Unboxings and First Impressions

[LogicalHue]

I opened up two decks last night, after finding some sort of manufacturing error on Light Visions, I opened up Dark Wood so I could do a reading.

 

First slight bummer with the Light Visions deck was a smooshed corner. Its such a distinctive box among tarot boxes, it was sad for it to be flawed.

Then I opened it up and at first everything seemed fine. I'm so happy to see the coloring. I didn't know they were purple! And they feel amazing. I've seen someone on here mention that the finish makes it hard to shuffle them and I can see how that may be the case but I haven't tried yet. They are unlike any other cards I've handled.

  

 

 

But then I saw it. There's something going on with the surface of the cards that you don't see unless it catches the light, but when it does its really striking.

It's happening on a lot of the cards, but not quite all of them. Always the entire surface - and only on the fronts! If it were on the back I wouldn't have even cared. I've already heard back from them saying they'll send me a replacement. They tell me they haven't heard of this happening before.

 

So no reading with this one!

I decided I still had to do the thing though...

They don't line up as perfectly as I'd hoped. And the way they don't line up doesn't seem to be consistent. Like sometimes there's clearly something missing, and sometimes they overlap.

 

So then I moved on to Dark Wood Tarot.

  

 

The cards seem a little small for the art, but the guidebook features full page images. The book is all magazine paper which doesn't feel awesome but it does look good.

 

First reading. I'm going with more of a "what's your initial impression of me"? style of first reading with decks rather than "deck interviews" which I don't really care for.

 

Overall I like the guidebook and its a beautiful deck, reading went well, I am pleased.

[TheLoracular]

I purchased a used copy of the Sola Busca Revisited 2.0 from Arwen Lynch-Pope (aka Tarot By Arwen) just after Christmas and it got to me yesterday, in time for me to open today on my birthday.  Thank you Arwen and thank you USPS.  I didn't expect it so fast.   The deck was securely wrapped and well looked after.  It is practically new.  This was my first time buying a deck of any kind from another reader rather than a bookstore or Amazon/US Games site.  No regrets.  

The Sola Busca Revisited 2.0 comes from Tarot By Seven and likewise, I had never purchased any of their projects before.  I wanted an affordable and well-crafted copy of the Sola Busca for research vs. collectiability purposes. Of the 3-4 versions of the Sola Busca in the $50-60 range I'd looked at, this copy had the richest colors and I really appreciate its lack of borders. 

The cards only look "worn" that is part of the style for this reproduction.  The card stock is good, it is the exact same size as the Universal Waite, my "default" deck and shuffles smoothly.  

Sadly, this deck is going on my shelf for a while.  I've committed myself to teaching/working with a basic set of eight decks for 2021 and don't see myself having time until summer to delve into the Sola Busca, its history and the kinds of classic alchemical texts that will be part of my research but I'd known that when I bought it.  Arwen had reached out to me personally when I'd commented somewhere of drooling over a collector's edition outside my price range and comfort zone (I get anxiety attacks at the thought of over shuffling/card-slinging $100+ tarot decks.  Really) so this came into my life a lot sooner than I'd expected, lol.  


 

[AJ-ish/Sharyn]

It will still be wonderful when you get to it. Waite is routinely giving credit for pictorial minors,,,but hey! there they are in the Sola Busca from 1491.

I love used decks, seek them out before I resort to buying new. 

[Niobium]

I received one of my most anticipated crowd funded decks today: The Lazy Crow Tarot

 

I love this deck. Really the only thing I'd have wanted is for borderless, but given how much I *love* the art, I'm happy with it regardless. Linen cardstock, playing card weight so easily shuffled, 2-part heavy box. Best of all, the deck isn't wall to wall white skinny people; it's a highly diverse Norse-themed deck, not something I'd have expected to see. 

 

I don't know if he printed extras for sale, but his Facebook is here: https://www.facebook.com/ArtbyNickCragoe/

 

I've also received my Oz Tarot, which really came out great, and the Architects Tarot, which has a very nice, cool, calming presence to it. 

