tarot recommendations

#DatingTheTarot2020 a (non) VR to Candy Soul and Soil

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So, this prompt was brought to my attention by Simon at The Hermit’s Cave, bit it originates from Candy Soul and Soil on YouTube. The concept here is what decks would fit these ten dating categories listed below. Although it was encouraged that you could use any kind of deck for this challenge (not just tarot decks), but I will be sticking to tarot specifically.

1: The Cheapskate Date… who did you date because they were cheap as chips and what was the outcome?

Student Tarot v2 Stained Glass

Student Tarot v.2 (Stained Glass) – Other than free decks and gifts, this is my cheapest deck. I paid $3.73 for it in a bargain bin at a little Asian market up in British Columbia, Canada. It was tucked away at the very back of a shelf cluttered with stationary and books. It is a beautiful deck and actually got me into collecting all of the different Student Tarot decks. Each one has a different style of art, and I currently have… seven versions. I’m not entirely sure how many versions there are total, because every time I think I know about them all I then end up finding another one.

2: The Slow Burner Date… the one you weren’t sure about on first meeting but over time you suspect it’s turning to love!

Ostara Tarot

Ostara Tarot – I bought this tarot because I was attracted to the artwork, but owned it for over a year before eventually using the deck for the first time. There was just something about this deck that I felt I needed to hold off on. Then, a year ago in November I finally pulled it out and used it for the full month and didn’t want to stop using it even at the end of the month. This is extremely rare for me as I usually want to rotate out to use different decks pretty regularly.

3: The Blind Date… because we are impulsive humans and sometimes we just rush in! Who did you date without looking or thinking?

Raja Tarot

The Raja Tarot – I saw exactly three cards in this deck when I bought it. All three cards were majors, and that was it. No one had pictures of this deck up to view. The creator didn’t either. I had an impulsive “fuck it” moment and bought it, and it was the worst purchase I’d ever made. Jesus… it’s bad. The cardstock is bad, the pips are bad… even the tuckbox is crap. So yeah. Bad. Bad bad date.

4: The Rebound Date… the one you keep going to break up with but keep being pulled back together!

Liz Dean's Golden Tarot

Liz Dean’s Golden Tarot – I have gotten rid of this deck and had it come back to me multiple times. I bought it from Amazon, gave it away, found it at a thrift store for $4 and bought it, edged it… gave it away. Found it at a GoodWill in Ontario Canada and bought it again. It just comes back again and again. This last visit from my rebound date, I’ve trimmed off the borders and titles to make it image only.

5: The Surprise Love Affair Date… the one you thought would be just ok but from first meeting it was love at first sight that took you by surprise!

Tarot of the Hidden Realm

Tarot of the Hidden Realm – When I ordered this deck, I really didn’t expect the reaction I had to it. I thought the artwork was lovely, and was interested because of it, but didn’t think it would be anything particularly overly special. Then I opened the box and touched the cards and it was so…. perfect. The art. The energy. The cardstock. The energy. I’d never felt anything like the energy I felt in these cards when I got them in my hands, and this is my very first “soul deck” connection. I’d been reading tarot for 15 years at that point, which just goes to show, sometimes surprises happen even to the well seasoned readers.

6: The “Not My Type” Date… the one you went on thinking it wasn’t really your cup of tea but what the hell… what happened?

Thoth Tarot Golden Edition

Aleister Crowley’s Golden Thoth – Right… so… I find Lady Freda Harris’ artwork to be extremely disturbing. It gives me really bad vibes and prolonged exposure (over a few minutes) can give me nausea and cold sweats. I bought this deck with every intention of studying the Thoth and exploring the system at length along with its original artwork. But I was never able to get over extremely visceral reaction to the artwork. I still own it, but probably won’t for much longer so I suppose this also could have gone down into the next category, but another Thoth style deck takes that slot.

7: The “I May Have To Delete Your Number” Date… the one that really didn’t work but you still haven’t broken up with yet, what’s stopping you?

Tabula Mundi Tarot en Minima

Tabula Mundi Tarot in Minima – This one doesn’t give me the same bad/uncomfortable vibes as the Crowley Thoth, but there’s something about the artwork that bothers me and I find myself often confused when I look at the cards in this deck. This is a weird sensation for me. I’ve been reading tarot for over 18 years, and reading imagery cards for years more… and yet these cards are just so confusing to me and no amount of familiarizing myself with them seems to solve the problem. For some inexplicable reason, I haven’t quite given up on them yet tho.

8: The Forever Love… True love… ok this one might be on the favourites list too but I’m curious and couldn’t resist!

Herbal Tarot

Herbal Tarot – I could have put one of my soul decks here, but if I’m entirely honest? Even though this is not one of my soul decks, it will forever hold my deep and abiding love. This was my second tarot deck and I have worn out multiple copies of it over the years. It’s diverse, multi-national, and there are a number of androgynous characters presented in the imagery. And… it’s all about plants. Unlike my very first tarot deck, which was horrible, this deck made sense to me immediately and was easy to read from the start.

