Picking Decks

[Kosjitov]

I recently went through the full Aeclectic list of tarot decks... and strangely enough invited one of my friends who is a skeptic to do the same. We spent about two days looking over what was on the list and came out with our own picks about 30 decks total- tarot and oracle both. I opted to mark which ones I liked, which he liked, and which ones we both appreciated.

My tastes obviously differed from his by quite a margin. I could deal with more of the abstracts, watercolors, some of the "kiddie images", whereas he prefered the darker images on most of the vampire/gothic styled tarot and rejected most of what I liked. (Of course!)

What's your preference? Meaningful images, enjoyment of an art style... what will make you say "That one. Get in my collection NOW!" and what will make you run from a deck? And do you ever add those that you personally don't care for to your collection for use by others?

 

[AJ]

When I look at my list of owned decks, narrowed down over a number of years to the true keepers, I can see no pattern or rhyme and reason for what remains. I find that odd...but your query is a good one.

Perhaps more telling is what ISN'T there?

edited to add: by looking at my list in that light I see I have very few LoS decks left, no erotic fairy angel. Only one vampire.
interesting

 

[cronegoddess54]

That is an interesting question..for me there are decks of all different 'moods' that I like. I really love my Deviant Moon and I also love my Hanson-Roberts, which are so different in style. I don't go for decks that have real people in them, I seem to get hung up on wondering who these individuals are and this distracts me from the cards. Eww..forgot I have this deck that I cannot stand! The Tarot of Gemstones and Crystals is just so..ewww don't get it! Love crystals but this I get nothing from....geesh I forgot the question..lol I think at times my tastes change..now I am getting to where I really like Thoth.

 

[KMilliron]

I like darker decks and themes. Being an emo kid living in a basement I think it's fitting.

 

[DaughterOfDanu]

I tend to like darker more gothicly elegant decks as well. Or decks with newer artwork like computer generated kinds. I love overly Pagan decks too. But my collection is a wide range of styles and themes.

 

[MareSaturni]

What's your preference? Meaningful images, enjoyment of an art style... what will make you say "That one. Get in my collection NOW!" and what will make you run from a deck?

There has been many threads about that! If you search AT you'll find the preferences of many memebers - and even notice how they changed over the years.

Honestly, I'm completely past the "Get in my collection NOW!" stage. I not longer hurry to get 5 different decks about one subject that I love, because in the end I never really managed to use them all. And usually most of decks (that are mass-market products) will stay around for at least a couple of years before disappearing - that is plenty of time to decide if a deck is worth my time or not.

I'm not a huuuuge collector - I have about 120 decks I think - and I only buy decks that I can see myself using. I also have some decks that are part of my 'art' collection - I keep them for the art factor.

The only exceptions are decks made by specific artists or authors that I love: Robert Place, Emma Gardner, Jasmine Becket-Griffith and Ana Cortez. I have all decks by Emma Garner that have been released, and almost all by Robert Place (I just don't have the The Tarot of the Sevenfold Mystery). Jasmine Becket-Griffith and Ana Cortez only made one deck so far. I'll really buy a deck by any of these guys at the first opportunity.

But I don't buy decks anymore just because of the art style, or because it has a word I like in its name. *shrugs* I now grant myself the time to think twice before ordering any deck. I have enough peace of spirit to not need a new deck every week anymore. I had to kill my inner completionist when I noticed my salary was being used mainly to pay for credit card bills (and almost all expenses were related to tarot and oracles), and now I am glad I did it. I can now appreciate more what I already have, instead of thinking about what I should have.

My bank account is much happier too!

 

[Kosjitov]

Still waiting for someone to tell me whether they've added a deck they don't like, but would keep around for reading for others. ="

 

[Vesper]

I have ended up with decks I thought I would like, but didn't, once they arrived. I've never ordered one I didn't like. I might do so in the future, though. It can be a good exercise to read with an unloved deck.

 

[cronegoddess54]

Still waiting for someone to tell me whether they've added a deck they don't like, but would keep around for reading for others. ="

I added the Moon Garden which I really don't like, but I find that others like this deck so it stays for them. Maybe I will come to like it one day..

 

[starlightexp]

Truth be told I'm not a HUGE fan of the MRP artwork. I think they are nice, but it's not really my tastes. I do keep the BBC and a copy of the BoHo Gothic around because I have friends that LOVE LOVE LOVE when I read them with those decks. They do speak to people. I've taken 3-4 decks with me when reading for people and let them choose which one they most like