Melissa Lenormand

The record

This stunning and surprising self-published deck is professionally printed and nicely-finished on playing card stock, with narrow white borders and a thin black line that frames each card exactly appropriately. The lovely brown diagonal pattern on the backs adds a feeling of mystery to the deck. Not that the deck needs beautiful backs to lend it mystery. In the hand, these cards are even more interesting than in the scans. Some visual elements, like color and tone and the use of writing "underneath" the collage images, are obvious in the scans. Others only became clear when the 36 cards are laid out on the table. For example, the cards demonstrate a terrific sense of composition. The cards are not all composed the same (one figure in the middle of the card) nor is each card's composition completely unique (as in some collaborative and collage decks). The deck strikes a perfect balance, with just enough visual similarity to unify the deck, and just enough variation to make each card distinct. Another surprise is that the writing on most of the cards becomes compelling when you hold them in your hand. I find myself picking out words and phrases from the text on the cards; the text en

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