Category: Entertainment

BREAKING IN A NEW DECK: WHY AND HOW?

Posted on August 3, 2021 by - Card Games, Entertainment, How To, Playing Cards

BREAKING IN A NEW DECK Ah, the sweet smell of a brand new deck. There it is, a fresh arrival in the mail, now waiting on your kitchen table. It is taunting you in its shiny cellophane, begging to be opened. Inside, as you know, is the joy of discovery, the smell of newness, the feel of brand new playing cards, and the promise of future experiences. You can hardly wait! But do you need to break in your new deck first? If you want the handling to be smooth, are there any special steps you need to take to get your deck into optimum working condition for peak performance? And if so, what is the right way to do that? In this article, we’ll consider and explore this topic.

DO YOU EVEN NEED TO BREAK IN A DECK?

Whether or not you even need to break in a deck depends on a number of factors.

1. Are you a professional magician, about to perform a gig?

If so, then it’s not likely that you want your first experience with a new deck of cards to be on stage in the middle of a performance or when you’re on stage. Ideally, you’ll want to have at least given it a short test drive in advance, just to make sure it feels right, and has that gently worn and familiar feeling, so that it won’t cause any issues during your performance. The last thing you want is a couple of cards to be stuck together, or to find some other issue with the deck. Obviously magicians won’t want to perform with a tired and worn deck that is full of grime, because it makes a poor impression, so it is professionally important to use a deck that is brand new or near new. But when using that new deck, you don’t want to have to worry about a less than optimal performance, so you do want it handling as best as it can from the moment your performance begins. You certainly don’t want to be spending precious minutes fiddling with cellophane wrappers, or getting rid of the standard “new deck order”. And are the cards too stiff? Too slippery? These are the two main issues you may find with a new deck, and are the kinds of things that you can address by breaking in a deck. For many professionals, it will be a personal thing as to whether or not a deck performs exactly the way you want fresh out of the box, or whether you prefer the slightly different handling that results from a slightly worn deck. But for the rest of us, unless our first drive with our deck is at some official event, the need to “break in” a deck is much less necessary. It will get broken in naturally simply by using it, so just go right ahead and put it to work. It’s not like some new car that you need to handle gently for the first few kilometers, nor are you like a test pilot nervously taking a brand new plane on its first flight. Little can go wrong, and if you just use the deck for what it is intended for, everything will work out fine.

2. Who is the publisher, and what kind of deck is it?

Decks from some publishers will perform just beautifully straight out of the box, and this can also depend on the card stock that is used. Many cardists like using a deck that feels soft, and typically a deck will become softer by sheer use, as pressure is applied to the cards in the course of shuffling and handling. A USPCC deck with their “Thin-Crush” stock will have this feel immediately from the box, whereas a deck with their thicker and higher grade Casino Bee stock may require some wearing in before the cards feel softer. The B9 True Linen stock from Cartamundi also has a very soft feel from the box as well, and many cardists will just love how this feels from the get go. In contrast, LPCC/EPCC decks with the Diamond/Master Finish will have a much stiffer feel from the outset, and this sense of snap and firmness isn’t likely to change much despite intense use of the cards, given that these are intended to be much harder wearing and longer lasting cards. All this means that whether or not there’s a need to break in a deck can depend on how it handles straight out of the box, which can vary according to the publisher and the kind of deck it is. So let’s talk about the typical USPCC deck a little more, since that represents by far the majority of decks. Decks with their standard Bicycle stock and with their higher grade Casino Bee stock will both become softer over time, so it can be helpful to wear these in if that is important to you. This is largely a process that will occur naturally as you use the cards, so there’s no need to artificially wear them in as such. But if it is very important to you that all the cards arrive at the same degree of softness at the same time, you might want to systematically go through a series of moves that puts all the cards through their paces in the same way. Certain decks will also be more slippery when they are first used, which is a result of the coating on the cards. Some use will see this wear slightly, and the cards won’t quite slide as freely as they did initially, which is another reason some magicians will want to break in a deck first. On the other hand, other decks may perform worse over time, although this will largely be with decks from inferior publishers. These may appeal to spread and fan smoothly immediately from the box, but over time can quickly start clumping and be inconsistent.

3. How do you like your deck to feel and perform?

For most people, a deck will slowly change its feel as it gets used. In some cases, a deck may perform worse as it wears, and fans and spreads that were initially super smooth and consistent may start becoming clumpy or less than optimal. But generally speaking, as a deck becomes slightly softer it can become more pleasant to use, and sometimes this can even mean that fans and spreads can improve. It also can become less slippery, and the cards will actually spread and fan a little more consistently and pleasantly. One thing about USPCC produced cards is that the edges of the cards can be somewhat rough after the cutting process. You can feel this by running your hand alongside the edge of a brand new deck, especially if you compare it to the super clean and smooth cut of a LPCC/EPCC produced deck. This will wear smoother with time, but there are things you can do to speed up this process.

Recommendation

To summarize, a deck that has been worn in slightly will generally perform better than a brand new deck – although there are exceptions. Cards will be less slippery, and spread evenly and smoothly, springs will be easier due to the cards being softer, faros will be more consistent (in both directions), and packets and double lifts can be formed more cleanly. This will happen naturally over time with any deck, so in many cases you don’t need to do anything special – just go ahead and enjoy the cards, and they’ll wear in automatically as you use them. But sometimes you do want to accelerate that process for performance reasons.

HOW SHOULD YOU BREAK IN A DECK?

So suppose we do want to break in our deck, how should we go ahead doing that? Let’s imagine that our deck is still staring at us from the kitchen table, grinning at us from within its cellophane. So let’s begin right at the start of the whole process, and list some steps that we can do.

Step 1: Preparation

So what do we need to get started? ● Be clean. You didn’t see that coming did you? There you were, with your grimy hands, all ready to rip into your brand new deck, and you almost forgot this important step! Go ahead and wash your hands – and dry them thoroughly! The oil on your hands, and any grime that might be invisibly clinging to it, will quickly transfer to your brand new cards, and before you know it they will start looking grimy as well. So it’s important to get rid of any sweat, dust and dirt that your hands might be carrying, and give your new deck the very best start it can, rather than throwing mud at it on its first test drive! ● Get your tools. Don’t worry, you won’t need a hammer or any heavy equipment! But a sharp knife will come in handy shortly, in order to do a neat and tidy job of opening the seal.

Step 2: Opening the Tuck Box

You didn’t really think that the cards magically pop out of that wrapped box do you? This process involves several steps: ● Cellophane. We begin by opening the cellophane, or shrink-wrap as it’s sometimes also called. Rather than ripping this from the top or bottom, I usually like to pull the tab provided for this around the deck. What this does is divide the wrapper into two halves. I typically remove the smaller top half, but leave the larger lower half on the deck. This provides additional protection to the tuck box, helping it stay in shape, and preventing the corners from becoming dinged up or tearing. But not too much can go wrong when removing the cellophane – unless you’re using a knife, in which case be careful that the sharp blade doesn’t slip and leave an unplanned but permanent tattoo on your skin or on the tuck box! ● Seal. Now for the seal, which is the adhesive sticker on most decks that keeps the deck closed and needs to be opened in order to open the top flap. Again, there are wrong ways to do this. Rather than just tear this in any fashion, I like to preserve the seal as best as possible. With a custom deck, the seal has often been thoughtfully and deliberately designed with unique artwork to fit with the rest of the deck, and it’s nice to preserve as much of that as possible. Cutting it parallel with the top of the deck along the upper flap is less than ideal, because it means you’ll invariably have part of the sticky side of the seal facing inwards, where it will occasionally attach itself to a playing card, and over time accumulate dust and dirt. Instead, it’s often best to get a sharp knife, and cut the seal right along the semi-circle shape. In a pinch, you can use a thumb nail to do this. But the result will be very neat and tidy: when the tuck box flap is closed, you’ll see the two parts of the seal come together in entirety, and there’s the added advantage that you won’t be leaving any sticky surfaces around to attract grime. ● Top flap. Ideally you want to bend the top flap backwards. There is usually a line about 1cm below the top flap, which has been pressed into the deck during production, and that’s where you want to bend the top flap backwards – not at the very top of the deck itself. What this does is reveal the top centimeter of the cards, making them easy to grab. If you don’t do this, and the cards are somewhat of a tight fit in the tuck box, you may find yourself butchering the top of the case trying to get the deck out.

Step 3: Removing the Cards

Wait, do we really need a whole step that explains how to remove the cards from the tuck box, and do I really think you have an IQ lower than an Ace of Spades? I’m sure you’re bright enough – after all you’re reading this! – but the truth is that you can butcher this part of the process as well. ● Take out the cards. If you have pushed back the top flap at the line described in the previous step, you should be able to get your fingers on both sides of the top of the deck. The most natural way to do this is to have your thumb on one side of the deck in the semi-circular thumb tab (another reason for not cutting the seal directly across the top!), while your forefinger grabs the other side of the deck along the top centimeter of the cards that has been revealed when you bent the top flap of the tuck box backwards. Now you can just pull the cards out, but even that can be a little tight at times. Get gravity to help, and tip the box over, so that the cards fall naturally into your hand. Don’t forget to inhale that new deck smell – that’s not something you want to miss is it? Breathe in deeply, and smell those new cards – you know you want to! This is also a good time to remove the ad cards, so that what you’re handling is a 54 card deck without unnecessary extras. ● Smooth the edges. In the case of a USPCC produced decks, the edges of the playing cards of a brand new deck will feel noticeably rough. While this can improve over time, you might want to take your deck and rub all four sides a number of times against some fabric – denim jeans are perfect. This will remove any loose bits and can help reduce some of the roughness.

