Occult Ornithology

The Occult Ornithology deck by Katie Whittle is a majors only tarot deck with beautiful artwork featuring birds.

To pre-order, click here - Occult Ornithology

Where in the world do you call home?

Liverpool, United Kingdom

What was your first experience with tarot and when did you fall in love with it?

When I was a teenager, probably 14/15 I bought a deck which came with a beginner’s tarot book! It was a simple Rider Waite deck with nothing fancy about it. I loved my deck though. The book advised making a bag for the deck (which I did, out of velvet) and also told me to not let anyone else touch the deck besides myself, which to this day I’ve stuck to, besides the manufacturers and myself, that deck is untouched!

What made you want to create this deck? What was your inspiration?

I’ve always wanted to make a tarot deck honestly, I’m a sucker for symbolic art and having had decks for years it’s something I’ve toyed with. I’m currently working on a vulture book, and originally I was going to do the major arcana with vultures as there are 21 species and it seemed like a perfect fit (the wheel would have been a nest like now), but planning it out it just didn’t fit right, it was after taking a break and thinking about how birds in general fit the archetypes more that it finally felt right to make this deck! When designing it I didn’t actually plan on releasing it though, It was something to take my mind off the stress of lockdown with no pressure of having to finish it.

Aside from your own deck, do you have a favourite deck? If so, which one?

My wish list is a lot longer than my list of owned decks sadly, I have a simple Tarot de Marseille deck I love just because I love medieval art, besides that I have a copy of The Last Unicorn tarot, it’s so beautifully made that I find myself looking through it daily and can’t not choose it!

Do you have a favourite card (either from your deck or just the card in general). If so, why is it your favourite?

Oooo tricky! I love The Moon card because it suggests mystery and deception, the idea of hidden meanings is what draws me to tarot anyway so in a way this card embodies it.

As for my favourite card from my own deck, Temperance because the card itself looks like something from a sci-fi magazine and also because having a lesser flamingo in the deck was a curve ball on my part, I’ve tried to pick unusual or interesting birds as well as ones that fit into classic archetypes and I feel my flamingo might be the more interesting.

What have been your challenges in creating this deck?

Balancing traditional themes and iconography, deciding which elements of the Rider Waite were essential and had to be present and finding suitable substitutions for symbolism.

What is one thing you really want people to know about this deck?

It’s an absolute passion project, it’s not often that I get to mix my interest with occult art with my interest in animals in a way that is both informative and spiritual! I hope this deck will be educational on all the birds featured as well as a nice tool for divination.

It’s interesting that you have chosen birds as your theme. How do you think birds relate to human spirituality?

Oh man I could write a book. Every single culture has mythologies surrounding it’s local bird species. Romans had augerys and Greeks had ornithomancy, both ways of using birds for divination. Alchemists held up Pelicans and Phoenixes as pathways to creating philosophers stones. A theme that is repeated in modern dystopian fiction is the disappearance of birds and their songs. I think birds are so prominent in arts, legends and historical documents because they embody a lot of traditional archetypes in society already, the idea that owls are wise and that magpies are thieves is fairly common. It felt very natural to me applying the tarot to birds!

How will you celebrate when your deck is finally published?

It’s lockdown here in the UK so my celebrations will be limited to a £5 UberEATS voucher and some cider. When I have the physical decks I’m excited to smell the fresh print smell though. I was going to say maybe take a break from art for a while but I’ve never felt so inspired to create more!

What is on offer for people who pledge? I’ve tried to make the deck as luxurious as possible, so I’m offering a deck that has foil on the front and back as well as gold edged cards. They will come in a really high quality book box because it’s quite important to me to store cards in something beautiful. Higher tiers will be able to get a 48 page perfect bound full colour guide talking about the card's meaning and about the birds depicted (all tiers will also receive this in digital form). At the very highest tier I’m offering to create people’s own personal piece of artwork based on their own card idea. At the time of writing this we’ve also hit 2 stretch goals, so everyone will be getting a free bookmark and a free foiled notebook to accompany the deck! We’re edging towards stretch goal #3 so hopefully everyone will get a nice enamel pin as well!

To pre-order, click here

Occult Orrnithology Kickstarter

Blooming Cat Tarot

This bright, colourful tarot deck is for all the cat lovers amongst you:

This kickstarter has now been funded. To pre-order the deck, please click here -

Blooming Cat Tarot

Where in the world do you call home?

Currently Las Vegas near Red Rock Canyon. It is beautiful here and I love to spend time in the mountains and canyons. I’ve found that when people find out I live in Las Vegas they think I live next to the casinos, but there are very peaceful, non-gambling areas here. And I don’t gamble. Haha. Though I’ve enjoyed living here I’ll be moving back to Los Angeles where I’m originally from. With everything going on in the world I want to be closer to family and friends.

What was your first experience with tarot and when did you fall in love with it?

I grew up in a Catholic family. When I was young, I remember my Mom talking about tarot cards and I was told to stay away from them with no explanation why or what they were. I was the youngest of 4 children, my siblings were 10, 11, and 12 years older than me and I loved to sneak into their rooms while they were out to see all the cool stuff that I never got to touch if they were home. I was around 10 when I found a Rider-Waite tarot deck in my sister's dresser. I thought the cards were so neat and I would look at them whenever I had a chance. That is where my fascination with the tarot began and I still love the classic Rider-Waite deck. I have studied symbolism, archetypes and esoteric subjects ever since.

