Design Your Own Tarot Deck

Use AI image generation to create custom card imagery with personal symbolism. Design the Major Arcana, or invent entirely new cards that mean something to you.

Why a Tarot Deck?

Tarot cards are a perfect AI art project because:

• Each card has a theme but leaves room for interpretation
• You'll create a cohesive set of images (great practice for consistent style)
• The symbolism can be deeply personal
• You end up with something beautiful and usable

You don't need to believe in tarot readings to enjoy this project. Think of it as creating 22 pieces of meaningful art.

What You'll Need

• Access to an AI image generator (we'll cover options below)
• A text-based AI like Claude or ChatGPT (for brainstorming and prompts)
• Time to experiment and iterate

Choosing an Image Generator

Several AI tools can generate images from text descriptions:

DALL-E 3 (via ChatGPT Plus or Bing/Copilot)

• Easy to use, good at following instructions
• Available through ChatGPT paid subscription or free through Microsoft Copilot

Midjourney

• Excellent artistic quality
• Requires Discord and a subscription
• Website: midjourney.com

Stable Diffusion

• Free and open source
• Can run locally or use web interfaces
• More technical but very flexible

Leonardo.ai

• Free tier available
• Good balance of quality and ease of use
• Website: leonardo.ai

For beginners, we recommend starting with DALL-E through Microsoft Copilot (free) or Leonardo.ai (free tier).

The Major Arcana

A traditional tarot deck has 78 cards, but the 22 Major Arcana cards are the most iconic. Here they are with their traditional meanings:

Step 1: Choose Your Theme

Before generating images, decide on a unifying theme for your deck. Some ideas:

• Personal symbolism: Use objects and places meaningful to you
• A specific aesthetic: Art nouveau, cyberpunk, watercolor, vintage botanical
• A setting: Your city, a fantasy world, outer space, the ocean
• A time period: Ancient Egypt, Victorian era, far future
• Nature-based: Animals, plants, landscapes, celestial bodies

Step 2: Brainstorm with a Text AI

Use Claude or ChatGPT to help develop your vision. Try:

"I want to create a tarot deck with a botanical/garden theme. For The Fool card (representing new beginnings and spontaneity), what plants, flowers, or garden imagery might symbolize these concepts?"

The AI can suggest imagery, color palettes, and symbolic elements for each card.

Step 3: Craft Your Image Prompts

A good image prompt includes:

• The subject and composition
• The style or artistic medium
• The mood or atmosphere
• Technical details (aspect ratio, etc.)

Example prompt for The Fool:

"A young person stepping off a garden path into a wild meadow of dandelions, butterflies swirling around them, a small dog at their heels. Botanical illustration style, soft watercolors, morning light, sense of joyful possibility. Vertical composition suitable for a tarot card."

Step 4: Generate and Iterate

Your first image probably won't be perfect. That's normal. Try:

• Adjusting the wording
• Adding or removing details
• Specifying the style more precisely
• Generating multiple versions and picking the best

Step 5: Keep a Consistent Style

The challenge with AI art is maintaining consistency across 22 cards. Tips:

• Save your base prompt. Start each card with the same style description.
• Create a style guide. Note specific phrases that work well.
• Generate in batches. Do several cards in one session while you have the style dialed in.
• Accept some variation. Even hand-drawn decks have subtle differences between cards.

Example base prompt:

"[Subject description]. Botanical illustration style, soft watercolors, art nouveau border with vines, muted earth tones with gold accents. Vertical tarot card composition."

Step 6: Add Card Titles and Numbers

Most image generators don't handle text well. Options:

• Add titles using an image editor (Canva, Photoshop, even PowerPoint)
• Leave cards without text for a minimalist look
• Use a simple design tool to create a card template and place images in it

Making It Personal

The most meaningful decks include personal symbolism:

• Your childhood home as the setting for The Empress
• Your pet as a recurring figure
• Flowers from your grandmother's garden
• Landscapes from places you've traveled

This is your deck. Make it yours.

Printing Your Deck

Once you have all 22 images, you can:

• Print at home on cardstock
• Use a print service like MakePlayingCards.com or PrinterStudio.com
• Keep it digital and view on your phone or tablet

Going Further

Once you've completed the Major Arcana, you could:

• Create the 56 Minor Arcana cards (four suits of 14 cards each)
• Design a custom card back
• Write a companion guidebook explaining your symbolism
• Create a box or bag to hold the deck

Next Steps

Ready for another creative project? Try Create Album Covers for Imaginary Bands for pure creative play, or move on to Text Adventure: AI as Dungeon Master for interactive fun.

Or browse all Projects.