Step 4: Conditioning the Cards for Optimal Friction

Some swear that there’s a particular order of steps that must be followed when breaking in a deck in terms of how you handle the cards for the first time once they’re outside the box. Personally I fail to see how the order of what follows matters too much – although I wouldn’t begin with a riffle shuffle or spring for reasons I’ll explain in a moment. So here are the moves you should consider doing to make your cards perform better than when you have them in your hands for the first time. First of all, you want to give your cards a workout to help ensure optimal friction. These first moves are geared to ensure that the cards slide smoothly over each other. Cards have a coating that is designed to optimize how they glide over each other, but in the factory the cards have just been produced and never actually rubbed over each other, so there may be some small imperfections. We want to make sure that with the help of some warmth, wear, and pressure, everything is in good order and sliding smoothly and evenly. A helpful way to think of this is that you are polishing the cards by rubbing them against each other. ● Overhand shuffle. Shuffle off all the cards one at a time, to ensure that all the cards move freely, and there are no clumps of cards sticking together. It’s important to make sure that all the cards are properly separated. ● Wash. At this point some people recommend “washing” your cards. No, don’t get out the soapy water! A wash refers to spreading all the cards on the table, crudely overlapping each other, and shuffling them around over each other. The term “granny shuffle” is also used for this method. Personally I think that a systematic series of overhand shuffles accomplishes the same thing, is neater, and does a better job of looking after your cards, but you might find it more satisfying and effective to give your cards a “wash” as just described. ● Fan. A few fans are now the order of the day, in both directions. The idea of this and the previous step is that you get the cards sliding over each other every which way. If you did the above steps face up, now repeat them face down. This ensures that each card has gone through its paces in each and every direction, from both sides.

Step 5: Conditioning the Cards for Optimal Flexibility

But cards don’t only need to slide over each other smoothly, they also need to be able to flex in different directions. If they were stiff and rigid like wooden boards, there’s no way you could handle them at all, so we want to make sure that they are malleable and soft. That’s something that the printing process won’t do for us by bending them in different directions to soften them up, but fortunately it’s something we can easily do, by giving the cards a workout to help ensure optimal flexibility. These next moves are geared to ensuring that the cards flex properly, and return back to their natural shape easily and quickly. I strongly suggest doing these steps after the ones just described to get optimal friction, because when sliding the cards across each other, you don’t want them to be previously bent as a result of riffle shuffles or springs. Although if you find that your deck is warped out of the box, these flexibility routines will help straighten it out, so you may need to adjust the order of things. ● Aeration. This is simple and interesting “flex-ercise” in which you hold the deck similar to the beginning of a spring, squeezing both ends towards each other. This causes the deck to bend into a C shape, and you’ll notice the cards all separating from each other with a layer of air between them. This helps separate the cards, and helps prevent the oil or coating causing them to stick together. Do this in both directions. ● Riffle shuffle. Now it’s time for a good riffle shuffle, since not only do you want the cards sliding smoothly over each other, but you also want them flexing nicely. Do this both face up and face down, completing each shuffle with a bridge, so you don’t end up with bent or warped cards, and so that the cards are flexed in both directions. ● Faro shuffle. Another good move to do at this point is a faro shuffle. Given the new deck order, the central place that splits the deck exactly should be even easier than usual to find – for most standard decks it will be right between the King of Clubs and King of Diamonds. You can complete the shuffle by bridging the cards, or by cascading the cards together if you know how to perform that flourish. A faro shuffle will also tell you immediately whether or not a deck has a traditional cut or a modern cut, depending on which way you need to weave the cards together for the faro shuffle. ● Spring. Just like a riffle shuffle, a couple of good springs will help, and be sure to do these in both directions (face up and face down). To round things off, you might want to conclude with another series of overhand shuffles, just to make sure that the factory coating has had another pleasant polish and final warm up, so that it can behave optimally.

Closing Thoughts

In most cases, for the average person anyway, there’s no real need to artificially “break in” a deck. Just go ahead and use it! How it will handle and feel will change naturally over time, and as long as it’s a good quality deck, often this may make the handling smoother and better. But if you’re a performing professional, it may be important to make sure that a deck is in optimal handling condition ahead of a performance. In that case you will want to put a new deck through its paces before using it for the first time on the stage. Usually the best way to do this is by a systematic series of shuffles, fans, spreads, and springs, as described above, to break the cards in faster, and to ensure that they have optimal friction and flexibility ahead of your performance. It’s not a complex process, and simply spending 10 minutes with your deck in this way should do the trick. For most of us, none of this really matters enough, and wearing in a deck is what happens automatically as we use it. Even so, it is good to be aware of how to treat a deck well, and be familiar with some of the things you can do to help give your playing cards that familiar feel, and ensure that they won’t let you down. Treat your cards right, and they’ll treat you right! About the writer: EndersGame is a well-known reviewer of board games and playing cards. He loves card games, card magic, and collecting playing cards. 

SKIP SMALL TALK, HAVE BETTER CONVERSATIONS: DR. CHERINI GHOBRIAL’S CARD STORY

Posted on October 13, 2021 by - Branding, Card Designers, Card Games, Card Innovation, Card Story, Client Feature, Collaboration, conversation starter, Custom Design, Custom Gifts, custom party favor, Entertainment, family card games, game night, gaming events, Networking, Personalized Branding, Press Release, Self-Care, Social Media, Uncategorized

SKIP SMALL TALK, HAVE BETTER CONVERSATIONS

Small talk sucks! The unCURATED card game conquers chitchat once and for all!

unCURATED is a memento to late nights on the porch, where an exchange of meaningful stories forged better conversations, deep-rooted relationships, and stronger connections.

Its founder and creator, Dr. Cherini Ghobrial, hopes that each card pulled moves you closer to a solidified emotional foundation and further away from surface-level interactions.

About Dr. Cherini Ghobrial, Creator & Founder of unCURATED

After graduating from pharmacy school, where she earned a Doctor of Pharmacy degree, Dr. Ghobrial wanted to pursue health beyond physical wellness. Her current journey tackles the small-talk crisis.

The unCURATED card game is three rounds of creative questions designed to spark meaningful conversations, cultivate connection, and tend to all things essential to our emotional wellness.

My hope for unCURATED is that by creating spaces to ask better questions, together, we can create spaces where we can be seen, where we can see others, and where we can see ourselves more deeply. Where we can realize our shared belonging to each other, and remind each other that we’re not alone. –Dr. Cherini Ghobrial

At the beginning of the creative process, Dr. Ghobrial was unsure how impactful or far-reaching unCURATED would be. But her vision became crystal clear once she realized how much humans resent small talk. Conquering unpleasant pleasantries with more thought-provoking questions, unCURATED allows a genuine interconnection to enter the chat.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUInccZvSQ-/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Our Small World Moment

There’s no better feeling than seeing a client’s card game being played and enjoyed. –Shuffled Ink Staff

By chance, hundreds of miles away from Shuffled Ink‘s Orlando manufacturing facility, one of our employees spotted Dr. Ghobrial’s unCURATED decks at Valor Coffee in Downtown Alpharetta, Georgia.

The wonderful humans at this brick-and-mortar shop think the world of unCURATED’s mission and have happily offered the game for several years now.

“I remember packing and shipping those cards,” our team member said. “So, it was really cool to see her game out in the real world.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CMKcE-eprJf/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Say Hello! Find unCURATED At These Locations

Since launching in 2019 and winning the Plywood Presents: Idea Competition in Atlanta, the unCURATED card game has shipped across the globe to countless individuals and businesses.

So, whether you spot the deck by coincidence or pop into one of its East Coast vendors, be sure to grab a deck, join a group, and start connecting!

If we manufactured your card project and you would like us to share your Card Story on our blog, feel free to connect with our Marketing Team here.

ACE THE BRANDING PROCESS WITH CUSTOM PLAYING CARDS, TAROT, & MORE

Posted on October 8, 2021 by - Branding, Card Designers, Card Games, Collaboration, Entertainment, Family Business, Manufacturer, Networking, Personalized Branding, Playing Cards, Podcast, Poker Cards, Press Release, Printing Service, Recycled Material, Social Media, Tarot Cards, Uncategorized

Branded Playing Cards for This Dream House Ohio Radio Show

SHUFFLEDINK Guests on THIS DREAM HOUSE Ohio Radio Show

We do everything to help (our clients) create what they see in their minds. Charles Levin, Shuffled Ink Founder & President

Get To Know Us Better!

Shuffled Ink is a multigenerational family business with an unwavering, decades-old mission: to provide an unparalleled experience in customer service and product quality to ensure that all clients’ card visions meet reality. See what our clients are saying about the services, product quality and pricing we offer: Shuffled Ink Google Reviews.

FAMILY ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND FOUNDING SHUFFLED INK: CHARLES LEVIN’S CARD STORY

Posted on September 1, 2021 by - Behind the Scenes, Card Designers, Card Games, Card Innovation, Card Story, Client Feature, Custom Design, Custom Gifts, Education Learning, Entertainment, Family Business, fun facts, History, Manufacturer, Meet the Team, Networking, Oracle Cards, Packaging, Personalized Branding, Playing Cards, Poker Cards, Press Release, Printing Service, Social Media, Uncategorized

FAMILY ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND FOUNDING SHUFFLED INK

(top row, left to right) Charles, Matthew, Jonathan; (bottom row, left to right) Lori, Lisa, Melissa

In December 1999, Charles Levin, Founder & President of Shuffled Ink (formerly known as QPC Games), was raising three girls and two boys, ranging in age from one to 12. As a marketer living in the top U.S. travel destination (Orlando, Florida), he wanted to create an alternative to brochures and discount books.

He believed that custom-printed playing cards could deliver impactful marketing and branding applications, educational usefulness, and of course, fun-filled family game nights.

