The Box Levitation

THE EFFECT: You show a cardboard box to your audience and place it onto a table. They can clearly see under and around it.

Opening the top of the box you step into it. Once inside you open two flaps on the front so the spectators can clearly see your feet inside. You start to concentrate and slowly both your feet can be seen to rise off the floor of the box. You rise up to about 7 - 9 inches then slowly return to the ground.

You close the front flaps step out of the box and take your applause!

• Great for stage magic
• Perform like Criss Angel
• Easy to construct
• Gets great reactions

THE SECRET: You know the saying "It's all done with smoke and mirrors" with this trick it really is, well minus the smoke! The cardboard box is gimmicked with a mirror.

CONSTRUCTION: This levitation illusion is really easy to build. You first need to go and buy a fairly large mirror. It is a lot easier to find a cardboard box that the mirror you have just bought fits into rather than having to get the glass cut to fit into the box - trust me!

You need a mirror that has no frame or decoration around the edges. The mirror needs to be about 50cm square. Remember this is an approximate measurement and you will need to find the one that works best for you. You can get a mirror from your local D.I.Y store, some cheaper ones come with frames that can be easily removed.

Once you have your mirror you need to find a cardboard box that the mirror fits into exactly from diagonal corners. The cardboard box you need has to be exactly square. Feel free to download the plan by clicking HERE. You can then print it off or view it on your computer at your leisure while constructing the illusion.

If the cardboard box is not exactly square then the mirror placed diagonally will not reflect perfectly and will look very odd.

You can get a cardboard box from your local grocery store, I'm sure if you ask nicely they will give you one. The box needs to be fairly sturdy with the usual top flaps. This is so that you can shut the box up before and after the illusion to stop anyone looking in from the top.

You next need to cut two doors in the front of the cardboard box with some scissors or an Exacto knife. Leave a small border around the edge of the box. This hides the corners where the mirror fits from your spectators. (pic 1) Thats pretty much the construction done!

TIP: Place some polystyrene pieces or shredded paper into the bottom of the box. This does not look out of the ordinary and helps disguise the line that the bottom of the mirror may create.

PERFORMANCE: Lift up the box and show it to your audience, show all sides of it so they can clearly see you are not hiding anything. Place the box onto a table or platform so your spectators can clearly see under and around it. This also gets the box to more of a level that they can see your feet. Step up onto the table, open the top flaps and step into the box.

Now here is the clever part when you step into the box place one foot either side of the mirror (pic 3). Now when you open the front doors the spectators think they can see both your feet but in actual fact they see one foot and the reflection of the very same foot!

Now all you need to do is slowly lift the foot that they can see up and it will look like you are levitating.

TIP: Before you begin the levitation crouch over slightly so when you start to rise up your feet will look natural. If you are standing bolt upright it looks odd. Hold your arms out to the side this also heightens the effect.

Do this slowly and really act as though it is taking a lot of energy for you to do this. Once you have levitated for a few seconds float back down and close the front flaps. Step out of the box, close the top flaps and take your applause!

TIP: You could if you wish paint the box with stars and moons etc but I prefer to keep it as a plain box. It looks far less suspicious that way. You can draw arrows on the box pointing up, with the words "This way up" That is a normal thing to see on a box and adds a little humor to the illusion.


TIP: Make sure the mirror is perfectly clean for the performance any dirt or dust may reveal it. Angle wise spectators need to be looking exactly front on, not from the sides.

Credits to freemagictrics4u for this trick

Impromtu Rise

THE EFFECT: You choose an assistant from the audience and get them to lay on the floor on their back. You take a large cloth or blanket and drape it over their entire body. Upon your command the spectator starts to rise up off the ground. A full two feet in fact! Slowly the spectator is lowered back down again, the sheet is removed and everything is shown to be normal and unprepared.

• Nothing added or taken away
• Both spectator and cloth can be fully examined
• Impromptu, literally only spectator and sheet needed

THE SECRET: This David Blaine levitation style effect has been around for centuries. Despite its age, performed correctly it still looks stunning! As soon as you discover the secret you may think it’s too simple and will never work - Let me assure you it will.

