Frequently Asked Questions

Vibrating Tarot is a forthcoming 90 card Tarot deck featuring iconic, body-safe, globally renowned award winning adult pleasure products, showcased upon Pamela Colman Smith’s original Tarot backgrounds, illustrated over 100 years ago. 

Most of the artwork has been completed and we are hoping to launch on Kickstarter in May 2024 with the support of each company showcased in the artwork.

Our new deck of cards builds upon the traditional Tarot themes, transforming the essence of the deck as a whole as it pays homage to many different worlds that explore sex-positivity, LGBTQ+ visibility, and BDSM/kink friendly themes.

This independent project brings together dozens of quality names in the adult pleasure product industry so that we may all celebrate the diverse threads that weave together our tapestry. 

Yes, there will be an accompanying guidebook that will explain each card. 

I'd also like to have an extended online version of the guidebook so that I can go into more detail about each toy and each card's unique characteristics.

When all of the artwork has been complete and all of the licensing agreements are signed, we'll run the crowdfunding campaign. I'm hoping this will happen in May 2024.

In our crowdfunding stage, you'll be able to obtain a first edition deck by backing the project in our online crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter.

Click here to join our mailing list and to get notified about the crowdfunding campaign. 

Vibrating Tarot is an independent project brought to you by an individual artist. I have been fortunate enough to receive advice along the way from many kind members of the independent Tarot community, and the pleasure product industry, but I don't really have any direct help in manufacturing or distributing this product, so I thank you for your patience while I finish the artwork, get the legal end of it tied up, and move on to crowdfunding, production, and distribution. 

In our second stage, you'll be able to order a deck, again online, through a pre-sale campaign that will fund our second print run. It will be in this stage that I can offer wholesale prices to retail outlets who want to sell the deck on their shelves.

Following the second print run, the deck will be sold in a variety of different online and in person retail environments.

After that, I'm hoping a professional pleasure product manufacturer or Tarot card publishing company will offer to license the project from me so that Vibrating Tarot can thrive with a reputable company who can process manufacturing and distribution on a larger scale.

When all of the artwork is done and all of the licensing agreements are signed, we'll run the crowdfunding campaign. 

I'm hoping to run the crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter in May 2024.

Click here to join our mailing list and to get notified about the crowdfunding campaign. 

Yes, if you are an adult retailer who would like to stock this product, or an occult shop or gift shop owner or purchasing manager of any sort, please get in touch with me at vibratingtarot@gmail.com

I will not be able to offer wholesale prices during the initial Kickstarter run, but I will have wholesale prices available to retail outlets in the pre-sale campaign for our second print run. 

My name is Frank Lawrence (he/they), I am a multidisciplinary Hamilton, Ontario based artist who runs a freelance graphic design company called Pallor Publishing.   

Having obtained a Bachelor of Design at York University/Sheridan College, I specialize in typography and book design, and predominantly focus on tangible and tactile projects with themes of horror, kink, and the occult.

Vibrating Tarot is the largest project I've ever attempted to accomplish, and you're all watching me navigate these waters for the first time. 

I'm trying to manage maintaining friendly and professional relationships with over 100 different toy manufacturing companies, from large corporations to independent artists. I'm also learning everything I can about running my first crowdfunding campaign, all while trying to craft my own visual style for the artwork in an increasingly crowded Tarot card production landscape.

If I've ever directly said thank you to you, believe me, you have truly been a godsend. I honestly appreciate everything that everyone has done to help me get the project to the point where it is today. From discussing printing companies with other Tarot designers, to discussing products with manufacturers and reviewers, all of you have helped me grow and have helped solidify the base of this project, and are continuing to help it grow into the most honourable and successful version it can be. 

My experience and journey with the Tarot has been unparalleled in terms of finding something like a system that affords me the opportunity to understand myself better, to understand others better, to meet new people and to make meaningful connections. Not only that, but it has allowed me to understand the world better and realize my place within it. What it means to be alive, to have free choice, to understand life situations on a deeper level, to trust your inner voice, and to be able to share these wonderful intuitive processes with those who are close to you.   

