Haindl makeover

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 24 Nov 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Teal	24 Nov 2002
I just had to elaborate more on my Haindl without those borders. I didn't take off anything except the light border. I left the symbols and Kabbalah, etc. intact. This also leaves the colored line that denotes the suit associations-----air, fire, water, earth. For anyone who thought Haindl's deck was somber, you should see it now! All of a sudden, the tiny details and the bright colors just glow out of each card. It took me awhile to get the courage to actually cut the borders off, but I saw so much potential in this deck that finally I just did it! Now I'm very glad I did. After all, down through history people have made their own handmade decks and improvised all sorts of cards for themselves, so altering a deck to make it so much more eloquent and articulate to the subconscious isn't a crime. My initial response to this deck was a deep down knowing that this deck was somehow an extension of my soul. It was very frustrating to be so stymied by the meanings printed on them. Rather than give up or let myself be bogged down by it, it was worth the try at altering it to see if that would bring out its potential for me. It did, beyond my wildest expectations. I'm sharing this in hopes that others might try the same thing if they have this deck or another one that has the potential of being fantastic for them personally but is held back by the printed meanings. I have to thank Ravenswing for giving me the moral support, albeit unknowingly on his part. I had read that he "liberates" some of his decks by removing the borders, so I knew Fate wouldn't strike me dead for it. LOL

Teal	24 Nov 2002
I'm not suggesting anyone should cut into a deck that's out of print, hard to get, or collectible------just thought I'd clarify that. I can get another intact Haindl or two to put into a collection because it's still in print. I'd not dream of doing the same thing with a deck I couldn't replace.

Celtic_Dragon	24 Nov 2002
How exactly did you modify them? By the way you're talking I'd say that you scanned them and used a photo editing program like photoshop. But then you mentioned not doing this to a deck that's out of print. What did you do exactly?

Teal	24 Nov 2002
No, I didn't use the computer. I used a pair of scissors to cut the borders off the Haindl deck. I'm sorry for the confusion. I should have said that in the post.

Hedera	01 Sep 2004
Bumping this because last night, in a restless mood, I decided to snip my regular-sized Haindl (inspired by Yaboot and his Rohrig adventures). It took an hour or so with some scissors and today another half hour with my corner puch, and the difference is incredible! They are brilliant, colourful, gorgeous. That dull grey border did these cards no favours! It also got rid of those pesky keywords. The only cards I'm not sure I'll recognize without their names are the court cards, but if need be I can always refer to Ms Pollacks book, which has pictures. Here are some pics of the cards, post-makeover: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v189/Hedera/haindl2a.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v189/Hedera/haindl1a.jpg Some tips: large scissors work better than small ones. Make sure you have good lighting, especially (if you're righthanded) coming from the left, so the line you're cutting along isn't in the shade. A corner puch costs about 3/4 euros, and makes wonderful corners very easily!

Lee	01 Sep 2004
Hedera, those links don't work for me. I get an error message, "The requested URL /albums/v189/Hedera/haindl2a.jpg was not found on this server." I'm really curious to see what the Haindl cards would look like without borders. -- Lee

Hedera	01 Sep 2004
That's weird, when I posted them it worked fine! But I can't access photobucket at all right now - I think the site is down. Perhaps I could email you the pics? I still have them on my harddrive. Edited; I might take some more pics later, as well. These are rather dark, since I took them on a black table top - they might look even better against a lighter background.

Lee	01 Sep 2004
That's okay, Hedera, we can wait until the site works again, thanks! -- Lee

Gardener	01 Sep 2004
Hedera, I must've gotten to the link before the site became unavailable because I saw them and they looked GREAT!! After the fabulousness that is my newly naked Rohrig, I've been looking for another deck to snip. I contemplated the Voyager, but it would have messed up the back design too much. Thwarted, I had settled back into my usual routine, which includes basically ignoring the decks with keywords. But the Haindl, shorn in your photos, looks WONDERFUL. I can't wait! I just have to wait until Dan goes to work so I can lift one of his decks for the big chop chop...

contrascarpe	01 Sep 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Gardener Hedera, I must've gotten to the link before the site became unavailable because I saw them and they looked GREAT!! After the fabulousness that is my newly naked Rohrig, I've been looking for another deck to snip. I contemplated the Voyager, but it would have messed up the back design too much. Thwarted, I had settled back into my usual routine, which includes basically ignoring the decks with keywords. But the Haindl, shorn in your photos, looks WONDERFUL. I can't wait! I just have to wait until Dan goes to work so I can lift one of his decks for the big chop chop... Um .... looks like Dan needs to collect, and hide, all sharp objects around the house ......

Hedera	01 Sep 2004
Glad at least someone got to see them! :) Photobucket has been acting up all day, I hope it gets fixed soon. I think the term to describe the snipped Haindl is 'jewel-like'. Who'd have thought, of a deck that's often called 'dark' and 'muddy'? I'm just shuffling it now, flipping over cards, and the ace of Swords struck me all of a sudden; a rather unremarkable card before, now it is fascinating, those swirling clouds with the straight, sharp sword piercing them.

