Welcome back to White Rose of Avalon, my Darlings.   For today’s first Tarot Tuesday post of 2026, I have decided to share a review of the Ethereal Visions Illuminated Tarot Deck by Matt Hughes!   

This is a very well-known and beloved deck by many Tarot Readers, and it has been on my radar ever since it first came out.   The idea of a deck that is fully illuminated with gold leaf on the cards (not edged in gold leaf, but the illustrations are illuminated like a medieval manuscript) was very appealing.   Beyond that, knowing that the deck was illustrated in an Art Nouveau style, by an artist who also takes inspiration from the Pre-Raphaelites (tying in my two favorite artistic movements), made this a deck I would obviously want to own.   With all of that being said, you may wonder why I did not own this deck before, and the answer to that is simple.   This is a very unique deck, as it is an 80-card deck, instead of the traditional 78-card Tarot.   There are two additional Major Arcana cards in this deck, and for years, I did not know how I felt about that, but I also did not look into what those additional cards were, so the deck sat on my list of decks I would like to own.

That all changed this year at Yuletide, as I decided to put the deck on my wishlist of possible presents I write for my husband each year.   So, this year at Yuletide, I finally received this gorgeous deck from my amazing husband, and I could not be more grateful!   Honestly, he chose so well when picking out gifts this year, so thank you, Andrew.

As soon as I opened the deck and cleansed it, I began to shuffle through the cards, utterly enchanted by their energy and the great beauty of the art style and the illuminated cards.   The color palette was even ideally to my taste, with muted hues, cream colors, and pastels, all in shades that evoke a watery energy.   The masses of greens, purples, and muted reds and blues drew me in and served as an ideal complement to make the gold leaf illumination truly shine!   I knew as soon as I began shuffling this deck that it would be my new deck for my daily personal Tarot Work, my readings for myself, my meditations, and my spell craft.   I had such a very potent and lovely connection to the deck from the outset.

I even found that I truly appreciated the addition of the two extra Major Arcana cards.   They are The Well numbered 22, and The Artist numbered 23.   The Well is another Divine Feminine card that embodies the energy of the Creatrix, which makes my heart sing.   The Artist is a card that embodies the Vessel of Creation, as an ideal counterpart to the Well.   Together, they are the Muse and the Artist, and it reminds me greatly of mythic examples of the relationship between Divine Muses and Artists!

So, I have to say that I highly recommend this deck to anyone who, like myself, may have felt uncertain about the additional Major Arcana cards, as it is a stunning work of art and a powerful magickal and spiritual tool!   I hope that you have enjoyed reading my review of this deck.   Do you own the Ethereal Visions deck?   Do you want to own it now?   Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!

Note on Image: The image at the top of the post is a photo I took of my cards and the box.     

LINK TO AVALONIAN ROSE FAERY MYSTERIES PATREON: patreon.com/AvalonianRoseFaeryMysteries

Further Reading

• Ethereal Visions Illuminated Tarot Deck by Matt Hughes