Developing this project in and of itself is an amazing way to teach myself a deeper understanding the Tarot as I go through the process of tearing the deck apart and putting it back together again, redrawing every card anew, and discovering details I never knew existed. This new understanding will lay the groundwork for my next project and the one after that. So I’m grateful to be in this position and wouldn’t trade it for any other project.

Without having a solid idea of what I was getting myself into, I formally started working on and sharing progress for Vibrating Tarot in February 2020.

I always knew that this project would take years to accomplish. I spent the first year figuring out what I was doing, the second year figuring out how to do it, and the third year figuring out how to get it done and out into the world and into your hands.

Below is a full timeline of the project so far:

Feb. 2014: I lost everything in an apartment fire because the boiler blew up. In the following days, I went out and bought two important items: a Tarot deck and a Magic Wand. I did‘t realize it that day, but the seed for a new idea was planted.

Spring 2017: This idea first revealed itself to me in a dream in 2017. Back then I wasn’t able to work on it, but I filed it away for later. I knew that there would be enough sex toys to make the idea work, but if you asked me to name any brands, I would have only been able to list about three or four.

Feb. 14, 2020: I designed a logo and started an Instagram account, posting my very first preliminary image of the Lovers card, as a piece of art, without permission from the company whose toy I had used, without knowing what to expect, and ultimately completely clueless as to what would come from it. 

Oct. 2020: Start a formal process of acquiring each company’s explicit permission, via email, before using their imagery in the project. Realize that someday in the future, I would need to put a formal licensing agreement in place.

Feb. 2021: After having designed the majority of the Major Arcana, I announce for the first time what the four suits will be and explain what my plan is for the 56 cards in the Minor Arcana.

May 2021: Major breakthrough in learning and understanding how Procreate works and how I can find my own visual style in redrawing the original illustrations and redesigning the colour palette from the original images. 

Nov 2021: Started my process about learning how to run a successful crowdfunding campaign. This will be my first attempt at using Kickstarter or any other crowdfunding platform. 

Mar. 2022: After chatting with a few different industry leaders, I ask my lawyer to draw up an official licensing agreement so that I can start collecting signatures from the companies who are participating in Vibrating Tarot.

Jul. 2022: Official endorsement from VP of US Games, publisher of the RWS Tarot. This means that any questions about the legality of using the RWS likeness in the Vibrating Tarot project are put to rest. 

Oct. 2022: First round of licensing agreements are sent out to be signed by toy manufacturers. 

February 2023: Attending The Erotic Arts and Crafts Fair, where I’ll be exclusively showcasing Vibrating Tarot my local community in Toronto, Canada, and running my first charitable fundraiser. 

Each company that you see on our pleasure product manufacturers page has initially given me their permission to continue with my work via digital correspondence. 

Please see the list of companies involved in Vibrating Tarot by clicking here.

After two years of research and corresponding with over 100 different companies, we are at the point where an official licensing agreement has been drafted by my lawyer, and we are for the first time, asking each company to review and sign the document in order to make it all official so we can crowdfund, print, and distribute it. We are always open to feedback at any time.

Vibrating Tarot is a commercial project, so a licensing agreement between us and each company is warranted, and has been requested by many companies who have agreed to be part of this project.

The Licensing Agreement that Vibrating Tarot is using is a very straightforward document that officially grants us permission to use the likeness of a company's product in the Vibrating Tarot project.

The Licensing Agreement that Vibrating Tarot is using was drafted by my intellectual property lawyer here in Hamilton, Ontario.

I am currently in the process of sending it out to all of the interested parties and am always open to any of their feedback.

I have always found tremendous pride in sharing the names of all of the companies contributing imagery to Vibrating Tarot, and it has always been a priority for me to make sure that there are several different ways in which I make this information available.  

The strength of this project is in celebrating the diversity of artists and businesses who have come together, and I’m grateful to be in a position where I can help new customers find their way to new adult toy companies.   

On social media, I always tag the accounts of the artists and businesses who are featured in the post. Please see my Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter @VibratingTarot   

On my website, I always post the names of the contributors within the images that are showcased.   

I also have a list on my website of all of the contributing companies to the project with links to all of their websites.   

Please see the list of companies involved in Vibrating Tarot by clicking here.