9: The Stormy On/Off Date… the one you can’t stay away from, equal parts passion, lust and fighting! The one you have to have a break from but can’t stay away from either!

Tarot of the Sidhe

Tarot of the Sidhe – I find the artwork in this deck garish, and sometimes abrasive. And yet… there’s something about this deck that draws me back again and again. I’m not sure what it is, but I can’t help reaching for it in the summer months, even if I can only use it a few times before having to set it back on the shelf again.

10: The Friends With Benefits Date… who can you run to without commitment whenever you just have a need for them? The one who always just slots right back in like you’ve never been apart?

Hanson Roberts Tarot

Hanson Roberts Tarot – This was my third ever tarot deck, and like the Herbal Tarot mentioned above, I have worn out multiple copies of this deck over the years. There’s just something very “coming home” about picking up this deck and working with it. The artwork, the faces, the colors… it’s like a close friend giving a warm hug.

#5FaveSummerDecks2019 (non) VR to Sophquest Synergy

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This tag was brought to my attention by Simon over at the Hermit’s Cave, but originated from Sophquest Synergy.

In my mind (and on my excel spreadsheet), I very much sort my decks (not all of them, but many of them) by seasons.  It’s not that I won’t use these decks outside of those seasons if it feels right for the situation, but I’m so strongly connected to the seasons that I suppose it’s not a surprise I would associate many of my decks with one season or another.

I’ve limited the decks in this post, though, to the decks that I actually used during this summer of 2019.  Out of the “summery” decks that I’ve used this summer, these are the five that have really stood out for me….

Sum05

Stolen Child Tarot – Okay, so this one quickly stole the show for me this summer.  Or, should I say this September.   The thing is, though, that it rapidly has climbed to my #2 spot for all time favorite decks, right beneath the Tarot of the Hidden Realm.  I love the combination of whimsy and seriousness, the expressive complexity of the cards.  I just really connected with this deck, and the cardstock is just amazing.  It feels great to shuffle.

Sum04

Hanson Roberts Tarot – This has been a long time favorite of mine.  Mary Hanson Roberts does lovely work and I really like her depictions in this deck.  Of all RWS clones out there, this one is at the top of the list for me.  Like all the decks on this list, my “summer feel” is about color correlations, and crispness in artistic depiction.

SUM03

Luna Sol Tarot – You know those super hot days where the world feels baked crispy and white washed by the sun’s rays?  That’s what this deck reminds me of.  In my opinion, it makes a great end-of-summer deck for this reason.

Sum01

Linestrider Tarot (with the Hedgewitch Oracle) – When it comes to these two decks, I just can’t seem to have one without the other.  In my mind, they go together as one.  I know that they both really pair lovely with other decks, but I just can’t seem to separate them in my mind.  When I read with the Linestrider Tarot, I often shuffle the Hedgewitch Oracle directly into the deck.  I do it so often that I might end up leaving them some way at some point.

Sum02

Luminous Void Tarot – For me, this deck is the epitome of sticky summer heat and the melty smudge of cosmetics on women roasting as they go about their days in the oppressive heat of summer.  It’s all about dripping sweat, cloying humidity, and the sweltering of the sun beating down upon the world at the peak of summer.

Like I mentioned earlier.  Seasonal decks, to me, are all about color and the texture within the artwork  (as opposed to the texture of the cardstock).  For me, all of the decks above very much speak summer, and I’ve tried to explain why in each one that I see them that way.

Top 5 Decks I Cant Live Without (non)VR To Kelly Bear

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I feel like I’ve answered this recently, but I can’t find it.  It’s a bit different than Simon’s “five favorites” as you can pick from any decks you have.  Still, I looked through and couldn’t find it so maybe it’s something I did in my head instead of actually writing down.

2019Top5

This post’s theme was originally created by Kelly Bear on YouTube a few years ago, and she recently did an update (because, well, favorites change over time).  From what I understand she usually does an update to this list yearly for her, we’ll see if I can remember to update it next year.

The way that I’m looking at this question is along the premise of if my house was on fire and I could only choose FIVE decks out of my collection to save, and none of my collection could be replaced for some reason, what five would I grab?

So here are my top five decks that I would  not want to live with out… at this moment.

Tarot of the Hidden Realm – This goes without saying. I’ve mentioned this many times on here that when I opened the box I had a very deep and immediate reaction to these cards the moment I touched them.  They speak to me on a level I’ve never had another deck speak to me before and I can’t see these cards falling off of this list any time soon.

Although… the artist is in the process of working on a second deck, and has already signed a contract with Llewellyn to produce it, so you never know, right?  I’ve seen some of the finished artwork for the deck and it is spectacular.