This thought, matched with an eager, entrepreneurial mindset, kickstarted Charles’ very first custom card project: advertisement playing cards, or Super Deck.

Charles’ Card Story: From Concept to Reality

The purpose of Super Deck was to promote and elevate tourist hotspots and establishments in the Orlando area. The original pack consisted of a map and cards with discounts and coupons for local attractions, dinner shows, restaurants, shopping, golf, and recreation. Soon after pitching the concept to prospective vendors, Charles had secured the marketing deck in 90 percent of Orlando hotel rooms.

Throughout the early 2000s, Shuffled Ink’s first employees were his 5 children: Melissa, Lori, Matthew, Lisa and Jonathan. The Levin family would regularly clear off the dining room table and use the space to create playing card prototypes and other related personalized products.

As sales blossomed and new opportunities arose, Charles moved the business into his three-car garage. For several years, this is where all marketing, sales, administration, and shipping took place.

For the past 9 years, Charles and his team of production facilitators, project managers and graphic designers have operated in an 8,000 square-foot office and production facility in Orlando, Florida. By Summer 2022, we are expanding into a 35,800 square-foot manufacturing and office space in Winter Garden, Florida.

Charles’ business model has changed quite a bit since Super Deck. Today, Shuffled Ink specializes in printing custom playing cards, tarot and flash cards, packaging, and more for businesses and individuals worldwide.

https://youtu.be/yUmTXQasbGg

Family Entrepreneurship: The Shuffled Ink Team

Three of Charles’ kids are still involved at Shuffled Ink today.

Matthew, his oldest son, moved back to Orlando from New York City in 2016 to help him run the business as Chief Executive Officer. His daughter Lisa worked at the company part-time for many years but now oversees all customer services as Vice President of Sales. And youngest son, Jonathan, assists behind-the-scenes in the manufacturing facility.

“Throughout the past 22+ years, my kids’ incredible contributions and influence have added to the existence, growth, and success of Shuffled Ink.”  –Charles Levin, Shuffled Ink Founder & President
The Levin Family (left to right): Charles, Lisa, Matthew and Jonathan Levin

Get To Know Us Better!

Shuffled Ink is a multigenerational family business with an unwavering, decades-old mission: to provide an unparalleled experience in customer service and product quality to ensure that all clients’ card visions meet reality.

See what our clients are saying about the services, product quality and pricing we offer: Shuffled Ink Google Reviews.

To receive complimentary samples of our card products, include your delivery address and phone number on your custom quote request form.

If we manufactured your card project and you would like us to share your Card Story on our blog, feel free to connect with our Marketing Team here.

WORLD RECORD CARD HOUSES: LITERALLY TAKING YOUR PLAYING CARDS TO THE NEXT LEVEL

Posted on August 24, 2021 by - Art, Card Innovation, Cardstacking, Entertainment, fun facts, History, How To, Playing Cards, Poker Cards, World Records

World-Record card houses

Card Stacking

Most people know what is meant by the phrase “stacking the deck”. It refers to a technique where you cheat in a card game, by arranging the cards in a particular order. The expression has even entered the English language, and can be used figuratively. Misleading your hearers by cherry-picking evidence and arguments to present only one side of a story is also known as “card stacking”, and is frequently used in advertising and politics. But today we’re concerned with stacking cards in a more literal sense. Because card stacking can also refer to the literal stacking of cards into a building-like structure. In other words, it’s when you place cards on top of each other to build what is commonly called a house of cards.
The phrase “house of cards” has also migrated into the English language, and is used metaphorically to refer to a situation that is highly unstable or volatile, or to anything likely to fail or collapse. It’s not hard to see why it has this meaning. As you’ll know if you’ve ever tried to build one, a house of cards is a very precarious structure that requires a delicate touch and much care. You only have to bump it slightly, or place one card wrong, and the whole structure collapses in an instant. The appropriateness of the image and its wide use in the English language proves that building an actual house of cards with real playing cards is incredibly difficult to do. But there are people who can pull this off successfully, and build card houses of incredible size. In this elite group, one man stands tall – though dwarfed by his card houses. That man is world record holder Bryan Berg.

Bryan Berg

Bryan Berg describes himself as a “cardstacker”, hence his official website cardstacker.com. His remarkable credentials are confirmed by the four separate World Records related to cardstacking that he currently holds. ● Tallest House of Freestanding Playing Cards (set in 1992) ● Largest House of Freestanding Playing Cards (set in 2004) ● Tallest House of Freestanding Playing Cards Built in 12 Hours (set in 2016) ● Tallest House of Freestanding Playing Cards Built in One Hour (set in 2018) If those categories don’t sound challenging enough, consider the fact that the third of these (tallest house built in 12 hours) was constructed on a running, fully loaded washing machine! He set the first of these records at the age of 17, with a 4.4 meter tower. He’s bettered several of these records more than once since setting them, and has broken his record for the tallest house around ten times. In numerous instances his record-breaking attempts have been commissioned by sponsors. His 2004 record for largest structure was a new category that Guinness created especially for him, and was a replica of Cinderella’s Castle for Walt Disney World, which took 24 days to build.
It’s worth mentioning here that the world record for the tallest house of cards has increased significantly since the early 1900s. That’s when record-breaking card towers began receiving attention in the media, and reports indicated that the best structures from that time ranged in size from 15 stories or layers high to as many as 25 stories. In 1972 Guinness listed the highest authenticated claim as being 27 stories high. The 1972 record was absolutely decimated by James Warnock in 1978 with a creation that consisted of an incredible 61 stories, which John Slain managed to increase to 68 stories in 1983. This lasted until Bryan’s record breaking attempt in 1992, which increased the bar to 75 stories. At the State Fair of Texas in 2007 he built a tower that was almost 8 meters high for the current world record. The size was limited only by the ceiling of the room in which it was built, and even then some ceiling tiles were removed to give extra building room into the attic! To give an idea of the amount of cards required, here are some figures for a 7.6m high card tower that Bryan built in 1998. It used over 1500 decks, weighed more than 110 kg, and took more than two weeks to build. Or consider the replica of the Venetian Macao resort hotel which he spent 44 days building in 2010. It was 3 metres tall and 10.5 metres long, used over 4,000 decks (representing over 218,000 cards), and weighed more than 272 kg.
Bryan’s academic background is in architecture, but he insists that it was his love for cardstacking that led him in that direction, not the other way around. He credits his grandfather for introducing him to cardstacking at the age of 8, as an amusing activity between the many card games that his family played. But what his grandfather sparked was a love for building, rather than a specific method. Bryan continued experimenting with different methods, teaching himself different card stacking techniques, and perfecting the art. What he knows about building card houses is simply the result of continued experimentation – although he’s learned a lot about the structural behaviour of real buildings as a result of his expertise with playing cards. Remarkably, his incredible structures are all freestanding, and he uses no tape, glue, or tricks like bending or manipulating the cards in any way. He turned professional in 1994, which gives him the unique position of being the only person in the world that actually earns a full-time living by stacking playing cards. So where does he make his money? He travels around the US and even the world, putting his card stacking skills on show. The instant appeal and visual impact of his remarkable card houses makes Bryan’s creations a real attraction, and this makes his work ideal to feature at the center of a special event, advertising campaign, or museum. For example, in 2005 he built a replica of the New York skyline using 178,000 cards, to represent those whose lives were lost in the 2014 Boxing Day tsunami, a project that gave supporters the opportunity to donate to survivors through several charities. He’s had clients around the world who have sought him out for his work. What he does is arguably a performance art.

The method

When most people try building a house of cards, they use the pyramid or triangle shape as the main building block, with the aim of building another layer on top of this. A structure of this sort is notoriously difficult to build, and if you manage to get anything beyond three levels high, you can quite rightly be quite proud of your achievement. Bryan has developed an entirely different technique, however. And given his success, it’s hard to argue with him. Instead of using the classic triangular shape as his base building block, he builds towers using square shapes. It’s a self-taught method, but it’s incredibly effective, and can support an incredible amount of weight. According to Berg, the higher the tower goes, the more solid the lower layers become, due to the physics behind this design. The combined weight of the cards actually makes the structure more stable. Moreover, because he arranges the cards in a grid-like structure, they prevent each other from falling over or bending, further increasing their strength and stability. Here’s a video clip from WIRED that features Bryan explaining his card stacking technique:
https://youtube.com/watch?v=5F6j4e1C4Zk
This repeated geometric pattern is surprisingly simple to learn, and is also the secret behind the large structures Bryan builds. You then cover the basic honeycomb shapes with cards, and go on to build the next layer on top. Once you master this basic concept, you can apply the same pattern for building walls, columns, and beams, which enables you to create variety in shapes. The result is surprisingly strong. In fact, to destroy his creations, Bryan typically uses a leaf-blower. Yes, really – you can even see him do this on video!

Give it a try!

