“A Story of Love” playing cards

This “A Story About Love” set of playing cards is custom designed and features custom illustrations across 55 cards (a full deck + 2 jokers + title card). A special feature of these decks is that there are “bombs” on the 2s, which makes this deck perfect for playing 13 (the game, otherwise known as tiến lên, yeeeah!)

Size: cards are 2.5″x3.5″ (inches); box is about 2.6″ x 3.6″ (inches)
Paper: cards are 100# color, with coated flat matte UV coating and features rounded corners

About “A Story About Love”: I love making utilitarian things artful, and hopefully that’s exemplified in this deck. I have always been kinda troubled/fascinated by how aristocratic and hierarchal a deck of cards is — from the suits to the value of the face cards. For this reason, I sought to bring things down to the ground with this set through illustrating “realistic suits,” (bloody hearts, raw/unrefined/uncut diamonds, shovel-spades, and blunt weapon clubs). Additionally, all of the face cards feature a woman. Lastly, there are bombs on the 2 cards, an evocation of the Vietnamese card game 13, in which the more valuable and highest value card is not a royal or an ace, but the humble 2. The bomb carries forward the thread of violence that appears across the entire deck.

This took me months to draw and design! I also designed, cut, and glued the tuck boxes myself! I know how to make paper boxes now, LOLOLOL.

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