The Antiquarian Lenormand

Laura Borealis

Yes, please tell me what you think of the fox. Is the color of him throwing you off? I'm totally open to critique and making some changes. I liked the image of the black fox but I wondered if the woman holding him might not work.

It's not the color - I love foxes, and black ones are so pretty. (They are all pretty!)

It's just that when I first saw it, I thought the fox was dead. My mind went to the blood sport of foxhunting. Then I looked closer and realized that it doesn't look dead, but she sure seems to have a chokehold around its throat. I'm really not sure what's going on, whether it's a tame fox that she's just holding in an awkward way, or a captured fox she is restraining. Since I love foxes, it's a little disquieting.

That is just me, though. Maybe other people see it as just a sweet fox being held by a nice woman... I'm definitely not saying "change it!" but I think if I turned that card up, I'd see more into it than what the card normally means, if that makes sense. Maybe it would actually help the interpretation in some ways... if it signifies caution, well I'd be cautious of her! She might choke me, too. :p
 

ladybird

It's not the color - I love foxes, and black ones are so pretty. (They are all pretty!)

It's just that when I first saw it, I thought the fox was dead. My mind went to the blood sport of foxhunting. Then I looked closer and realized that it doesn't look dead, but she sure seems to have a chokehold around its throat. I'm really not sure what's going on, whether it's a tame fox that she's just holding in an awkward way, or a captured fox she is restraining. Since I love foxes, it's a little disquieting.

That is just me, though. Maybe other people see it as just a sweet fox being held by a nice woman... I'm definitely not saying "change it!" but I think if I turned that card up, I'd see more into it than what the card normally means, if that makes sense. Maybe it would actually help the interpretation in some ways... if it signifies caution, well I'd be cautious of her! She might choke me, too. :p

I can see how it would feel that way for you! I didn't see it that way but I could see how one could! I really do like this image though.

I like how it feels like a warning card; there is something devious happening with the woman holding the fox in that way. But, then you don't see anything "clever" going on here. The fox is "caught" and really the fox is good at avoiding situations.

Hmmm...Maybe there's too much going on here. I am willing to change it but I'll have to give it some more thought.

If you have any other input I'm open to hearing from anyone.

Thanks!
:)
 

MoonGypsy

Thank you MoonGypsy, I appreciate your post!

Please tell me why this image doesn't work for you? Yes, I think the black fox might not work after all, now that I'm getting the feedback about it. I have other fox images that I found but this one was so interesting to me and I wanted to try it out. I realize now that it might not actually work. Is the woman throwing you off too or is it just the color of the fox? I honestly don't know much about the image, just that it's from 1920.

This image made me think of that caution that is needed when the fox card shows up but I realize that if you're trying to think of a small job, this image isn't going to work for that.

I'll try something different. I want all my cards to work in my deck.

Thanks everyone for you honesty!

Well, i am thrilled that you posted that Fox image for selfish reasons...:p It increased my education! :laugh:
i absolutely adore Fox; and we have them here in the woods where we live. [Mostly Red Fox]
But, i am embarrassed to admit, i never had known there was a black fox. [or i have forgotten] i have been drooling while googling images of black foxes. i personally think [now] that some type of black fox would be wonderful in this deck. [We always see red fox or gray or even Arctic White] but never Black [to my knowledge] i think the black fox needs to be "center stage", though...After a lot of thought, i came to this conclusion--i would rather not have a human holding the fox or even be in the pic. But again, would LOVE a Black Fox depicted.
Oh they are so gloriously beautiful!

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iqfgHALp8bc/TrW9m1aDwjI/AAAAAAAABXA/Fds_9v3UCvE/s1600/BlackFox131.jpg
 

ladybird

Well, i am thrilled that you posted that Fox image for selfish reasons...:p It increased my education! :laugh:
i absolutely adore Fox; and we have them here in the woods where we live. [Mostly Red Fox]
But, i am embarrassed to admit, i never had known there was a black fox. [or i have forgotten] i have been drooling while googling images of black foxes. i personally think [now] that some type of black fox would be wonderful in this deck. [We always see red fox or gray or even Arctic White] but never Black [to my knowledge] i think the black fox needs to be "center stage", though...After a lot of thought, i came to this conclusion--i would rather not have a human holding the fox or even be in the pic. But again, would LOVE a Black Fox depicted.
Oh they are so gloriously beautiful!

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iqfgHALp8bc/TrW9m1aDwjI/AAAAAAAABXA/Fds_9v3UCvE/s1600/BlackFox131.jpg

I love the black fox too! :) That picture you posted is gorgeous, MoonGypsy!

I'll see if I can find another image I can use. Since that's my only 9 of Clubs card I'll have to try to dismantle it somehow. It's all hand-glued/collaged not CG, I'm sure you noticed that. The card is actually 8.5 X 12. I could just cut the 9 of Clubs and the number 14 out but I may be able to find a way to make the glue come off. It's water based glue.

I think you're right, this card is more tarot-like with the woman holding the fox. It makes it a situation to think about and that's not Lenormand at all. I just really fell in love with the image and wanted to use it but I also want my whole deck to work like a Lenormand.
The more I look at this fox image the more I keep seeing that there are other things to consider that's going on. Luckily this is the only card so far where I used a situational image like this! :)

This is exactly why I wanted to post here! Thank you for your feedback, I'm truly grateful. I'll post a few more soon. :)
 

Laura Borealis

It really is a thought-provoking image. I can see why it struck you.

I did not realize these were done by hand! I thought you were being clever enough with Photoshop to make it look that way. Now your images feel extra-special and personal. It really is a gorgeous Lenormand and I hope to have a copy one day.
 

ladybird

A few more cards...

Here's some info about the cards and the images I used.

16. Stars ~ Star shaped compass rose from the 1870s with vintage stamped metal star embellishments and paper star cutouts.

22. Crossroads ~ is from a real photo postcard 1904-1920 (dated by stamp box mark on the back) called "Fork in a Country Road".

24. Heart ~ a cutting diagram showing a heart from the late 19th century. Librairie Delagrave Planche d'enseignement (Board of Education) Paris.

34. Fish ~ Color plate of red and green fish from "Journal des Museum Godeffroy", 1873.
 

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ladybird

It really is a thought-provoking image. I can see why it struck you.

I did not realize these were done by hand! I thought you were being clever enough with Photoshop to make it look that way. Now your images feel extra-special and personal. It really is a gorgeous Lenormand and I hope to have a copy one day.

Thank you Laura Borealis!

Yes, I guess I should have mentioned that this deck is all made by hand. The design is a simple collage. Most of the aging you see is stained and hand colored to make it look antique. Except for the actual 1890s playing cards and a few other found old items which are "organically" aged. ;)
 

Chronata

I am really enjoying the look of these!
They have a refined elegance that I really like!
 

ladybird

I am really enjoying the look of these!
They have a refined elegance that I really like!

That means a lot, coming from you, Chronata. :heart: Thank you!