If you think we missed your favorite deck out, let us know in the comment section below. :)

Note that the selection expressed in this top 12 are solely those of the author and the list is in no particular order.

Silver Arrows

The Silver Arrows Playing Cards are a sleek and polished playing cards meticulously designed by Jackson Robinson. The deck features an industry first full bleed foil back design and showcases signature Kings Wild court cards as well as two custom jokers and custom Ace of Spades. Printed by the Expert Playing Card Co.

Le Chat Rouge

No.17 "Le Chat Rouge" is a custom-designed deck of playing cards by Stockholm17. It is the third and final version of the elegant "No.17" series. The card backs feature black cats with accents of red foil creating a striking effect on the rich black backs. The card faces are white with a unique thick black border, adding a modern touch to a classic playing deck. The playing cards are beautifully housed in a die-cut tuck case that has been intricately cut out, and sealed with a limited edition number.

Chancellor

Chancellor Playing Cards are inspired by a small detail on a century-old Bicycle card back and grew into an incredibly detailed artwork! Designed by Encarded and printed by Expert Playing Card Co, Chancellor showcases FOUR metallic inks that intertwine into a detailed, "shadow bordered" back with subtle edge details and dimension. The faces are fully custom, with a dramatic court featuring beautiful detail and unique colorations. The stunning tuck features thick matte black paper, two foils and incredibly detailed blind embossing. The deck is sealed with a beautiful metallic foil seal, individually numbered and carefully designed to integrate with the tuck design.

Dynasty

Inspired by culture and heritage, Brendan Hong brings his unique style to this gorgeous deck of playing cards. Various Chinese elements are reimagined in Brendan’s own delightful style. The decks feature fully custom cards with unique Jokers, Courts and Ace of Spaces and Matte stock tuck featuring foil and interior printing. Printed by the Expert Playing Card Co. on their Classic Finish card stock.

ICON SACRED

The ICONS SACRED Edition playing cards is a limited edition deck design by Lotrek of Halfmoon Productions. Crafted with love, devotion and... risk, ICONS SACRED is a developmental deck, used to fine-tune Lotrek's new printer and various production aspects from cutting methods and metallic inks’ behavior to playing card finish. The end result as you can see is nothing short of stunning! ICON SACRED features gold metallic ink on the faces, gold and silver metallic on the back and an intricate tuck case that was amazingly stamped on 2-sided color "metallic" stock.

Odd Bods

The Odd Bods Playing Cards is a brilliant deck illustrated by Jonathan Burton. Produced by Art of Play, the Odd Bods Playing Cards feature amusing characters, quirky illustrations, and playful imagery. The deck has been hand illustrated in a beautifully nostalgic style and designed to have the look of ‘aged’ Victorian lithographs. Every image proves its own quirk and oddity, but is never ostentatious-- Odd Bods are the epitome of refined indulgence. Packaged in a gorgeous gold-foil embossed tuck box.

Magna Carta

Magna Carta by Seasons Playing Cards is a stunning set of limited edition playing cards that commemorates the foundation of liberty. Symbolism and story are thoughtfully located throughout this luxurious black and white deck set. The deck features luxurious foiled etchings on each suit, intricate linework on custom courts, and subtle embossing on the tuck, creating beautiful pleated patterns across the face of the premium linen stock. The tuck interior reveals an interior replica of the actual 1215 Magna Carta itself. Together, the side of the decks display a beautifully illustrated mural!

Black Diamond

The third edition is the hugely popular Tally-Ho series by Jackson Robinson of Kings Wild Projects. The Black Diamond Playing Cards incorporate USPCC's new MetalLuxe Foiling process on the card backs, making the Black Diamonds not only the first fully custom deck to utilize the process, but also the very first all black deck by Kings Wild. Only 1000 produced and features a premium soft-touch black tuck with Black foil accents.

Anubis and Osiris

Inspired by the luxurious reverence of Egyptian Gods and Kings of the past, The Anubis and Osiris Playing cards is an original set of American playing cards designed by Steve Minty. Elements from classical Egyptian era and the Egyptian Revival along with modern design are incorporated into this stunning custom deck!

