Today we have a truly special oracle deck to discuss, the “Soulflower Plant Spirit Oracle” by Lisa Estabrook. In the oracle’s accompanying guide book Estabrook says, “The ‘Soulflower Plant Spirit Oracle’ is a very simple daily self-care, self-empowerment tool that will help support your own spiritual journey and reawaken or strengthen your connection to the earth that supports us all.” Pretty big ask from a “very simple” tool.
I’m happy to say that Estabrook’s oracle does an amazing job creating this tool. The “Soulflower Plant Spirit Oracle” is a 44-card featuring Estabrook’s own, beautiful art. Each card has its own information on it. That said, it comes with a 173-page guidebook that explains the deck’s origin and quite poetically take you through some exercises and discussion of plant spirits. Estabrook suggests a single card draw a day as one of the best ways to use the deck and I absolutely agree. I’m quite the fan of the single card draw for most decks and readings.
With its ties to the earth, desire to prompt self-exploration, and of course, lovely art, Lisa Estabrook’s “Soulflower Plant Spirit Oracle” is a must own for those looking pursue those interests.
You can learn more here.
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This book, “Divination: Your Personal Guide,” offers an amazing variety of information about styles of divination: Lenormand cards, Kipper cards, playing cards, Elder Futhark Runes, Witches’ Runes, casting charms, diving with crystals, reading colors, reading buttons, reading tea leaves, reading flowers, reading shells, the I Ching, and dice divination. Several of these I hadn’t even considered as divination methods! And Bright does an excellent job of providing enough information that you can start experimenting with the types of divinations outlined in the book immediately. “Divination” is helpfully illustrated and includes an instructional poster.
Why are animals such a popular subject for tarot and oracle decks? The most obvious reason is that animals are adorable, however Siolo Thompson, author and artist of “Winterseer Animal Oracle”, points out that animals have always been used as archetypes and personifications of the gods. Siolo Thompson took inspiration from Celtic, druid, and Norse belief systems to create the 54 card “Winter Seer Animal Oracle.” Thompson is a wonderful artist and illustrated all the cards herself. The “Winterseer Animal Companion” book is beautifully written and full of personal reflections and observations as well as folklore and legends.
I was intrigued when Watkins Publishing reached out to me about reviewing “The Inner Compass Deck” by Teal Swan. According to their press release “The Inner Compass Deck” is part of a “new, upcoming trend” of values decks. Decks like these are more about introspection than divination. However, even knowing this I was not mentally prepared for the deck, which is over 200 cards.
Most tarot/oracle decks talk about being used for introspection, however “The Inner Compass Deck” by Teal Swan is totally about introspection. If you’re ready to take a long look inside yourself, I HIGHLY recommend this deck.
I need another favorite tarot deck like I need a whole in the head. I wanted to pick a few decks to work with repeatedly in an attempt to improve my overall tarot/oracle reading skills and after AGONIZING over deciding ultimately could only narrow it down to six. SIX IS STILL A LOT! Then comes along the female forward, goddess oriented “Intuitive Night Goddess Tarot” by Linzi Silverman and the count may come up to seven! In case you weren’t aware, seven is EVEN MORE THAN SIX! Sigh…..
It is the design that makes this deck truly stand out! No one card is particularly linked to a specific deity, it deals more in archetypes. The Fool become Potential, The Magician becomes The Witch, The Emperor becomes The Monarch, The Hierophant becomes The Mystic, and more! The Minor Arcana suites are Wands, Cups, Swords, and Pentacles, however Page, Knight, Queen, and King are replaced with Nymph, Warrior, Queen, and Spirit. 
One of the amazing, impressive, and sexy things about “Iconic Tarot Decks” is the sheer volume of full color images of tarot cards. Contrary to what you may think from the way things are on the internet, images of tarot cards, including “Rider-Waite-Smith Tarot”, are copyrighted images and not to be used on resale items without permission. I don’t know if it’s the publisher, Bartlett or both who deserve a hearty pat on the back for securing the rights to such a variety of decks, from so many different companies. But from those of us who know, thank you, it is greatly appreciated.
