I recently got the Ethereal Visions deck by Matt Hughes and… I think have mixed feelings about it. The gold foiling looks nice and catches the light well, especially when I use candles during new moon readings. Something about the expressions feels distant to me, though. Like they’re looking through you rather than at you. The symbolism is different from my other decks too. Yesterday, during the waxing crescent, I pulled the Three of Cups, and it didn’t have the usual celebration vibe I’m used to.
The companion booklet doesn’t have much for interpretations, which surprised me since some of the imagery is so unique.
Has anyone else worked with this deck extensively? I’m wondering if it just takes time to connect with it, or if others have found it works better for certain types of readings. Maybe it resonates differently depending on the moon phase when you first bond with it?
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The name suits them. The best description for this deck is it’s the kind of deck you don’t want to shuffle because you don’t want to wear out the fantastic artwork (but the quality seems pretty solid, I’ve had mine for a while and they still look great).
If the artwork speaks to you then you’ll probably work really well with this deck. If ever I feel stuck and unable to connect with Spirit, this is the deck I grab. Has never failed me.
I was scrolling through Instagram and saw a bunch of posts with the Ethereal Visions deck. Cool to see how different people use it, some of the photos really show off those distant expressions you were talking about.
I noticed it photographs better in candlelight, too. Maybe that’s why you feel more connected to it during new moon readings? The lighting does seem to bring out something in the artwork. After having trouble with the Wild Unknown deck for ages, I began researching how other people read with it. Now it’s one of my go-to decks. You could try following some readers who use Ethereal Visions a lot, might help with interpreting the symbolism differently.
heads up about the Ethereal Visions deck - the gold foiling is pretty fragile. left mine on my windowsill and after like 2 hours the foiling started peeling and got discolored. now i keep it in a pouch away from sunlight. someone also asked about heat and yeah, i wouldn’t leave it in a hot car either. that foiling seems sensitive to both
Those distant expressions might be similar to the way we look when we’re concentrating on things like scrying with candles. It’s that kind of unfocused stare that feels like it’s looking past the ordinary.
The Fool in this deck caught my eye, they’ve got this knowing expression, kind of like the Hermit. As if they’ve walked this path already. I wonder if Hughes mixed up the archetypes intentionally. My High Priestess readings keep coming through with this motherly energy that feels more like the Empress. The traditional card meanings don’t quite match up the same way with this deck.
This deck came with two bonus cards I hadn’t seen before, The Well and The Artist. Nice surprise.
I find myself pulling The Well card pretty often when I need some creative inspiration. Just connects with me for some reason. Also noticed the card backs don’t have any markings that show which way is up, so reversals are cleaner to read.
I’ve seen people stress about connecting with foiled decks, but honestly you just need to shuffle them carefully so the coating doesn’t wear off. No moon phases required.
Got this deck recently and it’s been interesting. It’s one of those decks that doesn’t sugarcoat anything. Every reading feels like getting called out. Sometimes I wonder if I should use something gentler but here we are.
Those distant expressions tap into something Jung wrote about, the archetypal gaze. It’s this timeless, impersonal quality that links us to collective unconscious patterns rather than individual personality.
I’ve been working with Ethereal Visions alongside shadow work practices. There’s a video where someone demonstrates how the deck’s ethereal quality creates a mirror for projection work
Hughes made the faces simultaneously present yet removed, which seems to encourage deeper psychological exploration. Could explain why your Three of Cups reading felt different, it’s inviting you to look at celebration through a more introspective lens.
I have to disagree about it being the least creative. Matt Hughes added that nice Art Nouveau styling and two bonus Major Arcana cards (The Well and The Artist), so it’s 80 cards instead of 78. But yeah, it stays close to the RWS symbolism, which is why it’s good for learning. Should mention it’s the Rider-Waite-Smith deck though - Pamela Colman Smith deserves credit.
The imagery is familiar but Hughes tweaked some color symbolism, especially in the court cards. For cards that feel different, the 5 of Cups comes to mind. The sad figure is there but the Art Nouveau framing and softer colors make it more wistful than devastating. The 10 of Swords has this ethereal quality that feels less brutal than the RWS version. And The Tower has decorative lightning that softens it a bit.
Still maps well to RWS meanings though, which makes these small shifts interesting when you’re reading.
Yeah, mine felt off at first too. Took a few weeks of it just sitting around before the energy settled down. The representation choices bug me though.
Some of the card assignments seem unbalanced. I did a double take when I saw which figures they put on certain cards. There’s something about this deck that makes it feel distant at first, which could be why you’re getting that ‘looking through you’ feeling.
I bought mine earlier this year and have only used it twice. The energy is better now but I still don’t reach for it much.
Forget what the little white book says, a deck either clicks with you or it doesn’t.
When cards feel cold or silent in my hands, I take that as a sign that this deck isn’t meant for me. Just trust your gut on this. I’ve passed on decks that didn’t work for me and seen them work great for other people. Sometimes I’ll hang onto a quiet deck, though.
I had one that sat unused for two years, then out of nowhere, it became my go-to for career readings. Your intuition about these connections is what matters. If it’s not working, let the deck go where it needs to go.
Have you tried the pillow thing during the new moon? It might sound strange, but it works for some people.
This deck’s really dreamy, so it connects well with sleep and dreams. Just keep a journal by your bed and write whatever you remember when you wake up. I find it’s better for deeper stuff like shadow work rather than regular daily readings.
Matt Hughes did stained glass work before designing these cards. Makes sense, the people in the cards look like they’re behind glass. The Three of Cups here shows someone alone with their thoughts before joining others. Different take than most decks.
Some cultures connect those ethereal faces in the deck to ancestral spirits. At least that’s what I’ve seen. In my family we tend to see it as a bridge to our lineage. Still learning how it all fits into readings though.
When I read for others with Ethereal Visions, it has this gentle way of getting messages across. Even the tough ones.
Last week, I did this reading that got pretty intense. You know how the faces in that deck look kind of far away? I think that distance helps when you need to hear something difficult. Like getting advice from someone who’s sympathetic but stays neutral.
Been working with Ethereal Visions lately and the Art Nouveau thing is interesting. Those borders and patterns everywhere, it’s pretty different from something minimal like Wild Unknown.
I used to do more intuitive reads with my Dreaming Way deck (the watercolor one), but with this one, I’m paying more attention to all the little details and symbols. Sometimes I miss the simpler approac,h though. Do different art styles change how you read too? Or is it just me overthinking it.