 

[katrinka]

2 hours ago, Niobium said:

I received one of my most anticipated crowd funded decks today: The Lazy Crow Tarot

 

I love this deck. Really the only thing I'd have wanted is for borderless, but given how much I *love* the art, I'm happy with it regardless. Linen cardstock, playing card weight so easily shuffled, 2-part heavy box. Best of all, the deck isn't wall to wall white skinny people; it's a highly diverse Norse-themed deck, not something I'd have expected to see. 

 

I need this deck like I need a hole in the head, but I'm sorry I missed it. I'd have purchased it just to show solidarity.
I see what he did there, and I applaud his sticking it to the white supremacists who have misappropriated all things Norse!

[Niobium]

On 1/4/2021 at 10:44 PM, katrinka said:

 

I need this deck like I need a hole in the head, but I'm sorry I missed it. I'd have purchased it just to show solidarity.
I see what he did there, and I applaud his sticking it to the white supremacists who have misappropriated all things Norse!

 

Exactly my feeling--I was *so thrilled* to see someone decoupling the racism and white supremacy from Norse artwork and themes. I hope he'll do a second edition which is borderless, but I'm very happy with this one none the less.

 

And, today, my 7th Sphere Rider-Waite-Smith deck arrived!

 

 

Sadly the blue foiling didn't show well in the photo except on the Tower lightning bolt, but that's all over the deck, and on the edges. There's 2 bonus cards, the Tree of Life (above) and Return. Their Lenormand is one of my favorites so I was over the rainbow to get this. A nice thing to come home to.

[Lillymae]

So I received A Compendium of Witches Oracle today, delivery was very fast and it arrived well before the estimated date! 
 

The cards are beautiful! Large cards (80x120mm) and with a matte finish, they are a dream to handle. 
 

The deck is split into 2 sets, that can be used separately or combined:

30 Voices cards depicting witches

30 Whispers cards depicting additional symbols. 
 

I ordered the set that can with a lovely, printed full colour paperback book that is also high quality paper and A6 size. 
 

Ive only had a quick play with the cards but they were very accurate for the question I asked and am looking forward to getting to know these cards better. 

[LogicalHue]

I got my copy of Oak Ash & Thorn. Kinda screwed up the box upon opening it for the first time.

 

 

I'm an eensy bit let down. I'm trying to not think about it too much until I really use the deck. But the problem is mostly the finish. Its this satin sheen that means that when any light is hitting it the whole image is washed out. I can only really see it the way its supposed to look if I'm holding the card straight up.

 

I feel like the photos make it look like - "trying to catch the light vs not doing that", but really its "how it looks all the time vs really specifically and awkwardly positioning it".

 

 

 

Also there's an awful lot of these cutesy fur hearts that I'm not really digging.

 

Anyway, first impressions: little bit bummed. There's a lot of great stuff in there, and I hope the finish will be less of an issue in practice. ..Also over time, the stink will fade. They smell like nail polish remover, strongly.

[LogicalHue]

Forager's Daughter arrived!

 

Comes with a large-ish guide book and in a 2-part box.

 

 

First thing I notice out of the box: glittery edges! Who wants this??

 

 

I like that the borders are different colors for the suits / majors.

 

The book is that kind of magazine-paper, weird binding type book. So the giant full color images are nice, but the feel of the pages and the fact that it doesn't really open aren't great.

 

 

Very pretty card back!

[ilweran]

I've had a couple of decks I should add on here, I had the Sacred Heart Sisters oracle for Christmas and it's lovely.

 

But today The Gentle Tarot arrived, will add pics later but couldn't wait to post about it. It's stunning, so beautiful. I love the different coloured borders, the more matt gilding is so much more fitting for the deck than shiny gold would have been. I might just have to take a couple of photos now...

 

Here you go!

 

Here's the lovely gilding -

 

 

And the Fool and Aces -

 

I bought it because it looked like a deck I could use, I'm really hoping that turns out to be the case, The courts are renamed and are all animals, which I'm hoping will be ok as I'm used to that with the Greenwood, thunder instead of swords (arrows for the Greenwood) is interesting. Really want to have a go straight away, but I'm in the middle of the Little Red Tarot tarot course with the Greenwood and todays daily draw was the 9 of Arrows - dedication - and that might be a message for me and a reminder not to go running off to other decks until I've finished what I've started. 😅 I was going to do the whole course again with the Witches Wisdom, I'm wondering if I could do it with two decks at once...