What made you want to create this deck? What was your inspiration?

I have been a graphic designer for years working for other people. I’ve always wanted to have my own business designing for myself and making my own products with a focus on things I’m passionate about, art, tarot, and handmade goods. I started with a fun cat theme because I feel like we need as much cheer as possible during these strange times. Also, I LOVE CATS! Even though the imagery in this deck is light and fun I used the Rider-Waite symbolism as a guide.

Aside from your own deck, do you have a favourite deck? If so, which one?

Well, clearly I love the Rider-Waite deck. Haha. I have quite a few decks and have multiple favorites. A few are The Jungian Tarot, Golden Dawn Magical Tarot and Dali Tarot (the artwork is beautiful).

Do you have a favourite card (either from your deck or just the card in general). If so, why is it your favourite?

My favorite card from my deck is The Devil. It makes me smile as I made him look a bit like a potato. In general, I have always loved The Hermit card. It makes me feel like magick is afoot.

What have been your challenges in creating this deck?

It took more time than I thought it would but it has been so much fun and a great learning experience. This project reminded me that I can reach goals and get through tough times.

What is one thing you really want people to know about this deck?

I want people to know it was made with love and respect for the tarot and I hope they enjoy using and sharing it.

You have kept to traditional rider-waite symbolism – how difficult was it to combine with the cat theme?

Cats have so much personality and I think they are naturally intuitive and magical so I found it relatively easy. The symbolism isn’t perfect, I was trying to capture the spirit of the Rider-Waite deck more than anything.

How will you celebrate when your deck is finally published?

That’s a great question! I haven’t thought of that until now! I’m not against opening a bottle of Prosecco. :)

What is on offer for people who pledge?

The available rewards on Kickstarter are one or two decks. One deck is $35, two are $65. There were some monetary goals that were hit so if you make a pledge for a deck/decks you also get 3 Blooming Cat postcards, a PDF guidebook with color images and a tarot pouch.

To get you hands on one of these unique decks, pre-order here:

Blooming Cat Tarot

Great Cozmoz Predictive Cards

Unfortunately, this kickstarter did not reach it's required funding level.

Where in the world do you call home?

I live in North Carolina in the United States. After living in Michigan for 35 years, I can tell you I never expected to live in the South, but the weather is warmer and the people are friendly so it works for my family, and our three dogs and two cats. Behind us is a field filled with quartz and crisscrossing streams. The kids claim to have seen the ghost of a deer after finding its remains. They screamed and ran back to the house.

What was your first experience with tarot and when did you fall in love with it?

I learned the tarot while living six years in Florida. It was 2007, and the teacher was brilliant, but it was still a lot of information to absorb. It was only after I practised at a friend’s party and had the most amazing results (scarily accurate) for the attendees who wanted a reading, that I truly understood the power of the tarot.

What made you want to create this deck? What was your inspiration?

I am a shamanic healer and teacher. I know that providing healing services are valuable, but in the long run, it’s best if people learn how to heal themselves. I applied the same principle to the tarot. I thought it would be best if people learned to do the readings for themselves, but I understood how much time, practice and studying I had spent learning the tarot, and I knew most people would not want to dedicate that much time to it. We all have busy lives. So, inspired by the popularity of emojis on social media, I decided to make a deck that had simpler artwork, but still rich with meaning and symbols that could be easily interpreted.

Aside from your own deck, do you have a favourite deck? If so, which one?

My favourite deck is my first one: the Universal Tarot drawn by Roberto De Angelis. I love the colours (bright, but not too bright). I own three sizes of it: the mini, standard and professional.

Do you have a favourite card (either from your deck or just the card in general). If so, why is it your favourite?

My favourite card in the Great Comoz deck is the Shooting Star because it’s about manifesting your desires, hope, new beginnings and has my favourite number “11”, which is also my birthday and a master number.

What have been your challenges in creating this deck?

I wanted to make sure I covered all aspects of life’s concerns, which was a little more difficult with only 22 cards. It had to be concise. I spent hours sitting and sketching, letting the inspiration flow through me.

What is one thing you really want people to know about this deck?

It has been fun watching people who have never used the tarot use the Great Cozmoz deck. I saw the amazement in their eyes. The best response was from a teenage girl who asked me, “How do the cards get in the right place?”

The designs on your cards are very unique and the deck is based only on the major arcana. Why did you decide to head in this direction?

A woman who was a gypsy did my first reading. Her cards were very old and large. She used only the major arcana and was very accurate. It inspired me to create modern cards that represented the same archetype energies.

How will you celebrate when your deck is finally published?

I’m sure I’ll tell everyone! And then a nice dinner at a restaurant with outdoor dining would be a pleasurable touch. Embrace the moment!

What is on offer for people who pledge?

Anyone who pledges on Kickstarter has choices that range from $1 to $62. For $1, they will get positive energy sent their way (we all need that). For $5, they can receive a Great Cozmoz oracle card reading. For $29, they can own a deck of their own, or splurge on the package deal for $62 and get a reading, deck of cards and an uncut collector’s sheet.