Back in 2019, I created the SparkTarot®, a box set of 78 tarot cards and a guidebook in a two-piece box. Here is my detailed process for how I made a Tarot Deck in five simple steps. I think most people will recognize the first step, but the others — especially step 2 — might be a surprise!
1: Let the Games Begin—the Images
First, I chose which card to make. I didn’t do them in order, but by intuition.
I drew one or more images that represented it in a sketchbook. When each drawing began, I had no idea what it would be. I considered what I wanted the imagery to convey about the card’s meaning. Sometimes an idea emerged and went right onto the page. Other times, it took a few iterations to find the idea and put it into drawing form.
I looked up symbols and meanings online sometimes. If I wanted to add a bird, for example, I’d search for the right bird symbol-wise for that card. I loved finding the right symbology and images for each card.
Card Name Changes
At this point, if I hadn’t already decided on the name of the card, I made a choice as to whether it would remain the same or change to make it easier and more intuitive to read the cards. Some of the traditional Tarot card names just seemed too hard to understand or connect with — like the Hierophant or the Hermit, for example. I ended up changing two of the suit names, from Swords to Serpents and from Pentacles to Stones — but left Cups and Wands the same. I also changed Knights to Warriors and Pages to Students — leaving the King and Queens the same, and changed twelve of the twenty-two card names in the Major Arcana. Once the name was decided, I lettered it at the bottom of the card.
Final Cut & Color
When I had my sketch, I penciled another version of it into my watercolor drawing book (I used five watercolor drawing books for this project!). Once the image was drawn on the watercolor paper, I went over the lines using a waterproof archival ink pen and erased the pencil. Then it was time to add watercolor to the image, which added dimension to the illustration.
I painted on the drawing using a combination of Kuretake Gansai Tambi, Sennelier, and Case for Making handmade watercolors made in Japan, France, and San Francisco respectively.
2: Sharing My Work
When the painting was finished, I took a photo and sent it up to Instagram with a short description of what the card meant at @spark.tarot to share the progress of the creation of the deck. These descriptions were the seeds of what I would write in the guidebook later.
3: Writing the GuideBook
Next I wrote the guidebook. I began with what I wrote on Instagram, looked at the cards and expanded the copy until each card had the perfect description. Next, I wrote the introduction to the book, an introduction to each of the suits, and created a Tarot spread so even beginners have somewhere to start with their readings. Simultaneously, I designed the layout and cover of the little book, which was fun!
4: Designing the Deck, the Book & the Box
When I finished painting all 78 cards, I professionally scanned every image, and color corrected them in Adobe Photoshop. Then I made sure to create a printer approved digital file in Illustrator. I used to work as a graphic designer at a print shop, so I had the advantage of knowing to run it by the printer for their requirements before making a file.
I also had to design the two-piece box and get copyrights, trademarks and UPC and ISBN codes. The book and the box for the cards and book have a similar cover design. I asked my Instagram following which image they preferred and gave them about four choices. The overwhelming choice was the hand with the wand, the Ace of Wands. The runners-up, I added to the back of the box.
5: The Printer & the Pandemic
Next I sent it all off to PrintNinja, my printer, who did a great job. Printing and shipping took about three months total, so I had to wait. The decks were send from China the week before they locked down. Then they arrived the week before we locked down for COVID-19! But strangely, it turned out that a pandemic was a time when people were turning inward to Tarot, so there was a lot of interest in the deck.
The Takeaway
That’s how I made a Tarot Deck in five steps. And if making a tarot deck is something you have always wanted to do, like it was for me, this could be a way you can make yours too!
Yes, the process was time-consuming and precise, but I enjoyed every second of it. When I went into that otherworldly space when I was painting, writing, or even color correcting and setting up documents for the printer, time seemed to stop and I’d emerge back into the world hours later. I felt totally connected with the universe while I painted each card, which is part of why it was so enjoyable.
And it’s the same when I’m reading Tarot cards, especially with this deck—I just go into that time out of time, where universal symbology and a larger intelligence reside, and connect with it again, just for a while.