Gold Gator

David Blaine released the new colorway of the popular Gatorbacks playing cards as a part of his Black Friday line-up this year. The Gold Foil Gatorbacks feature a stunning Gold-on-White custom tuck and like it's predecessor, beautifully embossed and finely detailed, on both the inside and the outside. The deck features the USPCC's eye-catching Metaluxe back.

MINT Limited Edition

Designed for the workers by 52Kards, the stunning Mint Limited Edition playing cards features elegant borderless back with beautiful tri-color design, gold line accents and masks an incredibly intuitive marking system for the clever magician to take advantage of. The deck showcases gorgeous semi-custom courts, custom pips and indices, custom Ace of Spades and a minimalistic custom tuck box with embossed gold foil and interior printing. Printed by the United States Playing Card Company and coated with the legendary Air Cushion Finish.

Wicked Kingdom

Hand-painted by fantasy illustrator Wylie Beckert, Wicked Kingdom is an art-rich deck of playing cards set in a dark fantasy world and populated by a cast of strange and complex characters.This gorgeous deck features insanely detailed, hand-drawn artwork with a dark fantasy flair. Custom-designed subtle one-way card backs, hand-drawn pips, elegantly watermarked number cards, and dual-identity face cards make for an art-rich playing card deck for cardists, collectors, and fans of the fantasy genre.

Honorable mention: ALLOY by Gambler's Warehouse, NPH by Theory11, OMNIA by Thirdway Industries, Royal Bee, Flying Machine by Bicycle Playing Cards, GRILLE by JP Games, Private Reserve 2 by Dan & Dave, Inception by Jody Eklund, White Gold by Joker & the Thief, VIRIDIAN by Trikard and Skull & Bones Phantom Edition by EPCC.



The selection expressed in this top12 are solely those of the author. Images for Silver Arrows, Le Chat Rouge, Chancellor, Dynasty, Magna Carta, Black Diamond, Anubis & Osiris, Gold Gator and Wicked Kingdom are taken by Anthony Ingrassia. Odd Bods and Mint Limited Edition by Ivan Choe. ICON SACRED from Maxplayingcards.com.

News: Black Friday Offer, Deals and New Releases

Thinking about buying a brick of playing cards within the next week? WAIT! It's almost Black Friday, which means you might be able to get special discounts and new releases from Ellusionist, Theory11, Dan and Dave, Conjuring Arts, the Blue Crown and more...!

Here, we bring you everything you need to know about Black Friday, and also give you some information about Cyber Monday. Information added as and when it comes in.

Conjuring Arts Research Centre

Two new releases, the NEW ZEN and Limited Royal ZEN. Both decks feature heavy black stock side opening tucks with embossing highlighted by stunning foil accents. The ZEN Deck features Red Foil stamping and an intricately beautiful back design. The Limited ZEN Royal features the same tuck style and embossing but highlighted with Silver Foil! The foil stamping on the Royal Edition is carried onto the back design with silver foil stamping on the two “Genies”. Both decks which will be available at a discounted price of $6.95 and $14.95, respectively.

There will be other Black Friday discounts offered on many other items and the discounts will return with a Cyber Monday blowout with some Discounts as high as 50%!

Collectable Playing Cards 

Offering the 60-deck and 24-deck card frames for $79.95 and $39.95, respectively. Also, 20% discount off your entire order for Black Friday weekend.

Use Coupon code is BF14.

Kings Wild

Four incredible sales, which will be announced throughout the week. First, the Complete Kings Wild Project Set for a steal at $650 and only 6 available.

Art of Play

Offering 20% off selected playing cards through to Sunday.

Use coupon code BLACKFRIDAY during checkout.

David Blaine

Releasing 1000 red gatorbacks playing cards. Only 250 of those will be signed.

Ellusionist 

Started early with the release of the Prohibition 6 deck set, mini Black Rounders and mini Black Arcane. Currently, free gifts with every $75 (1 gift), $150 (2 gifts) and $300 (3 gifts) spent. Gifts include mini LTD, uncut sheets, the new Inverted Kings deck and more...!

