Spotlight on... themed playing cards

Contributing editor, Abi, gives very good gift. 

And she's just pulled off a double-whammy with two beautiful sets of playing cards. A while back, she gave me this most excellent John Hinde Cornwall-themed set.

Hinde's studio, in case you don't share my – and Martin Parr's – obsession with it, is the prolific producer of pretty much every British holiday postcard you've ever bought – though the best are from the era when he was still around and running things (and you can read the fascinating back-story here).

If this wasn't enough, Abi surprised my boyfriend a few weeks ago by posting him these beauties (the appropriate postcard came with).

 

The appropriateness of the gift becomes clear if you know that he is a graphic designer. Aren't they beautiful (and I'm not even a font nerd)? In case you haven't seen the Helveticards before, they are designed by Ryan Myers.

But now we have not one but two lovely sets of playing cards in the house, what to do with them? It seems a shame to keep them hidden in their boxes, nice as these alone look on their respective shelves (and my gaming skills don't extend much beyond Snap). I looked around for inspiration. What do you think?

You can read about these beautifully illustrated cards on the ever excellent Design Sponge. Photo: Design Sponge

Above right: I spotted these 1950s Alberto Vargas playing cards, arranged classily in a frame, on Pinterest... which led me to the Etsy Shop Handsome Vintage, which was selling them... alas not at the moment though. Photo: Etsy

And, above right, this display obviously isn't any use for my cards. Good use of a giant, monochrome four of clubs, all the same. Photo: Dirty Tuscon.

I quite like the simplicity of one-card-per-frame, as seen in this display above, available to buy as is from American store, Jayson Home. Photo: Jayson Home.

Same goes for this simple strip of cards in a clean, white frame. A nice touch for a child's bedroom. You can find these original Disney cards for sale on Etsy. Photo: Etsy.

I'm kind of over bunting. But there's the odd off-beat exception that still wins me over. Like this one, which – for reliable endorsement – is also a craft project featured on the always stylish Decorator's Notebook. These are a bit of a cheat as they're not playing cards but cigarette cards, which are littler in size. Photo: Patchwork Harmony.

I have previously strung up a row of good postcards, pegged onto string (see below).

And this takes that idea one step further by mounting cards and pegs inside an open frame (and using wire instead of string, for more control). It's all about the execution: it could look hideously twee – but this, I think, which you can read about at US blog, Tater Tots and Jello – is a very nice display. Photo: Tater Tots and Jello

Post by Kate