Cards in the sun

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 27 Aug 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

wavebreaker	27 Aug 2002
Last weekend I sat in the garden for a while, enjoying the sun, and I had brought my new World Spirit deck with me. After having looked through it for a bit, I put it aside. After about an hour or so I went back inside, taking the deck with me. In the evening I used the deck again and it appeared all the cards were a little bent from the warmth of the sun... :( I've tried bending them back carefully and putting the whole deck under a pile of books, but they are still a bit bent. Any ideas?? PS Guess which card was bent the most?? The Sun! :D

Kiama	27 Aug 2002
This is weird,and I've never come across it before... IT's as though your deck melted! I've heard of them fading in the sun, but not melting! How bent are they? Just slightly, or so badly that you cannot usethem? Kiama

wavebreaker	27 Aug 2002
I can still use them, they are only slightly bent. But when I put them on the table, two of the corners are sticking up a bit and it annoys me a bit... It also makes them more difficult to shuffle (and I was already having trouble shuffling them because of their size...).

Starfish	27 Aug 2002
Tarotlady - :( What a thing to happen! Now this is going to sound silly, but what if you put the two cards under a really, really heavy book for a day or two. And then turn them over and do the same thing to the other side? :TJUST Starfish

lili	27 Aug 2002
The same thing happened to me when I left my cards outside over night to clean them under a full moon, they were damp and bended, after they dried out the cards were still bended,I as I keep using them they seem not as bended as they were before.

wavebreaker	27 Aug 2002
Thanks lili, that sounds promising! I'll just have to use them a lot then... ;) That's not too difficult though, I love using with my World Spirit! :) PS Starfish: the whole deck is bent, not just two cards...

Starfish	27 Aug 2002
Quote: Originally posted by tarotlady Thanks lili, that sounds promising! I'll just have to use them a lot then... ;) That's not too difficult though, I love using with my World Spirit! :) PS Starfish: the whole deck is bent, not just two cards... I misread your post. Sorry! :) I agree with Lili, then - just keep using that deck and "work" the bend out ;) :TJUST Starfish

the hermit	27 Aug 2002
I've encountered the same problem when reading at Ren Faires and other outdoor events. Even when not in direct sunlight. I think it's a duel problem of heat and moisture in the air. When living in the southern united states it was a real issue because of high summer humidity. Not much has worked other than keeping them in bags or box as much as possible. And keeping them out of the sun as much as possible. They do seem to return to shape eventually if you allow them to sit for a while (week or so seems to work for me), but it's a good reason to rotate decks often if you do a lot of outside reading.

emily2otters	27 Aug 2002
my tarot nova did the same thing when i spread them in the sun, but then they came back to shape as they cooled down. i store the deck in its original box, however, so maybe they straightened out because they had some "guidance" while they were still warm.

Cerulean	28 Aug 2002
A silly thought... What would the paper do if you refrigerated the cards in a plastic container for half an hour? Can you do a test card? I know bread dries out if you put it in the refrigerator---but flowers stay happily vivid in the cold temperature. Oh dear, don't eat my cards for your midnight snack---it'll be a little dry. Mari H.

Pollux	29 Aug 2002
When cards bend for too much use, they are generally bent in one way/direction, like this ) or this (, for it is the direction of the shuffling, the way you hold them. Maybe you could simply try shuffling the cards in the direction that would straight-en them, not the one that would bend them as they are but the other... I hope I was clear... DUH!

wavebreaker	29 Aug 2002
Yes, I understand what you mean, Pollux. But the cards are bent diagonally, so that means I would have to shuffle them diagonally. I don't think I can do that... ;) And Mari: putting them in the fridge?? I don't know... I feel like the poor things have suffered enough already... ;)

Dark Inquisitor	29 Aug 2002
I had a similar problem with a vintage deck, about 20 or 30 years old. I took pairs of cards, and laid the face to face in the stack, so that they would be bowed in opposite directions while lying against one another . I put a piece of cardboard on the top & bottom of the deck. Then I banded it down at both ends with a rubber band and left them under book for a while. If I have to store cards for a long time, I will do that so they won't go out of shape. If you put a rubberband directly on the cards, it will crease them after a long time. Tarotphelia

Keslynn	29 Aug 2002
Was it a humid day when your cards got left out? If not, then the sun might have dried your cards out rather than the humidity getting to them. In which case, you might want to humidify them - gently! Perhaps leaving them in the bathroom when you're taking a shower so they can feel the steam. Then it would probably be easier to flatten them between books. :) Kes

wavebreaker	29 Aug 2002
I'm trying Tarotphelia's advice now: I've put the cards face to face in pairs in a stack and put a heavy book on top of the deck. It wasn't really humid the day I left the cards in the sun and I'm a bit reluctantly to try humidifying the cards, but I'll try that if nothing else works. PS Great sig Keslynn! ;)

mara	30 Aug 2002
Seeing that everything happens for a reason..........maybe, just maybe........you have to think in a slightly "bent" way when reading these cards:D:D;) Hey it's just a suggestion........:) Hope it "straightens" out for you Tarotlady Love and Light Mara

wavebreaker	01 Sep 2002
Yay, it worked!! I used Keslynn's advice (leaving the cards in the bathroom while taking a shower), followed by Tarotphelia's advice (leaving the cards under a heavy book for about two days after their "steam bath") and now they are as new again! Thanks all!

The Cards in the sun thread was originally posted on 27 Aug 2002 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.