Removing Musty Smell from Tarot Decks

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 22 Apr 2005, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Rusty Neon	22 Apr 2005
What works for you? Various suggestions I've seen include: cat litter (new litter, of course), whole cloves, dryer sheets. Not being a cat owner, I'm reluctant to try cat litter as I have no idea what new cat litter smells like. I'd be especially interested in hearing from people who have tried and tested a number of different approaches. I've tried whole cloves with a non-fresh smelling deck (as opposed to a slightly musty deck) and the whole cloves scented over the smell and seemed to remove some of the smell as well. Thanks!

ncefafn	23 Apr 2005
I once got a deck in trade that reeked of mildew. Here's what I did. Got an old Nike shoebox and dropped some essential oils in it -- patchouli and lavender. After the oils had absorbed into the cardboard, I put the deck in, unbound and mixed around liberally. Every day for a week, I took the cards out, mixed them up some more, and put them back in the box. At the end of the week, the mildew smell had receded, replaced by the lovely combination of patchouli and lavender. Every now and then, shuffling the deck, I think I get the whiff of old mildew, but it's overpowered by the lovelier smells. Edited to add: I wouldn't use cat litter. It has a fake, powdery and perfumey smell that is really not that pleasant. If you want the least intrusive deodorizer of all, you might try keeping them in a box with loose baking soda. Kim

smokey	23 Apr 2005
Just toss in a coupla' laundry dryer sheets with the deck in a zip-lock bag over night!..Better Yet,I Recently found some small & very pretty (paper) sachet 'thingies'( @ "Michael's",)that I did this same thing to with great results (just Remembered This,lol) & they had various Divine scents.(ahhh!) from English Ivy(?) to Spring rain, Rushing waterfall,etc....

WolfSpirit	23 Apr 2005
I never noticed a smell on cat litter (if it is unused) but my cats, who have more sensitive smell than I do, can smell it; maybe different brands smell differently as well. I don't know why cat litter was suggested to you; my first thought was that it was meant to soak up the excess of humidity in the deck. If it is meant to absorb the smell I would rather try really dry fine sand, sand absorbs smell very well and the idea of putting a deck in cat litter is just offputting to me. I have put decks with a nasty smell in bags with cloves and cinnamon, I think it is mostly the cloves that do the work (I just happened to have the cinnamon too) and that worked fine, it depends on how bad the smell is if this will work. It leaves a very subtle smell of spices (not much at all). I used this because I preferred a spicey smell to a flowery smell - unless a deck really has a flowery theme. Just to be on the safe side I don't put the deck in direct contact with the cloves. You could also try chips of cedar, that is also used to freshen up clothes.

Emily	23 Apr 2005
I've put decks into a ziplock bag with sticks of incense overnight or sometimes longer - usually either Lavender, Rose or Patchouli. The smell stays on the deck for a long time too but doesn't transfer to your hands. :)

Fulgour	23 Apr 2005
Rusty Neon wrote: Not being a cat owner, I'm reluctant to try cat litter as I have no idea what new cat litter smells like. Cat Litter is made of dry clay particles, at least the basic kind, and this would be what was behind the idea of its absorbative properties for odors. Scented cat litter is just a marketing ploy, since baking soda sprinkled on top will do a better masking job. Still, maybe it would be better to avoid this method altogether. Imagine having to get around that mental image when shuffling!

smokey	23 Apr 2005
Fulgour wrote: Still, maybe it would be better to avoid this method altogether. Imagine having to get around that mental image when shuffling! *~*LMAO!!!

Scion	23 Apr 2005
ROFLMAO... Unless it's Baroque Bohemian or Tarot of the Cat People or White Medieval in which case it's functional. :D

mike gorth	23 Apr 2005
ncefafn wrote: I once got a deck in trade that reeked of mildew. Here's what I did. Got an old Nike shoebox and dropped some essential oils in it -- patchouli and lavender. After the oils had absorbed into the cardboard, I put the deck in, unbound and mixed around liberally. Every day for a week, I took the cards out, mixed them up some more, and put them back in the box. Thank you. This is a great idea since i have a ton of essential oils but don't know what to do with them. Thanks. Mike Gorth

Cerulean	23 Apr 2005
I changed the baking soda after two days. The properties of salt and absorption of the oders might just be an old tale for baking soda, but it worked for me. I put in new baking soda and lavendar sprigs (French lavendar--doesn't matter, just what I had). Rosemary is similar to pine in terms of oil-fragrant properties. I would like to use pine needles, but sometimes there is a gum/tar resin on pine, so usually use rosemary instead. If you ever dried rosemary in a microwave, you'll get a Pine-Sol scent in the house. Regards, Cerulean

Rusty Neon	23 Apr 2005
Mari, Did you stick the cards directly inside the baking soda, so that the cards directly touched the baking soda? Mari and others who've chimed in so far ... Thanks

Elven	23 Apr 2005
Hi Mike I use fresh mint leaves in kittys tray to get the smell out of cat litter, and if it can do that successfully you might want to try some fresh sprigs of mint in your tarot bag or box. Blessings Elven x

