Okay,
found this work by John Bauer - saw it first in Illustration magazine
from a Nordic fairy tale - princess, mother troll and sons,
i know its not quite what i was first looking for, but i really like it
The ornate detail is beautiful, it is the princess who interests me most she looks like she is glowing....
I think that the princess looks almost like a fairy because she is so small in comparison to the trolls who surround her.





i also really like the illustrations of Ivan Billibin - a Russian illustrator
his illustrations are beautiful - really detailed with lots of pattern......something to consider when designing the back of the card pack.


This is a Baba Yaga, a Russian witch who rides in a mortar and uses a pestle to move herself along.








This is an illustration from a story about a firebird and a grey wolf

I like the borders and the way the illustration is like a print with blocks of colour, it is almost quite card like in it's design.













I think this is one of the playing card designs that Mel showed us, it reminded me a bit of Ivan Bilibin's illustrations because of the way it is so ornate and decorative.