First take. Gold gilded. Shiny and looks consistent. The back of the cards is hard to tell if the card is right side up or reversed and this is coming from a traditional tarot card reader. The design is consistent with the black border, with antique gold-colored Baroque corner pieces and a golden orb in the center with a gradient deep red and black checkered design. It looks antique and speaks of a late period renaissance art style that the name of the cards invokes. The feel of the cardstock is nice. It’s not flimsy nor too thick. It’s glossy but not in my opinion, high gloss, but not a semigloss or matte finish. The first card I flipped over the Baroque inspiration in the corners is throughout the cards with orbs with the number of the card in it. Deep reds, antique golds, and blacks are consistent in the artwork but also starts adding in aged parchment colors, jewel tones and colors that work with the theme and feel of the consistent art and feel of the cards.
The size of the cards is a standard playing deck size, so not too big or too small, should fit well in most hands. The art is digitally produced and clean. But with good detail, and not over done where you get distracted by too much imagery. The art is beautiful. Colors run throughout with the jewel tones and faded colors to give a vintage aged vibe really makes these cards feel like you’re transported into another time. The symbolic images needed to read the cards well are big enough to tell what the meaning is with the cards, but also gives some smaller details to glean more from them. The images are darker in colors and shadows, not very bright… but a little more muted with pops of color. If you’re looking for a bright upbeat feel to cards, this might not be the deck for you; but if you have an appreciation for antique and vintage with a lush feel from Italy of the Baroque period and evokes a feel of Venetian beauty with little nods to steampunk fun imagery this deck is deliciously designed.
The box that holds the cards is magnetic-hinged, gold foil-accented box and feels sturdy. My box had liner paper coming up from one side, but nothing, a tiny bit of glue stick won’t fix. The book that is given with the deck is just a little smaller than the cards with a small print, that makes it may be harder to read for those who have difficulty with smaller fonts. I happen to be a person that small fonts are harder to read in smaller books, so I wasn’t thrilled about that, but I did find a PDF of the book available online in a bigger format, so to learn the cards and meanings… score!
When I first read with the deck, it pulled no punches nor did it over inundate you with mixed messages. Lenormand Tarot decks are meant to be simpler to read with 36 cards instead of the more traditional Rider-Waite-Smith deck with its 78 cards. This deck has 11 extra cards to just expand it to a total of 47 cards. The extra cards are Time, Bridges, Dice, Mask, Well, Compass, Labyrinth, and Magnifying Glass. This deck also came with an extra Man, Lady, and an Owl card. When reading with these and diving deeper into them to use them rather than just look at the lush art, they are easy to read with. Using these for what is called a Grand Tableau will be a beautiful journey of reading. It would include all the cards and what a grand adventure it would be!
The art is easy to read and understand the message the cards are giving. As I stated above, this deck came with an extra Man, Lady and an Owl card. The extra Man and Lady cards really work well if you have a relationship that is more openly accepted than when the first Petite Lenormand deck came out circa 1799. The Owl card was added to give another point of view than the 12 card which is bird. So those meanings of the Bird/Owl can also unfold more since one as the book says “…also indicates communication, but usually of a less frivolous nature”.
Want to know more about this magical deck and the straightforward messaging? Then I really do recommend Ciro Marchetti’s Gilded Reverie Lenormand – Expanded Edition. I have been a reader for over 22 years of traditional Tarot, and this is my first time with a Lenormand deck, and I will be offering these as an option when someone wants a shorter, more “get to the point” kind of reading.
Coreopsis Journal does not endorse nor are we paid by any private business to place purchasing information on our site. This is placed here for informational purposes only. To Purchase:
US Game Systems: https://www.usgamesinc.com/gilded-reverie-expanded-edition.html
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Gilded-Reverie-Lenormand-Ciro-Marchetti/dp/157281893X
Seren Derryth
“Revenge Porn”
… is a Witchy Artsy Whimsical Fae!
Creating mirth and magic in a multitude of artsy and craftsy ways, Seren likes to work with a multitude of mediums, including spectacular semi-precious stones and gems, sparkly crystals, fantastic pendants and charms, her beloved iPad for digital art, ever trusty colored pencils, gorgeous gouache, and more!