Decks Reviewed

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 30 Apr 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

LGarrick	30 Apr 2002
Hi All - I just found a really great site which reviews almost every Tarot Deck around... Take a look: http://www.artoftarot.com/deckrev.html Enjoy!

Liliana	30 Apr 2002
Actually, that site is out of date, the new site is www.tarotpassages.com might also want to check out www.wicce.com but she hasnt been updated for a long time :THP

Solandia	01 May 2002
Or even check out Aeclectic Tarot, it has over one hundred tarot and oracle deck reviews... http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/reviews.html ~ Solandia

jmd	01 May 2002
... and if a deck hasn't been reviewed, why not write one and submit it to Solandia!!! We'd all like to read further views.

Maan	01 May 2002
I just found out that Wicce started updating again!!!!!!!! Jippie!!!!:)

Jeannette	01 May 2002
Hi...re your comment " Hi All - I just found a really great site which reviews almost every Tarot Deck around..." I can't help but mention that there are SO many other tarots besides the ones listed there. As you already know, Aeclectic has an amazing selection of decks as well, and actually Gina ("wicce") has started updating her site again. But although Jeannette is too modest to bring this up herself, I think this is the perfect time to mention that in addition to doing practically all the work involved in managing our business, Tarot Garden, that in less than a year she has also scanned over 550 tarots for our database, many of which are not shown anyplace else on the Internet. While we still have hundreds more to be entered, the database already includes tarots from more than 30 countries, including a number of very rare tarots. In addition to searching for specific tarots, it's also possible to use the advanced search feature to search by numerous categories. And to see everything entered to date, just go to the homepage and without typing anything into the search field, just click on "go"...I bet that on practically any page you choose at random, you'll come across something you've never seen before! Lori www.tarotgarden.com

Liliana	01 May 2002
Well, you know, I figured if people are posting here they already knew about here lol. Actually if I need to see a deck I go here, tarotpassages, and wicce first, followed by www.learntarot.com, tarotgarden, www.astroamerica.com, and the Mystic Eye site (which I forget right now), followed by an internet search for random pics that make be elsewhere hehe :THP

Lee	01 May 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Umbrae Aeclectic Tarot provides not only a wonderful product base, but has allowed us to build a wonderful family…do not allow the 7 of swords to occur. I disagree... I think sharing Tarot resources is one of the things that this forum is all about. If someone has put time and effort into creating or contributing to such a resource, I don't see anything wrong with it being mentioned on this forum, with the caveat that we should always encourage members to buy through links from Aeclectic (when possible and when feasible) which helps to support the Aeclectic and Aeclectic Forums sites. -- Lee :)

Jeannette	01 May 2002
Hi again, Umbrae, I sent you a private email asking why you thought my post was tacky (if it was my post you were referring to?) but didn't get a reply..it's ok to answer me either privately or publicly, whichever you prefer. I'm sorry if I unintentionally offended anyone...when I first started collecting, I found the reviews that Michele Jackson had put together to be very, very useful...however, that site does tend to have an emphasis on inexpensive, available tarots. For serious collectors, or for anyone interested in the study of rare limited edition art decks or decks from "exotic" places (South America, East Europe, etc), our database really does have quite a few more of those..so, Umbrae, perhaps you might want to give our database a chance before you criticize my post, which I believe contained accurate, useful, & relevant info for forum members. And Lee, thanks for your kind comment...and actually we are one of the Aeclectic recommended sellers, and our links can be found above many of the reviews here! Also, while I'm a bit more concerned about the "tacky" part than the 7 of Swords part, I do have to admit that after looking up all the interpretations for it in Butler's "Dictionary of the Tarot", I still haven't figured out quite what that's about..but then again, maybe I shouldn't ask! Lori www.tarotgarden.com

LGarrick	01 May 2002
I posted this yesterday and was shocked to see all the exchanges! I think it's important to be "supportive and maybe a bit indulgent" when people try to SHARE... especially new people. I was annoyed how quickly EVERYONE felt a need to correct me (my post) basically writting it off as obsolete! I'll think twice before I give my opinio or share my finds again ~ We sure have alot of EXPERTS! Enough said ~