Although completely impromptu and really simple, this is a very strong piece of stage or street magic. Actually go out and perform it and you will see the reactions this gets.

The first thing you need to know is that the spectator you use is in on the trick, they are a stooge or plant by you. To the rest of your spectators they are just a random person. Do not be put off by using a plant David Copperfield uses them all the time!

Your assistant is the one who really performs the magic, without you having to do very much at all. They have to perform a very simple secret move under the cover of the sheet. Start by getting you assistant to lay down on their back, legs and arms together. Now take a large cloth (big enough to cover their whole body) and hand it out to the audience for inspection. There is nothing to find.

Here comes the move, take back the cloth and stand in front of your assistant with your back to the audience, lift up the cloth with your arms spread in preparation to cover your assistant. In this brief moment when the cloth is shielding the assistant, they secretly roll over onto their stomach! As soon as they have done this, bend down and cover their entire body with the sheet.

TIP: You must cover their entire body do not leave any part of them sticking out or the illusion will be discovered!

Spread your hands and pretend to be concentrating really hard on the spectator to rise off the ground. After a few moments your spectator needs to do a very slow push up but keeping one leg, out straight perfectly parallel to the floor at all times. This is what creates the
illusion of levitation.

When they do their "one legged push up" they should stop at the top of the push up for a few seconds then slowly lower back down again. I know this seems very silly and too simple to work but it does.

After the assistant has returned to the ground simply reverse all the moves at the beginning of the trick. Raise the cloth (still hiding the assistant from the audiences view) the assistant rolls over again onto their back, remove the cloth and let everything be examined!

TIP: When the assistant rolls over at the beginning and end of the trick, they must do it on the spot so they don't seem to have moved when the cloth covers them.

TIP: This David Blaine levitation style effect works because of a couple of subtleties. A random spectator is seemingly chosen at the beginning which dispels any involvement on their part. Secondly spectators see the assistant laying on their back at the beginning and end of the trick. With this consistency they have no reason to think that changes!

Spoon Bending

THE EFFECT: You ask to borrow a spoon or get a spectator to examine one. Taking the spoon in your hands you begin to bend it in half. The spectator can clearly see the spoon bending right round.

With a quick flick of your wrist you show the
spoon to be instantly restored. No bend what so ever can be seen.

The spoon can be handed out once again for total inspection. Nothing out of the ordinary is found.

THE SECRET: So you think you have to be Uri Geller to do some spoon bending right? Think again!

This is perhaps the easiest way to appear to bend a spoon and then restore it in an instant. You simply need to palm a small silver coin in your hand. When you are ready to 'bend' the spoon hold the coin so that just the tip of it is visible. Place the coin on top of the spoons handle and it will look as though you are simply holding the spoon (pic1).



As you pretend to bend the spoon let the handle drop from the back of your hand. As the tip of the coin will still be show it will look like the spoon is bending (pic2). Pretend you are putting a lot of effort into it.

TIP: Spectators must be viewing the trick from the front. Not the side or from behind or the secret will be revealed. Also make sure you do not show too much of the coin or spectators will see it as a coin and not the tip of the spoon.

All that is left for you to do is quickly spin the spoon and hide the coin in your hand in the process. The spoon will look restored and you can hand it out for examination. While the spectators are distracted with the spoon dispose of the coin in you pocket or onto your lap if you are seated.

Here is another cool spoon bending illusion that is perhaps more visual than the first bend.

First you need two spoons. Take one spoon and bend it 90 degrees (at a right angle). Take the second spoon and bend the handle backwards and forwards until the head breaks off. All you need to keep is the handle. Place the first spoon in your hand so the head hangs down and the handle rests on the 'v' between your thumb and pointer finger (pic3).

Take the handle and grip it between your thumb and pointer finger (pic4). If you tilt your hand towards your body the bent spoon will be hidden by the angle of your hand, it will simply look like you are holding a spoon.

TIP: Cheap cutlery is the best to use as it is really easy to bend.

To make the spoon appear to bend simply release your grip on the handle and allow it to slowly fall into your hand. As soon as it touches the 'real' handle pull the spoon out and show that it is bent. Hand this to the spectator to examine and take this opportunity to get rid of the handle in your pocket or onto your lap.