Sulis	01 Sep 2004
I think they look great - the link's working now :) I really dislike most borders on cards, the only ones I seem to be able to cope with are black borders. The Swedish Witch Tarot has been on my wishlist for ages but I can't stand those wide grey borders. I'm very tempted to get one and start snipping - does anyone know what the backs of the cards are like? Love Sulis xx

MeeWah	01 Sep 2004
Hedera: I just accessed both links. Though I am not familiar with the Haindal deck & do not know what they look like with borders, they look great without! The only deck I can think of off-hand that I have without borders is the Templar. Cards sans borders seem to pull one in more so than those with borders though may depend on the deck.

contrascarpe	01 Sep 2004
I agree MeeWah - I love borderless cards. The Templar is stunning because of this. I must admit, I was very queasy at the idea of Gardener taking scissors to one of our beloved Rohrigs, but I cannot see myself using the bordered ones now. The result was amazing. I am still twitchy at the idea of her tackling my Haindl, however ;) Dan

Hedera	01 Sep 2004
There's a picture of the Swedish Witch back in one of the Tarotpassages reviews, here: http://www.tarotpassages.com/images3/SwedWbk.jpg I think cutting off the borders on that one would seriously hurt the backs - and for some reason, those borders don't bother me so much. In the Haindl, the backs don't line up with the front perfectly; in de-bordering, I've lost the signature off the back, and there's a tiny grey line on the top left. Taking that off would look bad on the front, so I left it, and it doesn't bother me.

HudsonGray	01 Sep 2004
Here's the cards with the borders on: http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/haindl/index.shtml That gray really dulled down the images.

Lee	01 Sep 2004
Wow, you're absolutely right, Hedera, they look wonderful without the borders, like a whole new deck! Thanks for posting the pictures. -- Lee

Xarokys	04 Sep 2004
I have somehow ended up with an extra Haindl. Now where did I put those scissors.....

Cerulean	04 Sep 2004
The elongation might be from just snipping off the U.S. Games borders--we in the U.S. get our Haindl distributed by U.S. Games. I saw the free poster in Rachel Pollack's book of Kabbalah and the Haindl, which made me say STUNNING in how the merged images work together of Haindl's work.* Now if I found a Giant Haindl, this seems very very cool to do...maybe even work for the U.S. Games Giant Rider Waite, to free the scenes up for better mental play. Thanks, guys! I've snipped more than a few deck borders and titles to free the images--the Via, for one, Light and Shadow (challenging--the silkscreen print images are NOT the same size) and the mass market (in Europe) Italian version of the Gitani. The Gitani has a beautiful fruit-flower-bird border on the right and left side of every card, but the keywords and titles above and below just didn't make it with me. By the way, in the decks I named above, I have books that show every original image in black and white. So in terms of the Via and Gitani, I did add stickers that made these more my own decks... Regards, Cerulean P.S. What happens is I see these more as 'scenes' without the borders.*

Little Baron	04 Sep 2004
Hedera They look a thousand times better now. I just looked at the link with the borders and they are not half as enticing. Good job. They look wonderful. Since I chopped the Rohrig, I don't think I would ever hesitate again. Yaboot

Hedera	04 Sep 2004
Cerulean, I used my regular-sized, English/American Haindl. I have the German large edition as well, but I'm saving those for study purposes. The size of my snipped Haindl is perfect, slim and longish - comparable to the Sakki-Sakki deck.

Jewel-ry	04 Sep 2004
I agree with Yaboot, Having snipped the Rohrig, I wouldn't hesitate again either. The Haindl look great. Because the cards have no borders, they flow into each other, makes the whole reading more fluid imo. ~

Majecot	04 Sep 2004
Oh My- you guys are making itch to get the scissors out..*now I wonder if I have a sharp enough pair* Mari what size are Giant Haindl....The deck I have is a larger than average deck but I am not sure if it is "giant" or not. Could be another purchase on the horizon. I think I am going to go ahead and snip my Rohrig.. one can always get another if it doesn't work out-right?

Lee	04 Sep 2004
For anyone who has the giant Haindl, my advice is, don't do any chopping. My understanding is that the giant deck is completely out of print and unavailable, even in Germany, where it was published. -- Lee

Cerulean	04 Sep 2004
Mine is the mass market size. Thank you Lee, for your update on the Giant being out of print. Cerulean

Gardener	04 Sep 2004
I've been trying to get the giant german Haindl for months and months now. I asked Jeannette at Tarot Garden to look for one for me, but every time she thinks she has one, it turns out to be the "only slightly larger than average" size. Hedera, I'm so envious of your giant Haindl!! Meanwhile, I am taking scissors to the regular English edition Haindl today. I waited until Dan took his dad to a soccer game and immediately upon the heels of his departure, attended to my guilty task. But I'm no good at secrets: he called at half time and asked what I was doing, and I told all! But I think when he sees their denuded beauty, he won't mind. Too bad the cards I get the impulse to snip are never the ones I own, always the ones Dan owns...

Cerulean	04 Sep 2004
I've been making my scissors and hands rest, so haven't taken the scissors to my Haindl yet. I trimmed the Light and Shadow last weekend and then did my work month-end mouse clicking/invoice balancing and spreadsheet stuff...ouch. So I've been waiting two weeks in between... I do like what I've seen though, so if my hands allow, I may also have one these limited-edition cut-offs soon! Regards Cerulean

Lucretia Luna	04 Sep 2004
Just browsing and - Wow! indeed! Now - do I dare try??? Currently gutless - and it is 01:15hrs. So - shall have to see. Thanks for the idea! Lu

Oni	04 Sep 2004
it is at the stores all the time, and as far as i can tell not too rare a deck, the mass market one that is. i had the deck thought i would love it, i did not at all, so i sold it. but hmm now that i see how it looks chopped off maybe i should go out and buy it again cut the edges and give it anouther try? thinking

TaranRavenfrost	19 Dec 2004
I am wanting to cut the borders off of the Haindl I am going to get for christmas, and I was wondering about the 'grey line' that is on the top of the backs of the cards. If you cut this grey line off, would it damage the fronts appearance in any way?

The Haindl makeover thread was originally posted on 24 Nov 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.