Edited February 8, 2021 by ilweran

[GreatDane]

Just got Reall's Pam's Vintage Tarot (from DriveThruCards). 

 

Happy with card stock, thin, but sturdy, love the images, this is definitely already one of my fav decks.  I am currently in the process of edging it in Vintage Photo. 

Just LOVE the aged look on the deck.

 

VERY HAPPY. 

 

And since I saw this video, I thought I would link it as this nice lady compares the deck getting it thru DriveThru vs Gamecrafter (her opinion, obviously). 

 

GameCrafter vs DriveThruCards? Comparing the Pam's Vintage Tarot - YouTube 

 

 

[Flaxen]

My long-awaited copy of Les Dinosaures de Marseille has arrived. It was one of the last decks I backed on Kickstarter and was delayed.

 

It is such a lovely deck. The production values are high and there is a lovely humour which runs through it. It also strikes me as very readable and the depictions are well thought out. I love the extra cards depicting the planets and humours too. Well worth the wait.

 

[gregory]

I'm so glad you like it Flaxen - I think it's just wonderful fun. She had a really rough time getting it out there, but I trusted it would happen - and it HAS

[AlbaTross]

My Oak, Ash and Thorn set finally came!  I'm super happy!  

As I got the reprint, I must say, I wasn't expecting an extra print or the note that came with it.  I figured that was just for those who bought the original batch, so I'm pleasantly surprised.

I'm not sure what the Love Hearts are about, but that's cool.  The packaging also came with all these tiny paper hearts, which got everywhere.  Those don't belong in a dude's house, so I made sure to pick them all up and recycle them.  

The deck came in really nice wrapping too.

A closer look at the free print, and here's what the back says.  

And here's the deck interview I did.  So, the deck thinks I'm the inquisitive type, while it introduced itself as someone who knows a thing or two about financial matters (which is interesting for an animal deck...and one I overspent on to boot).  As for how we will work well together, I think it's saying we should spend some time alone together.  

For those who are curious, here is what the box looks like.

This is what the card backs look like.

Edited February 27, 2021 by AlbaTross

[gregory]

9 hours ago, AlbaTross said:

The packaging also came with all these tiny paper hearts, which got everywhere.  Those don't belong in a dude's house, so I made sure to pick them all up and recycle them.  

 

That's rather -ist of you  

[katrinka]

4 hours ago, gregory said:

 

That's rather -ist of you  

To be fair, we really need a short form for "cishet male who doesn't want girly hearts all over the place lest potential dates think he secretly has a girlfriend or daughters". That's kind of awkward to type. 😁

[gregory]

 OK....

[AlbaTross]

3 hours ago, katrinka said:

To be fair, we really need a short form for "cishet male who doesn't want girly hearts all over the place lest potential dates think he secretly has a girlfriend or daughters". That's kind of awkward to type. 😁

To be fair, I push the boundaries of my masculinity fairly often. 🙂 I did pay the expense to get this deck to me because I wanted one with cute animals, as animal imagery makes me happy.  While the "Will You Bee Mine?" on the back of that print is a bit much for me...I do love the print.  I put that somewhere safe, so it's out of sight, but I can look at it whenever I need a pick me up.  No one has to know I own something like that...except the internet. 

 

Apparently each set comes with a unique print too, so that's something to keep in mind for anyone who's interested in checking out this set.  It does cost quite a bit between the exchange rate and shipping, so if you don't live in the UK, it can be quite an expense.  It certainly was for me.  But, as you can see, the creator put extensive care into not only the product itself (and I absolutely love that it's made with environmentally friendly materials), but also the package it shipped in.  This is a reprinting too, not a Kickstarter backing or early purchase type deal.  Given how far above and beyond she went with this, I can't recommend it more, and I'm seriously considering being a repeat customer.  Apparently a dragon-themed deck is in the works, so that's something to look forward to.  

