Premium

Premium playing cards in stock in Madrid: illustrated and artist decks, casino style, vintage, minimalist and luxury decks with foil or gilded edges.

Playing Cards

Gemini

Page 1 of 5

1
2
3
5
Next ›

Designer, luxury and artist playing cards

This category holds our designer playing cards: every deck that is not a basic deck for playing. Decks illustrated by artists, casino style decks, vintage reissues, minimalist designs and luxury playing cards with foil, gilded edges or special boxes. It also includes licensed themed decks (Star Wars, Harry Potter, The Beatles, Disney) when they are not limited editions. It is the playing card subcategory with the most models in the shop, and everything you see in the listing is in our Madrid warehouse, ready to ship.

If you are looking for premium playing cards or artist playing cards to use, give or keep, here you have decks from theory11, Art of Play, Kings Wild Project, Fultons, Pure Imagination, Stockholm17, Room One, Jetsetter, MPC, Bocopo and Joker and the Thief. Below we sort them by style, with specific models, and explain what each finish adds.

All playing cards Unique playing cards guide Themed and licensed Limited editions Cardistry decks Magic playing cards Poker cards

Premium card decks: choose by style

Illustrated and artist playing cards

Here the illustration is the whole point of the deck. The Lady Moon V2 from Art of Play, drawn by Kelly Thorn with art deco motifs; the Dreyfus, with the psychedelic world of Ashley Dreyfus; the Keith Haring deck from theory11, with his bold-line figures; or the Ultimate Deck from Dan & Dave, made with Stranger & Stranger, in which each of the 54 cards is a different illustration. The Chao decks from MPC dedicate each suit to a Chinese dynasty.

Casino style playing cards

They recreate the decks used in Las Vegas casinos in the mid 20th century. The Cherry Casino decks from Pure Imagination start from that look with their cherry back and come in many colors. The Jerry's Nugget Vintage Feel reissue the deck the Jerry's Nugget casino ordered from USPCC in 1970, much loved by magicians. The style is completed by the Ace Fulton's Casino by Brad Fulton, the Gemini Casino in phthalo green and the Jetsetter decks, which mix casino and aviation.

Vintage playing cards

They reproduce or reinterpret antique decks. The Shakespeare Black recreates a deck from 1902 with metallic gold ink; the Hudson from theory11 revives a 19th century New York brand; and the King's Head from Joker and the Thief is inspired by USPCC decks from the 1930s. The Fulton Street 1958 pays tribute to the New York subway map of that year and The Parlour from Stockholm17 has ivory toned faces.

Minimalist playing cards

Little ornament, lots of typography and color. The Misc. Goods Co. Black, by Tyler Deeb, redraws the court cards, suits and typography with silver foil details; the Grid Series Six Typographic by Luke Wadey is purely typographic, with neon ink that reacts to ultraviolet light. The Rhombus Space from Bocopo, the Icon Black and the NOC Pro 2021 follow the same line.

Licensed themed decks

Sagas, bands and characters with their own artwork: the Mandalorian from theory11, with Din Djarin's helmet embossed; The Beatles, with a box inspired by Sgt. Pepper's; Dune, with a case that mimics a stillsuit; or the One Piece decks from Card Mafia. You will find all of them, limited editions included, in themed and licensed playing cards.

Luxury playing cards: foil, gilded edges and special boxes

Part of the category takes the design into the manufacturing too. These are the finishes you will find.

Foil playing cards and metallic cards

Foil is a metallic film transferred onto the paper. Hot foil is applied with a heated die and pressure, and is often combined with embossing. On most decks it is only on the box, but on some it reaches the cards: the Star Wars Gold Foil from theory11 has its back stamped in gold foil and the James Bond Silver Edition has silver foil on every card. MetalLuxe is the USPCC technique for stamping metallic foil on the back while keeping the handling of a Bicycle: you have it on the Bicycle MetalLuxe Gold and on the red Tally-Ho Circle MetalLuxe.

Gilded edge playing cards

A gilded deck has the edges of the cards painted metallic, so the closed deck looks like a block of metal. Examples: The Two Towers Gilded from Kings Wild Project, the Oppenheimer Nucleus from Room One, with aged gold edges, or the black Jerry's Nugget Gilded, limited to 1,000 decks with a numbered seal. The makers warn that the gilding wears with use and can chip a little at the corners.

Special inks, paper and boxes

The Deal with the Devil hides demons in ultraviolet ink, the Night Market Holographic changes color with the light and the Dynamo Abandoned Luxury uses Cartamundi True Linen B9 stock. As for boxes, the Iron Man MK1 from Card Mafia lights up the Arc reactor with an LED when you open it, and the Tellason Jeans deck from Fultons comes in a box made of recycled denim paper.

Same stock, different design

What separates a designer deck from a basic one is rarely the paper. Most come from the same printers as everyday decks: the United States Playing Card Company (USPCC), which makes Bicycle and Tally-Ho; Cartamundi, in Belgium; or Expert Playing Card Company. The Sakura V3 from Bocopo is printed by USPCC on Bee Casino stock, the Ravn Mani from Stockholm17 by Cartamundi and the current Jerry's Nugget decks by Expert. What changes is the artwork, the box, the inks and how many cards are customized. That is why many of them handle just like a Bicycle and work for playing, magic or cardistry.

If you want premium poker cards for the table, the casino style decks printed by USPCC are the most practical. We compare stock, finish and handling in Bicycle vs Theory11 vs Tally-Ho, and if you still do not know where to start, the guide which deck of cards to buy sorts the options by use.