Uri Geller and other mentalists will have you believe they can bend spoons and other metal objects with the power of their minds simply by stroking the object. You may have seen this performed on T.V. Well this is a really easy effect to pull off. All you need to do is prepare a spoon or other piece of cutlery a few seconds in advance.

Simply take the spoon (for this example) and bend the head backwards and forwards until you can see the spoon is nearly ready to break, then STOP. You are giving the spoon 'fatigue' at the bending point. You will notice the spoon gets very hot so be careful.

You may get through a few spoons trying to get it to the 'ready to break point' but not breaking - it's a fine balance, bend it too many times and it will break, not enough and you may have a hard time bending it! I suggest you buy a pack of cheap cutlery to practice. Do not use expensive stuff! One because it costs more and two, it is much harder to bend when you are first starting out.

Once you have your spoon prepared, simply place it back onto a table with the other pieces of cutlery. When you are ready to perform pretend to take any piece of cutlery at random but pick up your prepared spoon. Tap it gently on the table a few times to show it is solid, then begin to rub it at the bend point. Hold the bend point between your pointer finger and thumb. As you rub the spoon apply a little pressure. The spoon will naturally start to bend. Keep working on the bend by rubbing it and applying pressure in both directions.

If the spoon breaks go with it, keep the spoon head and handle still between your fingers, hold the spoon vertically and release your grip slowly. The head of the spoon will start to droop to the side gradually. To finish let the head drop to the table with a bang. This will intensify the effect greatly.

TIP: You can perform these spoon bending tricks with nearly any piece of cutlery it does not necessarily need to be a spoon. However a spoon is perhaps the most recognized when bending cutlery.

Credits to http://www.freemagictricks4u.com/ for this trick.

Anti-Gravity Water

THE EFFECT: You take any drinks bottle and hand it out for examination. It is totally unprepared. You remove the top/cap and tip some of the liquid out to show that it is completely normal.

You say the magic words and turn the bottle upside down. Amazingly the liquid stays in the bottle, not a drop spills out!

As a killer finish to prove there is nothing covering the top you proceed to push a number of matches up inside the bottle neck. As you push each one in they float up inside the bottle. Finally you turn the bottle up the right way again and hand it out for examination once more. Spectators are floored!

THE SECRET: You are going to have to make a small gimmick. This is very easy and cheap to make. It will not take you more than a couple of minutes to construct.

The gimmick is basically a small circle of clear plastic with a hole in the middle of it. You can get a piece of clear plastic from some grocery packaging. The plastic needs to be fairly rigid and totally transparent.

Get your desired bottle. For example a bottle of water, fizzy pop or alchopop and place the plastic on top of it. With a pen trace a circle around the top of the bottle onto the plastic. Then with scissors carefully cut the circle out. You should be left with a circle of plastic that fits nicely on top of the bottle.

Next take the piece of plastic and make a small hole in the center of it with scissors. The hole needs to be just big enough so a match or cocktail stick can fit through easily. Ok, that's it your gimmick is made and ready to go! I told you it was easy to make. :-)

THE METHOD: Borrow a bottle of drink or hand yours out for thorough examination. When your spectators are happy it is completely normal take the bottle and remove the top, tip a small amount of liquid into a glass or onto the floor to show it flowing freely. The gimmick should be secretly concealed in one of your hands. As the gimmick is transparent it is fairly easy just to clip it in your fingers unnoticed.


Place your fingers of one hand on top of the bottle secretly placing the gimmick on the bottle top (pic1).

Turn the bottle upside down and slowly remove your fingers.

You will find that the small circular piece of plastic will actually stay stuck to the mouth of the bottle!

Your spectators will be amazed that the liquid is staying inside the upturned bottle! To 'prove' there is nothing over the opening you can proceed to push a few matches or toothpicks through the hole in the gimmick, up into the bottle. This is the killer move for most people they just can not understand how you can push items in the bottle without the liquid coming out.

Even when you perform this illusion in practice it still looks cool, especially when you push a match into the neck and it slowly rises
up into the bottle.

