The latest #practicalmagical collaboration is here!

My friend and surrogate big sis, Cynthia Bauzon-Arre, and I have been working on a special oracle deck since February this year, and we’re so happy to let you all know that Tanim: A Filipino Botanical Oracle Deck is finally available 🍃

Cynthia is a talented artist and illustrator who I’ve known since the early 2000s. She’s friends with my older brothers from college and acted as a mentor to me back when I was still doing graphic design.

These days, Cyn’s work promotes native plants. She collaborates with Forest Foundation Philippines, and her illustrations have sparked a renewed interest among local folks in all the beautiful blooms, trees, and greens we find here at home. (If her name sounds familiar to you, she’s also the artist behind the Eraserheads’ album art!)

Our idea for Tanim was to feature different categories of native flora—vines, shrubs, trees, and fruits. If you’re a tarot and oracle deck collector, you’ll know that there is no shortage of botanical decks out there—but most of them feature flora that are nowhere to be found here in the Philippines.

It can be super frustrating for Filipino readers like me!

Cynthia and I wanted to put together a deck that featured plants that we know, that look familiar, and that remind us of home. Cyn researched different native plants we could use as the basis for our deck, while I studied their unique qualities and features. (Needless to say, it was a lot of spreadsheet work for the both of us!)

While working on the deck, I found that every plant carries a unique quality that translates really well into a specific call to action… which I felt could come in really handy in an oracle deck.

Through the years, I’ve learned that people usually turn to their cards when they need to figure out what to do, given a tough (or even an easy) situation. A lot of people get frustrated with tarot or oracle readings when they pull cards that give them vague answers or require deep dives.

Because Tanim offers clear and concise action points for every card—all inspired by the qualities of the local plants Cyn identified—the deck gives you exactly what you need to do at any given point in time. It’s a great gateway to your intuition and a wonderful introduction to card reading.

And, if you’ve followed along my Practical Magic for a while, you’ll know that I always pair my tarot decks with oracle cards . I’ve been working with the PM Pinoy deck (which has sold out thanks to all of you!) and Tanim and it’s been a match made in heaven!

PM Pinoy is humorous and sassy in nature (Aunt Julie energy, saan ka pa); while Tanim is soothing, calm, and has delightful lola-sa-probinsya vibes. I can’t wait for you to try them together.

To celebrate the launch of Tanim…

Cynthia and I are doing a special 10-day promo running from today, September 10 until the 19th. Every purchase of the deck during this period gets you a free roll of Tanim washi tape.

We are both stationery lovers, so we really pushed for this product to happen!

We’re also selling the washi separately for P250 or $5.25. After our launch period, decks won’t come with the free roll of tape, so we suggest you hop on the bandwagon while you can!

The deck is now available in the Shop PM page for both local and international folks.

So, that’s it for now. A few reminders for those who aren’t in the know:

• October 3, 2020 - I’m doing a roundtable with Aurora Suarez for Papercon PH on Developing Mindset and Intuition. This talk will be perfect for those who want to start an intentional and meaningful business that aligns with your values and beliefs. Sign up at: www.paperconph.com.

• The PM Starter Deck and PM Pinoy Deck are currently sold out. Please stay subscribed to this newsletter or follow me on Instagram for inventory updates.

• I am currently editing a new PM e-book, which will be an intermediate guide to tarot + the official companion to Pinoy Practical Magic. If I’ve been MIA on social and if your restocks aren’t coming right away, this is why 😆

TTFN! I can’t wait to start rolling out Tanim to all of you.

Magtanim ay ‘di biro (lol),
Chinggay