Theory11

So far, only the copper Rarebit has been teased on their social media outlets.

Gambler's Warehouse

Offering a mixed brick of Gambler's Warehouse decks for an unbeatable $50. Also, 15% discount off entire order from 24th-28th November on playingcards.net.

Use Coupon code is BLACKFRIDAY.

Stockholm17

Offering 40% off the Requiem split brick.

Legends Playing Card Co

Discounts and special offers for almost everything in-store, including Zen, Royal Zen, Gnostic, Owl Eyes, Exquisite Bold and Serpentine.

The Blue Crown

The intriguing Sky Island Airways playing cards will be released on November 28th.

Origins Playing Cards 

A number of Origins Six Packs and Bricks are now available with saving up to 20%.

Use the coupon code blackorigins and save a further 5% off all products.

Official Bicycle

Offering a generous 20% (25% for Club 808) off purchases on their official store. Also releasing 3 very limited products.

Issue #40 of Kardify Magazine is Here!

Issue #40 of Kardify Magazine is NOW on Patreon in both EPUB and PDF format! Patrons who pledged $3 or more on will be able to download the latest issue from our Patreon page. This issue compiles selected articles published from mid-August to mid-September. Deck images, articles, and news to keep you informed and up-to-date with the latest playing card news, releases, and previews. If you love playing cards, you will love Kardify Magazine!

Also, don't forget to check out our other cool reward tiers on Patreon! The tiers include monthly desktop and smartphone wallpapers, mystery deck shipped to you every 4 months of ongoing contribution, social media shout-outs, and multiple sponsorship tiers! Check it out!

Funds received from the magazine will help us keep the site running and growing, and bringing new quality content to you. Our aim is to support designers by backing on crowd-funded projects and supporting magic and playing cards retailers with their new releases. If you want to support us, please head over to our Patreon page. If you have an idea for an article you would like us to pursue, do get in contact with us. We hope you enjoy the read. In this issue:

+ Mono-X: An eye-catching deck featuring black/white and grey colorway with distinctive pattern utilizing a variation of line thickness.

+ Babylon Fontaines: Check out the insane new Fontaine collab deck with streetwear brand Babylon LA.

+ Scarlett Bicycles: Stunning, elegant, and luxurious. Three decks of playing cards dedicated to Jackson Robinson’s second daughter, Scarlett.

+ Playing Arts Future: New art deck featuring illustrations by different international artists on their vision of the world 100 years from now.

+ Wayfarers: The brand new deck from Joker and the Thief 2 years in the making, and one that the company considers being the first TRUE spiritual successor to their now acclaimed, original Joker and the Thief design.

+ ArrowDynamix: Check out cardistry headliner Kevin Ho's first major release through his new brand, Momentum since leaving the Virts back in 2018.

+ Fulton's Casino Orange:  After selling out the Ace Fulton’s Casino Tobacco Brown edition last year, the Ace Fulton’s Casino Vintage Backs series is BACK with an all-new orange colorway!

+ Red Metallic Gatorbacks: Silver, Rose Gold, Metallic Blue... and now Metallic Red! The new addition adds a sophisticated and stylish element to any card collection. Check it out!

… and more! 63 pages of articles and deck images. Enjoy!

All 2023’s Black Friday Deck Releases!

Black Friday 2023 is here! Deals for savvy collectors, cardists, and magicians have already started appearing. Click here for some of our picks. Shop for your friends or treat yourself, but don’t miss out on these NEW deck releases: 

David Blaine: Signed In Spades Gatorbacks (Link)

Ellusionist: Sculpt (Link)

Kings Wild Project: Verum Videre (Kickstarter)

Art of Play: Mystery Decks

Theory11: Yellowstone

Theory11: Harry Potter Ivory and Gold Foil Edition

Theory11: WB Limited Edition Deck

Dan and Dave: Rouge Smoke & Mirrors (Link)