Bartlett discusses 50 different tarot decks. How did she settle on these 50? I wouldn’t even know how to decide which decks to profile! Is it just me, or would you like to know too? She divides the decks into five categories: influential decks, beginner’s divination decks, art and collector’s decks, esoteric and occult decks, and contemporary decks. Each deck features its unique history as well as where it fits in with regards to the history of tarot. You learn about the art, design, inspiration, and more. And of course, plenty of full-color examples of the cards!
Okay, here’s the deal. I had NO intention of reviewing “Animal Love Oracle Cards” by Nadine Gordon-Taylor. Apparently in this instance I have the brain of a 12-year-old boy and the name kept making me smirk and/or chuckle like Beavis and Butthead. I’m not proud of it, but at least I’m honest. However, I took my time putting the box away, and with time I noticed the adorable cow in the corner of the cover. Eventually the cute cow wore me down and I cracked open the deck.
Gordon-Taylor has taken her research on animals in symbolism, religion, and global cultures and condensed it into wholesome, loving, positive messages from the animals to you. The animal selection is wonderful! You’ll find everyday critters, such as Chipmunk, Cat, and my friend Cow, less run of the mill creatures like Hippopotamus, Elephant, and Dolphin, and even the downright mythological! The deck is 52 full-color cards that like all oracle decks can be used in any way you want. Like I do with most oracle decks, I recommend and prefer the single card draw.
Wenman describes archangels as, “Angels of a high rank who assist humanity with our evolution by helping us to access the divine through our higher wisdom and knowledge. They differ to other angels, who solely help us with practical day-to-day things. The Archangels, along with the day-to-day, have more to with Ascension and the attainment of enlightenment.” She feels the interactive nature of an oracle deck is a great way to access them and their wisdom.
Anyone interested in working with angels and/or angelic energies would be well-served in purchasing “Archangel Fire Oracle” by Alexandra Wenman.
If you’ve followed me or The Magical Buffet on social media, you’ve probably seen me share “The Ghetto Tarot”. It’s one of my all-time favorite decks done by photographer Alice Smeets and a Haitian art collective known as Atis Rezistans. These artists and Smeets recreated the Rider Waite Tarot using local sourced, found materials. I never wrote a formal review because it was done as a Kickstarter and I didn’t realize you could purchase it after that. When Smeets started a new fundraising campaign for a second tarot deck, I didn’t hesitate. What I received was “The Gift of Life Tarot”.
The next day I started going through all of my archives from 13 years of photography. I looked through 1000’s of photos to find the ones that matched each tarot card the best. It was an amazing, fun and inspiring process and gave me a chance to reconnect to all of those memories from all around the world from the past. This deck is not just a deck, it is at the same time a retrospective of my work as a photographer since 2007. All of the photos I have chosen for this deck were taken during my travels to different continents, each single one of them is dear to my heart. The people portrayed in the photos are people I either encountered along the way and just met briefly, some I spent several days with and others are my friends.
Smeets feels the real-life scenes depicted on the cards make it easy to relate the cards to ourselves and our lives. “The Gift of Life Tarot” has the traditional 22 cards of the major arcana. The minor arcana is divided into four 14 card suits: fire, water, air, and earth. The traditional court cards of the minor arcana are replaced with daughter, son, mother, and father.
“The Gift of Life Tarot” by Alice Smeets is a true reflection of universality of the human experience. Personally, I can’t wait to see what Smeets creates next!
I’m fortunate that many publishers and publicists offer to send me free books or products to consider for review. I frequently get to request certain items, but other times, I get things sent to me without requesting them. And let me tell you, left to my own devices, I NEVER would have requested “The Archeo.” Thankfully, Jake at Llewellyn didn’t ask me, he knew I needed to see this.
Nearly every deck is marketed as a tool of self-discovery, but “The Archeo” is a tool ONLY for self-discovery. The 40-card deck and its accompanying 204 page, full-color companion guide help you create your personal mythology. Bantock expands on Jung and Campbell’s idea of archetypes, crafting the 40 presented in “The Archeo” that include alchemist, demon, midwife, wolf, greenman, falcon, and more. There are even two blank cards provided in case you discover a new archetype you want to work with. Each card has artwork created by Bantock, and you know how I’m a sucker for deck authors being able to illustrate their own deck. (I not so secretly wish I could create visual art…..or write effectively for that matter!)