Jeannette	01 May 2002
re: I'll think twice before I give my opinio or share my finds again ~ Please, please, please don't do that!! I wanted to ADD to the information you provided, not discourage you or anyone from posting. Again, my apologies for any misunderstandings, Lori

Jenny-Li	01 May 2002
LGarrick: Please don't be offended - I'm sure nobody meant to write you off the way you feel they did. I've used artoftarot.com myself since I got into Tarot in the first place, it was only recently I discovered that the site had moved to tarotpassages, and that from there I could find a lot MORE than only deck reviews *smugly rubbing my hands!*. In my "favourites"-list I still have the link to artoftarot though, I figure as long as that one still works, what the hey, right...? :) On a more common note to all of us - there is one issue that ALWAYS comes up when it comes to communicating on the internet and that is the need to be very clear in what we write. Words are only about 5% of the whole communication process when we speak to each other face to face (the rest is body language and mimic and that sort of stuff) - and out here on the net, those lousy 5% is all we have. As a non-native English-speaker, I've learned (the hard way, trust me... :( ) to be very careful not to accidentally put words in a way that may hurt someone. It's tricky stuff - communicating, I mean - and still... Communicating is what has got us this amazing community, let's not have communication spoil it for us... Now, I hope I'm not out of line here. As I said, I've been the one to have said the wrong thing in more cases than I want to think about, and even after the "kissing and making up"-part it hurts inside to know... how close it was that I ruined everyting just with a few words. LGarrick: don't be put off sharing, I've probably missed most of the major sites, being an alien and all ;) and I'd love to hear what you find, as I will post what I find! Love and light to all! Jenny :)

LGarrick	01 May 2002
No hard feeling with ANYONE! Love and Hugs to all ~

Liliana	01 May 2002
Well, Tarot for Yourself entions 7 of swords as research:collecting the knowledge and ideas of others which isapplicable but not whats intendedhehe It also says lying, but no one lied, tarotgarden is a great site, not to mention linked to aeclectic so aeclectic can get the profit :THP

Lion-O	01 May 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Umbrae ...as we say out here on the left coast...tacky, very very tacky. --- Aeclectic Tarot provides not only a wonderful product base, but has allowed us to build a wonderful family…do not allow the 7 of swords to occur. Although I agree with your concerns I would not worry about it too much. Well, perhaps the :T7S might be somewhere out there but if you would look at all this in a 'competitive' way then I strongly feel the influence of :T3C around which I believe is hard to break. Keeping an open mind can't hurt and well, I really doubt anything can 'top' this site/forum and its community.

Liliana	01 May 2002
Quote: Originally posted by LGarrick EVERYONE felt a need to correct me (my post) basically writting it off as obsolete! I didnt mean your post was obsolete, just that the site was, i wanted to make sure no one missed a single deck review, leading to obsessive purchasing, yourself included ;) Brought to you by taro-holics anonymous :THP

Lion-O	01 May 2002
Although I'm partly involved because its not a very big deal to me I do think a reaction is in order... Quote: Originally posted by Umbrae I offer an apology. I wrote how I felt with total disregard for the feelings of others. I've got mixed feelings about it; IMHO your opinion is as important as the other peoples opinions and frankly I think I can understand your concerns. Just my 2 cents but I don't think you did anything wrong (at least thats not how it felt to me). I guess people can do 2 things; start complaining about it or simply respect it. Like I said in my other post (this will teach me to read the entire thread before responding to one of the postings ;)) I think this whole community is closer then others. The main reason why it should be able to handle different opinions; after all... If we would all agree with each other there would not be much to talk and discuss about, now would there?

LGarrick	01 May 2002
I agree - Cheers!