Gwynne	23 Apr 2005
After reading one of Umbrae's threads, I now keep a sachet of cedar chips, sandalwood and lavendar with my decks. It's a lovely odor, each blending and mixing wonderfully with the others! Cedar tends to have an overpowering scent by itself, as does lavendar. I recently bought a deck at an antique shop and it was very musty smelling (although it certainly wasn't antique... it was a recent edition of the RWS...) I put the sachet of cedar, sandalwood and lavendar in a wood box with the deck, closed it up and left it there for about a week. Pulled them out, shuffled and so far no scent of must or mildew! Although the deck is soon to go bye-bye.... The flat colors are driving me insane!! LOL

stella01904	23 Apr 2005
MM ~ There is a mineral you can get - it looks like white chalk or powder (you can get either form). I'm PRETTY SURE it is talc, like in talcum powder. I had a friend who worked at a place packaging the stuff. When you went in there you didn't smell ANYTHING. If you took a bath in perfume, ate a pound of garlic, got drunk, and put on clothes that had been worn for a week long sweaty road trip and not washed, I don't think it would make a detectable odor in there, it was amazing. Of course this was a warehouse full of the stuff but a small piece would work in the laundry hamper or whatever. This would work on musty cards, then afterward you could scent them with your favorite herb or whatever. Someone must know the name of the stuff. The company was called NonScents but it doesn't exist anymore. Don't worry about getting powder or baking soda on your cards, it won't hurt them. The recommended treatment for "sticky" cards is to put baby powder on them, and I think magicians have a special card powder they use. BB, Stella

cormac	23 Apr 2005
Rusty Neon wrote: What works for you? Various suggestions I've seen include: cat litter (new litter, of course), whole cloves, dryer sheets. Not being a cat owner, I'm reluctant to try cat litter as I have no idea what new cat litter smells like. I'd be especially interested in hearing from people who have tried and tested a number of different approaches. I've tried whole cloves with a non-fresh smelling deck (as opposed to a slightly musty deck) and the whole cloves scented over the smell and seemed to remove some of the smell as well. Thanks! i don't have cats either but just plain (none of the stuff that smells when kitty steps on it etc lol) is clay -- you probably be ok maybe covering indivdual cards in it to dry and absorb the smell -- you can use the rest of the kitty litter to soak up the oil spot on your garage floor :D i'd think that baking soda would be good as well -- like arm and hammer like you'd put in the fridge the best bet would be a lil ozone thuingy my wife and ibought for our family room -- we live in a tri-level and the family room is the lower level, half underground -- the shower room down there always had mildew on the ceiling etc despite how long we left the fan going etc ... this thing has a fam and creates ozone and blows it thru the room/house -- it has done away with all the mold and mildew in the bathroom and the family room no longer has the 'basement' kind of damp smell -- and my sinuses have improved also -- they are somewhat expensive but if you need one for your house, i highly recommend them and it would take care of the tarot deck for you as well i'm sure cedar would be good too :)

mike gorth	24 Apr 2005
I'll post it here in a week but I decided to try your suggestion. I put the cards in a shoebox with a bunch of soaked in peppermint essential oil. It's been in there for a little over a day. It didn't smell like anything but I wanted it to smell like peppermint which is second favorite to nutmeg. Ohhhh Mike Gorth :):):):):):)

Rusty Neon	24 Apr 2005
As we speak, my pre-1980 Grimaud cards were placed this evening in a sealed plastic microwave box filled with baking soda, undergoing treatment. The box was shaken around so that the baking soda could get in between the cards. Result is unknown so far. I haven't yet found any scented sachets. I have no idea where to find any.

danieru_X	24 Apr 2005
cards have a musty smell??

ncefafn	25 Apr 2005
Rusty Neon wrote: I haven't yet found any scented sachets. I have no idea where to find any. Rusty, try your local health foods store. Mine carries not only dried herbs (including lavender flowers, jasmine and rose hips), but little muslin drawstring bags. You can also use cotton teabags. Best of all, just put the loose herbs in the box with the cards. Although I have to wonder if the baking soda wouldn't absorb their scent as well. :) Kim

WolfyJames	25 Apr 2005
I did get a few decks with strong bad smell. Two stinked incense and another perfume. I like the smell of incense, but only when I make a ritual or need the smell for a brief moment. I don't like decks that smell anything, especially incense, actually I love the smell of papers and carboards, I'm looking forward the day they will make a perfume that would smell paper, so I never put incense on my decks. The only new deck that I bought whose smell really put me off was the Gothic (Vargo), and I simply let it take some air for a few weeks and the smell left by itself. I didn't want to replace one smell for another. I tried baking soda but it was a big failure. Not only that, but the baking soda kinda was very difficult to get rid of after that. Cat litter worked better. I put the deck, card by card in a pot. I would put litter at the bottom, than put a card, than put litter over it, than put a card... I left the cards there a week. The decks with incense still smell very lightly, but not enough to bother me as before. As for the perfumed deck, that one didn't work. But then, it was the last deck and I'm sure the litter was no good anymore. Even with cats, at some point, the litter doesn't really work, so you have either to replace it or add some new one. So, for the deck, I have new litter and I've started taking care of it. So I don't know yet if it will work. I was worried the decks would smell cat litter afterwards but they don't.

