“I started making Tarot of a Forest Witch in 2023 and it’s such an exciting project! It allows me to infuse my own energy and symbolism into each card, to think deeper about the different archetypes they represent, and how I want to picture them through my art. “

Remember early January? I was talking about my witchy resolutions and what I’d like to focus on this year. One of my goals – which I didn’t clearly spell out in that post but was very much alive in my mind – was to finish and publish Tarot of a Forest Witch this year. Well, as it turns out, my plans may have changed a little bit. Don’t worry, it will still happen, it might just take a different form than what I imagined.

Creating a Tarot Deck is an intimidating project, perhaps the most intimidating one out of all the Oracles I’ve made so far (granted this will only be my third deck of cards). For starters, it’s more than double the amount of cards of a Lenormand. Having created one of those and knowing what I know about deck making, that’s a considerable amount of time and energy to dedicate to a single project. Which I don’t mind, but I do have to take it into consideration.

Additionally, I feel like there is much more pressure put on the Artist than for any other kinds of Oracle making because of the aura that surrounds Tarot and its archetypes. Maybe it’s just me putting that pressure on myself, but there must be expectations from the Tarot Community, right? You tell me in the comments if I’m mistaken, but here are my thoughts:

I find the balance between staying true to traditional Tarot archetypes and what I can bring with my own interpretation of the cards somewhat challenging. Stimulating and thought-provoking for sure, but challenging nonetheless. It’s a tight rope to walk, even though I’m happy to. Furthermore, with Tarot being so rich in symbolism and meaning, each card (especially the Major Arcana) is supposed to carry many layers of significance. Accurately conveying the essence of each archetype while also making them accessible and visually compelling is a task easier said than done. And it has to be done 78 times.

In a different world, I would forfeit all of my worldly duties and channel my inner Hermit to go on a spiritual quest that would have me focus solely on creating Tarot of a Forest Witch. A couple of months entirely dedicated to this project, my mind living and breathing Tarot every second of my waking hours. Sounds like a dream to me! Unfortunately, not a very realistic one.

So here’s where I’m at, and what the plan is: the Major Arcana are all painted and done, so the idea is to publish a first version of Tarot of the Forest Witch, exclusive to these main archetypes, and see if you, dear Mystic Seekers, relate to what I have to bring to the Tarot table with this new, Nature-inspired deck of cards.

I already started to work in that direction and expect to be able to share pictures of a prototype with you in the next coming weeks! I can’t wait to actually get it in the mail; I think that being able to hold it in my hands and see it manifested in a physical, tangible form will help lessen the overwhelm I sometimes feel about the whole project.

I’ll share all the news over here and on Social Media whenever I have some. Keep your eyes peeled for the preorders of this first edition; if everything goes well with the mockup, it shouldn’t be too long before it happens! In the meantime, I’ll keep working on the Court Cards and the Minor Arcana, refining my ideas and making them as good as I possibly can. One card after the other, enjoying the process and the present moment instead of obsessing about a distant finish line ✨🙏🌿

PS: On a totally different note, you may notice that my one post per week schedule is a little off right now. The reason is quite simple: I’m moving to a new house! This is very exciting (and I can’t wait to talk about it soon!) but it also means I have even less free time, and I have to prioritize taking care of your orders and packing my things. I’ll still try to get next week’s post done – I hope to see see you then!