As tarot readers, we understand the importance of creating a perfect and intentional space for our readings. Our tarot space serves as a quiet hiding place where we can connect with the cards, tap into our intuition, and get some insight into our questions.
Selecting the Perfect Tarot Space
The first step in creating your perfect tarot space is choosing the right place to do it. I find that a quiet, peaceful spot in your house is the best place to be! It should be free from distractions and noise. Do you have a cozy spot in your living area that you could use? If you are lucky, you might even have a room used just for your tarot readings and spiritual journaling. I have a couple of different places I use in my house. I have an office I like to use if it's going to be a quick 1-3 card draw. I have room for the draw, and to journal my reflections.
For larger card spreads, I use my kitchen table, and I set up an alter there. I have my candles, sage, card cloth, journal, pen, and cards at the ready. This is a temporary spot for me, but it is large and has a huge bay window for natural lighting. I can see the birds outside. I love doing my readings there.
Some people I know like to read their cards outside, where it is quiet and peaceful. I have done this on occasion. My favorite time to do a reading outside is spring, early in the day so I can hear the birds tweeting.
Joining my Facebook group is another resource to learn more about tarot and manifesting.
Creating an Atmosphere with Candles and Incense
Candles and incense can help set the mood, once you have your spot picked out. Candles are important to me. I love focusing on the flame while I am reflection on what the cards tell me. It's so easy to get lost in the flame.
Others love to burn incense while reading the cards. Some lavender incense sounds so calming and helps set the mood. Different scents line up with different intentions, so experiment with what suits you. Unfortunately, I don't have a sense of smell so I can't take advantage of this particular addition to my ritual. Sometimes I do use it as a way to clear a space, much like sage does. And my family likes it!
Organizing Your Tarot Tools
I like to to keep all of my tarot tools in one place when I am creating the perfect tarot space. I keep my tarot favorite tarot deck wrapped in a cloth that I can use to lay my cards out. I have my crystals in one spot so they are easy to grab. I can have my tarot spot set up within a couple of minutes since everything is together in one spot.
Joining my Facebook group is another resource to learn more about tarot and manifesting.
Creating an Altar for Meaningful Connections
We have discussed some of the items I like to use when setting my tarot space up. One other thing I would like to add is that having personal mementos, such as pictures, little statues that represent something meaningful to you, or art pieces will make your reading feel more personal.
Here is a list of things you could add when you are creating the perfect tarot space.
- Tarot deck(s)- I have a blog post on how to choose your first tarot deck if you need help with that.
- Cloth or mat
- Candles and holders
- Crystals or stones
- Incense and burner
- Personal mementos or symbolic objects
You can also add elements that represent the four classical elements: earth, air, fire, and water. For example:
- Air-a feather or wind chimes
- Earth-a plant, crystals, small pieces of wood or bark
- Fire-candles, lantern
- Water-a bowl of water, or seashells
And here are a few other ways to make your tarot space your own.
Creating an Atmosphere
- Lighting and ambiance
- Candles or salt lamps
- Dimmed lighting or fairy lights
- Essential oil diffusers or incense
- Sound and music
- Soothing background music
- Nature sounds or white noise
- Chimes or singing bowls
- Affirmations
- Scents and aromas
- Essential oils or incense
- Fresh flowers or herbs
- Potpourri or sachets
There are so many ways to make your alter or tarot space meaningful and comfortable for you. The most important part is that it reflects you!
Establishing a Routine for Your Tarot Practice
It is important to start a regular routine when you are reading tarot cards. You want to be consistent so that you can get to know your cards better and to improve your insight into your readings. Being consistent doesn't need to be daily but it is the fastest way to have personal growth. Other times to think about when you first start reading is weekly, during the full moon or new moon, or during other specific astrological times. Some people like to do a reading at the start of each new sign or season, for example, at the beginning of Gemini season.
Another ritual you could start is by meditating before your actual tarot reading. I do a simple, 5 minute guided meditation before reading my cards and I usually get great results because I took time to ground myself before starting. Within this meditation, it includes some easy breath work to help me focus even more.
Visualizing is another great ritual to add to your readings. Imagine your intentions and how these intentions line up with your questions. Actively picturing your intentions helps bring focus to your reading.
Also consider adding journaling to your tarot routine as well. It's a great start to write down the question and cards you drew. This is something I don't compromise on. To take it one step further, you could write about how each card relates to your question, or how the cards relate to each other. Journaling for me leads to the best insights. I often learn more about myself when I am journaling about the cards.
Maintaining Your Tarot Space
Once you are done creating your perfect tarot space, it needs to be kept up! We want to make sure your space is calming and inviting everyt ime we do a reading. There are few things we can do to keep up our space.
Joining my Facebook group is another resource to learn more about tarot and manifesting.
Cleansing and energizing
Once we are done with our reading(s) for the day, it's time to clean up. The first way to finish up is by clearing the area of any leftover energy. We can do that by burning sage in our tarot nook, or we could light some incense.
If you like the sound of bells, ringing one is a great way of clearing the energy. It is also something you can add to your tarot reading rituals. You could get the same effect with a singing bowl if that is more your style!
Your crystals need to be cleansed as well. I have a recharging crystal that I put my other crystals on. It is made of selenite, and it is perfect for cleansing. If you wanted to recharge your tarot cards, selenite is perfect for that as well.
Some people choose to meditate after completing their reading as a final part of their ritual. Your energy should still be high, so meditating after your reading will help you make more connections with your cards.
Organization and upkeep
Onto the not so exciting, but still important part of maintaining your tarot space. And, truth be told, you spent so much time creating your perfect tarot space, you want to take just take a few minutes for housekeeping. Here are a few things you can do to help keep your tarot space perfect and inviting:
- Regular dusting and cleaning-you don't want anything mucking up the energy of your spot. Running a quick vacuum or sweeping, and dusting will go a long way to keeping everything cozy.
- Rotating or refreshing items-some people use crystals for different sabbats, so rotating them is a way to keep things fresh. If you use fresh flowers or plants, make sure you are watering them and get rid of the dead flowers.
- Decluttering and minimizing distractions-if you are a stacker like myself, making sure to put things away after you are done with them is key to keeping your space distraction free.
Maintaining your tarot space is important to keep the energy high in your area, and will lead to better readings.
Don't feel like you NEED to use all of these ideas, there are a lot of them. I don't want you to become overwhelmed by trying to do All. The. Things. Get comfortable with one thing, and then try something else. The beautiful thing about creating the perfect tarot space is that it can evolve and change as you do!
Joining my Facebook group is another resource to learn more about tarot and manifesting.
FAQs
How often should I cleanse my tarot space?
Ideally, after every time you use it. That is best case scenario. We live in the real world, so that might not be possible every time. Try for once a week to start with. Of course if you don't have a designated space, then you will have to clean it after each reading.
Can I have multiple tarot spaces or altars?
Yes! As I told you above, I have 2 different spots I like to read my cards. One is in my kitchen, and one is in my office.
Is it necessary to have an altar or can I just have a designated area?
It is not necessary to have an alter. People who have don't have space for an alter, like myself, just set up my tarot space when I want to do a reading.
What if I don't have a lot of space for a dedicated tarot area?
It's ok! The good thing is tarot cards are portable, so you can do a reading wherever you are. I recently did a reading in a restaurant!
If you like free things, check out this Freebie Marketplace. I have a free gift for you there. It is the Tarot Intuition Playbook and I think you will love it!