Zhritza	01 May 2002
oooh... I can't think of a more disputed card meaning in all the collective LWBs I've read than that of the 7 of Swords. Can we say "can of worms," kids? Lori, while I don't feel offended per se by your inline advertising, I will say that it throws me off a bit every time I see it, and does not really seem necessary to this extent. Most of the people on these forums seem to browse them pretty regularly, including those who don't post a lot (myself not included obviously), so I doubt that we need to be randomly reminded that Tarot Garden exists. I can understand your mentioning that you have a particular deck in stock when one or more people are discussing that deck; I can understand if you want to point out, for example, that you specialize in Japanese decks when someone bemoans not being able to get them. But this time I think you are being somewhat gratuitous. This place exists primarily to facilitate discussion, and any time you have a well-populated forum to that end, people will develop a feeling of community, and of being able to come here and "relax," as it were, among people with some similar interests; being too advertising-happy is discordant with that because it feels invasive and/or inappropriate.

Jeannette	01 May 2002
re... Lori, while I don't feel offended per se by your inline advertising hi..my post was about our database, which is free for anyone to use as a reference/research source, and which actually includes scans of over 200 tarots that we do not currently sell. So I'm not quite sure that qualifies as "advertising". Unfortunately, because I am associated with Tarot Garden, I suppose anything I post could be seen as some form of "ad" for Tarot Garden. I'm sorry my post has caused such miscommunication..my original post was just in response to a comment about "almost every tarot deck around" and since we have information available on 100-200 more tarots than the site mentioned, I thought this information, and additional information on our search engine features, might be useful. (I've only recently figured out that the "go" button on the search engine brings up everything and because I hadn't realized that, I thought perhaps others didn't know either) And I am very proud of all that Jeannette has accomplished with our site in a very short time, but I can see by the responses that I need to be more careful about both sharing information and the way in which I say it. Lori

Liliana	02 May 2002
Id like to say im happy tarotgarden exists, couldt make fun of those 3 cards in Rohrig that they made the author put pants on without it, also couldnt look at that cute pocketable tarot and wonder how many millions of dollars it would cost hehe :THP

Jewel	02 May 2002
Lori, I think what has occurred here is a bit of mis-communication and I hope that it will not discourage you from fully participating and sharing on the forums. I am a customer of both Aeclectic (through Amazon) and the Tarot Garden, and in my dealings with you guys I know that your interest lies with us all and not just in business. I think that you are right when you say that there are possibly features of your site which we are not all that familiar with, but we all do know about your store. Thanks again for providing us with an additional information resource as well as a great store.

Zhritza	02 May 2002
OK, here are some reasons I saw your first post in this thread as being of an advertising nature, lori. 1. I have read all the threads on Talking Tarot and Tarot Decks, including all the old ones that are still available to read, since I got here (admittedly less than 2 months ago), and I have never seen a post from you that was part of a discussion about a particular deck, an aspect of tarot in general, etc.; they have all been basically to notify us of what you carry; and 2. Tarot Garden is of course a business, and the name "Jeanette and/or Lori" seems to imply that posts under that name are done as a representative of Tarot Garden; so therefore 3. It appears to me at this point that you are not here to be part of discussions, but to further your business. I would LOVE to discuss tarot with you, Lori; but when you post, you don't discuss tarot. I am sorry if you feel I have misinterpreted your intent, but I have only used basic reasoning to discern your intent, and I don't see how else I could have interpreted you. If you are put off by being seen in this way, maybe it would work out better if you participated in the discussions that are why this forum exists, instead of only posting occasionally to say that you have something available at your business. Again let me reiterate: speaking for myself, I want very much to be able to actually "talk tarot" with you, if that is what you want; that just hasn't seemed to be where your interests lie on this forum.

