Collector decks like Beyond the Endless Dark playing cards are getting a lot of attention at the moment. Here is a comparison of two other playing card decks compared to Beyond The Endless Dark Playing Cards

Pros

Unique Design – Features a rotating colourful star system, evolving the style of the original Beyond deck. The artwork is visually striking and makes for a great display piece.

High Quality – Manufactured with premium materials, ensuring durability and smooth handling, ideal collector decks for cardistry and magic performances.

Cons

Price – Slightly higher priced compared to standard decks, which might not be ideal for casual use.

Complexity – The intricate design might be distracting for signed card tricks where simplicity is preferred 

Chancers V3 Green (Marked) Playing Cards by Good Pals

Pros

Marked Deck Includes a discreet marking system that is beneficial for magicians to perform card tricks without the audience noticing. That’s are in decent collector decks.

Aesthetic Appeal – The green colour and design elements make it stand out, appealing to collectors and enthusiasts alike.

Cons

Learning Curve – Requires time to learn and utilize the marking system effectively.

Specific Use – Primarily designed for magic, it might not be the best choice for general use.

Magnolia White Playing Cards

Pros

Elegant Design – Designed by Paulina Diaz, these cards feature a minimalist white design with elegant artwork, making them aesthetically pleasing and perfect for sophisticated magic performances.

Versatility – Suitable for both magic and general card games due to their standard face cards and high-quality stock.

Cons

Durability – While made with good quality, the white colour might show wear and tear more quickly than darker decks.

Limited Edition – Being part of a limited release might make replacements or additional purchases more difficult 

Conclusion

Best for Magic

Chancers V3 Green (Marked) Playing Cards – Ideal for magicians looking for a functional marked deck.

Best for Aesthetics

Beyond The Endless Dark Playing Cards – Perfect for those who want visually stunning collector decks.

Best for Versatility

Magnolia White Playing Cards – Great for both magic and casual play with an elegant touch.

Each of these decks offers unique features catering to different preferences, from performing magic to collecting playing cards that are aesthetically pleasing.

The post Collector Decks – Endless Dark Vs Chancers Vs Magnolia appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

Starting with the design, the tuck box is undeniably stunning, the gold and electric blue create an extremely visual contrast that immediately catches the eye, both of these colours are metallic meaning they glisten in the light. The entire design, every bit of detail, is embossed upon a matte textured box, this creates a luxurious aura to the cards both visually and tactilely. 

The detail on the box is phenomenal, the more you look the more you discover, both the front and back designs of the tuck box are extremely elegant, featuring exquisite detail that you could study for hours, the right side of the box features some intriguing co-ordinates which I shall leave for you to decode, the left side features a quote which reads, “I could not rest by night or day for dreaming golden dreams”, this quote is full of insight and up to the reader to interpret.

Excluding the court cards, ace of spades and the jokers, the cards feature a standard face design with a very minimal tweak in colour to that of a regular bicycle deck. This could be viewed as a positive or negative thing depending on your area of expertise, for magicians the standard faces are perfect, card collectors and cardists may wish for something more extravagant, it merely comes down to personal taste and for magicians, performing practicality.

I mentioned that the Abandoned playing cards court cards, ace of spades and jokers are different, let’s take a look. All four suits of court cards(J-K) feature the same colourway, once again it is a metallic turquoise and gold design with the pips being untouched. The ace of spades is excellent, it is an elegant design featuring the metallic gold once again with a room contained within the ace, it continues to conform to the aesthetic of the deck and to the classical look of the ace of spades. The Jokers are two keys, they are not identical, mild differences occur such as the orientation of parts and the pip text colour, for magicians this isn’t ideal. 

There are two extra cards within the Abandoned playing cards deck, one contains a poem suggesting there is more to it than meets the eye and the other is a red and gold, what seems to be a Red Herring, literally. I will be honest in saying I have no idea what the Herring is doing here, I can only assume it is a reference to something I am unfamiliar with, nevertheless, it’s a unique card just waiting for the card collectors to discover! The magicians, and/or cardists amongst you may be disappointed with the extra cards, let’s be honest, for us these two pose no practical value – it raises the question of, would a blank card or a double backer have been better which in return raises another question, do you use these gaffs enough to care?

Moving onto the feel and quality of the cards, they are printed on a true linen B9 Slimline paper by Cartamundi. Upon testing the cards out, they handle and feel good, they are soft cards to handle and also very flexible, this could be seen as a positive by some and a negative by others, thick cards often last longer than thin cards, it depends on how much you are going to properly use these and the rate at which you practice, I would certainly lean away from these for everyday practice otherwise practice suddenly becomes very expensive! As an individual I tend to use cards printed by USPCC, however, despite how good they feel, USPCC cards are prone to alignment issues, cartamundi cards feel great and shouldn’t, fingers crossed, have so many printing errors.

