REVIEW: Tarot by Design Workbook by Diana Heyne

R E V I E W

Tarot by Design Workbook

by _Diana Heyne_

_Weiser Books_

8.5 x 10

176 pages

_About My Reviews_

Adult coloring books are all the rage these days, so it seems like a natural (and great!) idea to publish a coloring book specifically about the Tarot.

Tarot by Design Workbook encourages and allows each person to infuse his or her own intuition, personality, and nature into the study of the cards, while at the same time absorbing or extracting the most personally appropriate, helpful, or meaningful interpretations. It functions as a coloring book, a journal, a textbook, and an inspiration.

The only possible drawback I can see is that with perfect binding, the pages do not lie flat. You will need to use one hand or a weight of some kind to keep the book open flat as you color. The cover of the book depicts colored pencils, perhaps the preferred tool to use with this coloring book. Felt pen coloring might “bleed through” to the other side of the pages, which are printed on both sides. Crayons are too blunt and broad to fill in the finer details of the artwork.

Diana Heyne

The author, Diana Heyne, comes from a family steeped in mysticism. She has studied divination and other esoterica since childhood. Her extensive art background includes a piece in the White House collection (an ornament for the annual Christmas tree). You can visit her Etsy shop to see her fairy furniture and dollhouses: www.etsy.com/shop/pandorajane

The Tarot by Design Workbook is a perfect-bound paperback book featuring original color-in images of the 22 major arcana cards, along with the 56 images of the minor arcana. Each card also gets a “Learning Page” containing keywords for upright and reversed cards, with space for Notes. Learning Pages for the major arcana cards also contain a rhyme or phrase related to the card. At the back are blank pages framed creatively for the reader’s own artwork.

Examples of keywords and affirmations:

THE HERMIT
Upright: soul-searching, prudence, seeking wisdom, introspection, alone
Reversed: isolation, loneliness, fear, withdrawal
Phrase/Rhyme: I walk a lonely path. Only my lantern lights the way. I search for understanding. I seek out wisdom night and day.

8 OF WANDS
Upright: speed, action, swift change, swift movement in travel
Reversed: delays, frustration, waiting, disputes

The pages containing these words and phrases can also be colored in, using different colors to underline, circle, or highlight the words that seem most significant to you, personally.

In her introduction to the book, Diana Heyne writes:

“I have long felt that many people hesitate to set foot on the path of Tarot because even the initial steps can appear somewhat daunting. . . When we engage our visual and kinesthetic senses through the movement of applying color to these images, learning, informed by intuition, takes on a friendlier face. . . What you learn here will provide a foundation that can be built upon to deepen and expand your knowledge and reach whatever level you choose.”