Compensating for a small space

Hi guys, I was just wondering if anyone has any tips they could share for compensating for a small reading area. I don't have a very large space in general, but I find I do most of my reading for myself on the computer desk in about the amount of space my keyboard would normally take up. Which works fine for 3-5 card spreads, but anything bigger than that really just does not fit. When I want to do a large spread I tend to take it and lay it out on the bed, but it's not ideal, cards slide around and I'm at great risk for smashing them with my elbows. But sometimes I do want to do a large detailed spread.

I have ordered a smaller deck (it isn't here yet), but other than that, does anyone have any ideas to share? I thought about breaking down large spreads and reading them 3-5 cards at a time and doing basically several interconnected spreads, but I feel like I'd lose a lot of the interconnectedness of the cards that way.

Do fabric stores still sell those folded-up cardboard cutting surfaces? You could unfold only a section of it.

Craft stores sometimes sell these things (No idea if they have a specific name) that are almost the same as the fold-up cardboard cutting board, but they are sold to use like at a science fair to hold up a display on top of a folding table.

If there is a house being built near you, see if you can get the 'hole' they cut out of the countertop to install the kitchen sink!

If you know a quilter who uses a rotary cutter and they have an old damaged cutting mat - those come in many sizes

How about a large cheap poster frame? Or a single pane from an aluminum storm window?

are you old enough to remember card tables? Back when dirt was new and the world was still in black and white, people got together and played cards and games. Card tables are big enough to get four people around comfortable with lots of room for elbows and beverage

quite sturdy, and flip flip flip flip and the legs fold up and you can slide it behind a bookcase or under the bed or behind a door. I didn't think to look where you are, but in the US, Target and Wallyworld both sell them and they are quite reasonable. They are back there with the folding chairs.

Tarotbear will appreciate this, I haunted yard sales until I found one of the older pasteboard and wood rails version, tore off the pasteboard, wrapped the rails with pillow ticking and used it for years as my quilt frame.

Sadly the space I live in currently quite literally isn't big enough for a card table to be set up in the empty space. I tried a tray table and it didn't help a whole lot, being, well, not much bigger than my original space.

However, THANK YOU tarotbear, there are some very awesome ideas on how I can make the bed a more functional reading space! I don't know what a fold up cutting surface is but I do know about those trifold display things that people use for presentations and stuff and that would really be great and inexpensive... also, I think I may even have a cutting mat for a rotary cutter around here somewhere, and I would never have thought of it.

Yay! Thanks very much!

What about a game board? They're not terribly big, but some are sizable enough. You could stick that under the bed when you're not using it. I have a lap tray---those kind with the hard surface on one side and beanbag type stuffed fabric on the other. That I can stick under the bed or under the coffee table.

Once for a dollar I got an oak board at St. Vinny's and I used that for years and years as a portable "desk". I think it was originally a portable podium or something that someone had made. I still have it somewhere. I've used it for a writing board, a surface for crafting, a hard surface to push my glover's needles through buckskin, an art board----whatever I could use it for, I did.

My sister gave me an old bed tray and that's been a wonderful surface to lay out cards on when I'm on my bed, too.

I just use the floor.

I hung a magnetic board and use magnets to hold the cards up on it. It works especially well with my Transparent, since the board is white.

upright card holders are a godsend when you are faced with limited table surface space. I have one my partner made for me out of wood. I told him on average I may have 5 cards at a time I want lined up, gave him the width of an average card and before you know it - he had made one for me.

Can add a photo tomorrow if you are interested.
Otherwise you may find you can get those perspex ones from office supply stores.

Davina

Have you seen those trays with a "bean-bag" bottom that can be moulded to the knees? I think they'e for people convalescing? I always think they'd make great reading trays. But they're not huge. No Celtic Cross sized ones I'm afraid.

I found a very beautiful old school-desk top in the street once which had been left out for the trash. It was very dirty and had a kind of "scooped out" bit at the front which curves around your stomach/waist when you have it on your knee. It must have been used or created for someone who worked on their knee a lot.

I took it home and sandpapered it and cleaned it and rehydrated it and the wood is just superb. Real quality, 100-year old wood. I have it on my knee when I'm playing with my cards on the sofa!

Jigsaw boards. They even have foldover flaps so you can close them and stash them with incomplete jigsaws on, for when you have to stop in a hurry. (I have one here somewhere which I would happily give you - I went to find it and - well, this is a very large house...)

Here's an example - you CAN get larger ones...