Kickstarter: Foliage Playing Cards by Ace of Clubs Magic and Cards

Currently seeking funds on Kickstarter, the Foliage Playing Cards are conceptualized by magician Sam Porter and illustrated by magician and graphic designer Nick Vlow. The deck was designed to mirror the natural beauty and aesthetic of the Earth's forests.

The color palette of the cards is a deep, forest green with earthy brown colors on the face cards. The two-way back features a tree and vine-work pattern. The deck features custom Ace, card backs, recoloured courts and a pair of jokers.

A double backed card is included. Additionally, the deck was designed in classic style, so it will seem familiar to magic spectators.

On how the idea turned into reality, Sam said,

After drawing several sketches of my idea, I contacted Legends Playing Card Company. I was given a list of graphic designers and eventually settled on working with Nick Vlow, a fellow magician. It was a pleasure to work with him and the artwork turned out better than I had ever imagined. 

Pledge starts from $10 and will be printed by Legends Playing Card Co. Foliage Playing Cards are now LIVE on Kickstarter.

News: Magician Shin Lim Releases the Stunning Regalia Playing Cards for Pre-Order

Popular magician Shin Lim has just released Regalia Playing Cards for pre-order on his website. The deck is a symbol of excellence, prestige, and innovation, a reflection of Shin Lim's work ethics and performance in magic.

Designed by Nick Vlow, Regalia features a beautiful Ace of Spades, semi-custom face cards, stunning gold foil backs and a revolutionary two-layer case adorned with gold embossed foil. A perfect harmony with the prestigious cards.

A post shared by Shin Lim (@shinlimmagic) on Nov 16, 2017 at 3:57am PST

Each card is crafted with the finest crushed linen paper found in Belgium. And the gold foil was developed and produced in-house to the most exacting standards by our friends at Cartamundi.

According to Shin Lim on the product page,

This is seriously an amazing deck of cards. They feel great in the hands and yes, they faro perfectly. I present to you the Regalia deck, printed by Cartamundi, designed by Nick Vlow, and produced by yours truly.

Regalia is available NOW for pre-order for $13.95 on shinlimmagic.com. Check out the EPIC trailer below:

A post shared by Shin Lim (@shinlimmagic) on Dec 1, 2017 at 12:00pm PST

Card Gear: Addicted to Creativity

Card Gear is our monthly feature dedicated to discovering new inventory, setup and accessories used every day by card designers, cardists, magicians and collectors. The concept originated from the popular social media site, Instagram: #passthepockets. Whenever one of these hashtags come up on the social news feed, there's always something new to discover, no matter who that person is.

For this month, we have the EDC of Nick Vlow, a 21-year old card magician and graphic designer based in central Russia. Nick is the designer behind Onida, Shin Lim playing cards, Longitude & Latitude and Philtre Playing Cards. You can see some of his other work here or follow him on Instagram: (@nickvlow)

Nick is addicted to creativity, so he always carries a sketchbook to write down ideas for card magic or sketch something new for tattoos or design that comes into his mind. Nick is also an economics student which takes a lot of his time through fall and winter.

Nicks's gear:
+ 68' Omega watch
+ Moleskine sketchbook
+ BarneysNY sunglasses
+ Sharpie marker
+ Micron liners x3
+ Philtre playing cards
+ Apple EarPods
+ iPhone 6S
+ Mulberry Wallet
+ Joe Porper's classic metal clip
+ Swiss knife & flashlight

What’s yours? If you would like your card gears to be featured on Kardify, contact us.

Deck View: Stratosphere Playing Cards

Space. Future. Astronaut. 

Originally researched and printed from 2016-2017 for the Space of the Art Kickstarter campaign, Stratosphere is a stunning deck that feels and looks like the future. The deck is manufactured with solar-sail material, typically used to propel spacecraft with radiation pressure exerted by sunlight. 

The deck is designed by Nick Vlow and printed in a deep space blue color that fits with the theme, allowing the holographic solar-sail material to shine around those lines in full intergalactic glory. 

The custom card faces features space man / astronaut / cosmonaut and printed metallic gold Pantone ink visors, with a clear spot UV applied over the top to give it that extra shine. 

Printed by Legends Playing Card Co. on Classic Finish with Traditional Cut. 

Detailed Look at Division Playing Cards

There have been numerous decks inspired by optical illusions, predominantly cardistry decks. I personally find the idea of using optical illusion on back designs a very interesting concept. Hence when I received Division Playing Cards, I was intrigued by 3D the maze-like design element on the tuck.

Inside, the mirrored card backs feature a geometric collection of shapes celebrating the artist, Escher, and his concepts of cubic space division, hence the name of the deck.

The Ace of Spades is custom and the standard court cards and suits have been recolored to match the overall color palette of the deck.

The soft pastel color palette of the deck is a very nice touch. It gives the deck a cool and fresh look, giving a sense "airiness" and an illusion of effortless motion for card flourishes and spreads. For the magician, extra gaff cards have been incorporated into this deck for magic routines.