In the project itself, all companies will be listed and thanked in the guidebook that comes with the deck of cards. They will also be noted within the description of each card so that people know which company contributed which toys.

The short answer, is Yes. I have gone into detail here and included our official endorsement from the VP of US Games. 

"Good luck with it."

-VP of US Games

Over the past two years, I have read extensively on this matter as well as spoken to my intellectual property lawyer about this issue.

In addition to all of my research, I have reached out to US Games, and have heard back from their VP, who has reviewed several cards in the project and has endorsed our project by wishing us good luck.

An article that takes you through my full copyright statement can be found here:

Copyright Statement

The condensed version is this:

Firstly is a matter of the original black line illustrations drawn by Colman Smith. They are public domain as Colman Smith has been deceased for more that 70 years.

The colour palette, along with the typography, back of the card design, and box art, are all protected by a US Games copyright claim. 

Vibrating Tarot uses the original black line illustrations drawn by Colman Smith as a guide, and these are the only element from the original RWS Tarot deck that Vibrating Tarot uses in its artwork. 

We do not make use of any of the elements protected by the US Games copyright.

Secondly, is the matter of US Games holding copyright ownership over the Rider Waite trademark.

Vibrating Tarot has built its own brand over the past three years and does not make use of the Rider Waite trademark at anytime in any of its materials. 

In cases where we talk about our inspiration and visual guidance, we take careful steps to describe the deck as being "based on the original Pamela Colman Smith illustrations." 

We never mentions the Rider Waite trademark at any time in any of our materials.

Each card in the Tarot deck tells its own story and there should always be a good reason as to why a certain toy appears on a particular card. Therefore, each toy is carefully selected for the card it appears on. A toy‘s function, shape, materials, and colour are usually the chief decision makers.

The 4 Suits are replaced in the following manner:

Wands  =  Rope

Cups  =  Lubricant

Swords  =  Whips

Pentacles  =  Plugs

Certain pillars of the pleasure product industry must be properly honoured by showcasing them on the best cards in the deck. The companies who have paved the way for others in the industry, or who have contributed breakthrough products in their field, are usually gathered in the Major Arcana.

Someone once told me that all the cards will look the same because none of the toys will carry their own nuance. I say this in return: There is a lot of detailed information that has been built into the imagery, and just like any other Tarot deck, it will take you a long time to discover all of the different layers.

This is a very important part of putting this puzzle together because I believe that I should showcase the brands and products that are the most trusted and most revered, and who pride themselves on being inclusive and body safe.

I have been approached by many adult toy manufacturers who I would never allow into Vibrating Tarot, and I have made it a mission to feature only the most reputable companies.

If I have made any missteps, I humbly ask that you contact me to open a discussion about it. 

My name is Frank, and I am genuinely interested in your opinion. My contact is vibratingtarot@gmail.com

I have always used a community informed approach, and have always asked that my audience be open about communicating their thoughts and desires to me. This deck is not for me, it is for all of you. 

For the past two years, I've been trying my best to build bridges with the most well known names in the adult pleasure product industry, and to keep an open dialogue about listening to their requests and paying attention to the factors that are important to them so that I can ensure that everyone is happy and proud about moving forward with this project with the highest form of integrity. 

People will use this deck and look at it as a source of inspiration, to expand their ideas, and to try new things. I always want to be putting the best products in front of their eyes, and to always try to make available a rich discourse on the mater.

The issue of sex education is one that must be embraced with a project like this, and I'm proud to say that I've had the chance to reach out to some sex educators within the course of this project and have taken their advice to heart as I've been designing the deck of cards. 

Vibrating Tarot must not shy away from the fact that it will be used as an education tool whether it wants to be or not; whether it’s in a professional setting or in a personal one, people will always look at this deck and learn something from it. 

Therefore, it is my greatest duty to ensure that the imagery I put forward and the message I send is always one that comes from a sober place of genuine integrity.

It is equally important that I share resources for my audience in order to direct them to the right places to get their questions answered. 

I am not a sex educator, I will never agree to answer any personal or sexual questions of any sort. I come to this project from the point of view of a graphic designer, and secondly from the viewpoint of someone interested in the Tarot and similar systems of divination. 

