Oracle Deck Review

Rainbow Kipper

By Toni Puhle

Artist Steven Bright

Publisher: Red Feather

36 Cards, 112 Page Book

Publication Date: April 28, 2021

 

 

The Rainbow Kipper is a Kipper deck created by author Toni Puhle and artist Steven Bright, and is published by Red Feather Mind, Body, Spirit, an imprint of Schiffer Publishing, Ltd., 4880 Lower Valley Road, Atglen, PA 19310. Copyright 2021 by Toni Puhle and Steven Bright.

A Kipper deck is a cousin to the Lenormand and Gypsy or Tzigane Oracles. Kipper is a German divination system dating back to the 19^th Century, using 36 cards that are clearly focused on day-to day roles, relationships and situations. Unlike the Tarot, Kipper card meanings are straightforward, and the card images have a direct connection to their individual meanings.

The Rainbow Kipper comes in a 5½ inch by 6¼ inch sturdy cardboard box with a matte color image of part of the card backs on the box front and 4 card samples and a bit of information about the Kipper on the back. After opening the magnetic lid, the first thing we see are the bios of the author and the artist on the inside of the box lid. Next is the companion guidebook.

The guidebook is 5 inches by 5 5/8 inches, and has a softcover with a matte finish, with the name of the deck on the front cover and a more detailed description of the deck on the back cover. The 112 pages of the guidebook are off-white with color images of the cards. The guidebook begins with a Preface written by Toni Puhle, offering information about the Rainbow Kipper. Next comes a description of the color coding of the Rainbow Kipper, followed by detailed descriptions of the Main Characters and how they work within a spread. Then comes the color-coded descriptions of the different segments of cards. The Rainbow Kipper breaks the 36 cards into five categories: People (Green), Stop (Red), Movement (Blue), Connectors (Pink), and Cause and Effect (Yellow). Each card has two pages with a color card image and lots of useful information, including a description of the imagery, some placement interpretations, daily advice, and positive and negative keywords.

Next comes some suggestions for using the cards, including some samples of daily pulls, understanding the concept of Fortune, looking behind and ahead, and some other samples of Kipper spreads. The book finishes with a brief Conclusion.

 

 

The cards themselves are next, nestled in a cardboard frame. The cards are small, 2 ½ inches by 3 and ¾ inches, and are full color with a matte finish; the deck really feels nice in the hand. The card stock is thick enough to endure lots of handling, but thin enough to allow shuffling, especially if you turn the deck longways. The card images are well done, with a basic and easy to understand style and a relaxing palette. All of the people in the deck are in silhouette, so there are no facial details in the images, which makes it easy to tailor a reading to all types of people. This deck comes with four Main Character cards, two versions of the Male Main Character and two versions of the Female Main Character, also in silhouette. Once again, this bonus makes it easy to engage a seeker in the story being told by the cards.

I have never used a Kipper deck before, and the guidebook does not have a lot of information regarding throwing spreads, so I did a little bit of research on line, and then gave the Rainbow Kipper a try. The card images are indeed easy to interpret. Even though the figures on the cards are in silhouette, there is enough information to be found in body postures as well as in what is surrounding the figures to make an interpretation. The card meanings connect nicely, and they tell a story that is easy to describe to a seeker. The color coding helped this novice to make connections between the different cards, thus allowing a smooth and effective interpretation of the overall spread. However as I stated above, start-from-the-beginning instructions for using the cards keyed to a total novice were not readily apparent, although the spread samples help in that regard.

If you have never worked with a Kipper deck before, the Rainbow Kipper would be a good place to begin an exploration of this divination method. The color coding of the groups of cards enables easy identification, and the guidebook offers nicely detailed card descriptions and suggestions for interpretations. If you have some experience with Kipper, the Rainbow Kipper and its color coding would be a valuable addition to your collection.

Toni Puhle was born in Sheffield, England in 1975, and currently lives in Germany. Known as “the Card Geek,” she founded the World Divination Association in 2015 as a home for teachers and diviners to come together. She has studied and researched the systems of Lenormand, Kipper, and Gypsy cards, and is the author of The Card Geek’s Guide to Kipper Cards. You can find more information about her at her website, thecardgeek.co.uk. Her YouTube channel has lots of information and instructions for using a Kipper deck.

Steven Bright was born in London, England in 1972. He is the creator of the Spirit Within Tarot, and the author of Tarot: Your Personal Guide. Steven reads privately for clients, and at public events. He also has taught four public beginners’ courses, and mentors students. Steven has been interviewed for radio, and has offered presentations at the UK Tarot Conference and the London Tarot Festival, among others. You can see more at his website, stevenbright.wordpress.com.

 

Rainbow Kipper on Amazon

 

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About the Author:

Raushanna is a lifetime resident of New Jersey. As well as a professional Tarot Reader and Teacher, she is a practicing Wiccan (Third Degree, Sacred Mists Coven), a Usui Reiki Master/Teacher, a certified Vedic Thai-Yoga Massage Bodyworker, a 500-hr RYT Yoga Teacher specializing in chair assisted Yoga for movement disorders, and a Middle Eastern dance performer, choreographer and teacher.  Raushanna bought her first Tarot deck in 2005, and was instantly captivated by the images on the cards and the vast, deep and textured messages to be gleaned from their symbols. She loves reading about, writing about, and talking about the Tarot, and anything occult, mystical, or spiritual, as well as anything connected to the human subtle body. She has published a book, “The Emerald Tablet: My 24-Day Journal to Understanding,” and is currently working on a book about the Tarot, pathworking and the Tree of Life. Raushanna documents her experiences and her daily card throws in her blog, DancingSparkles.blogspot.com, which has been in existence since 2009. She and her husband, her son and step son, and her numerous friends and large extended family can often be found on the beaches, bike paths and hiking trails of the Cape May, NJ area.

 

The Emerald Tablet: My 24-Day Journal to Understanding on Amazon