Now it’s your turn. Would you like to try your hand at cardstacking using Bryan’s method? It’s not something he’s kept secret, and he’s published a book entitled Stacking the Deck: Secrets of the World’s Master Card Architect which reveals all. But he’s also explained the basics of his method on videos readily available online. In addition to the video clip above from WIRED, you can see another helpful explanation from Bryan about his method in the following video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NnPaEU3-H0k
Key to his success is a simple four card cell structure, which is repeated over and over, in a manner that can best be compared to a beehive or honeycomb shape, or even a waffle. Armed with his basic approach, will quickly be able to take your card stacking skills to the next level. Perhaps you won’t quite be building as elaborate structures as Bryan, who has created a wide range of architectural styles that range from stadiums and churches to pyramids and temples, and even replicas of specific structures like the Empire State Building. But when you try Bryan’s method it is remarkable how much you can achieve. You may be surprised to learn that Bryan even considers himself to be rather clumsy – but his solid design structure and his methodical approach have rescued him more than once.
Two girls assembling their playing card structure.
Here are some helpful tips you should keep in mind, when trying to beat your “personal best”: ● Use new cards. Old cards tend to have bends in them, so it is recommended that you use new or near-new playing cards for the best results. ● Use embossed cards. Most playing cards have an embossed or “air cushion” finish. That is preferable to using cards with a high gloss and smooth finish, because they typically will prove too slippery. ● Build on the floor. It’s tempting to build your structure on a table, but tables invariably wobble. You only need to give your table an accidental bump and your house of cards will come crashing down. ● Avoid slippery surfaces. Don’t build on something slippery, like shiny wood. Particle board can work, or else a non-plush carpet that is tightly woven together. ● Use Bryan’s method. Instead of building with triangles, place the cards on their sides at right angles to each other, forming squares in a repeated pattern. To make the structure self-supporting, lean the cards against each other using the T shapes that this involves. ● Stay relaxed. Tension is your enemy, because your hands will shake if you are tense, increasing the risk of accidentally destroying your own building efforts. That makes it all the more important to stay relaxed. ● Watch your grip. Especially when you’re building on upper layers, Bryan recommends letting the card rest between your fingers rather than holding the card, due to the increased risk of transferring your “shakes” to the structure. ● Don’t give up too easily. Patience is a virtue, and you’ll need lots of it to be successful in building a house of cards. This is a skill you can learn, but don’t expect to become an expert right away. Bryan’s method will help you improve almost instantly, but don’t be surprised to have your structure fall down. Persist, and keep on trying, because like any skill in life, it’s by persevering and by learning from your mistakes that you’ll improve.

Final Thoughts

If you think that you go through a lot of decks a year, spare a thought for Bryan, who estimates that he goes through well over 5,000 decks a year. But Bryan’s achievements also teach us something truly important. While most people are wary of anything that is considered to be “a house of cards” due to its potential to collapse, Bryan shows that it’s possible to make a living from building a house of cards. He’s found a way to turn to the kind of structure that most of us consider a disaster into his bread and butter. So perhaps the lesson in this is that there are times where we shouldn’t shy away from what seems initially difficult, and by persevering, we may sometimes even accomplish something very important. Spending time building a house of cards may even have rewards you never expected. So what are you waiting for – get out those playing cards, and give it a try for yourself! Want to learn more about Bryan Berg? ● Official site ● Guinness World Records – Largest Playing Card Structure Want to see videos with Bryan and learn his techniques? ● How this guy stacks playing cards impossibly high (WIRED) ● How to stack playing cards (WIRED) ● Record holder profile (Part 1) (Guinness World Records) ● Record holder profile (Part 2) (Guinness World Records) ● World’s best card stacker builds insane outdoor card tower (Coolest Thing) Images courtesy of Bryan Berg, and used with permission.
About the writer: EndersGame is a well-known reviewer of board games and playing cards. He loves card games, card magic, and collecting playing cards. This article first appeared on PlayingCardDecks.com here. ● Official Shuffled Ink website: ShuffledInk ● Make Your Own Custom Playing Cards at: ShuffledInk

10 MORE TYPES OF PLAYING CARDS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT

Posted on July 8, 2021 by - Cardistry, Entertainment, History, Playing Cards

Custom-printed playing card and tuck box. In my previous article I introduced you to ten different types of decks of playing cards. That doesn’t exhaust the types of decks, and so to follow up, here are another ten different types of decks you should know about!

Souvenir decks

A souvenir deck is a deck of playing cards created in order to serve as a souvenir for tourists or visitors. Typically such playing cards have scenes from different locations, and depict things like notable landmarks, buildings, wildlife, flora, or other unique elements about the place in question. In many cases the card backs will have an image or text that captures something of the overall locale. Each card will then have a different photo or image that occupies most of the space on the card in the area where you would normally find the main images for the court cards and pips. Indices on opposite corners that indicate the suit and value of each card ensure that it can still serve as a playable deck of cards. Effectively such a deck of playing cards serves as a miniature photo album, capturing key images of a place, so it’s an ideal product for tourists to purchase in a souvenir shop. Souvenir decks need not necessarily be about a particular country or city, but could even be created for an attraction like a Zoo or theme park, and even for a notable event. They are primarily created for the visual images on the cards, rather than for intensive use in playing card games. As a result, they tend to be made very cheaply, with thin card-stock that performs poorly for handling and shuffling. But they do make great novelty items, and achieve the purpose for which they were created, which is as an item of memorabilia. At the same time they have some practical function, and enable you to play card games while you’re on vacation if you really want to. While not strictly souvenir decks, many of the decks produced by US Game Systems Inc and Piatnik almost qualify for this category. Their novelty decks don’t come close to matching the quality of a Bicycle deck, but they are quite inexpensive, and contain many delightful images and pictures that are the center-piece of the individual cards, which are the real attraction and reason for buying these decks. ● See a range of Piatnik-produced novelty decks

Advertising decks

It didn’t take playing card manufacturers long to realize the potential to use playing cards as a means of advertising. In a way much like souvenir cards, playing cards are ideal for companies to use to market their business or products. Advertising decks have been around for a long time, and there are some wonderful examples of 19th century decks. My favourite one is the Murphy Varnish deck, which features transformation cards, and wonderful court cards that depict and promote Murphy’s Vanish. Many advertising decks are created on a budget, since the goal is about marketing a product or a brand, rather than producing a quality deck of playing cards that will be durable or visually exceptional. But there are many famous brands that have devoted fans, that makes advertising decks featuring these companies or products immediately attractive to collectors who collect memorabilia associated with that company or product. For example, a deck of playing cards that pays homage to Coca Cola won’t only appeal to playing card enthusiasts, but will have a crossover appeal to anyone who collects Coca Cola paraphernalia. Decks that feature brands of beer and whisky are popular for similar reasons. As a result you’ll find playing cards that advertise popular alcoholic drinks like Jack Daniels, as well as famous makes of motorbikes and motor-vehicles, like Harley Davidson and Ford. ● See a range of advertising decks

Licensed decks

Closely related to the category of advertising decks are playing cards that pay tribute to popular movies, TV shows, books, music, or other icons in popular culture. These are extremely collectible, due to their immediate appeal for anyone who is a fan of the cultural icon in question. But to make them, creators of playing cards often need to pay a licensing fee to the owner of the “brand” or intellectual property that appears on the cards, and hence the unofficial designation “licensed decks”. They could equally be considered “fan decks”. Examples of these include playing cards that pay tribute to films like Jaws, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings; TV shows like Saturday Night Live; comic strips like Peanuts, Spider Man, and Marvel’s Avengers; and characters like Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck from Disney. Some of these are created as pure novelty decks, and the artwork is such that they could never even be used for card games. ● See a range of licensed decks

Cardistry decks

Card flourishing is not something new, and magicians have long incorporated flourishes within their acts. However in the last decade cardistry has really developed an independent existence alongside and separate from card magic, and is rapidly cementing its legitimacy as an art-form in its own right. Cardistry can loosely be described as the performance art of card juggling, and typically involves someone doing visually impressive cuts, twirls, spins, and more with a deck of cards. Social media and the ability to share videos online have really helped cardistry grow rapidly, and it’s especially being embraced by a younger generation. But cardistry has also spawned a new type of deck, created especially for cardistry. Given that it is all about visuals, card flourishing will benefit the most when the deck used is colourful and has striking patterns that enhance the visual aesthetics of the flourishes themselves. This led to the creation of decks that were optimized and designed specifically for the purposes cardistry. Singapore-based cardistry group The Virts was at the forefront of this development, with the creation of their Virtuoso deck, which became a popular and highly sought after series. The success of the cardistry movement meant that playing cards did not have to be functional for playing games or card magic, and that there was a ready market prepared to drop money to buy decks that were simply about visual aesthetics. Some cardistry decks can serve a dual purpose of being used for games or magic, but the primary goal of a cardistry deck is the visual appeal. Typically a cardistry deck demands the very highest standard in terms of quality and performance, and features a design and pattern that looks great when the cards are being handled. Some cardistry decks abandon pips and indices altogether, and there are even cardistry decks where every card is identical on both the front and back. ● See a range of cardistry decks

Throwing decks

Also deserving separate mention are decks intended specifically for card throwing. Card throwing has received significant media attention as a result of the impressive feats of Rick Smith Jr, who has been featured in some remarkable viral videos from Dude Perfect, and who holds several world records for throwing playing cards the fastest and furthest. While any deck can be used for card throwing, there are custom decks that have been created specifically with the idea of enhancing this unique use of playing cards. In some cases, the intended goal of a dedicated throwing deck is all about creating a visual effect when the cards are rotating and in motion. Rick Smith Jr’s Falcon Throwing Cards have been designed with exactly this kind of aesthetic in mind, and even incorporate a special marking system in the artwork to help measure how deep the cards go when thrown into objects like foam or fruit. Besides this, they are a relatively standard deck of playing cards in terms of the quality and feel, although a thicker than normal card-stock has been adopted in view of their intended use. Some of the Banshee decks also include a measuring system on the card faces, but also have bevelled edges geared to maximize their ability to penetrate objects. Perhaps best of all, they incorporate custom holes uniquely designed to produce a sonic scream when the cards whiz through the air. ● See a range of throwing decks