It has always been important for me to teach myself about the pleasure product component of this project, to familiarize myself with the industry, and to learn from the sex educators who take it upon themselves to make sure that accessible, non biased and accurate information is available. 

A list of sex educators who have one way or another influenced the scope of this project is provided here.

They do not endorse this Tarot deck nor are they affiliated with it in any way. They are simply faces and voices that I've discovered while working on this project. Each of them have something incredibly dynamic and worthwhile to share. 

Vibrating Tarot gathers together a lot of different adult products across its 90 cards. There has always been enough room for a clear representation of women owned businesses, queer owned businesses, and of businesses owned by people of any ethnicity. 

It has been a goal to learn about the companies that I invite into Vibrating Tarot, and to ensure that small businesses and independent artists share the spotlight with the bigger companies. 

The voices of queer and BIPOC sex educators who make it their mission to provide rich, varied, and accurate information to people around the world, are also an important element in the overall picture and I invite you to see our Sex Educators page to find a variety of individual voices.

At first, I thought I could ask my crowdfunding backers for charitable donations through the crowdfunding process that I would haven donated to organizations that provide aid to sexual assault survivors.

It turns out that no charitable donations can be collected through Kickstarter. 

Then I thought that I would build a concept into the project after the crowdfunding campaign was over, where $1 from each deck sold will go charity.

But it turned out that doing something like this is far more convoluted than it sounds, and it was too often seen as a negative because it opens the doors to a litany of unforeseen issues.

I realized that I needed to strip all of this extra stuff down and present a clean and straightforward licensing agreement to the toy companies who are allowing me to use their imagery, not one that is filled with extra sections that open the door to unforeseen issues.

I'm just one person. Bringing this project to fruition will be a miracle in and of itself, and I cannot let the main goal be sacrificed because I wanted something extra. 

I soon realized that I can tackle charity donations on a smaller scale. 

I could paint or otherwise create a new and original artwork based on the card designs in the Tarot deck, and auction this new piece off for charity, or provide it to an organization who is equipped to run such an event.

It would require the specific permission of each company who appears on the specific card in question, and it would always be handled separately and independently of the actual deck of Tarot cards.

I've run my first silent auction and raised $80 for SWAP Hamilton. 

Please read more about my charitable fundraising efforts by clicking here.

The entire scope of the project is a deck of 90 cards, accompanying colouring book pages of all the images. In addition to this, a free font will be released for non-commercial use.

Aside from that, there will not be any other official merchandise. There will never be any stickers, patches, pins, posters, t-shirts, tote bags, or any other kind of product that I will ever seek to sell.

The Licensing Agreement that Vibrating Tarot is using goes into detail on this issue and states that we are licensing imagery to only be used in the deck of cards and accompanying colouring book.

Yes, there's a font. It came together as a part of my design process while making the Tarot deck. It is made up of my illustrations of each toy in the Tarot deck. 

The font is not a commercial product, its a free download and will be available under a “free for non-commercial use” license. 

We will make it available and use it as a marketing tool ahead of the crowdfunding campaign.

Please read more about Vibrating Tarot Font by clicking here.

Your comment gives me the chance to write about Vibrating Tarot and I thank you for the opportunity. I’m building and refining how I speak about Vibrating Tarot, and how I will write the guidebook that will come with this deck of cards, so again, I appreciate it more than I can express.

There have been countless Tarot decks made with endless varieties of themes, each one more creative than the last and some of them more commercial than others. The union of sexual imagery to the Tarot system is nothing new. I have seen many different Tarot decks that showcase materials of a sexual nature

To say the theme of pleasure products that I’ve brought to the Tarot backdrop is negative is a viewpoint that is a common enough and valid conclusion. There is always room for everyone within the discussion. 

All I can do is to continue advocating for the seriousness behind my intentions, for the extreme depth of detail found within all of my design decisions, and for the socially, culturally, and ethically conscious lens that this deck is being designed under, as described in my overall online presence and extensively on my website. 

Vibrating Tarot is not some sort of corporate cash grab. It is not funded or commissioned by any of the companies involved. In order to bring it to fruition, I’ll run a crowdfunding campaign next year, and keep my fingers crossed that it'll be a success.

This is an independent project that, through years of research and development, brings together dozens of themes in the world of sex positivity, and dozens of quality names in the pleasure product industry. 

