Because of other things taking priority, I haven’t been able to work on the tarot deck as much as I would have otherwise, but it’s till on the way, in case you wondered if I dropped the project 🙂 Last weekend, I finished the 4’s and you can see the cards below. I can’t wait to get started on the Majors because the Minors are a bit too repetitive for my taste.

This is how I make the cards

Before I start the drawings, I check my interpretations for the cards and decide on an image that will fit the interpretation. I’ve chosen certain insects for each suit, so I stick to that when deciding on the image. Then I get going on the drawings. I first sketch them out in pencil and then draw them in coloured pencil.

Dragonfly

Once the drawings are finished, I scan them. Then I increase the contrast and remove the background on the computer before placing them in the template I have for the cards. The characters (letters/numbers) and symbols for each card are also hand-drawn by me. I created the symbols when I started and I do the characters for each set of cards right after I’ve finished with the images. I’ve set a specific colour for the characters for each suit as well, so they’ll be identifiable both by insect and by colour.

Four of Cups