Animation decks

In a unique category of their own are decks designed specifically to be animated. Typically this involves using a flip-book animation technique. The method used to do this is sometimes described as “taking a deck to the movies”. The idea is that you use your thumb to flip through all the cards rapidly, thereby creating the illusion of a moving image. The Bicycle Cinema Playing Cards are one example of such an animation deck. It has cards that look like a film strip, with a classic yellowed finish for a nostalgic and old time look. When flipping through the cards, an animation feature creates the 3-2-1 count-down that old movies would have, while the film strip sides also appear to move vertically. The Mechanic deck uses a similar technique to create the impression of moving cogs, while the Optricks deck is designed to create a mesmerizing hypnotic effect with moving lines. Also belonging in this category are the Clockwork decks. Those interested in card magic will also love Dan Harlan’s Card Toon deck, which is a gaff deck featuring an animated stick man, and which uses this principle to reveal a selected card in an amusing manner. ● See a range of animation decks

Limited edition decks

Not every deck of playing cards is intended to be used for playing card games, or for card magic or cardistry. There many collectors who enjoy the hobby of collecting out of sheer love for the variety and novelty of the playing cards themselves. Particularly in the crowdfunding era, many creators have emerged and cemented themselves with a solid reputation as designers whose goal is to create highly collectible playing cards, some of which are produced in limited editions to make them even more exclusive. In some cases, these can be in high demand in the secondary market, and over time can be highly sought after by collectors. These limited edition decks often have extra touches that make them appealing to the card collector, with an individually numbered tuck seal being a key element of this. Such tuck seals will often indicate the size of the print run, and give each deck an individual number, e.g. 578/1000. Limited edition decks often have lavish tuck boxes, or have other intriguing features about them to help make them unique and interesting. They tend to be produced by well-known designers with an existing reputation of creativity and success, but even new creators will sometimes produce a limited edition version of a project, in order to appeal to the collector looking for something especially classy or unique. ● See a range of decks with numbered seals

Gilded decks

Once in a while what you’re looking for is something absurdly expensive and over-the-top. There are lots of ways to add bling to a deck of playing cards, including gold foil and embossing on the tuck box, or else flashes of iridescence or UV spot printing on the cards, all delivered in an exotic looking tuck case. But perhaps there is no other feature in a deck of playing cards that screams “luxury” as much as gilded edges. Traditionally, gilding was accomplished by hand, with master craftsman literally painting the edges of the cards with gold or silver paint. Sometimes this manual process is still used to create a gilded deck, although technology has opened up other ways of accomplishing this. But there’s no doubt that the end result looks absolutely fantastic! Gold and silver are the two most popular colours of choice for gilding, but modern gilding methods allow for a range of different colours to be used, so you’ll find gilded decks of all styles and colours. Often a gilded deck will arrive with the cards still stuck together, because the gilding is still intact. That’s perfectly normal, and you need to carefully separate the cards individually before using them. Regular use will cause gilding to wear, so you can’t expect a gilded deck to retain its shiny look forever. However, even after lots of shuffling and handling, you will still be able to recognize that a deck was gilded, and distinguish it from a non-gilded deck. Primarily intended for collectors, a gilded deck certainly adds an impressive amount of bling to your deck, but naturally this also means that it comes at a much higher cost. ● See a range of gilded decks

Tarot decks

Tarot decks deserve a separate category, and are often misunderstood. To begin with, the key difference that distinguishes a Tarot deck from a standard deck of playing cards is that it has 26 extra cards. Each suit has four court cards instead of three, and there are also 22 additional cards, usually described as Major Arcana. These extra cards are the simple explanation that lies behind the emergence of the Tarot deck, since it simply came about as a way of increasing the complexity of card games by including extra trump cards. The origin of the Tarot deck is often the subject of controversy, with some people believing that Tarot cards had roots in the occult and that they were linked to ancient secret societies that disseminated esoteric knowledge. According to this view, Tarot decks were the original form of playing cards, from which the standard deck developed. But after the publication of The Game of Tarot: From Ferrara to Salt Lake City (1980) by respected academic Michael Dummett, there is a growing consensus that there is no evidence of Tarot decks being used for fortune-telling and the occult until the 18th century, while standard playing cards already appeared in Europe in the 14th century. The “Major Arcana” was first added to the traditional deck already in the 15th century, long before any occultic use, and it served as a fixed trump suit in trick taking games. That’s how Tarot decks were used for several centuries, until they cartomancers became infatuated with them around the 18th century, causing them to develop a life of their own for fortune telling, and taking their artwork in a new direction. Regardless of the history, the number of cards in a Tarot deck is quite firmly established, and today it is clearly distinguished from a regular deck. It typically comes with highly attractive and visual artwork, often reflecting occultic themes linked to fortune-telling. Regardless of your position about their history, development, and function, it’s not hard to see how Tarot cards are very collectible, in view of their distinct characteristics and visual appeal. ● See a range of Tarot decks

Oracle decks

Unlike traditional decks, and Tarot decks, Oracle cards don’t have a set number of cards or fixed structure. A deck of Oracle cards could consist of anything from 12 to 100 cards, for example. There are no real rules about what cards a deck might contain, other than that the cards are spiritual in nature. Besides that, an oracle deck can be anything that its creator wants to make it consist of, both in terms of the number of cards, and which ones. The Lenormand decks are good example of this kind of fortune-telling deck. While the Tarot deck can be used for card games, Oracle cards are strictly used for fortune-telling. The expression “fortune-telling cards” need not refer exclusively to Oracle decks, however. The practice of fortune telling using a deck of cards is referred to as cartomancy, and the most popular deck used by cartomancers today is the Tarot deck. Sometimes even a traditional deck of 52 playing cards can be used for fortune telling and divination. There are also decks of standard cards that are particularly created with a view to cartomancy, such as the Ye Witches Fortune Cards (1896), Kadar Fortune Playing Cards, and Cartomancer Fortune deck. ● See a range of Oracle decks
Well, there you have it, an introduction to some of the diverse types of decks that you’ll find on the market today. There is indeed a tremendous amount of diversity, so the modern playing card collector has plenty of choice for different types of decks to enjoy. Happy collecting! About the writer: EndersGame is a well-known reviewer of board games and playing cards. He loves card games, card magic, and collecting playing cards. This article first appeared on PlayingCardDecks.com. ● Official Shuffled Ink website: ShuffledInk ● Make Your Own Custom Playing Cards at: ShuffledInk ● Make Your Own Custom Tarot Cards at: ShuffledInk

PLAYING CARD WORLD RECORDS

Posted on June 14, 2021 by - Entertainment, Playing Cards, World Records

Playing Cards World Records

Many of us have our own growing collection of playing cards, and probably the thing that interests us the most is our “personal best” for the number of decks we possess. But playing cards have also been the subject of some fascinating world records. Perhaps some of these will inspire you to new heights with your playing cards!