In terms of practicality, it varies per individual and what you would be buying these cards for. My honest opinion is if you are a magician wanting to practice and perform with these cards, buy something cheaper like a regular deck of Bicycles, however, for card collectors you simply cannot go wrong with this deck, it is elegant, detailed, unique, they handle great, what’s not to love! I am sure cardists would love this deck too but it’s hard for me to comment, each cardist has their own personal style and design preference, that’s something only you can answer!

In conclusion, the Abandoned Playing Cards deck is wonderful and it comes with my utmost recommendation, the deck ticks all of my criteria, I won’t be performing with this deck, nothing to say you can’t, but from a collectors stance it is simply wonderful and that is my honest opinion, buy this deck – you’ll love it! it will certainly be getting pride of place on my display, how about yours? Let me know your thoughts on the review and the cards down below!

Thank you for reading and I truly hope this review provided the insight you were after,

Matt Homer 

Stockists:

Merchant of Magic Stock Abandoned Playing Cards Here

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Cherry Casino Playing Cards – Blue

These are the ones that have sold out I think.  If I’m completely honest I hadn’t been expecting too much from them since the design hadn’t grabbed me from the tuck case. But in fact, they were a pleasant surprise.

The tuck case is simple and none the worse for that. I’ll confess that the ‘casino’ aspect feels slightly contrived. I know you get cherries on fruit machines at casino but that is really the only point of contact. The card stock felt a little on the thin side to me – but that did mean that they handled very easily.

A pleasant surprise on opening the deck was that they come stacked in Menemonica order. If you are a magician, this is potentially a massive advantage – to be able to open a new sealed deck and yet know exactly where every card is.

Another useful feature for magicians is that they come complete with a matching double-backed card and a blank faced card – two very useful gaff cards. The jokers are identical which is often useful for magic routines.

The Ace of Spades is good and bold – and regular readers will know I always favour a large centre pip on my aces!  Otherwise, they are standard USPCC faces – but in a nice little detail, the normal ‘bright red’ colour has been replaced with, of course, a cherry red.

The Blue Cherry Playing Cards are a nice little deck.  But sadly very difficult to get hold of now!

(Unless you go for the new red version – which are available at MagicShop.co.uk for £10.99 at the time of writing.)

Mondrian Broadway Playing Cards

I really liked the intriguing arty style – of the Mondrian Broadway deck.  The design has been worked through in a very aesthetically pleasing way.  But although it is pleasing on the eye and perhaps of interest to art fans, it doesn’t inherently lend itself to magic use (except perhaps cardistry) – so perhaps this is more one for the card collectors.

The tuck case is sophisticated and this is accentuated by a lovely detail of silver embossing  on the inside of the tuck case.

I loved the fabulous jokers – and the two different colours would make for a very pretty  colour change effect.  The Ace of Spades also ticks all my boxes with a bold and beautiful design.

The rest of the faces are normal USPCC design but they incorporate the cyan colour of the design as detailing on the court cards which is a nice touch. 

As with all the new decks in this review it includes a matching blank faced card and double backed card – both of which are useful for magic.  It handles very well and I think it is a visually super deck.  Time to come up with some art-inspired magic routines…

The Mondrian Broadway Deck is available at MagicShop.co.uk for £15.50 (at the time of writing).

Infinitas Deck

I’m a bit of a maths geek.  Infinity is a fascinating concept for me.  So the Infinitas Deck should have been an obvious hit.  But I’m afraid, in spite of the number of pictures I took, this deck didn’t really do it for me.  Let me go in to some detail.

The tuck case itself doesn’t give too much away.  In fact it played hard to get – as the only deck in this selection which had a deck seal on it.

Once we’d got inside thing remained minimal.  The jokers are nondescript.  I suppose you could put a positive spin on that and applaud their simplicity.  But they just didn’t appeal.

Some hard work has obviously gone into the creation of the deck – and they have designed new pips for every suit.  However, I found them quite difficult to tell apart!  I found it interesting to note that the  court cards also incorporate small ‘ordinary pips’ in their design which helped me tell them apart!

The ace of spades has some boldness, but is not as pleasing as many I have seen.  In fact the ‘spades’ pip reminds me of a sword rather than bringing to mind ideas of infinity.

My favourite part of the design was the court cards.  These are stylised and interesting – and I like their ‘cut out’ feeling.  They have been freed from the borders which so often entrap our court cards and I think the result is very positive (see the gallery below).

