Alexander Daniloff Lenormand

 Alexander Daniloff Lenormand.

It's here and it's wonderful.

First Impressions Review - Mystical Lenormand

So excited because at long last the Mystical Lenormand is in my hands after a very long time of oooing and oohing over it online. It arrived yesterday morning and so most of last evening, in the absence of the family who were busy doing their own thing, I enjoyed looking through the cards.

I'm a new student to the Lenormand, only beginning my discoveries and exploration early this year but am really enchanted by it all and this will definitely be continuing for a long time to come.  As you've seen in early posts, i've purchased a few Lenormand decks. The one i've been working with the most is the Celtic Lenormand which I love because it ties in so beautifully with my favourite tarot and oracle decks, all illustrated by Will Worthington.

This deck captured my imagination because it has a fairytale quality about with the images being similar to my favourite fairytale book series when I was little, which I still  have and treasure.  The image on the cover of the Star card with the little cat looking out into the night sky accompanied with the telescope and globe of constellations and the beautiful book really captures the magical quality of the deck.

The deck is published by AGM Urania, written by Regula Elizabeth Fiecher and artwork by Urban Trösch.  The box containing the cards and little white book is shrink wrapped, these in turn are plastic wrapped within the box.

The cards are of a good quality, laminated in a silky finish without being slippery and measure 5.7cm x 9cm.  The little white book is very small, contains 33 pages which contain a few spreads and meanings of the cards.

The images are wonderfully detailed.  Even though there has been some comment made that there are too many details or the key object is too small to be easily seen in a large spread, i'm personally not finding this a problem.   I'm particularly enjoying that the scene unfolding on the card is illustrated as though being viewed through an ornate window.  The feeling it creates is a similar effect in the Enchanted Lenormand where the key object is contained in a crystal ball.  It focuses your gaze on what is happening in the card and creates an air of mystery.

These are some of my favourite cards from the deck.

Something has arrived.

Look what i'll be relaxing with this evening.  More tomorrow.

3 x 3 x 3 Divination Tag

Chloe from Inner Whispers shared a video of her 3 x 3 x 3 Divination Tag and it was really enjoyable to see her selections and those of others on video and blog.  It looked such fun that I thought i'd join in too.  Video appearances are still awkward for me until I get past my heebie jeebies about being on screen so it's pictures and text till then. 

The idea is to share our three top Tarot, Oracle, Lenormand or Divination tools/accessories.

My three Tarot choices

The Druidcraft Tarot, Crystal Visions Tarot and Anna K Tarot.

The cards shown above really drew me in when I first learned of the decks and is the reason they were each added to my collection.  These three are my daily decks and even though there are several others that I enjoy using, these three really speak to me to most and are the ones I consistently reach for.  As you've probably noticed, i've de- bordered the Druidcraft and Crystal Visions decks because I felt the borders prevented me from really being drawn into the images for some reason.  Best thing ever. 

My three Oracle choices

 

Het Mandala Orakel, Ask your Guides Oracle and the Druid Animal Oracle

The Mandala Oracle is a deck I bought while visiting my husband's family in the Netherlands, bought it in a bookshop in Rotterdam about 10 years ago.  At the time I couldn't find an English version to buy for clients or friends, luckily for me I can understand Dutch so reading the book or message on the back of each card is not a problem for me but really the mandala says it all itself.  After a time I stopped looking if an English version had been released (maybe i'll do that this evening and can then share what I find).  I like to use them for mediation or during Reiki treatments.

 The cards below are the ones that first captured my attention and imagination in each deck.  I won't be de-bordering the Animal Oracle because the borders work very well for me on this one.

My three other Divination choices

 Pendulum, Scrying Stone and Water

This pendulum above was a gift to me by a friend and it is one of two that I use.  I chose to share this one in the picture is because it is the most thoughtful gift ever received.  At the time she and I were just acquaintances through mutual friends and didn't quite know how to take each other.  She was quite hard to read and prickly at the best of times so I was quite scared of her in a way, yet one afternoon when we were all exchanging gifts within the group, she gifted me with this pendulum.  She "knew" me in some way even though we'd shared very little on a personal level.  This gesture broke down all walls we had and we got on like a house on fire after that.  

I use my pendulums for divination however most of the time they are used when i'm working with Energy Healing and Chakra Balancing.  My favourite method of divination alongside Tarot is scrying either in water in my trusty black bowl or using the scrying stone.  The bowl doesn't have much of a mysterious beginning other than it has to be black and the only place that had the right size and shape after much searching was a local supermarket.  As it's been in use for over 15 years it is now saturated with the mysteriousness it deserves.  The scrying stone was bought for me by my husband during our visit to the Witchcraft Museum in Boscastle, Cornwall.  It's so beautiful to work with.

As a little extra to my other divination tools seeing as the scrying bowl and stone are used similarly, i'm adding the Lenormand.  I've only been studying the Lenormand for about 6 months now in depth and am really enjoying it so much.  The Celtic Lenormand is my favourite of all three.

Hope you enjoyed my 3 x 3 x 3 Divination Tag. Thanks Chloe for this enjoyable idea.  Please feel free to share your link to your 3x3x3 Divination Tag in the comments section below.


PS...

Another favourite.

Since i'm sharing my top/favourites may as well share another favourite. These are my favourite treat while writing on my blog.  Can't beat a fruity jellybean.

Bye for now.

First Impressions Review - Celtic Lenormand

The Celtic Lenormand is written by Chloë McCracken with artwork by Will Worthington.

Published by US Games Systems Inc 

The set is comprised of 45 cards and a 188 page guidebook with images of each card in black and white.  These are contained in a box with removable lid which is of good quality and which you could quite easily continue to keep the set in.

The guidebook is an actual little book which makes me so happy, not a funny little white booklet.  The cover is sturdy enough and decorated with artwork from the deck with nice quality pages within.  The font and layout is pleasant to read.

The cards are slightly smaller than a playing card 9cm x 5.7cm with rounded corners, the images are beautiful, colourful and borderless, (fantastic news for those of us who don't enjoy borders).   The cardstock is a pleasant thickness, not to stiff or too thin and the lamination is matte so the cards are not slippery to handle.

The Celtic Lenormand has 9 additional cards to the 36 cards in a traditional Lenormand deck meaning the deck can not only be used as a traditional Lenormand but also to expand the use of the deck with the aspects of Pagan beliefs and teachings within the Lenormand system.  

There is so much more to this deck because of this, which is what makes me love this deck. It opens up the use of the Lenormand for more spiritual experiences, exploration and work. The inclusion of a choice for some of the cards allows the reader to expand the deck and adapt it as needed to work with Deities, family groups, aspects of life, seasons, same sex partnerships, wheel of life and more.

In addition to meanings for each card the book also contains advice on working with Deity, using the cards in spells and a good selection of spreads.

This review is my early impression and thoughts on the deck and book after spending an afternoon meeting the Celtic Lenormand for the first time.  

A delicious diversion.

It's an overexcited afternoon here today, joy of joys my anticipated parcel has arrived containing some beautiful treasure.

Here it is!  Isn't it breathtaking?!

It is not a Tarot Deck but it is definitely worth sharing with you on here because it is just such a beauty that I was sure you'd enjoy unwrapping it with me.  The deck is by Ciro Marchetti who also created The Gilded Tarot.  

This is my first Lenormand Deck, I know very little about working with it though i'm looking forward to the entire process of learning and discovery.