What is it that draws you to a deck?

[Siavahda]

What do you look for in a deck? What attracts you to this deck but not that one? Have you noticed a difference between the decks that don't work for you after all when you've gotten them home and in your hands, and the ones that sync up with you pretty much instantly? Is it an art style? Symbolism? Something harder to define?

 

And just in general - what makes you buy a deck? What's your taste in tarot? Traditional? Or the complete opposite? Rich oil-painting colours, or pastels? Do you like photographic decks, like the Starchild or David Bowie tarots, or ones where every card's art was originally painted by hand? And why do you like what you like?

 

I just find it fascinating how wildly different everyone's tastes are and want to hear more about them!

[Emilija]

Definitely the art, but something important to me is the colors. I need good colors.

 

 

Certain art styles don't work for me, either. Anything historical or too photo collage-ish is a no-no for me.

[Flaxen]

Good question! My tastes and favourite decks have fluctuated a bit over the years but generally:

 

I like art which is slightly more surreal e.g. Navigators of the Mystic Sea, Japaridze.

 

Decks which are rooted in mythology or a spiritual path which resonates with me.

 

A system (if different from RWS, Thoth) which is coherent and has depth.

 

TdM and other historical decks are a favourite too both for their historical value and for a different way to read.

 

Decks which generally don’t work for me are decks with elements which are computer generated in a particular style. For example, Mystic Dreamer, Sacred Circle. I can’t quite put my finger on why - I think it’s the juxtaposition of real people with a digital background - a bit virtual reality...

[EmpyreanKnight]

If it has a meaty system that I can sink my teeth into, a theme that I find highly interesting, and truly stunning and expressive art that personally appeals to me then I'll grab a deck in an instant. I don't have a fixed aesthetic preference tho I find that except for the Linestrider, I'm not much of a fan of minimalist decks.

[Petalene]

A theme and art I feel drawn to are the big deciders for me. I like the RWS system, but not the art. I know that’s probably not the cool opinion, but there you go. Since I like dark and creepy stuff, I’d guess half my decks meet that criteria. Welcome To Nightvale Tarot, the Gothic Tarot, the Ghost Tarot, Diviant Moon, you get the idea. The other half is fun. The Housewives Tarot, Zirkus Magi, The Steampunk Tarot, stuff like that. My only “normal” deck is the James Bond deck from Live and Let Die which belonged to my dad because he liked the movie. I don’t think he ever used the or even shuddered the deck, but it makes me think of him when I use it.

 

I want something that clearly corresponds with the suites - buckets instead of cups for the circus deck? No problem. Butterflies, roses, masks and I forget the forth on the haunting Victoria Francis deck, I can’t do it. I also want illustrated pips. I’ve looked at decks that have amazing art and then the pips are just the suit symbols and that’s a hard no for me. I also really like it when there is an app for the deck. I prefer physical cards, but the apps are handy on the go and a good way to play with the deck before purchase. I bought The Housewives Tarot after getting the app and The Tarot of Trees is not for me, even though the art is gorgeous.

[Lantana]

Honestly the big decider for me is if I “get” something from the cards I see online. Do they make me thing about the card in a new way? Does the imagry light up my intuition? There are a lot of decks I passed on despite thinking the art was pretty because I just didn’t feel anything while looking at the cards.

 

That being said, personal taste does play a part too! I’m not big on medieval or victorian themed decks, I much perfer something more modern and even “cartoony”. Not to mention that diversity of people in the cards is pretty important to me, and has made or breaked a few decks for me.

[rusticblonde]

Pictures, connection and feel.

 

Generally i use my gut instinct and if im drawn to them I usually read them well and love to delve into them.

 

I love pictures that are quite surreal, so my Silver Witch Tarot for example is very dali esque (and Dali is my favourite artist) hence i was drawn to that.

 

I can make mistakes mind, I once brought Doreen Virtues Fairy Tarot and i dont think ive ever actually read from it, or opened them..... Glitter and fluffyness dont go hand in hand XD

[Wolf]

I'm partial to traditional media decks. (Water color and Oil in particular)

 

For me to pick up a deck, it needs to grab me in some way. I've tried reading with decks that just seem soulless to me. (Druidcraft for example.) I want to see some new interpretation, or point of view not just the same old symbols trotted out in the same old way but with different clothes or backgrounds. I want to see the artist's feelings about the card laid out even if it's non standard. (Mary El's Heirophant for example).

 

 

[Page of Ghosts]

I'm most familiar with the RWS so a deck with that system is instantly a little more approachable to me. I'm also a big fan of traditional media, especially watercolours and pen art. I have some decks with digital artwork that I like but I like the physicality of the traditional mediums more in general. It's important to me that I can start to imagine a story or scene when I look at cards, and I seem to be partial to whimsical or fairytale-like artwork. Since I was a teenage emo kid I'd think I'd have more dark or gloomy decks but aside from my rarely used Deviant Moon that isn't the case :'( I'd like to give more dark decks a try some time.