The  back design is so minimal that when you fan the cards it looks like a blank deck!  In a spread, depending on the depth of the spread you will have a small bit of edge detail.

Like the other decks, the Infinitas deck comes with a double backed card and a blank faced card – so I suppose you could complete the illusion of the blank faced deck!  You’ve probably gathered, I think this is an OK deck, but I can’t see myself using it.

You can pick up an Infinitas Deck from MagicShop.co.uk for £10.50 (at the time of writing).

Many thanks to Murphys Magic who provided the review decks and to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

The post Another Deck Selection – Cherry Casino, Mondrian Broadway, Infinitas Deck appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

Let’s look at the decks in turn.

Bicycle Tangram Deck

First up is in some ways the weakest of the four. I’ve been playing with tangrams since I was a kid and even bought my own children a set to play with – so I love the concept. It is a novel idea and it is great fun to have a card with a tangram to cut out and play with – and another with some shapes to try to make.

But as a deck of cards it has some flaws. Although it is a clever idea to carry the tangram idea into the suit pips, in reality I found them quite difficult to distinguish – which would be a bit of a problem in either play or magic. The extremely stylised court cards did little for me.

The back design is ok but not that attractive nor does it particularly lend itself to attractive fans or flourishing. I think I liked the Jokers best. Handling is fine on nice USPCC playing card stock.

A mixed bag really, but not a bad deck for the collector or the Tangram enthusiast!

The Tangram Deck is available from MoM for £9.99 (at the time of writing).

David Koehler – Wonder Playing Cards

The stand out feature of the Wonder Playing Cards is their bold back design. Reminiscent of the sort of thing you could produce if you were a black belt in spyrograph (remember those?!) – in bold printing press colours which are pleasing to the eye. I’m not sure how well the design lends itself to spreads and fans – but a lot of fun to spin!

The faces are standard USPCC faces apart from the Ace of Spades. I really like the attractive Jokers – and the way the harsh diagonals contrast with the spirals of the main design. The deck also comes with a double backed card which is always useful for magic. And an extra four of hearts. I’m not sure why, but who knows when you might need an extra four of hearts!

A nice little deck.  The Wonder Playing Cards are available from MoM for £9.99 (at the time of writing).

Blue Steel Deck – bu Bocopo Playing Card Company

Pacakged in an unassuming blue tuck case, I think the Blue Steel Deck is my favourite of the collection today.

It has an elegant, stylish but understated back design.  For some reason it reminded me (but is not really anything  like!) the classic Bee – but it has a border unlike the Bees.

The deck has standard faces with the exception of a custom ace of spades – which is big and bold – just the way I like Aces!

I particularly like the jokers – unusually the deck has 3 – 2 blue and 1 red  – but apart from the colour they are identical which could make for some attractive colour change effects.

All in all a pleasingly stylish deck which I could see working nicely for magic or regular use.

Blue Steel Playing cards are £9.99 at MoM (at the time of writing).

Keith Glover’s Runic Royalty Deck

The final deck we’re looking at today is an odd one out from the rest.  It is a super limited edition (1,000 only) deck originally funded on Kickstarter (in conjunction with the same team who produced the interesting Alice in Wonderland Deck).

The first thing we noticed was that they are the only deck in this selection with a seal on the tuck case.  A small, but significant, feature.

They feature an ‘aged’ design i.e. both faces and backs have been coloured to appear aged – which leads to a mellow and pleasing colouring.

The Jokers are very striking, and both they and the court cards feature custom drawn modern ‘cartoon’ style imagery.  There’s a lot of detail here and I can see these appealing to lots of users.  All the pips and indices on all the cards have been custom drawn and make a pleasant change from the standard USPCC design on so many other decks.

The back design is intriguing and I could see it fitting a number of interesting presentations.  Including a double-ended court-card is another really useful (and unusual) feature for a deck which might be used by magicians.  Mentalists, too, could find this useful.

This one’s going to appeal to magicians and collectors I would think.

PlayingCardDecks.com are available from MoM for £17.99 (at the time of writing).

And a final word for all those who love cardistry.  I’m not sure any of the decks we’ve looked at today would really suit that kind of thing.

Although I haven’t seen these in person, I quite like the look of the Broken Borders deck – which lends itself to some fantastic bold flourishing effects.  Head over to MoM to see some pictures of the Broken Borders playing cards.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our round up of these new bicycle cards.  Keep checking back for more card and magic news and reviews.

Review decks kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed (apart from the Runic Royalty Deck which came from PlayingCardDecks.com).