● Largest (collection): Let’s start with the category that many of you will be wondering about – who has the largest collection of decks, and how big is it? According to the official Guiness World Records, the current record holder is Liu Fuchang of China, with 11,087 different sets of playing cards. Alternatively, if you just collect Jokers, you’ll need to beat Tony De Santis of Italy, who has 8,520 of them – all different! ● Largest (cards): The record for the largest complete deck of playing cards is quite impressive, considering that it required a full set of cards. In May 2016, Claes Blixt put together a beast of a deck that weighed over 200kg, with cards that were 158.4cm high and 104.4cm wide. Much bigger yet is the largest ever human playing card. It was the Ace of Diamonds, and consisted of 600 people at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in 2013.
● Memorizing (single deck): In the early 1990s, the record for memorizing a shuffled deck of playing cards was more than one minute. Ben Pridmore of Great Britain was the first to get this time to under 30 seconds. But his record of around 25 seconds was eventually slashed by Zou Lujian of China at the 2017 World Memory Championships, who managed to memorize a complete deck in just 13.96 seconds! You can increase the difficulty of this by attempting it underwater. Poland’s Krzysztof Kuich stayed underwater without an oxygen supply to memorize an entire deck, which he then arranged in 4 minutes and 27 seconds. The most cards memorized unassisted while underwater is Christian Schafer’s 56. ● Memorizing (multiple decks): In 1993, Dominic O’Brien set a record by memorizing 40 complete decks (that’s 2080 cards altogether!) with only one sighting of them all, and only made one mistake in recalling them. In 2007, Canadian Dave Farrow took around 14 hours to memorize 59 separate decks (that’s over 3,000 cards!) on a single sighting, while the recall took around 9 hours. This record still stands today after more than 10 years. As for the most decks memorized in one hour, that is 37 decks (1,924 cards!), achieved by Munkhshur Narmandakh, also at the 2017 World Memory Championships. ● Holding (cards): Think you can produce a nice fan? To beat the world record for holding the most cards in one hand, you’ll need to beat the incredible number of 326. This was set by Ralf Laue of Germany in 1994. The exacting requirements for this record included the need to have the colour and value of every single card visible, using no aids. Abandoning the “fan” requirement of course makes things much easier, as Jack Webster proved in 2010 by holding no less than 992 cards in his hand at once. ● Holding (decks): Never mind how many cards you can hold in one hand; how many decks can you hold at once, using just one hand? The current record of 55 is held by Kaleb Morgan, which he’s held since November 2015. Surely one of our readers can beat that? This next category also sounds quite beatable: the longest time for balancing a deck of cards on your elbow is claimed by Gasper D’Anna, with 3 minutes and 42 seconds.
● Throwing: There are special techniques you can learn to throw playing cards long distances and at incredibly high speeds. Learning the basics of card throwing is actually not that difficult, while instructional DVDs will teach you advanced techniques. Ricky Jay made a name for himself breaking card throwing records. But if you want to beat the best of the best today, you’ll need to compete with Rick Smith Jr, who is the world record holder for throwing a playing card 65.96m (216 ft 4 in) at a top speed of 92 miles per hour. He’s also thrown a playing card a record 21.41m high. When you’re that good, you actually can slice fruit with a playing card! You can even buy special cards designed for throwing, like the Banshees deck which adds a “sonic scream” when the cards whip through the air.
https://youtu.be/TvNTcB6c-V8
● Sorting: If you are hyperactive and have a healthy dose of OCD, perhaps this is a record for you to beat: taking a completely shuffled deck, and sorting all the cards by suit and number (Ace through King). In 2017, April Choi apparently managed this feat in a remarkable 18.53 seconds, although according to Guiness the official record is 36.16 seconds, and was achieved by Czech Zdenek Bradac in 2008. Alternatively, try removing all the Spades from a shuffled deck as quickly as you can – Isaac Louie’s record of 11.51 seconds is yours to beat! ● Building: Bryan Berg is quite a record setter, and he holds the current Guiness world record for the largest playing card structure, which he set in China on 2010. It took 44 days to complete, and consisted of 218,792 cards! A replica of several buildings, its measurements were 10.39 m (34 ft 1.05 in) by 3.54 m (11 ft 7.37 in), and it was 2.88m (9ft 5.39 in) in height. Bryan also holds the record for the tallest house of cards (he’s set multiple times over the years), which is currently 7.86m (using 1,100 decks!). He has also created the most storeys in a free-standing house of cards, with an incredible 131! The quickest ever to build a three-storey house of cards is Italian Silvio Sabba, who managed to do this in 6.8 seconds in 2012. ● Breaking: Maybe you think it’s more fun to break things down than to build them up. Well this is a category for you: how about tearing playing cards with your bare hands? Bill Clark managed to tear two complete decks in 18.22 seconds. Even more impressive is the achievement of Scott Fraze, who ripped 13 complete decks in 30 seconds, for a televised episode of Guiness World Records: Primetime. Meanwhile Linsey Lindberg ripped 5 brand new decks within a minute in 2015, and is the female record holder.
● Balancing: Fancy yourself at card flourishing and doing card twirls? In 2018, Slovakian Pavol Durdik managed to balance a single playing card on his finger for no less than two hours and 15 seconds! Pavol also holds some other unusual records, including the most cards dealt while balancing an AA battery on a deck (212), the most cards dealt while balancing a table tennis ball on top of the deck (82), the most playing cards stacked on the back of a spoon (313), and the most cards stacked on a hand-held table tennis ball within one minute (36). His record of fitting the most playing cards inside your mouth (256) has since been beaten by Manoj Kumar (265). If you’re a fan of flossing, you might want to challenge Duren Wilson, who managed to hold 64 playing cards between his teeth. ● Cutting: How slick are your cuts? You might want to challenge Sky from Italy, who managed a Sybil Cut in 1.24 seconds, and Kamal Aslam from India, who managed a Triple Z Cut in 1.05 seconds, and 10 consecutive Charlier Cuts in 8.64 seconds. The record holder for the most Charlier Cuts in one minute is held by Polish Marcin Kacmarek, with an astonishing 94. Brian Pankey has numerous records, including a display of the WERM within 2.09 seconds. And how speedy are your card springs? Joshua Robinson of the USA has held the record for the most card springs in 30 seconds since the year 2012, when he performed 17 within half a minute. ● Shuffling: Do you enjoy a good riffle shuffle? How many can you do within one minute? In September 2017, Serbian Strahinja Stamenkovic managed the current record of 31 times. The record for the most riffle shuffles in 15 seconds is 8 times, by Dan Sheikh. ● Dealing: Brian Pankey managed to deal 126 cards using just one hand within a one minute time limit. The record for dealing a complete deck of cards goes to Simon Akerblom of Sweden, who pulled this off in just 14.19 seconds. If you’re good at flipping cards, try taking on the record of Guofinnur Tr of Iceland, who flipped an entire deck of cards one by one in 18.85 seconds. ● Picking up: Fancy yourself as somewhat of an expert at 52 Card Pickup? This is the classic “game” where the entire deck is scattered on the floor, and it’s your job to pick up all the cards. If you want to get the record for this, you’ll have to beat the Swede Alfons Lindsjo, who accomplished this in just 9.25 seconds! ● Guessing: Are you that guy that seems to lose at everything? Well perhaps this is a category for you. Try guessing the suit/value of a playing card, and the idea is to guess as many incorrectlyin a row as you can. In 2015, Mike K incorrectly guessed the suit and number of 391 playing cards in a row, before he finally guessed a card correctly. ● Buying: According to Joshua Jay’s Amazing Book of Cards, the most expensive deck ever bought was a vintage hand-painted deck that dates from 1470. It was bought by the New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art at a Sotheby’s auction in London in 1983, for the royal price of $143,352.
So is this a complete list of all the playing card records there are? By no means! There are some incredible ones that I haven’t even mentioned, like Tai Star’s 7 storey high card tower, which is he stacked while performing a one-handed handstand. This is the same guy who managed a 10 storey high card tower that he balanced on his hand, and a 8 storey high card tower that he balanced on his foot. Then there’s Kamal Aslam’s 60 Charlier Cuts in one minute while riding a motor cycle. Clearly there are all kinds of novel categories, and if you want to take your card skills to record breaking level, try doing your favorite flourishes while spinning a basketball on one finger, juggling two tennis-balls, bouncing a golf ball on a mallet, spinning a toothbrush, or while doing a headstand. Or run a marathon wearing a playing card costume, which is what Lisa Wright first did in just under 5 hours in 2013. This record was subsequently beaten in 2016 by Jennifer McBain, a teacher who ran in just under 3 hours and 19 minutes in full costume, in order to inspire her students.
https://youtu.be/bthVcI9M2lg
Want to make some records of your own? If breaking records like these appeals to you, check out the longer list of playing card world records over on recordsetter.com. Other sources used for this article include the official guinessworldrecords.com and recordholders.org. Other articles you might find interesting: About the writer: EndersGame is a well-known reviewer of board games and playing cards. He loves card games, card magic, and collecting playing cards. This article first appeared on PlayingCardDecks.com here. ● Official Shuffled Ink website: ShuffledInk ● Make Your Own Custom Playing Cards at: ShuffledInk

10 TYPES OF PLAYING CARDS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT

Posted on May 6, 2021 by - Cardistry, Entertainment, History, Playing Cards

10 TYPES OF PLAYING CARDS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT People new to playing cards are typically familiar only with what they’ve seen and experienced firsthand, namely the classic Bicycle deck with standard court cards. The average person simply isn’t aware of the many beautiful custom decks of playing cards that are on the market today, and how popular these are. But as any collector will know, there is a wide range of fantastic and creative playing cards available today, and a vast array of different types of decks is being produced on a regular basis. Many of these display wonderful creativity in terms of their graphic design, with heavily customized faces and pips, card backs, and stylish tuck boxes. This variety is not a new phenomenon by any means. Already in the 15th and 16th centuries, when playing cards were first spreading rapidly throughout Europe, they were anything but “standard”. The history of playing cards is a rich tapestry that includes a wide range of different styles of playing cards. So what are some of the different types of decks that are available? In this article, we’ll introduce you to some of the more common types that have been produced. It’s not an exhaustive list, but is intended to serve as an introduction to some of the different types of decks that are available. The aim is to arouse your curiosity about these types, and perhaps whet your appetite to learn more about them, and explore some of the other kinds of non-standard or unique decks that you’ll find in the wonderful world of playing cards.

Standard decks

When collectors refer to a “standard deck”, what they typically have in mind is a deck that has a very traditional look. Over the years the court cards have become more or less standardized, and so has the shape and style of the pips and indices. While card backs vary, and the Ace of Spades and Jokers can also be customized, the rest of a standard deck typically looks the same. Typically the faces of the cards are exactly as you’d expect to see them in a normal Bicycle style deck, aside perhaps from minor variations, such as in the colours used for the court cards. Card gamers tend to prefer relatively standard decks like this, primarily for practical reasons. While it’s fine for a deck of standard playing cards to have a classy looking tuck box that exudes sophistication and style courtesy of embossing and foil accents, the cards themselves need to be functional and immediately recognizable, in order to play games with them. A standard deck of playing cards, with clearly recognizable indices and suits, will usually serve that purpose best. Most magicians also prefer to work with a standard deck, because they don’t want their spectators being distracted by fancy artwork or hard-to-read pips and indices. Furthermore, the sleight of hand skills they have developed will often make tricks seem more impossible and miraculous if the deck of playing cards they are using looks ordinary in every respect. So despite the success of custom playing cards, we can expect standard decks to continue to be popular for card games and card magic.

Novelty decks

A “novelty deck” is simply a different way of referring to a “custom deck”. The definition of the word novelty is something new, original, or unusual. As a result, any deck that has been heavily “customized” with original or unusual elements will sometimes be described as a novelty deck. In contrast to a standard deck, a novelty deck or custom deck will at a bare minimum have completely customized artwork for the court cards. Often the pips and indices will be stylized and customized as well. A fully custom deck is usually preferred by collectors since each and every card in the deck has a unique look that sets it apart from a standard deck.

Game decks

Some standard decks have been slightly altered to optimize them for use in playing popular card games, even though many of these card games could be played just as easily with a traditional deck of playing cards. Often this simply involves adding point values to specific cards. A classic example is Canasta, which was especially popularized in the 1950s. Canasta sets usually consist of two decks, and point-scoring cards have their values printed on them to make it easier to play the game. The popular trick-taking game Euchre, on the other hand, doesn’t employ anywhere near a complete deck. Decks of Euchre cards typically include enough cards for two games of Euchre, along with special cards that can be used for scoring during the game. Wizard is another very successful trick-taking game, and is effectively just a standard deck with slight adjustments to incorporate custom Wizard and Jester cards. The classic card game Pinochle, on the other hand, requires a custom deck because it consists of two copies of the 9s through Aces in each suit, thus creating a 48 card deck. These are also sold separately, but strictly speaking it is no longer a traditional deck given the unusual composition of cards.