Designed by the talented Nick Vlow, produced by Danny Weiser and Murphy's Magic and printed by the U.S. Playing Card Company. Available NOW from your favorite Murphys Magic retailers.

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Patrick Kun Releases Stay Playing Cards

Stay Playing Cards by Magician Patrick Kun is a collaboration with Stay, a curated lifestyle shop for Travel on Instagram (@staylifestyle). Designed by Nick Vlow, the travel theme deck was designed from the ground up to enlighten the joy of travel.

The deck sports a bright turquoise colorway with fully customized pips and faces with a fun modern look. The deck is packaged in a clean minimal tuck case design with gold foil stamp and the tuck interior features a world map design, printed in metallic gold ink by Clove St. Press.

Whether you travel alone or with your friends, Stay Playing Cards will always be your perfect companion to create memorable moments for your next journey. Printed by the US Playing Card Co. on thin crush stock and available now from patrickkun.com for $15.

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Philtre Playing Card Now in Green!

Philtre Playing Cards are back with a fresh Green colorway! Designed by Nick Vlow for by South Korea- based magician, PH, the Green Philtre fits into his style of performing outlandish visual magic or as an everyday carry.



Named after the love potion in ancient Greek, the Philtre playing cards are designed to create a level of affection that is enhanced the longer you use it. The deck features an antique yet intricate art with mesmerizing line work on a simple deck.



The face cards are pretty much standard with recolored court cards to match the overall color palette of the deck. Perfect for the use of magicians, cardists, and collectors.



Printed by USPCC with Bee Casino Quality, Crushed Stock, and Air-Cushion Finish. The Green Philtre is Limited to 2500 Decks. oh.. and the deck is fully MARKED.

Available on riffleshuffle.com for $7.95

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Check Out Legends PCC's Ultra-Thin Copperhead Playing Cards

Legends Playing Card Co's (LPCC) Copperhead Playing Cards comes with an all-new ULTRA-THIN finish. LPCC is calling them Viper Finish, named for the silky feel with a unique smooth, dry, yet slippery texture.



Viper Finish blends the thinness and snappiness of Master / Diamond Finish, with the soft flex and feel of the popular but rare Stud Finish. Also, not only is the deck highly durable, they are highly resistant to changes in humidity! 

Great for magic techniques like breather crimps, another bonus is you don't get that 'pop' in the deck when you fly or travel to a dry climate, and the decks don't inflate and get soggy in humid climates like Singapore or Hong Kong. 

 

Definitely a unique feeling card stock, unlike anything else on the market. Out of the tuck box, they feel familiar yet different- thin, soft, snappy, and silky feel. Hard to describe but they feel somewhere in-between USPCC's Air-Cushion Finish and LPCC's popular Classic FInish. We've been using this deck for 2 weeks straight... and surprised by how durable it is! 

The design of the deck simple and yet elegant! Designers, Nick Vlow and Grayson Stallings did an excellent job with the artwork on the custom card backs, Ace of Spades, and Jokers. The face cards are pretty much standard but recolored to match the look and feel of the deck. The decks are available in 3 colorways- blue (V1), yellow (V2), and grey (V2). All Pantone Color of the Year. 

The deck definitely feels modern and doesn't feel out of place in a poker game or magician's hands. Available NOW from legendplayingcards.com for $9.85.

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Stratosphere (Meteorite Edition) Playing Cards

Space. Shiny. Foil. 

Happy New Year! Stratosphere by Legends Advanced Research Laboratory is a stunning deck that features holographic full foil that reflects and shimmers from any angle. The deck is designed by Nick Vlow and manufactured with an ultra-thin mylar laminated on both sides.

The card backs are a new holographic full foil pattern, and the faces are standard silver. Like Pokemon cards, both feature overprinting at different opacities to block out the shiny effects of the full foil The custom card faces features space man / astronaut / cosmonaut with silver foil with shiny elements in their suits.

Printed by Legends Playing Card Co. on Classic Finish with Traditional Cut. 

Shin Lim's Stunning White Regalia Playing Cards Are Available Now

Shin Lim has just released the White Regalia Playing Cards for pre-order on his website. The new white/gold colorway is the second edition to the popular Regalia Playing Cards series first introduced last year.

Designed by Nick Vlow, the deck is inspired by Russian art, specifically from the paintings on the walls of the historic Hermitage museum, the regalia back design is a perfect balance of complexity and minimalism.

Crafted for the magician in mind, the face cards have been designed to look standard (with the exception of the Jokers and Ace of Spades). Subtle changes, however, has been added to the court and number cards. Such as minor details like the stem of the spade, to the borders of the face cards.

The individually gold foiled cards are housed in a beautiful tuck box made from two protective pearlized white casings- an inner and outer cellophane wrap. Printed by in Belgium by Cartamundi on their true B9 finish. Regalia is available now for $14.95 on shinlimmagic.com.

