Queen of Blades 1.2

The Queen of Blades. Traditionally a somber card, often a widow or a barren woman. Someone ill-used by life, accustomed to disappointment either from themselves or others. A person who is always on guard, waiting defensively for the next hurt or attack.

Queen of Blades 2.3

When read as a person, this can be seen as an adult, ages 35-55 or so. A person well-established in their adulthood, but not in a place of invulnerability. They are authoritative, but wary, not yet in a position to rest on their laurels.

Queen of Blades 3.1

I see this card as External/Unconscious, or those things which motivate our external behavior, our relationships to others, but of which we are not aware. These are our defenses, our needs for inter-connectivity. The things we pursue without realizing it, the habits we enact with others completely unawares. Because this is the suit of blades, these are often patterns of communication or ways of thinking that we have yet to acknowledge or understand.

Queen of Blades 4.2

This is a very emotionally loaded card, and was thus rather difficult to shoot. That said, it’s one of the few cards we’ve done where I immediately knew what I wanted the image to be, and it turned out exactly as I hoped.

Queen of Blades 5.2

The wedding dress was gratis a friend of Stephanie’s who has since divorced, which seemed appropriate for the card. I was a little leery of doing a bride, simply because of all the Tarantino references (a bride? a big sword? no? ok, nevermind), but I thought visually it would really work.

Queen of Blades 6.3

Is she left at the altar for another woman? Has her intended died? Or simply disappeared? Was her wedding interrupted by a battle? Or is she simply in a state of constant vigilance for whatever may come, be it wedding or war?

Queen of Blades 7.1

Full set can be seen here.

Queen of Blades 8.1