I am back with a review for my new deck, The Crystal Unicorn Tarot by Pamela Chen. I have been posting these reviews back-to-back; I know! Upon purchasing a new deck I should have posted it right then, but now I find myself back logging as a lot of the decks I’ve reviewed have been sold and are no longer in my collection. So, now that I have new decks coming in to my collection I am reviewing them as they come. Then, I can get on to my daily reading posts and other interpretations I have conducting along my tarot journey. So, bare with me! Anyhow, I am really excited about this deck. My friend Luna told me about it months ago, but I did not jump on to the hype train over it, right away. Evidently fate brought me back to it when conducting my search for a deck with traditional Rider-Waite-Smith symbolism, but with a more modern feel. I was lucky enough to purchase this deck from a member of the Tarot Marketplace on Facebook; a buy/sell/trade tarot and oracle card group. My deck was $33 USD and brand new! However, you can purchase your own on from LunaProsperity, Pamela Chen’s shop, on Etsy for the same price. Currently it is on pre-order and a wait time is to be expected.
This deck is right up my alley in terms of pastel color scheme, whimsical artwork, crystal associations (which is a new and awesome concept for me in terms of tarot) and…UNICORNS! If anyone knows me as a watercolor artist, they know that I greatly enjoy the color palette of pastel pinks, purples, blues and yellow! I have the artwork to prove it.
Check out more of my artwork on my art blog – MaraMedium Commissions are open!
The Packaging
The Crystal Unicorn Tarot comes in my favorite style of packaging; a two piece box with satin matte finish. All sides of the box are designed with a beautiful pastel rainbow of colors in a watercolor texture design with hand lettered font style. It’s sturdy and secure!
Cardstock Quality
The cardstock of this deck is like nothing I have felt before in terms of cards. It is thinner than my preferred 400gsm yardstick, however it is still stiff and sturdy with just enough give for shuffling. The cards are a buttery satin matte finish which is divine! No shine to the cards, however they don’t stick together when you’re attempting a shuffle. I really love it!
Photo Credits The Woo Shop | Crystal Unicorn Tarot Coloring Book
The Guidebook
The guidebook is a small book with the same artwork cover as the box, and neatly fits inside of the tarot card box. The cover of the actual book is quite thin and I do wish it was made with a thicker, more quality paper. Nonetheless, the information inside is still valid. The interpretation of the cards from the creator is interesting; giving a few words for both upright and reversed meanings. Her interpretation of the cards is a bit different from my own and any other I have seen either! This may be a hit or miss for you. If you are experienced with tarot, this won’t bother you as you already have developed your own relationship with the card meanings, however if you are just learning, the information may be bit conflicting for some cards. The star of the show for the guidebook is the crystal associations for each card! This is something totally new that I’ve not seen before, as the artist goes into depth over the crystal and what it means for this card.
In short, I love everything about this deck! If you’re looking for a deck based on the Rider-Waite-Smith cards, but is a bit more colorful and whimsical, look no further than these. Pamela Chen has also created a coloring book as a companion to this deck. It is no ordinary adult coloring book, this one is an extensive guide to the original tarot guidebook. Inside features journal prompts, spreads, and an expansion on the tarot card meanings and crystal associations. I haven’t purchased my copy yet, but I am sure to soon. It retails for $14-17 USD on Amazon.
I have also joined the Crystal Unicornland Facebook group. This group is conducted by Pamela Chen and is made up of members of the tarot community that own and use this deck. Pamela makes tarot so fun; offering general readings throughout the week via Facebook Live and bringing in guest speakers for interviews. The members share their tarot spreads, and fun unicorn themed things that they find in-store. Just recently I shared this adorable unicorn zipper pouch set I found at Wal-Mart for only $5.