After you have pushed two or three matches or toothpicks into the bottle place your fingers over the bottle top again and tip it upright. Secretly remove the gimmick and hand the bottle out for examination once more.

TIP: As an alternative ending keep the bottle upside down and give it a little squeeze (or shake if the bottle is glass) make a magical hand gesture at the same time and the gimmick will fall off and the liquid will come flowing out. Because the gimmick is clear it will not be seen falling. When the effect is over secretly pick the gimmick up off the floor.

TIP: For extra fun perform this magic tricks revealed over a spectators head. Just make sure nothing goes wrong!

Threes and Fours

Effect: The spectator takes a card and puts it face up on the table. Then the magician deals the rest of the cards into piles of the cards value the spectator just picked. When the top card of each pile is turned over they all match.

The Trick:: Put the fours on the top of the pack and on top of these put the threes.

Deal the top eight cards face down on the table in a row and ask a spectator to pick any card.Push the selected card forward, still face down.

Pick up the remaining cards from left to right, tucking each card picked up below the previous one, and place the seven cards on top of the deck. No matter which card remains on the table the order from the top of the deck is several threes, then several fours.

Start dealing cards from the top of the deck face down on to the table in one pile. When you have dealt at least seven cards ask one of the spectators to shout stop whenever they wish. Stop dealing when the spectator says and put the cards left in your hand to one side.

Now say that you will deal the cards into a number of piles according to the value of the selected card. If the card is a three, deal the cards into three face down piles. If the card is a four, then deal four piles. When you turn over the top card of each pile it is shown to be a three, quite a coincidence!

Should the selected card be a four you simply deal the cards into four heaps. The four top cards will be the four threes.

You can also change the cards with the card you desired.

Psychic Trick

The Magic Effect:

This magic trick with cards is set up as follows. 12 cards are placed face up on the table ( using any red and black cards from the deck ) in the same pattern you see in the diagram below here. You, the magician, tell someone to secretly pick any BLACK card. After telling them to make several secret random moves, you are able to tell them which card they have moved to.

The Magic Secret:

Tell your audience member to pick any black card. Tell them to next move UP or DOWN to the nearest RED card. Next, tell them to move LEFT or RIGHT to the nearest BLACK card. Next, tell them to move DIAGONALLY To the Nearest RED card. Finally, tell them to move UP or DOWN to the nearest BLACK card. If you follow these directions carefully, your audience member will always end up on the MIDDLE CARD ON THE BOTTOM ROW.

Torn and Restored Card Trick

Effect: A card ( which can even be a signed card ) is ripped into four pieces. The spectator puts a finger on the pieces and the pieces seem to magically restore themselves back into a whole card. !!!

Preparation: Before doing the trick, rip off one fourth of a playing card of the same colour of suit as the one that you will be appearing to tear.
Start the trick with the card facing in front of you and fold it into fourths, creasing the card and then unravelling it.
Explain to your audience that doing this makes it easier to tear the card evenly.

Performance:

Hold the card in front of you, facing the audience, the extra torn card piece should be pressed by your thumb onto the side of the card that is facing you. Rip down the upper middle of the card stopping at the centre. Now fold down the upper right corner and slide out the corner you ripped of earlier as the piece that was ripped of.

( This should look like you have ripped of the corner from the card - the audience cannot see that the real corner is still attached to the card and folded out of their view .)

Now put the torn piece behind the card again, being held in position with your thumb.

Fold what is now the lower right corner behind the card. As you are bending this piece back, slide the extra piece into view again, pretend to rip it off. Place it behind the card and fold the card in half again.

( really it is still together )

Pretend to rip it in half again, but just slide the loose piece off the pile convincingly to look like it has ripped. Place the piece behind the card which is now folded up.

Now even though the card is not ripped, you can fan the pieces to make it look like three or four pieces. Ask a spectator to place their fingers on the " torn " pieces. As you set the pieces on the table, steal the loose piece with your thumb and hide it in your hand by using a finger palm move.

Misdirect and place the loose piece in your pocket. Now ask the spectator to examine the card and they will find that it is in one piece.

