Spreads or pulling and creating a open reading?

[dfaithberry]

I have some decks that work well with spreads (gilded, mystical moments, light seer's) and some where I struggle getting a picture from the spread, and I end up developing a reading based on cards drawn (angel wisdom).

 

Also, when using spreads I pull from the top of the deck. When I put a reading together without a spread, I continously shuffle until all the cards pop or fall out. I am starting to prefer the later method more and more, even for spreads. I also pick 1 to 3 from the bottom of the deck or use Oracle Cards as clarifiers.

 

Does anyone else experience this? Do you prefer spreads or no spreads? Do you prefer top of the deck for readings or using cards that pop out during shuffling?

Edited July 20, 2021 by dfaithberry
Clearer title

[katrinka]

It depends on what you mean by "without a spread."
Spreads without named positions are still spreads. A line of three, five, or seven, box spread, and tableaus are spreads. I never heard anyone say that spreads without named positions are not spreads until last year:

It seems to be something people started saying pretty recently, and it's incorrect. The cards are spread on the table whether the positions are named or not, therefore that's a spread.

But if you're talking about something else, would you mind explaining what you mean?

 

[euripides]

9 hours ago, dfaithberry said:

I have some decks that work well with spreads (gilded, mystical moments, light seer's) and some where I struggle getting a picture from the spread, and I end up developing a reading based on cards drawn (angel wisdom).

 

Also, when using spreads I pull from the top of the deck. When I put a reading together without a spread, I continously shuffle until all the cards pop or fall out. I am starting to prefer the later method more and more, even for spreads. I also pick 1 to 3 from the bottom of the deck or use Oracle Cards as clarifiers.

 

Does anyone else experience this? Do you prefer spreads or no spreads? Do you prefer top of the deck for readings or using cards that pop out during shuffling?

 

Oh totally. I can see why a deck like Angel Wisdom would pose that problem. Some decks are just really well designed and have that narrative flow through them, while others seem very much about individual cards. I find it less of an issue in most RWS type decks where people are going about their lives and you can see some connections or relationships between them. Harder in say something like the Rohrig where each card is a serious work in its own right. Trumps too I can occasionally have difficulty connecting. 

 

I usually draw one to three cards. Big spreads I reserve for major issues and when I've got undisturbed time for reading (hardly ever) as these do need a lot of reflection. Usually I'll photograph or journal them.  And I find some spread layouts just overcomplicated, too.

 

I will tend to sort of cut and draw from the somewhere in the deck, sometimes top, but when shuffling if one pops out - I call them 'jumpers' - I definitely read them. The way I see it, those cards want to be heard!

Edited July 20, 2021 by euripides

[dfaithberry]

36 minutes ago, euripides said:

 

Oh totally. I can see why a deck like Angel Wisdom would pose that problem. Some decks are just really well designed and have that narrative flow through them, while others seem very much about individual cards. I find it less of an issue in most RWS type decks where people are going about their lives and you can see some connections or relationships between them. Harder in say something like the Rohrig where each card is a serious work in its own right. Trumps too I can occasionally have difficulty connecting. 

 

I usually draw one to three cards. Big spreads I reserve for major issues and when I've got undisturbed time for reading (hardly ever) as these do need a lot of reflection. Usually I'll photograph or journal them.  And I find some spread layouts just overcomplicated, too.

 

I will tend to sort of cut and draw from the somewhere in the deck, sometimes top, but when shuffling if one pops out - I call them 'jumpers' - I definitely read them. The way I see it, those cards want to be heard!

I'll try pulling less cards and see if that helps me connect better. Thank you so much for taking the time to respond 

[DanielJUK]

I like to think of them as structured spreads and unstructured.

 

Most of my personal readings are 3 cards on a topic or question, they have no positions and I read them together as a message. They have a natural flow to them in this way. However structured spreads can be really useful, especially if you want to get insight or it's a really complicated situation. The structure gives clarity. You can make your own positions but I strongly recommend writing down the positions before you deal the cards, I always forget what position meant what if I don't record it first 🤣. There are so many spreads you can find online for almost anything. So I pick the spread depending on the situation.

[dfaithberry]

1 hour ago, DanielJUK said:

I like to think of them as structured spreads and unstructured.

 

Most of my personal readings are 3 cards on a topic or question, they have no positions and I read them together as a message. They have a natural flow to them in this way. However structured spreads can be really useful, especially if you want to get insight or it's a really complicated situation. The structure gives clarity. You can make your own positions but I strongly recommend writing down the positions before you deal the cards, I always forget what position meant what if I don't record it first 🤣. There are so many spreads you can find online for almost anything. So I pick the spread depending on the situation.

I do enjoy spreads. I use them with my other tarots. I may try creating my own with positions the are representative of the category of questions I seek.