Bad Bitches Tarot Deck Review

Creator - Ethony
Artist - Elena and Sasha Semenkova
Publisher - Independent
Date purchased - 2018

Introduction ​

This is an all-female deck and I was a bit unsure about purchasing it at first. I worried that having only single sex images in the cards would somehow make the deck feel incomplete. I was wrong. Yes, the voice of this deck is female only, however there are so many different voices, different accents and opinions, that it balances the deck very nicely. 
There is one thing I don’t like about this deck and that’s the title. So now that’s out of the way, here’s what I do like. ​

What's Good?

XX Judgement and the Three of Swords - I love how these cards give a nod to the original RWS images by wearing them on their jumpers. 

V The Hierophant - so up to the minute with the social influence of current times. 
Queen of Swords - for some reason I hear this woman 'talk' with a barbadian accent. She's sensible and no-nonsense. 

XV The Devil - This Devil is keeping herself in chains instead of the traditional weak supplicants.
Queen of Pentacles - I can't decide if she's from Little Mix or the Kardashians?  

XVI The Tower - just like the issue the True Black Tarot had with how to show this energy on a human figure, the Bad Bitches brilliantly depicts random chaos through the lightening strikes on this woman's coat. 
Two of Pentacles - so cleverly showing the feel of juggling and balancing without the need for an obvious sailors outfit. 

Diversity

Yes, its all-female but there are women of all sizes, shapes, ages and skin-colours. The images are open to interpretation about varied sexual orientation. There is no representation of women with physical disabilities. ​

Cardstock & Graphics

The card stock is a nice thickness, not too firm but not too flimsy and a matt finish that makes them easy to shuffle and handle. The card backs are white with rose gold bees in foil stamping and they’re edged in rose gold foil and it’s gorgeous. The back design is reversible. 
Font and numbering is clear and unobtrusive. ​

Packaging

The cards arrive in a high-quality box in a rich shade of brown with rose gold foil stamping and a magnetic closure. It holds the cards safely as well as the guide book. ​

Guidebook

An excellent little white book (well, it’s got a brown cover to match the box). The meanings are split into five headings: bare meaning, boudoir, business, bank and blocked. The book was written by Ethony and the meanings are original and well written. It doesn’t trot out the usual standard fare. The only downside is the small font. But that’s what reading glasses were invented for, right! ​

What's Bad?

Apart from the name, my deck has some white flecks on the background. It looks like there were some issue with the printing. But because they are in the background they don't affect the images of the women on the cards and are really not that noticeable. 

Summary

This is the best deck for…getting a clear message from a whole bunch of new friends. Good advice from the women on these cards can be helpful for male, female and non-binary clients. I really like the style of art work and the colours in the deck. The box, card backs and gold foil edging is absolutely gorgeous and really makes this deck a must-have. 

Where to buy

Join the waitlist st Ethonys website www.ethony.com.  When I purchased mine there was a slow response from the payment confirmation but I’m used to internet gliches so didn’t worry and sure enough, the deck arrived in good time from Canada to the UK. ​