Edited February 27, 2021 by AlbaTross

[katrinka]

1 hour ago, AlbaTross said:

To be fair, I push the boundaries of my masculinity fairly often. 🙂

Yes, those edges got glitter on your fingers and you STILL posted the photo. 😁
Nobody's accusing you of being one of those guys watching football and belching and f@rting in a man cave papered in beer ads featuring girls with boob jobs. 
To paraphrase the Dos Equis guy, "Stay glittery, my friend."

[katrinka]

The deck looks nostalgic, like a childhood storybook. Kind of a Tasha Tudor vibe. Very nice art.

[AlbaTross]

6 hours ago, katrinka said:

Yes, those edges got glitter on your fingers and you STILL posted the photo. 😁
Nobody's accusing you of being one of those guys watching football and belching and f@rting in a man cave papered in beer ads featuring girls with boob jobs. 
To paraphrase the Dos Equis guy, "Stay glittery, my friend."

Now I know you're jesting.  This set doesn't have glitter. 😄  I mean, some sets do.  This one's eco-friendly.  

6 hours ago, katrinka said:

The deck looks nostalgic, like a childhood storybook. Kind of a Tasha Tudor vibe. Very nice art.

I admit, I had to look up Tasha Tudor, but yeah, I can see it.   

The Death card is quite interesting.  It clearly emphasizes the new beginnings aspect of the card.  It is true that those butterflies can never return to the way things were for them before going into their cocoon, or even during the process, but they're better off for it.

This is also one heck of a thick deck.  I had to take a picture on a flat surface for comparison, and it may be difficult to tell from the picture, but it's quite a bit thicker than my RWS deck to the left, and even slightly thicker than my Prisma Visions deck, which previously held the title for thickest deck I own.  I guess that means the card stock is really high quality.  It doesn't have any gilding, but I can live without it.  Not every deck needs that. 

There is no guidebook, just two double-sided cards with some keywords about each card, but this deck is apparently designed to be used in conjunction with other resources, and that will just force me to read more intuitively, so I don't mind that at all.

There's also the Possibilities card, which is undefined other than its name, and will have to be read intuitively.  It's clearly a bit of an advertisement for the upcoming dragon deck.  The dragon here is protecting the animals represented in the four suits of the Minor Arcana.  Had I gotten the original printing, there would apparently be two cards with additional art, which I probably would have also included as extra cards for intuitive reading.  Possibilities is enough of an addition for me, though I did get two additional blank cards.

Edited February 28, 2021 by AlbaTross

[katrinka]

1 hour ago, AlbaTross said:

Now I know you're jesting.  This set doesn't have glitter. 😄  I mean, some sets do.  This one's eco-friendly.  

 

HAH! You dirty deleted.
Earlier there was a photo showing the gold edges, you were holding the deck and there was dusty gold glitter all over your fingers,
You are sooooooo busted. 😁

 

1 hour ago, AlbaTross said:

I admit, I had to look up Tasha Tudor, but yeah, I can see it.   

 

https://12tomatoes.com/tasha-tudor-biography/

Everyone should know Tasha, she was bomb. And she actually lived that cottagey life, no modern conveniences, bunches of dried herbs, Corgis, the works. 

 

[TheFeeLion]

5 hours ago, katrinka said:

HAH! You dirty deleted.
Earlier there was a photo showing the gold edges, you were holding the deck and there was dusty gold glitter all over your fingers,
You are sooooooo busted. 😁

Are you by chance referring to the glittery fingers that @LogicalHue posted regarding their Forager's Daughter deck...? 

[katrinka]

2 hours ago, TheFeeLion said:

Are you by chance referring to the glittery fingers that @LogicalHue posted regarding their Forager's Daughter deck...? 

 

Ooops, yes.
My bad! Apologies all around.

[LogicalHue]

Right, I complained about cutesy hearts in the images of OA&T, then I complained about the glitter on the edges of FD, then AlbaTross complained about actual paper hearts in OA&T. If I had gotten a bunch of little hearts in my packaging I would have been LIVID. But I also got no candy 💔

 

Glad to see the comparison, I didn't know what was different with the reprints. I think the reprints mostly have a better box, but I can appreciate the odd charm of the one I got. 😉