The post A clutch of new Bicycle Cards appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

What we love about the cards is the incredible attention to detail which has woven the theme so clearly throughout the deck. From the very first view of the tuck case (“We’re all mad here” it proclaims – which could well be my family motto!) there are lovely touches everywhere. The Cheshire Cat’s grin disappearing; the mock turtle and gryphon holding the crest; the messages on the side of the case. I particularly love the deck seal – which illustrates Alice’s frustration!

The stylised garden makes a pleasing back design with those elusive locked doors in view. Each suit has its own graphic (the pocket watch, the pepper pot, etc) which carries through the whole suit – and gives an interesting ‘edge marking’ effect.

The court cards have been delightfully illustrated with many of the main characters. Alice herself gets pride of place on the Aces with allusions to a number of the key scenes. The jokers represent that pesky potion and the cake which are responsible for so much of the mayhem.

The preview deck we saw didn’t include the delightful artwork inside the case – of Alice falling down the rabbit hole. So we may just have to get ourselves a real deck!

It really is a charming deck which will certainly appeal to any Alice in Wonderland fan. And as a limited edition deck it will appeal to collectors too.

It is printed on Bee Stock – which promises the same finish as ‘air cushion’ but felt smoother to me.  I’m not sure I would use it as a magician unless I had a specifically Alice flavoured routine to perform. But well worth a look.

At the time of writing the Kickstarter campaign has 17 days to go (if you want to get some of those lovely bonuses – which include things like uncut sheets etc) – so what are you waiting for? You don’t want to be late…

Alice in Wonderland Playing Cards – at Kickstarter

4.3 / 5 Reviewer

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Memento Mori Blue

Obviously all reviews are very subjective, but I found this deck to be a bit of a love it or hate it. The thing that I probably like most of all is the groovy 3d impressed tuck case. It is bold and striking and makes a statement.

Like the Fox Targets we looked at yesterday (also by Murphys Magic) there is no seal on the tuck case, which makes things a bit easier.

They have made the design decision to make all the pips the same colour. I am sure there are good artistic reason for this, but it seems perverse to me. You can see it clearly in this picture of the aces.

The geometric pattern has been brought across into the design of the court cards.  Personally, I just don’t like the style – but some will – so I have provided plenty of pictures for you to make your own mind up.

The design of the jokers seems slightly unimaginative but I could see them fitting into certain types of presentation.

The design really comes into its own in spreads and fans.  As you can see, these are very attractive and make a striking display.  This would make a great deck for cardistry or flashy manipulation within a standard magic act.

Time is fleeting – this deck proclaims – and so I will leave my words there and let you make up your own mind.

You can pick up a deck of Memento Mori Blue playing cards at magicshop.co.uk for £9.50 (at the time of writing).

Review copy kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

New deck review – Memento Mori Blue

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Fox Targets

I really like these. Have I given the game away too early? Let’s start with the tuck case. The elegant front of the box is in keeping with the sophisticated feel to the deck. But I find the back design a little disappointing – not quite fitting with the understated nature of the rest of the deck and much more elaborate than the simple gray backs of the cards themselves.

Neither of the tuck-cases in this review come with seals on the deck – so they are easier to get into than some cards – and you don’t end up with the sticky residue or messy break.

One of my favourite aspects of the deck is the fabulous restyling of the court cards – wonderfully intricate yet simple designs.

In fact the faces continue to impress – with stylised pips and lots of white space. The large pips on the aces are particularly pleasing.  This is a deck I would really enjoy using both in magic performances or for playing card games.

I have some sympathy for the poor foxes on the jokers!  Where are you on fox hunting?  In the UK it is quite a divisive issue – so let’s not go there.

All in all, the Fox Targets are a lovely deck which is available from the Merchant of Magic for £9.50 (at the time of writing)

(Sorry for the slightly washed out images – we were shooting outside on a particularly bright day – they are much clearer if you look at the larger images.)

Review copy kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

New deck review – Fox Targets

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If you are a fan of top quality card magic then you should be VERY excited that The Complete Walton Volume 3 is now available! Roy Walton is an absolute legend in card magic and volumes one and two of this series are essential reading for any card magician. There are 96 effects in this new volume (55p each!) some previously unpublished – so even without reading it this would get my highest recommendation. £52.99

And if one book isn’t enough, then check out Less is More which I venture to suggest is likely to be another modern classic full of Ben Earl’s wisdom and strong effects. £38.99

Magic videos don’t often make me stop and stare, but if Expansion is even half as good as its video demo then it is a phenomenal effect! In effect you stretch a small whole into a long slot and then return it in an instant – and the signed card can then be handed out as a momento. Eye-popping visual magic. £27.99 (also available in blue)

Although I haven’t seen this, when Juan Tamariz recommends something I sit up and take note. Triple C is a method of controlling a card or several cards which will enable you to perform a whole host of powerful magic. £27.99 (also available in red – strangely for 51 pence more!)

