So, now chatting about my decks :
- Mermaid tarot :
This is a very RWS deck. Most cards are instantably recognizable for a RWS reader. The only card I saw that derived from traditional RWS imagery (but not from traditional RWS meaning) is the six of pents, showing a merchant ship to illustrate trade, giving, receiving, making goods change hands, making riches flow and travel and move. I like that card very much bu the way.
The court are very good. All court cards are very expressive and give the card the vibe it deserves. The Queen of Wands, expecially, is a true success. It might be my all times favourite queen of Wands.
The Knight of Swords of the third edition is brilliant too.
Only the King of wand in this deck leaves me sceptic. I do not see the energy of the king of wands in this card. But, it is the only court that I am not sold to, for this deck.
I have two editions, the second and the third.
Unfortunately I did a bad edging work on the second edition... and kind of damaged the deck
The back are deep blue and the front borders are sepia. I chose a blue marker matching the backs... and it looks great when the deck is put facedown on a table : the edges are vivid deep sea blue, matching the backs exactly.... very chic !
Except that on the front of the cards, the blue ink bled a little under the lamination... unevely of course..... so when you turn the deck face up and you fan it, you see a nice deck with dirty blue borders that make strikes and dots of blue ink on the margins.
Trimming the deck to correct the mistake, is not an option, as the borders are extremely uneven on that deck, and especially on that edition (some cards have no borders at all, some other have 1mm borders, some 3 mm borders, some cards have no left borders, but a 3 mm right border etc)
So, I like my deck but I butchered it a little bit
() with my unhappy edging. I have edged dozens of decks, I am a big fan of egded decks, I think edging gives them a very classy, special look.... but this is one of my two disasters (so far.. but I am learning from errors, so maybe I wont ruin anymore decks). I am happy that I also have the third edition, otherwise I would feel even worse.
The third edition has 22 changed cards, and more even borders (the borders are not, by far, even in the 3d edition. They are just less completely uneven. But that's OK with me, it has never botherd me even in the 2d edition.... it kind of goes with the spirit of the deck)
Of the 22 changed cards, I often like the two version, and, in some cases I like more the version from the 2d edition, and in other cases I like more the version from the 3d edition.
For example : I love the Moon card of the second edition, with its creature that is half mermaid, half lobster, half woman. I find it better and more telling than the Moon card from the third edition.
But, the knight of swords from the third edition is riding a shark, as opposed to a dolphin in the second edition. I much prefer the shark one, so much more fitting for the knight of swords !
Too bad I butchered the edges of my second edition deck, otherwise I could have made a personal mix of the cards I prefer, and ended up with a totally personnaly deck made of all my favourite cards ! But my unhappy edging job prevented that, unfortunately.
The third édition I edged (safely) in "Antique Linen" ink. It goes well with the light sepia borders of the deck.
I took no risk, and ended up with a result that is chic and neat, though it is not special in any way. But at least it is neat and did not bleed all over the deck.
I love this deck for when I am in need of "water" vibe.. and fun vibe too. It is a cartoonish deck, very feminine and fun, with a quirk sense of humour. It shows young, thin pretty women, so it cannot be placed into the "inclusive" decks, eventhough it shows different skin colors. But, it is a fun deck and goes well for readings that need some water energy mixed to light, fun, easy atmosphere.
I have found that it works well for reading for people that are not completely sold to esoterism and tarot. The "cartoon" side of the deck, the fun and light vibe, make for a deck that, visually, does not seem to take itself too seriously. So, it does not deter people who are new to tarot, or sceptic of tarot reading. But, do not get fooled ! Under its sweet funny images, this deck is a serious tarot deck, a true reader, and it will deliver readings that are spot on.
I like Dame Darcy's work apart from her tarot deck, I like her dark sense of humour, her sometimes trashy feminist takes, and her style of art. If you like this deck, I encourage you to have a look at her zine "Meatcake" and at the illustrations she did for several boooks (Jane Eyre for example)
Ok, I'll come back later to chat about my second deck of the week !
Sorry for this longish post, but if you read the entire way I hope you enjoyed it !
Much love !