Breaking In a New Deck
Shopping for a new deck is fun - receiving a new deck is even more fun.
Then comes the actual reading of the cards…
For the beginning reader, breaking in a new deck can feel a little daunting.
What if I do it wrong? What if I don’t use the right kind of spread? What if I ask too many questions, or not enough questions? Is this deck right for the type of reading I want to do?
Getting acquainted with a new deck is pretty similar to getting to know a new friend: it’s best to begin with a little getting-to-know-you exercise.
Here’s how I like to unbox a new deck to ensure we get off to a clean start.
Remove all plastic wrapping and packaging from your new deck.
“Clear” the energy of your new deck. This is essentially a reset to factory settings. By the clearing the deck, you’re cleansing it of any energy it may have picked up from the time it was printed to the time it was packed and delivered. Clearing can be done in a number of ways:
Envelop the deck in smoke from sage or Palo Santo - I like to light my sage / palo santo and encircle the deck a couple of times. Then, I fan out the cards and waft the smoke with my deck; this allows the smoke to theoretically touch all the cards on both sides.
Place a crystal on top of the deck – selenite, clear quartz, or whatever you have handy. Leave the crystal with the deck for 10 minutes up to overnight, whatever you intuitively feel is appropriate.
Any other clearing / cleansing practice that resonates for you.
Get familiar with the cards face up. We get so used to handling a deck face down, and sometimes that creates a feeling of helplessness and uncertainty on our end. Turn the cards face up, and give yourself a moment to gaze on each card individually. Don’t “read” the card or judge the way it makes you feel, just notice the energy it evokes. Take a few seconds per card until you’ve made your way through the whole deck.
Optional: Flip through the guidebook that comes with the cards. I list this as “optional” because I don’t always do this ahead of my first reading, it can feel like reading the last chapter first – which is not the vibe for me. If you’re someone that likes to know what to expect, take a peek inside. Read a sampling, read the whole thing – whatever feels right for you.
Shuffle the deck. For me, this is the first true test of mine and the deck’s compatibility: how good do the cards feel during a shuffle? There are several different ways to shuffle cards – I personally like to use a riffle shuffle or an overhand shuffle.
(Full disclosure: I had no idea there were actual names for shuffling techniques until I wrote this post, so now we’ve both learned something.)
Shuffle in whatever way feels best for however long feels necessary.
Infuse the deck with your energy. Some traditional card readers recommend sleeping with a new deck under your pillow to allow the deck to align with your vibration. If that feels a little too woo-woo for you, you can skip that part. Still, it is important to handle the deck as much as you can at first.
Keep it in your purse or briefcase.
Place it in your sacred space.
Put it on the windowsill or end table.
Give the deck a chance to acclimate to you while you acclimate to it.
Do an introductory card pull. Below are some recommendations for questions you may want to ask your new deck. Hold the question in your mind, then shuffle, cut, and pull in whatever way you’re intuitively led. Interpret the card based on your intuition, or use the guidebook that accompanied the deck.
“What card best represents the energy of this deck?”
“How is this deck interpreting my energy?”
“In what way can I best make use of this deck?”
“What’s the first message this deck wants to deliver me?”
Sit with the answers that came up. If you like to record your readings, journal about what came up and how you interpret it. Notice how the answers made you feel – are you and the deck on the same page, or are some adjustments required? Don’t worry if the first read is a little challenging. Give yourself time to acclimate to the deck, and revisit after a period of time.
Now you can consider your deck “broken in” (with the small caveat that the more you use it, the more you’ll learn about it). Do your best to be flexible with yourself and the deck, and try to let go of any preconceived notions about the “right” way to read cards. Give yourself permission to learn as you go, to adopt new practices and discard old ones, to reference the guidebook as much as you need without judgment over how quickly you’re memorizing the deck. Remember, this is supposed to be fun.
How do you like to break in a new deck?
Have you ever asked a deck a question about itself and gotten a wild answer? Can you distinguish distinct personalities in the decks you use?
Leave a comment with your experience!
