Gonzo Tarot - 7 good uses for old tarot cards

Wanna become a tarot gunslinger? Ready to get quicker on the draw, more efficient and more badass? Gonzo Tarot is a series of quirky and unorthodox Tarotcises designed to get you thinking on your feet, overcoming your fears and gaining mad tarot skillz so that you can read under any circumstances. Join me and get your tarot on!

It’s a sad truth but sooner or later, your tarot deck will wear out.

Sometimes this is due to a long term relationship with that deck that’s gone on waaaayyyyy too long.

Other times, one aggressive shuffle or a splash of tea will spell tarot disaster.

So what to do with it then? You can wrap them in silk and store it away for your loved ones to discover long after you’ve left the planet. (Cue “Taps” on the trumpet.)

Or you can make good use of ‘em.

I’ve got Capricorn intercepted in my third house, so I prefer to find a practical way to utilize those tore-up tarot decks.

Here are a few suggestions to consider:

Create a “Majors” only deck. If your Major Arcana is still in good shape, pull them out of the deck and use them for readings focused solely on spiritual matters.
Use them as “Significators”. Some spreads call for “significators”: cards to represent the querent, other people, or the vibe of a situation. A “significator deck” gives you the ability to quickly find the card you wish to use, saving you time from having to rummage through your deck to find the ones you need. Pick out your signficator, lay it down, and commence the reading with your other deck.
If you are teaching tarot, it’s always good to have spare decks on hand for various tarotcises. This spares your workhorse or most precious decks from nervous newbie shufflers!
Create “tarot flash cards” by writing interpretations on each card with a marker. This is a very helpful tool for novices.
My friend Georgianna Boehnke of The Tarot Room uses mini Rider Waite cards as business cards. Slap a label on the back and presto – you’ve got a memorable biz card that people will love!
When I am doing a special class or small event, I love sending snail mail to my attendees along with a card that I pulled just for them. I include an interpretation or I’ll encourage them to sit with it and bring their interpretation to the class. This is always a hit.
Lastly, my favorite: tarot coach Jeannine Carlson has created “Random Acts of Tarot”, which I think is pure genius. You simply leave tarot cards around your hood for people to find. Jeannine puts a sticker on the back of each one that leads people to a page where they can post about where they found the card and what it meant to them.