To get the ball rolling here at Shuffling Karma, let’s start off with a tarot deck review!
Ever since my visit to Kinokuniya’s tarot corner a year ago, I had already seen the Housewives Tarot. I hate to admit that I had, without pause, I had automatically delegated the kitschy-cool deck under “cute art but unreadable”. I picked up another deck and went about my business.
It wasn’t until last week that I happened across a few online descriptions and comments that my interest was highly piqued. I came across a few card images, and was stunned by how the cards interpreted the tarot images in ways that were delightful and stunningly accurate!
AESTHETICS
The deck is housed in one of the most innovative and well-made packages I’ve seen. While most precious decks are housed in fragile paper boxes, the “recipe box” that contains the cards is sturdy and well designed. We even have a small stamp on the side that states the deck has been “guaranteed by the housewife occultists of america”. Opening the box reveals more detailed touches along the side of the inner box, like testimonials from other housewives! It’s details like these that tell you how much thought was put into the deck – all the way from conception to actualization.
Within the box, the cards are wrapped in a velvet like form that fits snugly around the cards. The cards are separated by dividers that clearly state “minor arcana” and “major arcana”. When you flip over the dividers, recipies are revealed! We have the likes of Divinated Eggs and Ice Box Fortune Cake. The design on the back of the cards is a checkered red and white table cloth pattern that makes you think of picnic at the park and Sunday lunches.
The cards themselves are well designed, featuring that iconic americana look of the 50s, with a collage like feel to it. Design-wise, the cards were made to look older than they actually are, which gives you a deeper sense of mystical history to the whole thing.
