I am a playing card collector. When I wrote my first article on the state of my playing card collection, I had “only” 30 decks. Now? Now I have 83 decks. My faithful readers will remind me that I promised to write an update on my collection after reaching 60. After passing that milestone, I wanted to write something; however, I chose to wait to reach 30 decks with one specific brand. That brand is “Bicycle”. It produces high-quality playing cards in various designs. Most decks have a beautiful back design but some also have a uniquely drawn face (the face is the part where you see the suit).
Below you can see almost all my new “Bicycle” decks.
Here is my almost entire “Bicycle” collection.
Why “almost entire”? Because the day after I took all these collection update photos I bought two new decks. These:
Readers with a sharp eye will notice I already had two standard “Bicycle” decks. However, people with an even sharper set of balls will see these new decks have a small difference. They have a golden frame, whereas the older ones do not. A small detail, yes. But isn’t it what collecting is all about? Here is a photo with standard decks side by side.
Do you notice the difference? Or maybe you are looking at something else? You horny bugger. If someone thinks these photos seem a little “low-quality”, no worries, I am not offended. The lighting was bad, and my iPhone 13 mini camera is starting to show age.
Let’s continue with “Bicycle”. A normal question would be do I have a favorite deck? I will not say it is like choosing your favorite child (Pierre, obviously!), but I do prefer the collector’s editions. Like these:
Probably the “Gnomes” deck is my current favorite. However, only the “Trojan War” deck has a sticker with the edition number.
I like “Disney”. I currently have six decks. My favorite is Donald Duck. Even though I was not fortunate enough to read the comic growing up, I have fond memories of Mr. Donald (Duck not Trump) from those rare chances when I saw the comic. Also, a little side note here, a couple of my “Bicycle” decks were gifts from my wonderful wife. She supports me in my hobbies.
Hey, “Bicycle” collectors! What do you think of the Stargazer collection? Do you like it? I am not convinced. I have three of them. Largely because Stargazer decks are cheap and part of the broader “Bicycle” collection. Also, I wanted to see why almost every bookshop and card shop had them for sale. Furthermore, Stargazer decks are hard to play with. If you wonder whether I take the plastic cover off of each deck, then the answer is affirmative. Remember what I said about some card faces being different? I like to enjoy and see my cards.
A little side note, I am writing this article on my recently upgraded MacBook Pro without a power supply, meaning, it uses only its new battery. Read here how I gave an old sandbag a new set of dancing shoes.
This collection update is not only “Bicycle” decks. There are others as well. Remember I predicted in London I’d get more decks than in Lisbon? I was wrong. In London, I managed to secure only two decks. In Portugal, I got six.
Have you seen 54 one hundred euro banknotes? I have. Unfortunately, they were not real banknotes but a deck of cards. Nevertheless, this is an interesting deck with an unusual form.
“Piatnik” is also a brand I enjoy. They produce good-quality decks showcasing various interesting topics from wine to castles to art.
I have an erotic deck in an aluminum case. Unfortunately, I do not have a new erotic deck for all you lovely perverts, but I do have other new decks in plastic cases and one double set in a steel case.
I bet you want to see inside the double deck, right?
Fortunately for you, I have one other double deck. This one is a mini double deck. Mini because the deck is half the size of a regular deck.
A deck from Dinant, Strasbourg, and Luxembourg? Why not. I had to make three trips to Luxembourg to get a deck of cards. I found it at a tobacco store. No, I have not picked up cigar smoking again.
Have you seen a 3D deck? I have one (actually two, but stay put for that one). That deck in the middle is transparent. My wife found it.
What does the entire non-Bicycle collection look like?
After a long break this week we went to a cinema to see the latest Deadpool movie. (Spoiler: the movie is great!) Since I enjoy watching movies a film-related deck in my collection is not a coincidence but a must.
I will not comment on every new non-Bicycle deck. The deck above will be the last one in this update. I can only say this: I like collecting cards. I am following the Playing Cards subreddit, and it is thrilling to read and see how people are collecting. Also, it is interesting to see and get inspired by various ways fellow collectors store and display their collections. I am currently stacking my decks on a bookshelf. Not ideal. A display case would be killer. A topic for my next collection update? Maybe.
Stay passionate, my friends.
Kindly,
Olaaf
