how do you choose a tarot deck

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 30 May 2005, and now archived in the Forum Library.

yochi	30 May 2005
hi!!! Iīm interested in buying a new tarot deck. I donīt feel a big connection with the one I have and was wondering if someone could give me some advice about how to find the right deck for the right person. are there any tips? the one I have was a gift, I like it but when it comes to readings I find it hard to concentrato or to listen to the cards 8the deck I have itīs the universal waite deck) thank you so much in advance! yochi

ros	30 May 2005
When I'm ready for a new deck... I either go to amazon.ca or to the store. At amazon, I usually know what I want to order. So I order. At the store, I look around and take one that I feel like having. Sometimes it's good, sometimes not! LOL

Lillie	30 May 2005
I guess it's just a matter of looking through decks and pictures of decks till you find one that jumps out t you and says 'ME!!!' There are loads of scans here on AT, Click up at the top where it says decks. Or if there is a shop near you that sells them, they might have some open decks that you can see it the flesh. Good luck in your search, and remember, you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince!

wizzle	30 May 2005
"remember you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find a prince" har har har!! I'm going to remember this quote when considering a deck with a lot of green images. The "green" Thoth does come to mind, although I love my froggie Thoth. He's croaked up a lot of wisdom for me.

Emeraldgirl	30 May 2005
I look here and everywhere else that shows deck images and some turn me off but some just jump right out at you and it's an instant connection whic is when the purchase is made and then the waiting period and then that special moment when it arrives and you rip it open and you know you have a fantastic deck to use :) . With the Waite decks they can take a while to attract you as the colours and things can put you off but they are great to study with as most of the books etc use those decks or one of the clones for their pictures.

light2000	30 May 2005
i think that isnt i that choose the tarot decks, they choose me. if i have the fellings that one deck is calling me i buy it. and i prefer dont think about it, because if i use the head i start to stay confused and buy a decks because someone said that is a good decks. i buy them like i buy the crystals, if they said iīm here dont you what to take me whith you? i bring them.

Vadella	31 May 2005
The decks I choose "call" out to me.It's this deep feeling of acknowledgement that I get from inside. Not many do this however and I am glad. I would have no place to put them all. :P Vad

yochi	31 May 2005
thank you so much guys for all the comments and the advice!!

SunChariot	03 Jun 2005
yochi wrote: hi!!! Iīm interested in buying a new tarot deck. I donīt feel a big connection with the one I have and was wondering if someone could give me some advice about how to find the right deck for the right person. are there any tips? the one I have was a gift, I like it but when it comes to readings I find it hard to concentrato or to listen to the cards 8the deck I have itīs the universal waite deck) thank you so much in advance! yochi Well, my method has been working for me anyway. I have had 16 decks and only one that I did not totally love. When I want a new deck, I browse around here in the decks section. This place is really a wonderful ressource. I ignore the ones with 1, 2 or 3 stars. I check out all the decks with 4+. To me it is all about the imagery. I need to not just like, but love the artwork, the artist's style....it has to look optimistic to me, like it will tell me things in a way that is not excessively painful, and I need to sense a deep spirituality in it. For me it is all about the images. That's cause I read not by remembering meanings, but by analysing the images and their symbolism. Then then I see a deck here with 4+ stars that I love the artwork and gives me a good warm feeling inside, then I read up on it here. If I like the concept behind it, the deck is mine. I just follow the links on here on AT, usually lands me up and Amazon...I have bought all my decks online. That's the way it usually goes, although I have more and more decks now that were suggested by different members here. Thanks everyone!!!!! Same process, someone mentions to me they love a deck, then I look it up here...same process....:-) If the deck mentioned is not listed here on AT, I just Google it and find a web site about it and again check the images and read up in it. Hope some of this helps, and I wish you all the best of luck finding the best decks for you. Bar

yochi	03 Jun 2005
thank you Bar!!! I did as you tell me here and the deck I discovered that sends me that energy it's the Fey deck =) thank you so much for your advice!! :love: luli

HearthCricket	03 Jun 2005
I think I follow a pretty similar process as many others. When I am looking for a new deck, I try to think what exactly I am hoping for-something light, dark, different, a new RW clone? Then I come to this website and start looking through the decks alphabetically, and am usually able to narrow it down. If possible, I try to find a website that may show all the cards, which helps a great deal, as well as seeing what others reviews on the deck have been. But it has to speak to me. If the images don't really grab my eye, or the colours aren't just quite what I had hoped for, or if something isn't clicking, I back away, and hold off on that particular deck, and continue my search. Sometimes what really works for one person, isn't going to work for another. Robin Wood is a great deck, i.e., but lately I haven't been using mine. The pictures seem very dated-looking straight out of the 70's, so I have turned to other decks that really stir me, and make my readings far more accurate. There are so many decks out there that having some sort of idea of what you want is very helpful, or you can find yourself getting overwhelmed...or another tarot-holic in the making!

SunChariot	03 Jun 2005
yochi wrote: thank you Bar!!! I did as you tell me here and the deck I discovered that sends me that energy it's the Fey deck =) thank you so much for your advice!! :love: luli You are very very welcome. :-) Always happy to help whenever I can.:-) I just checked out the Fey Tarot. It really does look nice. I can see what you see in it. :-) For what it's worth, by favourite deck is also a faery one: the Faeries' Oracle.:-) It's this one: http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/faeries-oracle/ Wishing you many many happy experiences with your new deck:-) Bar

Catmay	03 Jun 2005
It's funny, but for me it's not only about the artistic quality of the pictures - the colors, the images, etc. It's also a great deal about how the cards feel in my hands. It is important to me that the cards feel like an extension of my own hands as I shuffle and lay them out. In this sense, I'll pay just as much attention to the size of the cards as I do to the look. (I've found that La Scarabeo's "mini" cards are a great size, as is the Universal RW "pocket" edition.) Sometimes I see a deck that is so visually stunning that I have to have it even if it is HUGE, but it's not often.

yochi	06 Jun 2005
SunChariot wrote: You are very very welcome. :-) Always happy to help whenever I can.:-) I just checked out the Fey Tarot. It really does look nice. I can see what you see in it. :-) For what it's worth, by favourite deck is also a faery one: the Faeries' Oracle.:-) It's this one: http://www.aeclectic.net/tarot/cards/faeries-oracle/ Wishing you many many happy experiences with your new deck:-) Bar it's a really nice deck!!! thank you very much bar =)

yochi	06 Jun 2005
Catmay wrote: It's funny, but for me it's not only about the artistic quality of the pictures - the colors, the images, etc. It's also a great deal about how the cards feel in my hands. It is important to me that the cards feel like an extension of my own hands as I shuffle and lay them out. In this sense, I'll pay just as much attention to the size of the cards as I do to the look. (I've found that La Scarabeo's "mini" cards are a great size, as is the Universal RW "pocket" edition.) Sometimes I see a deck that is so visually stunning that I have to have it even if it is HUGE, but it's not often. I like what you say about the cards being an extension of your hands, it's so nice! thank you so much for your comment =)

SunChariot	06 Jun 2005
you're very welcome. :-) Bar

tao51	07 Jun 2005
Sometimes the deck has a particular theme amout it. Other times I feel a certain connection with it.

The how do you choose a tarot deck thread was originally posted on 30 May 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.