Something that you might not realize when you first meet me is that I love art. I majored in Theatre Design in college and even worked on Broadway when I lived in New York City. I’m always wanting to buy a new set of paints, brushes, camera lenses, etc. It’s a bad (read: expensive) addiction. So when I was starting to learn Magic a couple of years ago I was very excited to learn that people love altered cards. A chance to combine two of my favorite hobbies? Sign me up! I spent a solid month painting on commons every single day after work. I’d come home, pour a large glass of wine and pull out my paints and sit on my floor painting until bed. Since then I’ve started painting much more seriously, taking on commissions and painting as a second job. From discussions with both players and other artists I’ve learned one major thing: many players do not understand what goes into making a magic card alter so today I’d like to tell you.

For the first step, after I receive a commission and the client and I have decided on what kind of art they would like, I sit down and begin prepping the card. Depending on what I have to do to the card I first either begin putting down a primer layer or take a Prismacolor brand eraser and remove the parts of the card I want gone. Sometimes, I’ll use Frog brand painters tape to protect the parts of the card I do not want removed or altered. There is a thin black line that surrounds the art that has proven extremely hard to paint over. Most of the time I’m focusing on removing that line around the art so I can extend the cards already existing art. I spend a lot of time on this step because taking shortcuts while prepping can lead to a messy looking card later on. I tend to prefer erasing over priming, as it helps keep the paint from building up.

Next I begin laying paint down on the card, layering it very slowly in order to keep it thin. This is the fun part, I love being able to add my touch to this game that I love so much. When I am doing something unique I will often sketch out images beforehand separately to make sure I get the proportions correct. Magic cards are a fairly challenging medium for me; I’m used to painting on large canvases, murals or set pieces. In comparison magic cards are microscopic and the detail work takes a lot of time and focus.

Once I have the card exactly how I like it I used a toothpick that has been soaked in water to clean up the edges. If the card is going to be used outside the sleeve I will sometimes add a coat of varnish, however I tend to prefer not to do this. I feel it adds additional weight to the card which I like to avoid, especially if the card might see competitive play which is always my biggest worry.

There are no clear rules concerning altered cards for competitive play which is something that bothers me immensely. It is up to the head judge for each tournament to decide if a card is playable. The only consistent rules are that the name of the card and the mana cost must be clear and that when face down the card cannot be distinguished from other cards in the deck (because of thickness, etc). Some judges however feel that the original art of the card must be intact (or mostly intact) and others believe that the text box must be uncovered. Unfortunately these decisions are made judge by judge and there are no rules for artists to follow while altering cards or judges to following when ruling on them. I would greatly appreciate if there were more official rules concerning what a card needs to be considered tournament playable.

Despite the large amount of work that goes into making an alter and the relatively small amount they sell for I continue to toil away at my desk painting away late into the night. Altering cards is without a doubt a labor of love, and yet another excuse to bring more Magic into my life. So next time you approach an artist about card alters to remember how much they put into their work.

Shameless plug, you can check out more of my work here: https://www.facebook.com/AltersByKate

Kate Donnelly is Legacy and Modern player who resides in Worcester, Mass. She uses Hipsters of the Coast as an excuse for playing too much Magic. In addition she is an artist who alters cards. Check her Stuff out on Facebook!