cybercat	25 Apr 2005
OK, first you should a least clean the cards. I just broke out my deck after 2 years storage and this smell was on it. This is what I did to help get rid of smell and make them smooth again. Take each cards and rub both sides on a sheet like your bed sheet or one out of the dryer when it is still warm. Make sure to rub the edges also. This will remove some of the mildew. Once you do that you can take the Whole deck and lay it flat in the sun. You can also do this on a full moon so deck is balance with energies. This will burn off the last of the mildew and charge the deck a bit for you. I would flip them once and do not leave out all day more like 15 mins. for each side or half hour if real bad or more if day is real nice. You can then store the deck with your favorite sent over night. I would store it with the sent for a few nights running. I do not sent my cards but I do smugde the on occasion. Cat

stella01904	25 Apr 2005
WolfyJames wrote: I did get a few decks with strong bad smell. Two stinked incense and another perfume. I like the smell of incense, but only when I make a ritual or need the smell for a brief moment. I don't like decks that smell anything, especially incense, actually I love the smell of papers and carboards, MM ~ Good point, I find no smell more comforting than old books, reminds me of stepping into the air-conditioned library from the 100+ heat outside as a child and finding worlds to fall into. I wouldn't mind a deck smelling like that! Of course, even the loveliest aromas are rank beyond a certain point. Maybe putting a deck in the sun for awhile could "tone it down" just a notch. BB, Stella

mullein	25 Apr 2005
this question made me laugh..i did a tarot party in a really dirty house..i could hardly breathe from the stench..and they offered me a drink as i developed a cough but i declined..as the cups were probably unclean..i had to read on the kitchen table..i put my tarot cloth down and when i had finished..and got home my tarot cloth and cards stank of dirty greasy house..i couldnt believe it as i had used a cloth..and expected to have to wash that ..but my cards well..i tried everything to remove that odour and ended up getting a new deck..as their was no way i wanted a whiff off grease when i was reading them..i wont go to any suspicious area now and i am allways a bit concerned until i see the house is clean..the worst of it was they didnt want any spiritual stuff just predictions of extra money appearing..it was a night i will never forget..

stella01904	25 Apr 2005
MM ~ If you find yourself in a situation like this again, You might try advising the people that junk, clutter, dust, dirt etc. are magnets for poverty and negativity. This is not a "boogie man" story to make people clean but an actual fact recognised throughout the world. BB, Stella

mullein	25 Apr 2005
i can tell you i wont get in a situation like that again..i never saw so much mess and filth in all my life..and as i was stuck in the dirty kitchen it looked like they hadnt washed up all year..the best of it was the house was filthy they had kids that looked like they needed a bath..the furniture was falling to bits ..cups and glasses and beer cans all over the floor..and the one piece of luxury a wide screeen television..on the wall was a poster of blackpool that wont mean much to people in the usa but here in england its a mecca for the working class its a holiday resort full of amusements and a bit commercial..i can tell you by the time i bought new cards i didnt make much profit..oh well it was an experience..i was reading the cards for one of the men their probably the man of the dirty house and i picked up his dad who was deceased and he said oh thats my dad hes gone but i dont want a message off him i want to know when i am going to win the lottery..obviously he never thought about anything except money which he probably wont get..unless he got off his bum and worked for it like everyone else..if i told them dirt attracted negativity they wouldnt have understood as it was a normal way of life to them..i havnt been back i am no longer available..ha ha.

rainwolf	25 Apr 2005
I do the same thing as ncefafn~ In fact im doing it to three decks right now simultaneously. I got a big box, and with an incense stick, i dipped it in a massage oil, and dotted oil around the box. I dropped in three decks after soaking up the extra oil and shook it around and i will leave it in the box for a few days. If you put oil/incense in the bag as well, they will retain their smell; i do this with the bags i sell to make them smell good and mysterious when they arrive--a sandalwood/vanilla oil.

Emeraldgirl	03 May 2005
How's the smell going? Any update? I have a real problem with the smell of some new decks when you remove the packaging kind of an acetone/nail polish remover smell to counter that I remove my decks from their boxes and air them out a bit. I also have a box that I use to cleanse my decks and remove smells and put them out of sight for a while after a bad reading etc. It's just a pretty white cardboard gift box that I have put a few crystals in and a couple of sticks of sandalwood and vanilla incense. I like the smell of the decks after that. :D

Rusty Neon	04 May 2005
Ten days ago, I placed the deck of tarot cards in baking soda in a Tupperware-style plastic sealed container. The musty smell is not as strong, but it's still noticeably there. I don't know whether it's worthwhile to try Stage 2 (scenting stage) if the musty smell is still present.

mike gorth	04 May 2005
I got them out a week ago actually and they smell like peppermint but you need to get right next to the card. Good experiment.

The Removing Musty Smell from Tarot Decks thread was originally posted on 22 Apr 2005 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.