Author Topic: Making Tarot Cards (Read 1703 times)

Hiir · « **on:** June 25, 2013, 02:35:49 pm »

Many people make their own runes. Makes sense, since you get much more of a connection with something you made yourself as opposed to something mass-produced you purchased. I'm quite sure the act and spent time creating something adds a lot to its spiritual value, so to say.
So I want to make my own tarot deck as well. Partly because I just cannot afford it, partly because I don't even trust store-sold decks. What connection do I have to it? None. I would feel much more comfortable with my own cards made from scratch.
I've got the bases made, 78 cards, a quite comfortable size; I painted their backsides all the same colour and cut round the corners, etc. Now I am at the fun part - designing.
I have no problems with drawing, it's something I do a lot. The thing is - all guides to understanding and reading tarot cards are very directly related to the scenes pictured on each card. Most minuscule of the details all seem to be of utmost importance. Am I supposed to just look at a classical deck and redraw all the 78 scenes exactly? I would much prefer using my own symbols and style while still reflecting the message each card is meant to carry. Would this mess the reading up a lot? How important is it really to adhere to all of the symbolic nuances?

Many thanks!

Jack · « **Reply #1 on:** June 25, 2013, 03:16:50 pm »

Quote from: Hiir;113627

Am I supposed to just look at a classical deck and redraw all the 78 scenes exactly? I would much prefer using my own symbols and style while still reflecting the message each card is meant to carry. Would this mess the reading up a lot? How important is it really to adhere to all of the symbolic nuances?

You're "supposed to" do whatever makes sense to you, since you're the one who's going to be reading with it. Use what's useful to you, and then learn to read the specific deck you're creating.

I have a cartography deck I designed; I don't actually call it a tarot deck because I don't use the symbols at all.

Jenett · « **Reply #2 on:** June 25, 2013, 05:05:17 pm »

Quote from: Hiir;113627

I have no problems with drawing, it's something I do a lot. The thing is - all guides to understanding and reading tarot cards are very directly related to the scenes pictured on each card. Most minuscule of the details all seem to be of utmost importance. Am I supposed to just look at a classical deck and redraw all the 78 scenes exactly? I would much prefer using my own symbols and style while still reflecting the message each card is meant to carry. Would this mess the reading up a lot? How important is it really to adhere to all of the symbolic nuances?

As Jack says, "Tarot" implies a certain relationship between the cards, but there are tons of other options for card decks for divination that aren't Tarot.

In terms of the symbology - there are certainly plenty of Tarot decks out there that do totally different things for symbology. (My current favourite, the Shadowscapes Tarot, doesn't use a bunch of the most common traditional symbols)

*However* in my experience, the decks that actually work best as Tarot decks build their own sets of symbol language, and carry that language across a large number of cards. (Shadowscapes does this really well, in my experience, but she does it by layering some of the traditional references into less traditional ones, and then linking the less traditional ones in multiple ways, so that they can get referenced in other parts of the deck and still make sense. A lot of novelty Tarot decks get this wrong.)

Have you poked around at the Aeclectic Tarot site at all? They both have samples of hundreds of decks, and the forums have excellent discussions of deck creation, different symbol sets, etc.

Sola Stone · « **Reply #3 on:** June 25, 2013, 06:32:27 pm »

Quote from: Hiir;113627

So I want to make my own tarot deck as well. Partly because I just cannot afford it, partly because I don't even trust store-sold decks. What connection do I have to it? None. I would feel much more comfortable with my own cards made from scratch.

Well, the idea of store brought decks is that you form or strengthen a connection to them through repeated use, but if you want to make your own, more power to ya.

Quote

I have no problems with drawing, it's something I do a lot. The thing is - all guides to understanding and reading tarot cards are very directly related to the scenes pictured on each card. Most minuscule of the details all seem to be of utmost importance. Am I supposed to just look at a classical deck and redraw all the 78 scenes exactly? I would much prefer using my own symbols and style while still reflecting the message each card is meant to carry. Would this mess the reading up a lot? How important is it really to adhere to all of the symbolic nuances?

Symbols are a tool to help you remember the meaning of a card and, perhaps, to give you a better understanding of that meaning. The fact that a given object can symbolize different things to different people is one of the reasons why there are so many variations of tarot decks around today. I think, then, that if you are willing to put the time and effort into designing your own deck, you should use symbols that are meaningful to you. The only way I can see this affecting your readings is positively.

Hiir · « **Reply #4 on:** June 26, 2013, 09:54:09 am »

Thanks everyone for replying. I feel more secure about designing them myself, now.

Quote from: Jenett;113637

*However* in my experience, the decks that actually work best as Tarot decks build their own sets of symbol language, and carry that language across a large number of cards. (Shadowscapes does this really well, in my experience, but she does it by layering some of the traditional references into less traditional ones, and then linking the less traditional ones in multiple ways, so that they can get referenced in other parts of the deck and still make sense. A lot of novelty Tarot decks get this wrong.)

Have you poked around at the Aeclectic Tarot site at all? They both have samples of hundreds of decks, and the forums have excellent discussions of deck creation, different symbol sets, etc.

Ah, thank you, it seems like a lovely site! I will definitely read what it's got to say.
Yes, that is what I was thinking, I have many personal symbols from life in my mind that would carry the meanings on the cards very well. And I absolutely understand the referencing part. It's basically just like a language, isn't it, just a language of symbols; and so it would be okay if I made up my own as long as I understood what all of it meant and the words all made sense in their context.