Broken / sick decks

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 06 Aug 2004, and now archived in the Forum Library.

skh	06 Aug 2004
Hi, my very first Tarot deck, a standard sized US Games Rider Waite (c)1971, probably printed later and acquired some time in the mid to end 80's, is sick. The Page of Cups has a kink in his waist, the poor sod... As it is visible on the back of the card as well, and as the deck feels somewhat "broken" by this, I don't use it any more. I've never read seriously from it anyway, as back when I got it I somehow didn't get the knack of Tarot reading at all, but just forgot about it a few months later. But still, it was a gift from my mother, so I would never give (or - *gasp* - throw) it away. What do you do with decks that have broken or even missing cards? I was wondering if there was a deck recycle project somewhere, collecting incomplete decks and sending out replacement cards from them. Can you exchange cards between decks, or would you feel that the integrity of a deck would be violated? cheers, Sonja

Majecot	06 Aug 2004
Hi Sonja If the deck is unusable but you do not want to get rid of it because it was a gift you could always put the cards in plastic sheets in an album to protect them from further harm. Sometimes you can find decks cheap on Ebay and use them to replace the missing or offending card, and there is always the publisher for a source, but if it an old deck, they would probably not be able to help you.

Shade	06 Aug 2004
You could just use the majors from the deck; a lot of unique spreads call only fro the major arcana.

skh	09 Aug 2004
Quote: Originally posted by Shade You could just use the majors from the deck; a lot of unique spreads call only fro the major arcana. Hm, I think I might do just that, and maybe frame some of the others to hang them on the wall - all the court cards overlooking my work desk, maybe? ;) Thanks for the suggestions. But honestly - did you all never lose a single card? Sonja

MeeWah	09 Aug 2004
I have not lost one but three cards a few years ago & from my Robin Wood deck. As this deck is one of my favourite old faithfuls, in desperation I contacted Robin Wood via her website (from which I acquired an autographed copy of the deck's book). I explained the situation; asked if replacements were possible & was prepared to pay for them. She responded graciously. I only had to provide a stamped, self-addressed legal-sized envelope for the replacement cards. Now that is what I call customer service! A subsequent attempt to contact the U.S. publisher of The Mythic Tarot to replace damaged cards elicited no reply. I no longer use the deck but was able to obtain another copy (used) via an exchange with a member.

morandia	09 Aug 2004
as to using cards from various decks, you might want to check out this post: http://www.tarotforum.net/showthread.php?s=&threadid=29097

Ace	12 Aug 2004
I have about a dozen Robin Wood decks, I just wear them out! They get too dirty to use or too sticky (I want to try cleaning them with Cornstarch-it is supposed to remove the stickiness but I haven't gotten to it yet.) I keep one or two that have lost cards to replace lost cards out of others. I wasn't sure what to do about old decks, but someone once suggested using them for classes and giving them to your students. I have saved them for that purpose, but I don't teach very often. I recently taught a beginner tarot seminar and gave a deck to one person afterward (we drew cards for it!) If the deck has special sentimental value, I would keep that one, even if you can't read with it anymore. The one thing that sets my teeth on edge: is people that insist that ONLY that deck will work for them. I know someone with a Thoth deck that has been worn so hard, the pictures are worn away so badly that only about the size of a quarter on each card (and these are FULL sized cards!) and there are big holes from her thumbs where she shuffles, but she insists she can't use another deck. BE BRAVE: get a new copy! I do like the idea of a card replacement network. I have a partical Robin Wood, anyone need cards?

Jeanette	12 Aug 2004
My mom got me a Mythic Tarot book/deck/spread cloth from a yard sale, and it is missing the 2 of Cups. I like some of the ideas mentioned here; maybe I'll decoupage something with it! That would be fun and functional!

rosyelf	31 Aug 2004
If I'm not actively using a deck any more-maybe it's broken, maybe I just don't warm to it for readings-I sometimes paste favourite cards into an album which also includes postcards, photos, etc-a kind of album of my life at a particular time. Recently, I've got very interested in blogs and also illustrated journals, so another idea is to paste the occasional card into a journal entry-a nice way of making a journal more than just words, words, words. This will probably result in me getting duplicates of some favourite decks, so that the original remains intact for readings and meditation.

The Broken / sick decks thread was originally posted on 06 Aug 2004 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.