[Lantana]

It's important to me that I can start to imagine a story or scene when I look at cards, and I seem to be partial to whimsical or fairytale-like artwork. Since I was a teenage emo kid I'd think I'd have more dark or gloomy decks but aside from my rarely used Deviant Moon that isn't the case :'( I'd like to give more dark decks a try some time.

 

I was also an emo kid (and still dress very goth/punk) and I also have very few dark decks! idk what it is... maybe we're both just "perky goths"?  ;D

[Grizabella]

What draws me to a deck is the art work and size to name a couple of things.. I can't shuffle large decks so I need something small.

 

I mostly use decks based on RWS with fully illustrated pips. I choose on the basis of the art work and sometimes I like borderless cards. I find that I don't get sucked into the "gotta have it" syndromes about new decks anymore. My choices are based on briefly looking at the imagery through a lot of the cards in a deck.  I can usually tell  how I'll get along with that particular deck.                                         

[Queen of Nothing]

I'm a shallow girl, tbh. I'm very easily suckered in by the artwork. Thankfully it's all worked out for me, since I have yet to buy a deck that completely turns me off when I read with it. I prefer fully illustrated pips, since I'm most confortable with the RWS deck, but I'm willing to bend the rules for a pip deck with interesting art rather that just having the suit symbol copy/pasted x number of times.

 

Size is also a factor. I'm in love with my tiny Mesquite deck. I adore my Tarot des Femmes Erotiques, but hardly work with it because it's difficult to shuffle with my tiny hands. But if I like the artwork, I'm willing to bend that rule too. I'm... very shallow when it comes to my decks.

[Libra 58]

First it´s the colours. If they are bright I usually look extra much at the cards. I prefer RW or clones, but I have bought decks with only symbols because I love the Major Arcana.

The art is important, I like to see the details in the picture because that's how I read the cards. I'm not much intuitive. But I have bought many decks that is only eye candy too, but I can't use them.

Sometimes since I collect decks also, it can be the price. I maybe  like a deck a bit and if it's cheap, I buy it just for fun.

[ReginaFaythe]

Decks have to speak to me. I can usually tell within the first few seconds as to whether or not I'll enjoy a deck. When I first picked up the Hanson-Roberts deck, the clarity of the art along with the symbolism from the RWS drew me to it as a good deck to learn from.

 

When I first saw the Shadowscapes deck I had this - "I have to know what this is" feeling. The lines and colors just tugged at me.

 

When I first saw the Vivid Journey deck, I cried. I actually looked at the Strength card (first one I saw) and cried. It spoke to my inner child, and is one of the decks that I use primarily for healing that part of me.

[bastet]

I like historical decks and almost all golden dawn themed decks.

 

Furthermore I like decks like the Druidcraft tarot.

 

I have a pretty big collection…. I think 50 or 60 decks.

 

But through the years I have discovered

that its not just the imagery that is important but also the quality of the cards and the size etc.

I will explain this below.

After many many years of searching for the perfect deck I have chosen the Gareth Knight Tarot.

It is out of print but still pretty easy to find.

 

The quality of the card stock is excellent, its not too big and the colors are beautifull.

It also uses the Golden Dawn system which is important for me. The cards feel wonderfull… I really like

touching them which I think is VERY important. A tarot deck is like a lover... and when you work with one thats

hard to touch its more difficult to connect with it.

 

I have 3 copies of the gareth knight tarot. One that I may use anytime. One to use carefully and one as  a back up.

If I dont do that I end up not reading a deck so often for fear of damaging it too much.

Its a sorth of OCD thing.

 

I dont think many people will like the Gareth Knight Tarot but the system behind it is precise. The artwork is sometimes downright stunning but sometimes also very simple. The Devil for instance is extremely beautyfull, but the magician could not be more basic. The printing quality and colors are so great. They have this authentic 70s feel to them. Which is also what I like about them.

 

The cards are so sturdy… almost hard to damage. Perhaps its because its an old print... maybe the quality of some old decks is just much better then the new one's. It has Perfect size...not too big not to small. So in the end these factors have become suprisingly important for me when it comes to chosing a regular working - every day deck. I cant do that with decks that dont shuffle well or damage easely.

 

I think a smaller size is also important when you use big spreads....I also want to be able to clearly read the cards...even when the lighting is dim. I have a lot of tarot decks which I do not use because I have to place a lamp over them to see the cards.

 

You really have to see and feel the gareth knight tarot before you can truely understand the magic it holds. The deep mysterious magical colors do not come across on pictures. If you feel a little bit drawn to this deck I cannot recommend it enough.

 

 

[Court de Gébelin]

Good question!  My first consideration is whether or not the "new" deck conforms in a reasonable way to the "standard" (Rider-Waite, Marseille) decks with which I'm familiar.  For me, the "new" deck has to have the Major and Minor arcana symbolism expressed in some recognizable form.  Also, I want fully illustrated pip cards.  Then, I have to enjoy the art work.  I get a lot of my inspiration from the art itself.  All this being said, I am excited about finding "new" decks, and I'm always on the lookout for them.