Gaff decks

Just like there are decks for gamers, so too there are decks for magicians. Most custom decks nowadays will come with some “gaff cards”, so collectors will usually be accustomed to getting a modern deck of playing cards that comes with a double backer or blank card. These cards are used by magicians for card magic, and are typically included because USPCC offers a 56 card deck as a standard when printing, meaning that there’s two additional cards besides the Jokers and the deck itself. While these can be used as ad cards, using these extra cards to include gaff cards increases the likelihood of a particular deck having appeal to magicians, and so creators will often choose that option. A gaff deck, however, is when an entire deck consists of gaffed cards, also sometimes referred to as gimmicked cards. Sometimes these will just consist of a deck with individual gaff cards that are intended to be used separately, like a double backer or blank card. But there are also some special decks created purely as “trick decks”, and these enable you to accomplish things that you couldn’t achieve with a regular deck. Highly specialized gaff decks are occasionally created for a single magic routine, but there are also some very common gaff decks that are widely known and readily available. These are often sold to the general public by pitchmen at fairs and markets, such as the Svengali deck and Stripper deck.

Marked decks

Another handy tool for the magician is the marked deck. Don’t expect me to reveal everything here, because some performers use these as part of their livelihood! Let me first say, however, that while it is true that magicians and mentalists will occasionally use marked decks, the bulk of card tricks you’ll see performed are accomplished with a completely regular deck, by sheer skill and sleight of hand. But occasionally a magician will rely on a marked deck, which is where the playing cards have secret marks on the back of each card, enabling them to identify the value and suit of the card in question. There are two main systems used by marked decks. Marked decks with reader systems actually have the name of the card written somewhere on the back – usually just with a number and letter that indicates its value and suit – carefully camouflaged into the artwork. Marked decks with coded systems indicate the value and suit of the cards using shapes or some other visual clue that needs to be decoded from the card back. Marked decks do have an Achilles heel, because they can usually be identified by “taking the deck to the movies”, or giving it a “riffle test”, which involves using your thumb to quickly flip through the entire deck, in the process watching the backs closely to see if there is any movement or change in the back design. Marked decks certainly shouldn’t be used for cheating in a card games or gambling, and are strictly to be used for performing magic type routines.

Vintage decks

Serious collectors will usually be careful to distinguish the term “vintage” from “antique”. While “antique” technically refers to something that is more than a hundred years old, the word “vintage” is more flexible, and can refer to anything from an earlier generation or time. A vintage deck, then, is a deck that hails from a previous era. Vintage decks from before World War II that are in good condition are often quite rare, because playing cards are a commodity that was created to be used rather than preserved, and most playing cards from that era have long since been thrown away, or if they do surface, are very well used. As a result, the market for vintage and antique decks typically brings prices into a much higher bracket, considerably more than what the average playing card enthusiast is prepared to pay. However just because a deck has vintage look doesn’t necessarily mean it has to be old. There are some delightful and eye-catching decks that look very tired and old, even though they are in fact made of high quality playing cards that are brand new. This can be achieved by using a graphic design which gives the cards a vintage or a deliberately distressed look. Sometimes these are actual replicas of a classic deck from the past, while other times they have artificially been given a vintage look using artistic license to create something that merely has the appearance of age. Either way, many of these modern decks can be described as “vintage decks”, and look like they have arrived into the present straight from the distant past, while still being quality products that feel great and perform well.

Reproduction decks

With the availability of technology that enables us to quite readily reproduce decks from yesteryear, a whole category of playing cards has sprung up that is devoted to producing reproductions of historically significant or rare decks from the past. This is not a new development, since historically important and attractive decks like the J.G. Cotta transformation decks have seen several reproductions of the original since it first appeared more than two centuries ago. But today’s technology certainly makes it easier to accomplish this, with the help of digital scans and digital art. And with the advent of crowdfunding and the internet, there are now more ways than ever before for collectors to find out about these projects and to support them. One of the publishers leading the way here is Home Run Games, who have produced some delightful and authentic reproductions of some of the very first playing cards produced in America. These include iconic and notable decks like Hart’s Saladee’s Patent (1864), Triplicate No. 18 (1876), Mauger Centennial (1876), Murphy Varnish (1883), and Tally-Ho No. 9 (1885). All of these reproduction decks were produced by USPCC in high quality editions with a modern air cushion finish, so they handle beautifully and look great. PlayingCardDecks has also been at the forefront of this development, and has brought some wonderful reproduction decks to the market in recent years. These include Eclipse Comic (1876), Faro Vintage (1887), Vanity Fair (1895), Hustling Joe (1895), Ye Witches Fortune Telling (1896), Circus Reproduction (1896), and most recently the J.G. Cotta decks (1805). Another contributor in this area is publisher US Games Systems Inc, and they have produced some lovely reproduction decks, although not with the same quality. I particularly like their Airline Spotter and Naval Spotter decks, and some of their other reproduction decks are well worth looking at as well, e.g. Samuel Hart’s 1858 deck, Cohen’s 1863 Patent National deck, and Cohen’s 1864 Highlanders deck.

Faro decks

Faro decks are a particular kind of Vintage deck, and have come to refer a particular style of deck, namely one with no indices. The name may be familiar from the Faro Shuffle, which is quite well known among playing card enthusiasts and cardists. That is a technically difficult move where you place the two halves of a deck into each other, card by card, and weave them together like a zipper. The name however, has its origin in a 19th century gambling game, which first appeared in France, and became extremely popular throughout Europe. From there it migrated to the United States, and quickly became the gambling game of choice in American casinos until it was eclipsed by Poker in the 1950s. Gambling decks from this era typically had one-way court cards that occupied the full face of the card, and had no indices. Indices only became standard on playing cards as a result of American innovation in the mid 19th century, and prior to this point, playing cards simply consisted of the pips and courts. Given the popularity of the game of Faro in the pre-index era, playing cards without indices have come to be described as a Faro deck, because they epitomize the look of the gambling decks from the Wild West when Faro was the game of choice. Today, the term “Faro deck” is an indication of the style of playing cards from this period, and can be used to describe any deck that has playing cards without indices.

Transformation decks

Now we come to one of my all-time favourite types of playing cards: transformation decks. These are playing cards where the pips have been incorporated creatively and artistically into a larger image. So for example, the pips on a Six of Clubs might be transformed into the leaves of a tree, and the pips on a Two of Hearts might be transformed into two swans, with the tree and swans perhaps being part of larger pictures that occupy most of the space on the card faces. A conventional transformation playing card retains the original location and shape of the pips, while a semi-transformation deck gives the artist more freedom to work with, because the pips can be altered and moved however the artist wants. A fine modern example of a semi-transformation deck is the Ultimate deck produced by Art of Play. It’s not hard to see that this type of artwork brings with it a real limitation on the part of the artist. At the same time it gives scope for tremendous creativity, since there is the challenge of producing something that is innovative and attractive, while operating within the constraints of the genre, and it is this creativity that makes them so attractive and popular. Transformation playing cards first started appearing at the turn of the 19th century, with the famous J.G. Cotta transformation decks being the very first complete decks of transformation playing cards that were published. This led to a period of real fascination with transformation decks, and some delightful decks were produced in this style towards the end of the 19th century, and again towards the end of the 20th century. In our modern crowd-funding era there has been a renewed appreciation for this type of playing cards. Some classic transformation decks have been reprinted in fine reproduction editions, while new transformation decks created by original designers have also hit the market and been well received.

Regional decks

Playing cards aren’t the same the world over, not just in terms of the designs, but also in terms of the composition of the deck. Most of us are used to a standard Bicycle deck of playing cards which consists of 52 cards, plus two Jokers. But this is the result of centuries of development, and even the “traditional” artwork as we know is the result of a long period of evolution. Even the Joker is only a very late American addition. When playing cards first arrived in Western Europe in the late 14th century, and first spread throughout Europe, there was considerable diversity in the names and styles of the suits, and even the number of cards in a deck. The suits used in Italian and Spanish cards were cups, coins, swords, and clubs, and Spanish court cards consisted of a king, knight, and knave, with no queens. German decks adopted more rural flavour, with acorns, leaves, hearts, and bells used as the suits, while in Switzerland the leaves were replaced with flowers and the hearts with shields. A 52 card deck with the four suits of hearts, spades, diamonds and clubs only became dominant after the French developed techniques to produce playing cards more rapidly and cheaply than other parts of Europe, and it was their success in production that saw their form of the deck monopolize Europe. But regional decks still persist in parts of Europe, and many of them trace their roots back to earlier centuries. Such decks aren’t likely to disappear quickly, because they are closely linked to a particular cultural heritage, and also to regional card games that remain incredibly popular in these parts of the world. Many of these decks also consist of smaller numbers of cards, such as a 40 card deck or a 32 card deck. European publisher Piatnik still publishes many of these regional decks in large numbers for the European market, and they often have incredibly vibrant and beautiful artwork. One of my favourites is the Tell deck, which depicts characters from the story of William Tell.
These ten types of decks of playing cards don’t exhaust all that there is just yet. In a follow-up article we’ll be covering ten more different types of decks, including several types of novelty decks. About the writer: EndersGame is a well-known reviewer of board games and playing cards. He loves card games, card magic, and collecting playing cards. ● Official Shuffled Ink website: ShuffledInk ● Make Your Own Custom Playing Cards at: ShuffledInk

PLAYING CARDS THAT PAY TRIBUTE TO POWERFUL BLACK ICONS: KEARRA JOHNSON’S CARD STORY

Posted on April 26, 2021 by - Card Story, Client Feature, Custom Design, Entertainment, History, Playing Cards

