32 Card Hybrid Deck

jdjames89

Hello, everyone. Ive been reading about these forums after several years of reading tarot on my own and have enjoyed it very much. I've started to learn cartomancy with regular playing cards as of late and most recently have been very interested in Lenormand and the Petit Etteilla. To the point that I'm about halfway through designing a deck of my own that would, hypothetically, let me do all three. And I'd like to hear what some of you guys think about the idea.

Each card, 7 through Ace of each suit, is present and on each card is both the corresponding Lenormand imagery as well as English approximations of the keywords from the French Petit Etteilla deck. I'm trying to add all of these elements so that they don't distract from one another and, hypothetically, allow the reader to read the exact same card three separate ways: Lenormand (with the reader focusing solely on the large image, Roman Numeral listing, and the card's suit and rank), Petit Etteilla (with the reader focusing solely on the Lenormand reading and keywords in the right hand corners of the card) and also traditional 32 card Cartomancy techniques (with the reader just focusing on the bold rank and suit on the card) .

In the end, I have a kind of a multi-use, Swiss Army Style deck of cards but set up in a way that is visually doable. Additionally, I think it would be interesting to try sort of hybridized readings where you can look at the same cards in different method lights, adding another layer and dynamic to reading certain spreads. Or, perhaps, they could be read in a hybrid way by people acquainted with more than one method of reading these thirty-two cards. I'm still working out the specifics - I'm still learning Petit Etteilla.

I've been slapping together some loose mock ups am including links to two examples that I've printed on to regular-sized paying cards I've made blank with acetone. I'm planning on making complete decks soon on proper card stock. I'm also drafting a rough draft of little book/pamphlet briefing each technique and going in to further detail on the potential relationship between them. Additionally, I'm considering adding the smaller cards of each suit for a full 52 deck if the reader can use them as well (something in the spirit of Gypsy Witch Cards). And maybe even some sort of Tarot Major Arcana expansion (though I haven't yet resolved how to do that as they seem to be two very different thought processes to read).

Anyhow, here's a link to two examples of what I have in mind. I'd LOVE some input, ideas, anything:
http://jdjames89.deviantart.com/art/10-of-Clubs-523179699
http://jdjames89.deviantart.com/art/9-of-Clubs-523180120

Regards,
Justin Eva-James
 

garmonbozia

I really like the concept!

Are you including the sixes? If not, how are you making all 36 Lenormand cards?
How are you incorporating the No. 1 card from the Petit Etteilla since it has no playing card association?

I just recently got a Petit Etteilla deck, so am not yet familiar with how to read with it.

The different fonts for the Petit Etteilla words are a little jarring visually. It's not as clean looking as it would look with 4 lines of text at the tops and bottoms of the cards as in the original deck (which would also you to line up the No. #, R #, and "E" to match their lines).
 

reall

OMG! FANTASTIC DESIGN! I'll add you on my DA watch!^^ :))))
 

AJ

swedish pocket knife deck, brilliant, says it all. Justin, is the art yours? Would be a shame to run into copyright issues if you decide to print...
 

jdjames89

Correction, 36 Card Hyrbid Deck

AJ, those are just mockups I did to get a rough idea. When I'm done deciding on the format, I'll use my own font (I plan on using my own digital scans of real typewriter lettering) and replace the mock up pics with original artwork or public domain images from 18th century books (I kind of lik the pen and ink etching look, I think it will make a full spread feel like paging through a reference book).

Thanks, reall.

And garmonbozia, thank you for reminding me of the sixes. That was an error on my part. I intend for it to be a 36 card deck so it can cover both French Cartomancy and Lenormand. The sixes are going to be slightly simpler than the other cards because there won't be any Petit Etteilla information on the. This means the reader can pull the sixes out of the deck beforehand if they don't plan on using them.

I'm not certain if I'm going to include a No1/Blank card or not yet. I'm still reading through Le Petit Etteilla ou le l'Art de Tirer les Cartes to see how essential it is. I'll most likely pair the No.1 with something like a Joker - which is a card that some cartomancers use and others do not, leaving it removable from the deck if the reader so chooses.

I'm focusing at the moment on the more concentrated 36 card deck, but I'd like to expand to include the smaller 2-5 cards so that full 54 card readings can be done. Additionally, in the far off future and if everything goes well, I'd like to make a matching Tarot deck that could be used alongside/with this deck. I considered adding small Tarot card notation to these 36 cards (Spades corresponding with Swords, rank matching, for example). This would allow me to add the four Page Cards and the Major Arcana on to it later, as well as create the 2-5 cards (which would be fairly bare as they do not include Petit Etteilla or Lenormand information) to reflect both Playing card suits and Tarot suits. That would make for a 79 card deck (including the one Joker/Carte Blanche - or 78 if I chose to combine the Joker, Carte Blanche and Fool in to one card) that could be used to read French and German Cartomancy, Tarot, Lenormand, and/or Petit Etteilla. Who knows. Still all just a thought. I kind of shy away from it though because Tarot tends to be a lot more visual and I'm not certain if just a rank and symbol would do them justice.

I'd still love thoughts and input on all of this, though, so feel free to pick my brain more!
 

garmonbozia

I'm not certain if I'm going to include a No1/Blank card or not yet. I'm still reading through Le Petit Etteilla ou le l'Art de Tirer les Cartes to see how essential it is. I'll most likely pair the No.1 with something like a Joker - which is a card that some cartomancers use and others do not, leaving it removable from the deck if the reader so chooses.

I'm new to the Petit Eteilla deck, but the summary instructions I read in English relied heavily on the No.1 card. I'm not familiar with what other instructions have been written, of course.

I like your idea of making it a joker (or a fool).
 

jdjames89

You're exactly right. I was a bit naive thinking that it might not be necessary. I'm still translating the Petit Etteilla book but I see how important it is. I'll be including the No 1 it as a Joker.

I'm still having trouble figuring out how to read a Petit Etteilla. Not a whole lot of information out there on the Interwebs in English.