Take a bow, as the audience look completely baffled.

Feel the Heat

Effect:

The cards are spread out between the magician's hands and the spectator is instructed to take a card from anywhere in the pack. The card is replaced and the deck is squared. By "feeling the heat" on the backs of each of the cards, the magician is able to tell which was the last card selected.

Read on for a few cool variations. You can practically do the same trick three times with three different endings and it will seem like three completely different tricks!

Secret:

First, let your friend shuffle the deck. Shuffling always adds to an already good card trick. Fan the cards out in the best way that you know how, and ask your friend to select any card from anywhere in the entire deck. As they take it out, square up the deck. Cut the deck somewhere in the middle, taking the top half with your right hand. Tell them to look at their card and remember it.

Outstretch your left hand, and have them set the card down on that half of the deck. While they are doing this, or while they were looking at their card, whichever is less obvious, glimpse the card on the bottom of the pack in your right hand...and remember it! Instruct them to place their card face down on that packet in your left hand. Drop the right hand-packet on top of the left-hand packet. Once again, hand the deck to your friend and tell them to cut the deck and complete the cut. They can do this as many times as they want, but only single cuts at a time. (This will not affect the order of the cards.) Take the deck back.

What you have just done is placed a key card right above their card. You don't know the identity of their card, but since you know the card right above it, it is almost as good! Now, there are several finishes to this trick. All of your work is practically done, and here is where your acting ability is put to use. Make these finishes as dramatic as possible, act as if you yourself are amazed, and what an incredible sleight-of-hand artist you are.

Feel the Heat:

Pretend to feel the heat that they left on the card when they touched it. Set the deck down and slowly feel the back of each card, turning them over and tossing them, face up, into a pile off to the side. They will be watching your eyes, so do NOT look at the pile. Instead, stare at the face down deck, and use your side vision to just glimpse the card. Pretend to be concentrating on the face down deck. The longer it takes, the more dramatic it can be. When you see the "key card" tossed off to the side, pause. Take a deep breath. Say "this is it!", and let them turn over the next card. They will be amazed.

Feel the pulse:

A great variation, although it's pretty much the same trick, the audience will think it is a different trick entirely. Just don't do these two tricks directly in a row.

Spread the cards face up across the table. Ask your friend to point with his index finger. Grab their wrist as if you are going to feel their pulse increase as their finger slides across their card. Make several passes back and forth across the spread. Slowly slow down the motion and stop on the card that is directly above the "key card." Touch their finger to their card. They will think you can really feel their pulse increase. They will be amazed.

Credits to trickmagic.com for this trick.

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Card Between the Jokers

Effect:

The cards are spread out between the magician's hands and the spectator is instructed to touch one card somewhere in the middle of the pack. The touched card is turned face up. The deck is squared up, and the spectator cuts the deck several times. The jokers found the card! One joker is on top of the card, and one joker is right below the selected card. Truly a card masterpeice!

Secret:

First, get the jokers on the top and bottom of the deck as you shuffle the cards (you can pretend to count the cards to "make sure they are all there" or something.) Don't make it obvious. Once the jokers are on the top and bottom of the pack, do a couple fake shuffles. You can do a quick overhand shuffle and just leave the two cards in their place. Every good card trick becomes much better with a good shuffle.

Now, spread the cards out between your hands (like you would if you were fanning the cards in your two hands). Ask the spectator to TOUCH one card.

Then you just outjog it about an inch. (This means move their card toward them, but it still remains in the deck). Now if they touched a card near the middle, you should have about half the cards held in the left hand, and half in the right - but still in the fanned/spread out position. This is the hard part.

Use the cards in your right hand to push down on the right side of the selected card and the left hand's cards to push up on the left side of it.

This should flip the selected card face up.

Square up the cards, have the spectator cut the deck as many times as they want (single cuts only).

Now spread the the cards out again and set them on the table. Pause. Say something like "Ohhhhhh the seven of diamonds!" Right now you should have their card sandwiched between the jokers, and the hard work is done.

Now it's time for the fun. Wave your hands over the deck and do something that looks a little magical. Have a member of the audience speak to the deck and say "Jokers...Find the Card!!"