Designer playing card brands

theory11 playing cards

An American publisher with its own designs (Monarchs, Artisan, High Victorian, Medallion) and licensed ones (Star Wars, Marvel, Harry Potter, The Beatles). Many are made in the USA on FSC certified paper with vegetable based inks.

Art of Play

The brand of the twins Dan and Dave Buck. It produces decks with outside artists and studios, such as DKNG, Studio Muti or Ashley Dreyfus.

Kings Wild Project

The studio of illustrator Jackson Robinson, which started on Kickstarter in 2013. It publishes the official The Lord of the Rings decks and the No.13 Table Players series.

Fultons

Brad Fulton's decks, with an American casino and vintage look: Ace Fulton's Casino, Gunsmoke or Fulton Street 1958.

And also

Pure Imagination (Cherry Casino), Stockholm17 (The Parlour, Ravn), Room One (55-card decks and accordion boxes), Jetsetter, MPC (Chao), Bocopo (Sakura, Red Fox) and Joker and the Thief (King's Head).

Frequently asked questions about designer playing cards

What are premium playing cards?

A deck with its own design, not the basic version for playing: artist illustration, casino or vintage look, minimalist or with special finishes. There is no official definition; in the shop we use that criterion to group them here.

How are they different from a collector's deck?

A designer deck is defined by what it looks like; a collector's deck, by how many exist: limited print run, numbered seal or an edition that is not reprinted. Many decks are both at once.

Can you play with a designer deck?

Yes. Most are printed by USPCC, Cartamundi or Expert and handle like a normal deck. Foil on the cards and gilded edges change the feel and wear sooner, so for frequent play a deck without gilding is better.

What are foil playing cards?

Decks with a metallic film (gold, silver or holographic) fixed to the paper. On most it is only on the box; on special editions, also on the back or the faces. Among classic decks, the Bicycle MetalLuxe and the Tally-Ho Circle MetalLuxe are metallic foil editions.

Why do some decks have 55 or 56 cards?

Besides the jokers, some include extra cards: advertising cards, gaff cards for magic or cards that belong to the design. Room One, for example, publishes its decks with 55 custom cards.

Which deck of cards makes a good gift?

The one that matches the recipient's taste: a licensed deck of their favorite saga or band is usually a better choice than the most expensive one. If they do magic or cardistry, better one they can use. You will find ideas by profile in which deck to give as a gift.

	xxs	xs	s	m	l	xl	2xl
US Size	0-0	2-4	4-6	8-10	12-14	16-18	20-22
Bust (in)	30-32	32-34	34-36	36-38	38-40	40-42.5	42.5-45.5
Under Bust (in)	25-26	27-28	28-29	30-31.5	32-33.5	34-36	36-38
Waist (in)	23.5-24.5	25-26.5	27-28.5	29-30.5	31-33.5	34-36.5	37-40

Gemini Casino Phthalo Green – Playing Cards

Premier Edition Restricted Red – Playing Cards

Premier Edition Jet Black Private Reserve – Playing Cards

Card Mafia One Piece Robin – Playing Cards

Lounge Edition Terminal Turquoise – Playing Cards

Lounge Edition Taxiway Yellow – Playing Cards

Cardistry Fanning Yellow Edition – Playing Cards

Tally-Ho Fan White Rose – Playing Cards

Bicycle MetalLuxe Orange – Playing Cards

Bicycle Elton John – Playing Cards

Bicycle Disney Villains Green – Playing Cards

Bicycle Steampunk Gold – Playing Cards

Bicycle Neon Cardistry Orange Bump – Playing Cards

Bicycle Stranger Things – Playing Cards

Bicycle Tokidoki Sports Red – Playing Cards

Piracy – Playing Cards

James Bond 007 – Playing Cards

Hollywood Roosevelt – Playing Cards

Tycoon Black – Playing Cards

Tycoon White – Playing Cards

Notorious B.I.G. – Playing Cards

Monarchs Red – Playing Cards

Contraband – Playing Cards

Tally-Ho 2024 Floral Edition – Playing Cards

Tally-Ho Circle MetalLuxe – Playing Cards

Bicycle Wednesday – Playing Cards

Bicycle Stitch – Playing Cards

Bicycle Disney Princess Blue – Playing Cards

Bicycle Disney Mickey & Friends – Playing Cards

Bicycle Disney Classic Mickey Mouse Red – Playing Cards

Bicycle Breeze – Playing Cards

Bicycle Unicorn – Playing Cards

Bicycle Hello Kitty Black & Pink – Playing Cards

Bicycle Guns N' Roses – Playing Cards

Masterpieces Cardistry – Playing Cards

Bicycle Skull Metallic Silver – Playing Cards

Card Mafia One Piece Sanji – Playing Cards

Card Mafia One Piece Franky – Playing Cards

Broken Borders – Playing Cards

Bicycle Spectrum – Playing Cards

Yin Yang Chao

theory11 Yellowstone

theory11 Wonka

theory11 Wicked

Dan & Dave Ultimate Deck

Card Mafia Thor

theory11 Rolling Stones

Kings Wild LOTR Two Towers Gilded

Kings Wild LOTR Return of the King Foil & Gilded

Kings Wild LOTR Return of the King Black Gilded

Riffle Shuffle Keys of Solomon Silver Spirituum

Room One Hanging Gardens of Babylon Standard

Riffle Shuffle Great Creator Earth

theory11 Dark Knight x Batman

Beetle Backs Crimson Edition

theory11 The Beatles Yellow Submarine