Jeannette	02 May 2002
Thank you, Liliani & Jewel, as always, your support is very much appreciated. To all others who may have concerns about the appropriateness of our presence & postings here, please first read the "Support Aeclectic Tarot" section on the homepage here, and then address any additional comments to Solandia, thanks! Lori

Logiatrix	02 May 2002
i don't care who is offended, as long as the decks and books don't get hurt while there's a tussle! i go to ALL the sites...buy ALL the decks...if it's tarot, i'm there! "tacky", by the way, is a tarot term referring to that sticky-ness of new cards right out of the box. there is a certain "tacky-resonance" that occurs when the cards are separated; it's a kind of cracking sound unlike any other in the universe--the stuff of any tarotholic's best tarot dreams...ahhhh! ;)

Lee	02 May 2002
I associate myself completely with Metaz's remarks. :) -- Lee

MeeWah	02 May 2002
While I can see how posts from Jeanette or Lori might be construed as advertising, I have enjoyed the ones I have read. They are informative & interesting while addressing various queries. For me, such posts reflect the symbiotic relationship of Aeclectic Tarot & Tarot Garden. I do not have the time nor the inclination to surf the net so I come to Tarot Decks to read about decks. I pay attention to links that members provide to sites. I appreciate the information as that saves me from having to plow through all kinds of Tarot listings, most of which do not interest me. As a customer, I like the personal service that small businesses specialize in & their accessibility. When I have questions or a need, I have a person to whom to direct my inquiry & I know the response is always with immediacy. This is why I choose to patronize Tarot Garden; also Tarot Totes (www.tarottotes.com). Those proprietors go out of their way to ensure customer service; & more to the point, treat their customers as individuals. In my dealings with these proprietors, it is obvious that they not only do their job well, they love what they do. I appreciate both Lori's & Jeanette's enthusiasm for Tarot as well as for their business.

Zhritza	02 May 2002
I'll post about this publicly once more, so that hopefully no one gets any wrong ideas about where I'm coming from. I understand that buying from Tarot Garden via Aeclectic's links supports Aeclectic, but for numerous reasons I currently don't order stuff online (although I certainly want to). I have written a couple of reviews for Aeclectic and hope to do more, so hopefully that counts as support to some extent. Also, I don't think that Tarot Garden's affiliation with Aeclectic means that any posts from Jeanette and Lori are automatically sacrosant and should never be questioned; hopefully everyone here feels that we can question each other pretty freely. By questioning Lori, I did not mean to question her presence here in general. Initially I was trying to put voice to the discomfort I felt about a particular post; then, in my second post regarding the issue, I felt like I had to justify my discomfort, and in doing that I probably came across more defensively than I really wanted to. So, I do apologize, and I hope, Lori, that you and Jeanette do not feel like I wanted to attack you or your presence. In the future I will try to remember that I am really quite new here. Thanks, everyone, for your patience.

MeeWah	03 May 2002
Qolus: I understand the basis for your concern & appreciate you taking the time to clarify. Both Jeanette & Lori are very enthusisastic about Tarot & about Aeclectic Tarot. Given the nature of their business, the overlapping of the influences is nigh inevitable & thus, understandable. One's profession or work can be closely intertwined with the person, & I can see this occurring. Until recently, I was not aware Jeanette is one half of Tarot Garden--& I have been associated with Aeclectic for some time! I do not recall previous posts by Lori (but I do not get to read all the postings at any one time, unfortunately). Actually, I confused Jeanette/Lori with another Jeanette who has posted. I think Jeanette of Jeanette/Lori signs her posts as Jeanette. I hope Jeanette & Lori will not be discouraged from hanging out here with the rest of us Taro-a-holics!

aeonx	03 May 2002
Greetings all. Take a look at this thread: http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?threadid=3280 I've started a discussion about forum behavior on Aeclectic versus other forums. You have all proven you worthy Aeclecticans! Even though there has been quarreling and disagreement, I think you all kept a nice tone, considering many other forums. If this discussion had occured at the Thorn Tree, somebody would have told some of you to go to he** many posts ago. I highly appreciate being an Aeclectic forum member! :)

The Decks Reviewed thread was originally posted on 30 Apr 2002 in the Tarot Decks board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Tarot Decks, or read more archived threads.