Deck View: White Regalia Playing Cards

Magic. Gold. Stunning.

With Shin Lim going through to the final round of  “America's Got Talent”, we thought we would feature his stunning deck this weekend. Designed by Nick Vlow, White Regalia Playing Cards is the second edition to the popular Regalia Playing Cards series first introduced last year. The deck is inspired by Russian art, specifically from the paintings on the walls of the historic Hermitage museum, the regalia back design is a perfect balance of complexity and minimalism.

The new white/gold deck has been crafted for magicians in mind. The face cards have been designed to look standard (with the exception of the Jokers and Ace of Spades) and subtle updates were added to the court and number cards, such as minor details on the stem of the spade, to the borders of the face cards.

The individually gold foiled cards are housed in a beautiful tuck box made from two protective pearlized white casings- an inner and outer cellophane wrap. Printed by in Belgium by Cartamundi on their true B9 finish. Available NOW from JP Games.

Deck View: Copperhead V2 (Yellow Edition) Playing Cards

Modern. Durable. Smooth.

Legends Playing Card Co‘s (LPCC) Copperhead Playing Cards showcase a simple yet elegant design. Designers Nick Vlow and Grayson Stallings did an excellent job with the artwork on the custom card backs, Ace of Spades, and Jokers. The face cards are pretty much standard but recolored to match the look and feel of the deck.

The Copperheads come with Viper Finish, named for the silky feel with a unique smooth, dry, yet slippery texture. Also, not only is the deck ultra-thin and highly durable, they are highly resistant to changes in humidity! The Copperhead deck has been part of my EDC for the past year and a half!

The deck definitely feels modern and doesn’t feel out of place in a poker game or magician’s hands. Available NOW from legendplayingcards.com for $9.85.

Pink Philtre Playing Cards Private Release Sold Out!

Philtre Playing Cards are back this year with a striking cloudy-pink and marshmallow-white colorway and they were quickly sold out. Designed by Nick Vlow for by South Korea- based magician, PH, the Pink Philtre brings a fresh and dreamy vibe for all the card lovers.

 

Named after the love potion in ancient Greek, the Philtre playing cards are designed to create a level of affection that is enhanced the longer you use it. The deck features antique yet intricate art with mesmerizing line work on a simple deck.



The face cards are pretty much standard with recolored court cards to match the overall color palette of the deck. Perfect for the use of magic routines. Speaking about magic routines, the deck is fully MARKED. This is without a doubt a deck that will serve you well whenever you need it!

Printed by USPCC with Bee Casino Quality, Crushed Stock, and Air-Cushion Finish. The Pink Philtre is Limited to 2500 Decks.

The deck was prices at on riffleshuffle.com for $7.95

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News: Cool Decks Announced by Expert Playing Card Co at the 52 Plus Joker Convention

At the 52 Plus Joker convention in Erlanger, Kentucky last weekend, Bill Kalush, founder of Expert Playing Card Company announced a slew of new decks: CHOSEN, Exquisite Bolder, and Skull & Bones Playing Cards. Image above by @benkolozsi.

CHOSEN Playing Cards is designed by Nick Vlow and features a colorful geometric design card back and standard card faces. Designed with the cardists in mind, the deck will be printed in China on EPCC's new Stud finish, which is flexible, softer and feels broken-in right off the box.

A post shared by Daniel Cabrera (@ume.playingcards.company) on Oct 13, 2017 at 10:44pm PDT

Three years in the making, Exquisite Bolder Playing Cards is eye-catching deck using Expert's brand new Perfecta Foil on the card backs and the tuck and 3d embossing on the side-way tuck. This amazing process creates foil with the illusion of depth built in. Also, the deck features standard courts, face cards, and incredibly thin (1mm) borders on the card back!

A post shared by Expert Playing Card Company (@expertpcc) on Oct 14, 2017 at 11:37am PDT

The Skull & Bones Playing Cards is a collaboration between EPCC and Jackson Robinson of Kings Wild Project. Beautiful presentation with 2 piece shell case with impressive spot UV, holographic foil, and magnet to keep your deck secure. The holographic foil on the card back is truly mesmerizing. Artwork of the Ace of Spades and Jokers by Jackson.

Pretty crazy

A post shared by Ben Kolozsi (@benkolozsi) on Oct 14, 2017 at 4:42pm PDT

Deck View: ONIDA Playing Cards

Minimal. Elegant. Linear.

Designed by Nick Vlow and produced by Legends Playing Card Co., ONIDA is an elegant deck designed with flourishers in mind. The linear pattern adds dimension to rotational moves and enhances displays, yet does not overwhelm the eye with too much color or blocky artwork.

The deck features a beautiful matte uncoated paper tuck box, with UV accents, and a minimal back design that cardists will definitely love. ONIDA was printed in Taiwan, with Legends' snappy and durable Diamond Finish card stock.

Available now from JP Games.