I’ve included small and independent businesses alongside the big ones. There is LGBTQIA+ representation. I’ve included businesses owned and operated by women and people of colour. I’ve invited sex educators to give me their words of advice, and I’ve approached product reviewers to ensure that only the best, body-safe toys are being featured. 

I’ve always tried to give back to the community that is making this project possible. In addition to the cards themselves, there is community fundraising for charitable donations, like to the YWCA, and to organizations that provide aid to sexual assault victims. I’ve also included lists of resources on my website that link to sex educators and help/crisis lines for people to connect to the professionals who can help answer their personal questions. 

Thanks again for your comment. I appreciate the opportunity to address your concern and chat about it in an open forum like this. 

A lot of Tarot decks out there can be challenging to understand at first. It will be my job as the designer of this deck to explain all of the details and all of the things that readers can look to for deeper understanding and more meaningful connections. 

I’m looking forward to writing the guidebook and you’re helping me do so right here and now by allowing me to respond to your comment. 

The pleasure products featured in Vibrating Tarot are all carefully selected to be included on the cards that they are placed on. Some of them relate directly to the character it is replacing. Some of them relate more directly to the meaning behind the card itself. 

The colour and shape of the product comes into play, as well as the materials its made from and its functionality. 

What is the product in question? What does it do? Who is it made for? What materials is it made from? What other products can it be used with? 

We've included toys made from stainless steel, glass, silicone, wood… some of them vibrate, others do not. There are internal toys, external toys, and toys made for every part of your body. There is rope, collars, and impact tools. There is silicone based lubricant, water based lubricant, and a variety of hybrids. We have kink gear and vanilla products. Products marketed towards women, men, trans individuals, non-binary people, and everyone along the way.

These are all important distinctions between products and they are all part of the overall picture and they will all help readers to make deeper connections to the meaning behind each card. They’re all part of the reason why each product was selected for the card it appears on. 

To those unfamiliar with the landscape of pleasure products, it may be challenging at first, but I will remind everyone that you must operate on your intuition when reading the cards. 

Any Tarot deck that is worthwhile will always provide its own uniqueness for us to get in tune with before we become proficient at reading its cards. This challenge will be embraced by some and loathed by others. These are the factors that allow people to click with certain Tarot and Oracle decks and reject others.

I’ll also add that it is a great help to be reminded of what the root card is by observing the backgrounds and the overall card itself. You'll see that I haven't strayed too far from Pamela Colman Smith's original depictions, even with the substitutions I've made. 

In many card reading cases, for example, The High Priestess means what the High Priestess means. It doesn’t matter if there is a figure of a stoic woman, a punk rocker, a mushroom, a polar bear, or a skull with flowers growing out if it. 

These images all appear on Tarot decks I own, in the place of the High Priestess, and I’ve always been excited to learn about how the new imagery relates to the original imagery we’re all familiar with. 

Haven't we all?

In closing, I’ll just state the obvious. Not every Tarot deck is meant for everyone. Vibrating Tarot is meant for people who want to bridge the gap between sexuality and spirituality. Pleasure and presence. The erotic and the esoteric. It breaks the ice with its initial novelty and it can also be looked at in a deeper way for people to learn more about themselves and those around them. But if it's not for you, it's not for you. 

Thanks for the opportunity to put into words what I've been focusing my work on. I didn’t write this response to try and change your mind, rather, I wrote it to try and explain the deck of cards a little better for people out there who might have similar thought to yours and who are looking for reasons to look a little closer. 

I hope I’ve helped you understand my project a little better too. Thanks again for allowing me the chance to do so. 

I’ve been a designer and practitioner of systems of divination for many years. I sometimes read cards for family and friends and am starting to read the Tarot more often on a professional level as well.

I would love to be available for one on one sessions, or small group sessions, at trade shows or similar events, to lead lessons on how Vibrating Tarot works and what to look for when reading the cards yourself. 

But as a general rule, I’d like to refrain from ever actually reading from the Vibrating Tarot deck in an authentic fashion, whether it be for friends, family, strangers, or any possible future clients. As the designer of the deck, I’d like to be able to step away from it after it has been published and let the world digest it on its own without me being out there reading from it as well.

