Saturday, June 11, 2016

Review - The Chronicles of Destiny Fortune cards

Recently a new deck has found its way home to me. I have been working with it for some time now without sharing it online, to get to know it a bit better before writing a review about it.
The Chronicles of Destiny Fortune cards by Josephine Ellershaw and Emily Ellershaw with artwork by Claudia McKinney (Schiffer Publishing) is an oracle deck which is a must have for all people who love to combine storytelling and divination.

The 60 cards come in a beautiful box which looks as if it is a real luxurious ornated old book. When we open the box with the famous Schiffer magnetic closure,  there is even an ex libris on the inside.
 Chronicles of Destiny Fortune cards

This amount of detail is also to be found in the guidebook which has beautiful paper and colored representations of the cards with extensive descriptions. Each card is an illustration of a continuous story. This story is very beautiful written and gives you so much to work with when you want to start reading with the cards. The language  is rich and very colorful. Together with the artwork they tell  a perfect story which held me captive until the end.
Besides these little chapters each card has been given some keywords and a more extensive divinatory interpretation..
The artwork in this deck is amazingly stunning. Although I  usually don’t like the use of photos for my decks, I can understand why the creators has chosen for this kind of artwork. It feels almost like snapshots from another realm; a place where you can picture yourself traveling to and having al kinds of adventures and it is also very easy to interact with the characters of the story. I mean, who wouldn’t want be like the hero or heroine of this deck?
The cards are gilded and the cardstock is excellent. They have a glossy finish and after some time they shuffle quite well.
After reading the guidebook I drew my first card and I got , believe it or not, Review. It shows the wonderful experience I had reading the story and don’t you just love the Dutch windmill in the background.  
Although one card draws are perfectly fine, the cards are meant to be read together. Just like in a story something needs to unfold in a reading. In the book we can find a two card spread: “the open book spread” which is great to start learning how to read with this deck. I say learning but it is not really that difficult. Especially when you have read the entire story the cards read very intuitively. From there on you can proceed which larger spread or just flip the cards and tell a story.

For my first open book spread I got:
Distant shores  and Weaver of Words. Again fitting very cards because writing a review can a feel a bit like a distant shore for me
I also like to use the deck face up. It is great to examine important chapters from your own life’s story and  retell them with the cards. It is also possible to rephrase your past experiences in life. With this deck every victim can become his own hero. Recreate your life story into a empowering fairy tale, myth or legend.
Some of my favorite cards:
All and all a great versatile deck and I am so happy to have it in my collection. If you have any question whatsoever about this deck, please feel free to ask me in the comments.
(I've been given this deck for review purpose. All opinions are entirely my own.)

14 comments:

  1. Thanks for introducing me a new deck. Looks fascinating and who doesn't like a good story. The cards that are so rich in color and detail are wonderful pieces of art and sometimes I just can't help myself I step into the card and become a part of the story myself. Flights of fancy. Don't forget to come back if you step into the Review card to check out that windmill.

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    1. Stepping into these card is really easy.It is as if they were made for this.

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  2. Oh I should also advise you to take some chocolate on your windmill excursion.

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  3. I can think of some writers who could use this deck when they get writer's block. :) Lovely photos!

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    1. Thanks Bev and yes, It would be a great tool for that! :)

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  4. Beautiful deck and very helpful review!

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  5. This is a wonderful deck. I must confess though with so many deck, I'd actually forgot about this one which I reviewed last year. I hope you enjoy many hours within the story these create. I feel the need to pull mine out and explore them more. Have fun!

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    1. I remember your review! It is a great deck and I am looking forward to share more of it online.
      Have fun with you copy! :)

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  6. This deck is so beautiful and unique. I haven't used it much recently, but I loved reading through the story and getting to know it. I'll have to make a point to pull it out again soon. :)

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    1. it is indeed a one of kind deck! Don't forget to play with it! :)

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  7. What a gorgeous looking deck and package! I think I would enjoy this deck, I am a sucker for nice packaging and luxurious paper! :) Thank you for sharing it, it's the first I've seen of it and I will be on the lookout now. :D One more to add to the wish list! xox

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    1. This kind of care does add a great deal of enjoyment to working with the cards
      Thank God for wishlists! :D

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