Being an avid tarot card reader, I am also a keen deck collector and whilst living in lockdown over the past few months, I have whiled away some of my time by getting to grips with reading and using a variety of new tarot decks, including the marvellously modern and super stylish ‘Spirit Within Tarot’ which Red Feather (Schiffer Publishing) very kindly sent me to review.
The Spirit Within Tarot was designed and created by Steven Bright (born in London in 1972), a professional tarot reader who is also the creator of two tarot decks, a keen blogger, a tarot reviewer, and the founder of Tiferet Tarot.
Packaging & Guidance
The Spirit Within Tarot arrives neatly packaged within its very own sturdy, magnetic-close box and features a ninety-six page, colour printed guidebook which offers an informative outlook upon each card as well as an example tarot spread.
I love how Steven has provided each card within the guidebook with its very own personal introduction in order to further explain it’s meaning: The Six of Cups, for example, reads “I am connected to memories and the past. Are you feeling nostalgic? Are you thinking back to your childhood? One of my biggest problems is living in the past and not appreciating the present.”
Alongside this personal take upon each card, Steven has added a clear explanation for each card and keywords for quick referral purposes.
The Spirit Within Tarot Cards
The Spirit Within Tarot cards have the most beautiful black and purple backs featuring a wheel of people, it reminds me a little of Daft Punks ‘Around The World’ music video somehow…
The cards themselves are very smooth and shiny but aren’t all that easy to shuffle due to the high gloss finish, though I really do love the chunky feel to this deck.
The Major & Minor Arcana
The Spirit Within Tarot deck is the dream deck for beginner readers as each card features simple silhouette images depicting a clear, precise and simple message. The silhouettes transcend age, gender and race, creating an incredibly inclusive deck.
Steven has reduced tarot cards to their very essence in order to create this powerful, suggestive and simple-to-use tarot deck.
Whilst the major arcana ranges in colour schemes, the minor arcana follows a particular colour scheme for each suit (cups, wands, swords and pentacles). This colour-coding to the cards really helps to identify moods, themes and messages from the cards.
I love how the cups being a watery, emotional suit is represented by a beautiful shade of blue, whereas the wands are a fiery orange, the swords are a vibrant yellow and the pentacles (being an earthy suit) are in a gorgeous shade of green.
Here’s a walkthrough guide I put together if you fancy watching
The Spirit Within – The IKEA of Tarot Decks
For me, The Spirit Within Tarot is the IKEA of tarot card decks, as much like the stylish Swedish furniture products, they are sturdy, stylish, cool, clean, colourful, simple and easy to understand and to utilise.
To avoid any confusion, may I add that I ADORE IKEA – they are the superstars of stylish storage, kooky concepts, funky furniture and inspirational, innovative design. I also ADORE the Spirit Within Tarot deck as it’s mega modern and perfectly printed and pitched for all levels of readers.
Reading & Using The Spirit Within Tarot
I’ve been using the Spirit Within Tarot deck for just over a week now and whilst I find it extremely easy to read from, I’m also very aware that my clients are clearly able to view and understand the cards (due to the simplistic and clear imagery) almost without my explanation required. My six-year-old daughter has also shown an interest in these cards as she too is able to read them clearly – The Spirit Within Tarot certainly offers clarity that’s for sure!
Purchasing and Pricing Information
The Spirit Within Tarot has a recommended retail price of $24.99 (which is around £20.11 GBP). The Spirit Within Tarot is currently available from Gazelle Book Services for £31.19 or (as of June 2020) from Amazon for only £17.62 however, prices fluctuate especially so since the lockdown.
To Summarise
The stylish, symbolic yet simple ‘Spirit Within Tarot’ deck is a cool, contemporary and comfortable deck for all abilities and levels of tarot readers.
I would very much recommend The Spirit Within Tarot deck as it is clear, concise and easy-to-read. If you’re after a simple, stylish, clear-cut, straight-talking tarot deck then The Spirit Within may well be your soul deck.
For further information upon The Spirit Within Tarot or alternative Schiffer/ Red Feather products visit https://www.schifferbooks.com
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Product Rating
Disclosure: I was sent the above product for the purpose of this post however all opinions are my own.