Now build up the drama...
If you're using a table, move the three cards forward away from the rest of the deck. Turn all the other cards face up to show that there are no jokers in either pile. "No Jokers Here. No Jokers in this pile either!" Have them turn over the card right above and the card right below the face up card. Yes, the jokers have found the card!

Credits to trickmagic.com for this trick!

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A Flying Card

A card is selected from an unprepared pack which has been thoroughly shuffled. When the card is returned the pack is again shuffled. The performer holds the pack in his right hand, and asks the name of the selected card. The answer is no sooner given when the card jumps out of the pack, and high in the air.

Fig. 51

Fig. 52

Before the knack of this trick is acquired, there will be no little practice spent on it. When the selected card is returned to the pack, it is brought to the top by the "pass," and left there, even though the cards are once more shuffled. Then the performer places the pack, face down, on the right hand, the thumb on one side, the first and second fingers on the other. The selected card (which is on top) rests on the side where the fingers are, and its opposite edge, where the thumb is, is raised about a quarter of an inch, and held loosely by the thumb, as shown in Fig. 52. The muscles of the hand which must be kept tense, suddenly press the pack into the position shown in Fig. 53; the thumb slips between the top card and the others, while the first and second fingers glide along the bottom of the pack. Almost at the same moment the top card will spring out of the hand and go flying in the air, as shown in Fig. 54. In its descent it will be found possible to catch the card on the top of the pack, but that means more practice and plenty of it.

Fig. 53

Fig. 54

To Discover a Card Drawn from the Pack

Method 1. A card is drawn, and when it has been replaced in the pack, the one who drew it is asked to square up the cards. When the card is put back the performer watches to see in what part of the pack it goes. He puts the pack behind his back. He knows about where the card is, that is, whether it is near the top, the bottom, or the middle of the pack. Let us suppose it is near the top, and the performer thinks there are nine or ten cards above it. (Let us say, just here, that an expert handler of cards can tell almost the exact number, at a glance.) Holding the pack behind his back he takes three cards from the top, and showing them asks if the drawn card is among them. Of course it is not. He throws the three cards on the table, and then with three more cards taken from the top he goes through the same procedure. To take three more cards from the top would be extremely hazardous, as the selected card might be among them and there would be no way to know it. Instead of pursuing the same course he takes one card only from the top and two from the bottom. Should the selected card be one of these three, he knows at once that it is the card he took from the top. Should the selected card be placed near the bottom the same procedure is followed, but instead of showing cards taken from the top of the pack, he begins to show from the bottom. If the selected card has been placed in the middle of the pack, the performer brings a number of cards from top to bottom so that the selected card will be nearer the top, and proceeds as at first.

There is another way of doing this trick. Some one is asked to draw seven or eight cards and to think of one. These cards are replaced on top of the pack, which is then shuffled without disturbing the drawn cards. Then the pack is placed behind the performer's back, and he takes four cards from the bottom and one from the top and throws them on the table faces upward. He asks if the card that was thought of is among them. If it proves to be, he knows it must be the one he took from the top of the pack. Should the selected card not be among them, he repeats the proceeding just described until he reaches the card thought of.

Method 2. The cards are shuffled and one is drawn. Taking the pack in his left hand the performer holds it at the bottom in an upright position between the thumb and first finger. The thumb is stretched across the back of the pack and the first finger across the front. The cards face toward the audience. With the second finger of the right hand the performer opens the pack about the middle, by drawing the upper part toward himself, as shown in the illustration, Fig. 48. This gives him an opportunity to see the bottom card of the upper part. The drawn card is placed in the opening thus formed. Then the cards are cut or shuffled, and it is simple enough to locate the card as it will be below the card that was at the bottom of the upper part. The cutting or shuffling of the pack will seldom, if ever, separate the two cards.

Fig. 48

Method 3. A card is selected from a previously shuffled pack. The pack is in the left hand and about half of it is lifted off with the right hand, which holds the pack between the thumb and second finger. The selected card is laid on top of the lower packet and the upper packet is placed above it with a little sliding motion toward the body. At the same time the thumb of the right hand slides the top card of the lower packet, which is the selected card, a little out toward the wrist, where the performer may easily turn it upward with the thumb and catching a glimpse of the index, learn what the card is.