Blue Owl Lenormand or the 1889 Lenormand – I’m really kind of torn on this one.  The Blue Owl holds a lot of sentimental value for me, but the 1889 Lenormand’s aesthetic really speaks to me.   It would be a hard choice but if my ass was on fire and I had to choose just one, I would probably choose the 1889 primarily because I am currently using it more.

Dixit Decks – You can bet your ass if it came down to it I’d shuffle all ten of the decks I own into one monster deck and call it good.  I love these decks.  They’re actually a card game where you make up stories about the cards and other people have to guess what card you’re making up the story about.  It’s a fun game, but it’s not how I use these cards.    I personally use Dixit cards as an intuitive oracle, and they work really well for me in this way.

The Hanson Roberts Tarot – I find this deck easy on the eyes and exceedingly easy to read.  I also like the card size.  My own copy was purchased pre-owned and is one of the earlier printings of the deck.  This was good for me because it meant the cards were already broken in just a bit, as I find smaller decks are sometimes difficult for me to shuffle straight out of the box until they get broken in a bit.

The Universal Waite in a Tin – No surprise here that my favorite coloring of the deck is by Mary Hanson Roberts.  Although, if they would come out with a Radiant Wise Spirit in a tin?  I might have to change my mind. I chose this deck because of the traditional symbolism in the cards, the coloring, and because it’s IN A TIN.  Got to love a protective shell.  They’re also smaller than a regular tarot deck, which makes them easier to tote around.  Not that I tote around my tarot decks, but if I was reduced to five decks?  I might have to make myself a go-bag and this one would be in it.

I was actually a bit surprised that none of my out of print decks made it onto this list, although I did consider the Tyldwick Tarot. As much as I absolutely love that deck, though, it would fall in at sixth in line, though.  It would kill me to leave it behind because I really love it so much, but it isn’t on this list.   I also considered some of my plant or animal decks or a playing card deck, but they didn’t make it on the list for this time either.

 

#WatchingTarotTube (non)VR to Art and Tarot by Dee and Katey Flowers

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TarotTube

So “TarotTube” is essentially a section of the YouTube community that focuses mostly on tarot, or metaphysics and tarot.   This quiz came from Art and Tarot by Dee and Katey Flowers, who are a couple of the content creators of that small community (small as in relation to YouTube as a whole, as the community is actually quite large).

1. How many channels are you subscribed to?

Currently, I am subscribed to 192 YouTube channels… although to be fair, they are not all tarot related, or metaphysical related, or pagan related.  I also subscribe to a lot of educational channels, humor channels, music channels, etc.

2. When do you normally watch TarotTube?

On Saturday.  And sometimes during the week while I’m working or doing other things.  I will also sometimes listen while driving (with Waze up on the screen instead of YouTube, of course).

3. How do you balance watching TarotTube , reading tarot, and making your own videos?

Well, I don’t make my own videos, so there IS that.   But essentially for balancing everything, it comes down to multitasking.  So much in my life really boils down to multitasking.

4. Is there a difference between videos you like watching and videos you like making?

Again… I don’t make videos.  So question three and four don’t really have much to do with me.   But, I included them anyway.

5. Who is the first TarotTuber you subscribed to and do you still watch them?

Hmmm.  I’m not sure if it was Avalon Cameron or Ethony, actually.   But yes, I still watch both of them.

6. Who is the most recent TarotTuber you subscribed to?

I’m pretty sure my latest was Tattoo’d Spirit.  Or it might have been Épine Du Veil … or possibly Atypical Tarot ?  I’m not entirely sure which one was last.

7. Share an old favourite TarotTuber!  

Aside from the two already mentioned above? One of my favorites is Simon over at The Hermit’s Cave.  Another that’s not quite as long in the tooth on YouTube would be Brian Cormick Carr, who has a lot of really good content for exercising your gray matter in relation to tarot and the metaphysical.

8. Share a new favourite TarotTuber!

Becca Tarot Night Owl  She was the first live chat I visited, and is very warm and welcoming. Also Tangerine Layla* The Sleepy Oracle, who is always a great watch for a little lightheartedness and fun.  One more is Heather Carter, who like Brian mentioned above, also makes some really thought provoking videos.

9. What is one of your TarotTube pet peeves?

The “One Trick Pony” Syndrome.  By which I mean that there’s no variety.  ALL they do is one thing without ever deviating into other things. (Such as only doing  tarot reading videos, or only unboxing videos, or only deck walk-through videos, etc.)

10. What have you learnt from watching other TarotTubers?

There is no way for me to outline this as there is just too many things and the vast array of what I’ve learned is too diverse, but I get a lot of fragments of knowledge and ideas from different videos, not to mention different perspectives and methods of looking at the cards and/or using them in my own life.