Tarot Cloths

I was just in a local material shop today and I saw a remnant piece of green silk with muted patterns all through it for a few dollars so I bought it (whim). I also picked up some red crushed velvet cloth as well. Up to now I haven't used anything special to lay my cards on but I get the feeling that the green cloth would go REALLY WELL with my druid animal oracle deck and the red would go well with my two tarot decks.

Do you have set cloths you use?? Up to now I just laid them on the bed or the table I was working at - nothing special.

I'd be interested to know what you all use.

On a side note - the green silk - a part will be matched with some dark green velvet I also got to make a bag for the cards.....that is what I was in the shop for in the first place!

For the longest time, I only used ordinary cloths - table cloths or African wraps or whatever else I had to hand. But this year I treated myself to a beautiful silk velvet cloth in Royal Blue made by Sulis, and I feel special whenever I lay it out

Congratulations on your green silk, it sounds delicious.

I read that you were suppose to 'protect' your cards.....I don't know how much that really means.
but, I made a cloth, just hemed edged when I started and use it.
I also have a piece of black cotton that I am going to try and get edged hemmed and then I want to do some embroidier work on it a bit at a time.
Just like to keep my hands busy mostly.
But I like pretty things as well.

I have a yellow/gold silk cloth that lives with my Fey deck.
I also have a purple velveteen cloth which is gorgeous but I haven't used it for a while. I might team it with my Rider Waite deck as I think that one needs something darker behind it for a little contrast. I was thinking black but I always need a bit of colour so purple it is for now.

..actually now you made me think about it. I was looking for a bag for my RW but couldn't find a colour or design that I thought matched well. Now I think I'm going to go for a turquoise silk bag and matching cloth.

The green silk is in mottled shades of green which really suit the animal theme of the cards and don't distract from the reading of them. Its actually quite soothing to look at and reminds me of a dappled forest.

I don't think I would use a cloth which had a striking pattern on it - would have to be something more subtle.

I was thinking of just turning over the edges and hemming it but now I am thinking I might sew some crystals into the corners to weight it down a little.

I have a spread cloth but I do not use it often. I usually read on my desktop computer or on the table. It's when we started the Meetup tarot meetings that I made a spread cloth to ensure our decks would be safe at the places where we would be, so we could fan our decks without ruining them. Now I only bring it when I get out of the house with decks I plan to read elsewhere but home. It's an Halloween pattern:

http://strangerealms.multiply.com/photos/photo/103/6

I have a beautiful green cloth with the image of The Green Man on it. The only problem is it's too thin and when you reach down to turn over a card, you inadvertently end up pulling some of the cloth up too...It gets irritating. It's too bad because I really love the color. I may end up using it for something more mundane...like giving it to my wife to use as a tablecloth for a candle table or something.

There are several solutions to that, Splungeman. Take it to a fabric store, tell them the problem, they'll show you lightweight interliner--that can be ironed on--or make other suggestions. It's amazing what the fabric people have been up to!

My favorite fabric for reading cloths is the material called 'suede cloth' or 'ultra-suede' or something similar. I've given one to each of my three reading decks. I like that fabric because it feels nice, is weighted well, and wraps around the cards without being bulky.

The fourth deck that I use regularly has an actual reading cloth of red velvet, gifted to me by my SO's sister. It coincidentally matched a red velvet drawstring bag I already had, so now I have a very posh ensemble for that favorite deck. Honestly, I haven't had much luck with reading cloths I've bought (that were actually made to be reading cloths), as they've mostly been silk, which is too lightweight for a spreadcloth, IMO. This velvet one is the only one I've kept, as it works okay and it was a gift.

I eventually preferred to use whatever struck my fancy at secondhand shops or clearance sales. I found the suede cloth pieces, for example, in a clearance bin at a department store (they started life as table napkins, 'til I took them home). Those seem to be what works for me the best so far. I've also tried silk, cotton and synthetic scarves, lace handkerchiefs, fabric remnants, and bandanas. All of those work well, and offer plenty of options for matching to a favorite deck. The most important thing, IMO, is that the fabric is substantial enough to lay well on the table; a lighter weight cloth will move around and lift up with the cards (as has been mentioned by 'Splungeman').

Another important consideration is that the color of the cloth contrast well with the card illustrations and/or the card borders. Some people make the mistake of matching the cloth so well with the cards that there is minimal contrast; consequently, the images get lost when the cards are spread on the cloth. For example, I use a blue-black square of 'suede cloth' to back up the white border and the primarily light backgrounds of my RWS deck. By the same token, my Grimaud Marseille has such clean lines and uncluttered symbols against white, that it looked really nice against the heavily patterned scarf I bought for it. I think the key is that there is enough contrast either way, so the cards stand out.

I've bought those soft liners for linning cupboard shelves and also rug grippers and cut them to fit under my regular cotton spread cloths...they keep the cloth in place allow for shuffling and add a little cushion to the spread cloth...it's worked out very well.
I use a large piece of the rug gripper on my reading table at the fair and then put my large table size clothes over it.

Another fabric that is really nice is called peach cloth..it's heavy weight and doesn't wrinkle...I just made a black spread cloth out of it this week and I really like it.