PLAYING CARDS THAT PAY TRIBUTE TO POWERFUL BLACK ICONS

“I am someone who just chases their dreams and continues to go after things that I, myself, didn’t think was possible.” – Kearra Johnson, creator of the Revolution Card Deck and founder of Studio Lo

The Revolution Card Deck is available for purchase at bystudiolo.com.
During Kearra Johnson’s senior year at the University of Missouri, she turned an ordinary class project into an inspirational and widely successful product. The assignment was to create something both visually and conceptually powerful. Among the list of suggested items, one, in particular, intrigued the 22-year-old artist: a deck of playing cards. The Revolution Card Deck strives to encourage conversations on representation, activism and Black culture. It is dedicated to the dreamers who made a way out of no way. Suitably, the first Black icon to secure a place in the deck was The Dreamer himself, Martin Luther King Jr., and that’s exactly the title listed below his card portrait.
The Dreamer, Martin Luther King, Jr., as the King of Hearts Court Card.
She includes a subtitle below each notable figure’s portrait. Malcolm X, The Nationalist; Rosa Parks, The Activist; Michelle Obama, The First Lady. Johnson said if her image was featured on the cards, hers would read: The Visualizer. “I feel like you owe it to yourself and those who support and love you to continue to push what you want to see happen,” Johnson said. One formatting detail that you may notice about this deck is the in distinction between court cards and gender. Ida B. Wells is the Jack of Spades, Oprah Winfrey is the King of Clubs and George Washington Carver is the Queen of Diamonds. “I didn’t want there to be a hierarchy,” she said. “They are all powerful figures.”
The First Lady, Michelle Obama, as the Jack of Clubs Court Card.
Since the deck’s official launch in early February 2021, over 500 decks have been sold and there are plenty more on the way. Johnson is thrilled to expand the deck’s exposure through various partnerships that will be announced at a later date. The Revolution Card Deck is available for purchase both online and in-store at Made in KC as well as on the Studio Lo website. To stay up to date with this incredible artist and innovative playing card designer, be sure to visit her Instagram page and website.

Shuffled Ink is honored to print the Revolution Card Deck in our Orlando-based manufacturing facility.

Creator of the Revolution Card Deck and founder of Studio Lo, Kearra Johnson.

Kearra has also been featured in media outlets such as:

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    https://shuffledink.com/blog/changing-the-world-one-conversation-at-a-time-hannah-frazers-card-story/
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    HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR PLAYING CARDS?

    Posted on April 8, 2021 by - Card Magic, Card Trick, Entertainment, Playing Cards

    HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW YOUR PLAYING CARDS?

    The Amazing Colour Changing Card Trick

    To start off, I need you to do a quick exercise. Don’t worry, it’s not difficult, and I promise you’re going to love this. I want you to watch this short video clip called the “Colour Changing Card Trick” which starts with a blue-backed deck of playing cards. Some of my readers have experience with card magic, but even if you catch the moves or know how this works, I think you’ll enjoy this a lot:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3iPrBrGSJM
    So did you catch the moves? Or were you completely fooled, and did the colour changes completely fly by you? This is a fine example of a psychological phenomenon that we’ll explain later. But first, let’s try another little test.

    A Quick Test About Playing Cards

    To illustrate the same phenomenon, let’s quickly test your knowledge about playing cards. If you’re reading this, chances are you have used playing cards a lot. Perhaps you use them for playing card games, for performing card magic, for cardistry, or you’re just a collector. Either way, you’ve probably shuffled a deck hundreds if not thousands of times. Shuffling, dealing, and holding a hand of cards – it’s likely all second nature to you right? Well, then you should have no problems answering some simple questions about the playing cards that you have seen many, many times, right? Let’s assume a normal deck of traditional playing cards, like your standard Bicycle deck produced by the United States Playing Cards. Are you ready? You’re going to ace this test, surely! But strictly no guessing – if you don’t know an answer, just leave that question blank. Here we go: 1. Including black as a colour, how many different print colours do regular court cards have? 2. How many of the twelve court cards are looking to the left? 3. How many court cards are shown with a side view of the face rather than a front view? 4. Which Queen is holding something besides a flower? 5. Which King is not holding a sword? 6. Which Jack is holding a paddle/mirror? 7. Which Jacks have a fancy moustache? 8. Which Kings do not have a moustache? 9. What is the only suit where the Jack and Queen are not looking in the same direction? 10. How many of the 52 cards in a regular deck have an asymmetrical (one-way) design? So how did you do? No, I’m not going to tell you the correct answers, because you might just cheat. I know that I would be tempted to do so, if someone gave me a test like this! So write down your answers, and then actually grab a physical deck of playing cards, and see for yourself. Seriously. You might be surprised at the results! And you might notice some details on those cards that you’ve never noticed before. If you get a passing mark of more than five right, I’ll be very impressed. And if you did find that test too difficult, try this slightly easier online pop quiz about playing cards which will instantly give you a score out of ten.
    Inattentional Blindness Going through these questions has likely made you realize how little you’ve noticed about the playing cards that you’ve seen many, many times. Strange isn’t it?! How can it be possible that you have handled a regular deck of playing cards so often, and yet not know the answers to basic questions like these? I first came across these questions (which I’ve modified) in a blog post by Jan Isenbart, who is a magic enthusiast from Germany. He used this simple test to illustrate a phenomenon that psychologists call inattentional blindness, or change blindness. The idea of this is that when our attention is focused on something specific, it is possible for something else that happens right in front of our eyes not to register at all. Perhaps the most well known example of this is shown in the following video. It shows the results of a Selective Attention Test, that was part of a prize-winning experiment devised and run by two American psychologists, Daniel Simons and Christopher Chabris. Many of you may already have come across this previously, but for those who haven’t, what you need to do is the following: Count how many times the players wearing white pass the basketball.” Stop reading this article and give it a try, and do genuinely concentrate and do the counting as instructed. The final result may surprise you.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvo
    Similar to this test is another one called The Monkey Business Illusion. If you’re interested in reading more about this, check out the website from Simons and Chabris. It’s a companion to their best-selling book The Invisible Gorilla. Some of the videos they have produced to illustrate inattentional blindness make for fun viewing. Daniel Simons’ article “Failure of Awareness: The Case of Inattentional Blindness” is also a good read on the topic.

    The Princess Card Trick

    Inattentional blindness means that something quite significant can happen right in front of your eyes, and yet you can completely fail to register it. If we can miss a chest-thumping gorilla, then how many other things do we completely miss? Magicians have been using this principle to help them in card magic for a long time. One of the most well known examples is “The Princess Card Trick”. It can be found all around the internet, including many kiddie websites, and it can easily be reverse engineered, so I’m hardly guilty of exposure by explaining how it works. But first, try it for yourself here. Typically the online version works something like this. You are shown six playing cards, and you choose and remember one of them. When you click on the screen, one of the six playing cards has been removed – and it is exactly the one that you chose! This can create gasps of amazement, but the secret is very simple. While you were focusing on remembering the playing card you chose, you tend to ignore the exact identity of the other cards are. So in actual fact all five cards shown afterwards are different from the original ones (if you didn’t quite follow this, see a detailed explanation here). This trick can be made convincing by selecting a mix of cards with similar values and suits, but subtly switching some of the suits so that the change isn’t as obvious. It’s a little harder to perform a trick like this in the real world, but with a good presentation and some sleight of hand, there are ways to accomplish a similar effect (see a version performed by magician Lance Burton here). In one set of tests, this fooled 9 out of 10 people on the street that this was performed to. The Princess Card Trick is another good example of inattentional blindness. Research has shown that what we actually see is often very different from what we think we see. We can’t absorb everything, so our mind has to be selective, and it focuses on specific things, and eliminates other things that it considers to be distractions at that moment, effectively making us “blind” to certain details.

    Misdirection in Magic

    The phenomenon of inattentional blindness can be a very useful tool in a magician’s toolbox. For example, when spectators are preoccupied by counting cards that you’re dealing, they won’t notice if those cards have been set-up or arranged in a specific order. Or if we take a playing card from the top of the deck and use it to point at another card on the table, they won’t notice if we return that card to the bottom of the deck, because their attention is focused elsewhere. Magicians sometimes refer to this as “misdirection”. Good misdirection isn’t so much about making a loud noise or sudden gesture that is a cheap shot at directing attention away from something. Rather it’s about carefully constructing the plot of a magic trick so that all the attention is directed to something other than where the actual method happens. There must be justifiable reasons for having the attention directed elsewhere, and ideally this should be connected to your presentation. But when you can get all the attention of your spectators on something, then you can use inattentional blindness to get away with murder, if it is outside the scope of their current concentrated focus. Perhaps we aren’t nearly as good at multi-tasking as we normally think! We have cognitive weaknesses, like the ones demonstrated in the experiments above, and identified and discussed by psychologists. But we can exploit these cognitive weaknesses in a clever way to create powerful illusions. It’s been well said that magic is not so much about what spectators are actually seeing, but what they think they are seeing. By manipulating their attention, we can manipulate what they think they are seeing, while having chest-thumping gorillas in plain sight do the magic for us, and yet remain completely invisible! So why don’t you dig out that deck of playing cards again, and this time have a more careful look at the details on the cards. There are undoubtedly many aspects of the artwork that have escaped your notice for all those years, due to inattentional blindness. Maybe this will even enable you to appreciate your playing cards in a whole new way!
    About the writer: EndersGame is a well-known reviewer of board games and playing cards. He loves card games, card magic, and collecting playing cards. This article first appeared on PlayingCardDecks.com here. ● Official Shuffled Ink website: ShuffledInk ● Make Your Own Custom Playing Cards at: ShuffledInk