Method 4. When the card has been drawn, the pack is bent almost end to end, as in Fig. 49. When the card is replaced and the pack is shuffled, all the cards will be curved slightly except one which is, of course, the one that was drawn. Sometimes the pack is curved lengthwise, as in Fig. 50. In that case when the selected card is replaced and the cards are shuffled they may be sprung from hand to hand without disturbing the bridge and the selected card may be found in a moment.

Fig. 49

Fig. 50

Method 5. If done with care it is almost impossible to detect this trick. A faint line is drawn with ink or a pencil across the edges of the pack at B, as shown in the illustration, Fig. 51. To exhibit the trick the pack is first thoroughly shuffled, and then one of the audience is asked to draw a card. While he is looking at it, the performer turns the pack, so that the line which was near the bottom of the pack is now near the top. When the drawn card is replaced, the performer need only look for the little mark that is on the edge to know the card. Shuffling the pack does not interfere with the accomplishment of the trick, provided of course, that the position of the cards are not changed. More than one card may be drawn when necessary. Of course, the mere telling of what card has been drawn does not amount to much as a trick, unless in combination with something else.

To Pass Five Coins from One Tumbler to Another

Two glass tumblers are used for this trick: one is without preparation of any kind, but the other has the bottom cut out. The performer borrows five half-dollars, and substitutes for them five of his own. In each of these is drilled a tiny hole, near the edge. A black silk thread is tied to one coin and the thread is then passed through the holes in the others. To the free end of the thread is a bit of wax. The wax is held between the roots of the fingers, and the coins, stacked up, are between the finger tips. The coins are dropped, one at a time into the unprepared tumbler, and when all are in the wax is stuck on the back of the glass. The glass is covered with a handkerchief; the bottomless glass is also covered with a handkerchief. The coins are now ordered to leave one glass and go to the other. Taking hold of the handkerchief on the unprepared glass and at the same time of the thread and dislodging the wax, the performer removes handkerchief and coins, the latter concealed in the folds of the former. Picking up the bottomless glass, which is still covered, he places it on his left hand, in the palm of which the borrowed coins are concealed. Pulling off the handkerchief, he shakes up the coins in the glass, and then pours them out into his right hand, and placing the glass on the table, carries the money to the audience to show them that it is entirely unprepared.

The Melting Handkerchiefs

The performer comes forward with a soup-plate in one hand and two silk handkerchiefs in the other. The plate, after being shown empty, is placed upon the ground, inverted, whilst the performer takes the handkerchiefs in his hands, and commences to roll them up in them. He rubs his hands together, and, on opening them, the handkerchiefs are found to have melted completely away. The soup-plate is then raised by one of the company, and the handkerchiefs are found beneath.

