Rootweaver’s new BYO Lenormand deck: LAUNCH

Build-Your-Own (BYO) Lenormand Deck, by Rootweaver

36 cards, 5 variations of each. The total deck consists of 180 cards. Printed on premium 310gsm card stock with a luxurious linen finish.

My new deck, the Build-Your-Own Lenormand is exactly what the name suggests. It is the first ever Lenormand deck that gives readers the opportunity to construct their own customized deck from 180 different cards. Five variations for each of the standard 36 Lenormand cards are available from which readers can hand-pick the ones they want in order to assemble a deck of their choice. For the first time on offer Lenormand readers can now purchase loose cards ranging from one single card to as many as they want or need. The BYO Lenormand offers so many potential combinations for readers to assemble a complete new deck, with or without additional alternatives, that there is almost no chance at all that any two buyers will end up with the same deck. The odds are better to win the Lotto twice in a row than to end up with the same deck as anyone else who assembles theirs from the BYO Lenormand.

Because the BYO Lenormand deck is created in the same style as my Vintage Lenormand deck any of these 180 BYO cards can be added to the Vintage Lenormand deck without  it looking as if they have been added on as an after-thought. They will seamlessly and perfectly blend in. This of course means that buyers can expand their existing Vintage Lenormand decks to include as many additional cards as they want, and they can hand-select these to their  taste and liking or to reflect their reading style.

With more and more new Lenormand decks becoming available deck creators are finding innovative and exciting approaches to attract the attention of potential buyers. In an attempt to give Lenormand readers exactly what they want I tried to become more alert to their needs. Lenormand readers & collectors have become increasingly vocal about what they’d like to see in future decks, it was therefore only a matter of time before a deck creator heard them and started addressing these needs. Through attentive observation and with an ear close to the ground I soon realized that a BYO deck would address many of the requests and suggestions made by readers. This is how the idea to create a Build-Your-Own Lenormand deck developed.

After the cards were completed I approached Stella Waldvogel, a respected veteran of Lenormand, to examine the BYO deck with a critical eye. I thought if I could get Stella’s ‘stamp of approval’ it might go a long way toward gaining the confidence of potential buyers to invest in this new concept deck, particularly readers who adopt a traditional style of reading as Stella is an outspoken ‘traditionalist’ in Lenormand circles. Stella made a few valuable suggestions and recommendations which I took onboard to further perfect the deck as best possible. In her review of the deck Stella said “There’s good news for traditional readers, check this out! To be honest, I was expecting yet more “new” Lenormand, so I put these images to the acid test. I gathered my notes on details, orientation and semi-obscure Lenormand lore, and set to work trying to build the most traditional deck possible from the 180 images. I was deliberately over-picky, and I was actually able to find more of the folkloric bells and whistles than you normally see in a single deck, even the classics.”

 A dear friend and fellow Lenormand reader in Australia, Lynne McGee whom I had also approached to critique the deck before it was released made a wonderful suggestion to include an African man, woman and child as options for readers to choose from. This was a very welcome last-minute adjustment and the results were simply fabulous. In response to the African addition Stella Waldvogel added “The people cards are expressive and culturally diverse, and range from boho to blue collar to metropolitan. In the end, I chose the African couple. The Man appears to be gazing benevolently at someone out of the frame, and the Woman looks happy and bubbly. They lend a friendly, open vibe to the deck. And since they face different directions, the way they fall in a spread gives extra clues about relationship readings since they can face each other, or away.”

It is with pride and joy that I offer this unique first-of-a-kind deck to the  Lenormand community. I invite my fellow deck creators to embrace this opportunity to give Lenormand readers more flexibility and control in the selection and assembly of their future decks, and I look forward to seeing other deck creators following suit with more options from which readers can choose.

This deck is dedicated to the Lenormand community, in particular to the readers and collectors of Lenormand without whom this project would not have been conceived. It is with gratitude too that I wish to acknowledge the following individuals for their encouragement, motivation, guidance, contributions and suggestions during the creation of the BYO Lenormand deck:

Carrie Paris for her unconditional love and encouragement, Lynne McGee for her unwavering faith in me and in the deck itself, Stella Waldvogel for her critically important evaluation of the deck before it was launched and for her encouragement and guidance, Marcus Katz and Tali Goodwin for their support and for the opportunity to launch the BYO Lenormand on the World Tarot Day platform. Ray Theron, Ryan Joffe, Stacey Elk, Elle Theron and numerous artists on Deviantart for permitting me to use and manipulate their sublime photography for this project, and last but not least my loving husband Gunther Graf who selflessly holds the energy of our lives together while I surrender myself to the creative flow.

The BYO Lenormand can be purchased directly from my website at  www.rootweaver.com where each of the 36 cards are listed as separate products, each with options A,B,C,D & E to choose from. Here’s hoping that this deck brings you at least as much enjoyment in its selection and use as what I have had creating it.

And now (finally) I can breathe a sigh of relief because I don’t have to hold onto this ‘secret’ anymore, the cat is out of the bag. Thanks for ‘playing’ with me in the build-up and anticipation of this deck.

With love: Rootweaver

xx JbR xx