Lots more new playing cards out – and sorry not to get round to the round up last month – I was too busy celebrating my birthday! But the Neoclassic Playing Cards have caught my eye this month. Follow the link for more pictures, but a classy blend of old and new with a pleasing back design and some very striking court cards. £9.99

And finally, let’s not forget those humble accessories which sometimes make our magic easier and always make it more of a pleasure. The humble close up matt doesn’t get much attention, but this new range from JM Authentics look rather fine and come highly recommended. Check them out!

I’m pleased to say that I have now acquired to of the books I mentioned in last month’s trick of the month – so more detailed reviews will be following soon. For now, have a great month!

The post Trick of the Month – June 2017 appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

Many of our crew enjoy the self-working kind of magic, and for them Fortuity by David Jonathan may be worth a look. The plot is loosely based on the classic Duel Match type effect – but the method and detail have been changed – leaving an easy to do prediction effect. £34.99

But we never forget that we started out as a sight entirely focused on playing cards for magic. So here’s a heads-up on some rather good looking cards. The Whispering Imps are a striking set of cards which would work particularly well in any gambling-themed routine. They feature a minimalist back design, and dual-orientation indices. As well as the Red and Black versions (£10.50) which have been available for a while, the Green Limited Edition deck is now available individually (it was previously only available in a wooden collectors box set) for £37.50.

I have a significant birthday this month, so am going to indulge by mentioning a whole shelf-full of wonderful magic books.

Nick Trost’s Subtle Card Creations series have been ram-packed with wonderful magic, often requiring little sleight of hand. So volume 6 is a must read. £38.99. Anything with Robert Neale’s name on it is also worth reading – he has an incredibly creative take on story-telling magic and his books always stimulate ideas. Why not pick up Magic Matters ready for some ideal holiday reading? Like Neale, but often more provocative, is Jamy Ian Swiss. I loved Shattering Illusions so have no hesitation recommending Preserving Mystery without even having laid my hands upon it. [UPDATE – we have now read and done a full review of Preserving Mystery – it is Superb!]  [And if anyone wants to buy me something for my 40th then this beautiful collectors edition of his complete works would be a nice idea :-)]

And last, but not least, here’s a welcome re-release. Marc Oberon’s Bang On has always been, to my mind, one of the best solutions to the thought of card in envelope plot. I have seen many variations over the years and have performed several, but there is something about the direct simplicity of Marc’s version which makes it very strong. It’s been re-released on Bicycle stock, and I gather there may be a few other refinements – though I haven’t picked up a copy yet. £96.50

That’s all for now. Have a great month, and check back in for a stack of new reviews – including the latest Bannon DVD – coming soon…

The post Trick of the Month – May 2017 Edition appeared first on Bicycle Cards.

As a magicians first and card lover second, these Black Luxury Expert at the Card Table playing cards tick all the boxes. A classic look, celebrates a classic text and the cards even look something like a book. These are great. £12.50

On a completely different theme (and not to be mixed up with the classic Syzygy Magazine) are Elite Playing Cards new Syzygy Playing Cards. The name (who knew?) comes from an Ancient Greek word for an astromonmical phenomenon – and there are astronomical elements in the classy design. I also love the velum tuck case and rich colours. £12.99

On a more mundane note, you have probably heard about USPCC’s Maiden back design – a variation on the classic rider back. I can almost guarantee a spectator won’t notice the difference if you swap between the two. Some gaffs are being printed with this design, so you may want a normal deck too. Also available in Blue. Both at £4.99

If you’re a fan of variations on a theme, then check out this limited edition Bicycle Paris Back deck. The design features the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe and includes a few special cards which would be useful for magicians. Also available in Blue. Both at £13.99

The same company (Jokarte) are behind another limited edition deck – the Bicycle Golden Luxe. This is a re-release of a deck long sold-out and has been put out with a new embossed black tuck case to add to the ‘lux’! Real metal is added to these cards yet they still handle beautifully. (Also available in a striking Emerald edition). £25.50

We’re slightly out of space and time now (this is sounding like Dr Who!) and can’t do justice to all the other latest cards.  But for an intriguing design, why not have a look at The Other Kingdom Playing Cards – both limited edition decks – one focused on animals and one focused on birds. £14.99 I I also like the look of the Black Crown Deck (£5.99) but have rather mixed feelings about the Death Playing Cards (£9.99)!

The post Latest Cards roundup – keeping you up to date appeared first on Bicycle Cards.