Samantha's tarot arrived!

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 07 Apr 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

galadrial	07 Apr 2004
My birthday present arrived yesterday and it's one of the best presents I've ever received!:-) To begin with, Samantha knew it was an Aeclectian's present and wrapped it in lovely transparent, iridescent plastic paper with a green fabric ribbon (which my cat is still enjoying:-), and she included a 6 1/2" x 4 1/2" (visible), framed print of the Moon card- a perfect gift for a Pisces! The cards are thin enough to be sturdy yet flexible, and do not feel bulky in the hand. The colors are rich and deep- better than the scans can attest to, and, BTW, her site is www.dolphin-daze.com The borders on the cards of each suit and the Majors differ in their coloring yet are harmonious, especially as the Majors are a varigated rainbow that visually pulls the other border colors- blue, purple, green, and orange- together. There are many very "active" cards, whether juggling, running, pulling, or just staring intently right at you (the captivating King of Wands), plus several with animals- my favorite being the two bears quarrelling on the Five of Wands- the cards are infused with action. This gives the deck as a whole a more dynamic feel than I'd anticipated- "There's no such thing as still life" could be it's motto. Even the several lovely "quiet" cards, like the napping cat in the Four of Swords, the beautiful mer-family in the Ten of Cups, or Death, who has the Universe floating within him and a vine twining up his scythe, have an aliveness to them. I don't know when I've handled a more vibrant feeling deck. Also, the faces/bodies of the people vary greatly; while being universal in their application, they have a personal feel to them as though the artist knows them all and allows her affection for them to shine through. Not to give the impression that there are no dark cards, though. The Three of Swords with a wolf howling in the foreground and the Nine of Swords with a woman quietly crying alone in the dark on an entirely white, arid looking bed are quite affecting. An RWS based deck, it nonetheless has some nice departures that show a lot of thought and personal introspection went into the cards- they are definately not a straightforward clone. For instance, I appreciate the female Hemit and the woman bounding up the stairs to see what's around the next corner in the Eight of Cups. I also really like the Tower card- a lighthouse being struck by lightning that ignites the tower's lamp so that it shines out to the potentially clueless ships at sea. This reminds me of a thread started by Firemaiden that I greatly enjoyed: "But, but, but what if the Tower isn't supposed to crumble?" www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=14485&highlight=tower - and is a take on this card that I really enjoy. The Empess shows a just finished painting of a mother (or grandmother) holding a child. I like to think that the child is female and that this card encompasses motherhood past, present and future. And the Six of Swords is such a quiet passage that the lone woman in the boat appears to be fixing her hair as her boat sails toward the potential end of a rainbow that appears partially in the corner of the card. I could (obviously:-) go on and on, but I will end here with a big Thank-You to Samantha. I will treasure this deck and use it with great Joy! Blessings, galadrial

Cocobird55	08 Apr 2004
Hi, Galadrial This deck is number one on my wishlist. Did you get the larger or the smaller version? I love the look of the cards on Samantha's website -- I sit and drool... Thanks -- Sue

dolphinprincess	08 Apr 2004
I do not have Samantha's Tarot.. but I did buy her DolphinDaze Tarot as a Christmas present to myself this year.. and she does do a great job with "presentation"... Like yours, my deck was wrapped beautifully... It really adds to the excitement when you go to open it.. !!! Samantha is always great about sending other "treats"... When I did a trade with her, she sent me samples of her Dolphin Deck.. and when I got that deck.. she sent samples of her Samantha's tarot which I love... The colors really are beautiful.. Perhaps someday I will be able to afford that one as well !!! Enjoy :D

Astraea	08 Apr 2004
This deck is on my wishlist, too. I really like Samantha's takes on many themes, especially the Devil and Tower. Thank you for posting the link to her website -- seeing all of the cards makes me even more impressed with the deck.

galadrial	09 Apr 2004
Hi Cocobird55, I got the larger version. It is laminated and a size I am used to using- besides, it was a present so why not spluge?:-) Hi dolphinprincess, Samantha included a Dolphin Daze card, as well. It is lovely and I'm glad you're enjoying yours! Maybe next Christmas... Hi Astraea, I spent a lot of time at her site over the last year or so, and it was her unique takes that really pushed this deck to the top of my wishlist. Should you find the opportunity to get it I don't think you'll be disappointed.

dolphingirl	12 Apr 2004
Hi Everyone Thank you so much for all the positive feedback on Samantha's Tarot! It is enough to make a girl blush :) If you ever have questions on the imagery in a card I am always happy to chat about it. One of these days I will get a chance to do a LWB and hopefully go into the background on some of these images and the stories behind them. I saw that you mentioned the tower card in your post so I thought I would talk about it a bit :). On the tower card I did make a few changes from the "usual" Rider waite Imagery. For one thing there are no people falling from the tower. Instead I did two blocks from the tower. Now don't wory the tower isn't in immenent peril. This tower can be rebuilt (insert bionic man theme here) While the tower can be a sudden and tragic awakening it also gives one the illumination to see that changes can be made and things can be rebuilt better and stronger. One thing I tried to do when I created these cards is to leave things open in them for people to interprete there own way. Such as with the tower, when I get this card in a reading I like to ask myself things such as. Is there anyone up there when the lightning hits? If not then things are not as bad as they seem. Will the tower still stand after everything? Will it be rebuilt stronger the next time? What about any ships in the sea? Were they saved by the extra illumination provided by the lightning? Well I can go on all day lol! I love to use my cards both for reading and for story telling and no story is ever the same a second time through. Thank you again galadrial for the note and the post. Alot of times I don't hear anything back from a person who has one of my decks and it is these things that I treasure the most. I am so glad that you like the deck and extras. Please keep in touch :) Also if anyone wants a copy of Samantha's tarot or one of my other decks/items I am always happy to take time payments and do layaway. :) Thank you again everyone! Samantha

Cocobird55	22 Jul 2004
My copy of Samantha's Tarot arrived today. It is beautiful -- I love the backgrounds and the colors -- wonderful. I picked it up at the Post Office, and asked the man behind the counter to open the outer box for me. He did, and then he wanted to see what it was, so I showed him the deck. He thought it was lovely, too. Sue

WolfSpirit	23 Jul 2004
Congratulations galadrial and Cocobird on your new decks - the deck looks like a celebration in itself. From just looking at the scans you can just feel the love that has gone into it. At the moment a bit out of my price range I am afraid - but one day surely... ;)

The Samantha's tarot arrived! thread was originally posted on 07 Apr 2004 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.