One thing I will never do is solicit you or anyone else for a card reading. It is wrong and unethical to do so. Real card readers will never do this, and if you are being solicited for a card reading, it is generally a sign that you are being scammed. 

There are a lot of scammers going around right now online in the Tarot world. A lot of fake and scammer accounts popping up claiming to be well known individuals in the Tarot community. They follow you, pretending to be someone they’re not, and then they’ll send you a message telling you that they want to read your cards.

People in the Tarot community are pretty great about having each other’s backs and reporting these accounts when they pop up. And for this reason, we all state that no authentic Tarot reader will ever message you directly to solicit a card reading. 

Strength 

The pleasure product industry has experienced a huge boost in recent years, even in the short time it has taken me to bring the project this far, and the Tarot itself and all things occult have come back in a huge way and is currently enjoying a major cultural resurgence. The time is right for this project to come together right now.    

The strength of this project is that there is instant recognition with the original Pamela Colman Smith imagery, and usually a curiosity as to what the rest of the cards look like under this new theme of adult toys.

It is a viable product on many different shelves in today's increasingly sexually aware marketplace. For those who have enjoyed playing with sex toys, there is an established connection to the toy that they love, and chances are that they may see their favourite toy featured in the deck of cards. The love that they have for the toys themselves, and the companies who make them, becomes a love for the designs that the toys appear in.    

With so many different companies involved, we potentially have access to staggering amounts of email addresses across everyone's email lists. If we could tap into this wealth of emails, we can expand our crowdfunding marketing into areas I can hardly imagine. 

Weakness 

We are not allowed to easily advertise on Facebook or Instagram by using images of the product, so advertising the crowdfunding campaign without any inside help will be challenging. 

Opportunities  

This project has opportunity to grow into being something that represents the pleasure product industry as a whole. If we can all gather together for trade shows, I don't see why we can't all get together in the same deck of cards. 

Once the brand has been established as such, each company can use it to their own advantage. Hire a card reader to read from the Vibrating Tarot deck at trade shows and corporate events, work them into office team building sessions, provide them as a gift with purchase, and so on. 

Threats 

Prior to the crowdfunding campaign, some of the companies may change their minds or may decide that they don’t want to sign the licensing agreement for their own legitimate reasons. The structure of the deck is so delicate that if a certain company here or there were to drop out, it could cause a domino effect where several different cards may have to change as a result.

Word of mouth is an amazing tool, so please tell everyone you know about our project.

Join the mailing list, here, so that you can make sure that you don't miss the crowdfunding campaign.

If you really want to help me in a more active way, I'll put you on my launch team, and you can help us out in a variety of different ways like by forwarding info to your own personal mailing list, and helping us promote the crowdfunding campaign by posting about it on your social media accounts during a specific time frame.

As a member of my launch team, you'll also be asked to back the project by making your purchase within the opening minutes of the crowdfunding campaign in order to boost the Kickstarter algorithm and set us up for greater exposure.

Contact me anytime for more information on how you can be a part of our launch team.

vibratingtarot@gmail.com

You can find us online at our home page at www.vibratingtarot.com

We are on the major social media platforms @VibratingTarot

We will soon have a Kickstarter landing page

Please join our mailing list by clicking here, so you don't miss our Kickstarter campaign. 

Vibrating Tarot brings forward a mature message of body-safe sex positivity, LGBTQIA+ visibility, BDSM/kink friendly themes, and inclusivity across many spectrums. 

It is vital for us to clear away stigma and break down barriers that prevent us from having open communication regarding our relationships with sexual pleasure and sexual health. 

Whether Vibrating Tarot is simply seen as a novelty or looked at in a deeper spiritual way, there’s no doubt that it works to help us start conversations that can lead to a greater understanding of how we can express components of our sexual selves. 

In doing so, it puts people in contact with new ideas, new products, and new product manufacturers that can help them improve their sexual health, and in turn, improve their overall health. 

Once we get past the novelty of pleasure products and break down the barriers surrounding using them, on an individual level and on a cultural level, we can start to get to a more meaningful understanding of what they really are, how they fit into a more mature facet of our  day to day lives, and what they can mean for our relationships with ourselves and with others.