The soup-plate portion of the trick is thus easily managed: The performer has balled up under the fingers of the hand holding the plate duplicate handkerchiefs of those he holds openly in the other hand. They are of very fine silk, and so are easily concealed. As he boldly shows the inside of the plate, where the fingers are, the spectators never suspect the presence of the handkerchiefs, or of anything else. As the plate is laid carelessly upon the floor, it is drawn a few inches towards the performer, the side that is towards the company scraping the ground. In this way the handkerchiefs are got underneath. The melting away of the handkerchiefs is accomplished with the aid of the plain-looking implement depicted at Fig. 45. It is constructed of wood, is hollow, and is blackened on the outside. Through the end is a hole, and through that is passed a piece of stout elastic, having a knot on the inside. On the side seam of the vest is sewn a ring, and the end of the elastic, after being passed through this, is brought round the back and left side, and fastened securely to a button in front. This great length is necessary for the facile performance of the trick. When at rest, the wooden holder rests against the ring on the vest. After the performer has finished placing the plate upon the floor, he retires to the stage, and stands sideways to the company. Supposing the holder to be on his right side, that side would be nearest the company. First of all, the sleeves are turned very far back, and then, under cover of the right forearm, the left hand seizes the holder, and, drawing it out of concealment, places it in the right hand, where the handkerchiefs are being held. The performer may get out the holder before this, if he pleases—the proper time for so doing being whenever a favourable opportunity presents itself—and keep it palmed in the right hand. The arm will always prevent the elastic being seen by the company. With his arms outstretched, and the hands together, the performer proceeds to gather in the handkerchiefs by slow degrees, the fingers of the left hand pushing them into the holder. When they are all pushed home, the hands are opened slightly, the left hand only being moved for this purpose, and the holder, thus released, flies back until stopped by the ring. The performer continues rubbing away the handkerchiefs, still supposed to be in his hand, and he must act as though they were being rolled into an ever-decreasing ball, the final kneading being done by the tips of the fingers of the right hand, working in the palm of the left hand. All that now remains is to have the plate lifted. The trick may be prolonged and varied if the performer has a second holder on his left side containing handkerchiefs of other colours to those first used. By getting this holder out and rolling up the handkerchiefs from under the plate, the new handkerchiefs may be got out and the old ones substituted. Or the trick may be done the other way round, and the change executed first, the second handkerchiefs being found under the plate. There is no reason why this trick should not be even more elaborated, and further changes of handkerchiefs made. This may be done by means of a holder, some four inches in length, open at each end, and connected with the elastic by a metal fork-shaped piece, upon which it swivels by means of a pin passing through the centre. Each side can contain handkerchiefs of different colours, the pin through the centre preventing their becoming mixed with one another, and a variety of changes made, which will be intensely bewildering to the spectators, especially as the performer each time gives the handkerchief for examination, and shows his hands empty. The perfect simplicity and completeness of the method of vanishing permits of its being repeated any number of times, each successive change or disappearance causing fresh wonderment. Care must, however, be taken, in each instance, that the handkerchiefs are pressed well home in the holder, as an exposed portion might be seen as it flashed under the coat; whilst there is still greater danger of its subsequently working out and becoming slowly visible to the company. If the great length of elastic which I have recommended were not employed, the performer would not be able to stretch his arms out to their full extent in front of him; and it is highly essential for effect that the hands should be as far removed from the body as possible. The ingenuity of the performer will enable him to employ the holder in many tricks in which handkerchiefs take part.

To Pass an Egg from a Tumbler Into a Hat

For this a celluloid or a blown egg is needed. To it is attached a fine black silk thread, that has a small hook on the free end, which is fastened to the lower part of the performer's vest. The egg is stowed away under his vest or in a vest pocket. When ready for the trick a handkerchief and a soft felt hat are borrowed and laid on the table; near them are an egg and a goblet. The latter are handed out for examination, and as he goes back to his table the performer exchanges the real egg for the imitation one. Facing the audience, he drops the egg visibly into the goblet. Picking up the hat he stands it behind the goblet, brim up. Taking the handkerchief by two corners he spreads it out, as if to cover the goblet. While the latter is thus screened, the performer moves back a trifle, which causes the egg to rise up out of the glass and drop into the hat. The handkerchief is covered over the glass. Taking the hat in one hand and the glass in the other, the performer orders the egg to leave the glass and go into the hat. Seizing the handkerchief between his teeth he drags it off and shows the glass to be empty. The next moment he pours the egg from the hat into the glass. As he turns to put away the glass he unhooks the thread. Finally he returns the borrowed articles, thanking the owners.

It may be mentioned here that a simple and secure way to attach a piece of sewing silk to an egg is to tie one end of the thread to a piece of broken match, about three-quarters of an inch in length, then make a tiny hole in the shell of the egg, about the center, and push in the bit of match. The thread may break but will not pull off.

The Egg Ching Ching

About the year 1866, Colonel Stodare, a very skillful English conjurer, introduced a little trick with an egg and a handkerchief to which he gave the above title. It proved very successful and Carl Herrmann exhibited it some years later at his first performance in New York; and afterward his successor, Alexander Herrmann, often included it in his program. In its first form, an egg was placed in a glass goblet, over which was thrown a large handkerchief. Standing at a distance, the performer picked up a small square of red silk, which he began to gather into his hands.

When it was completely within his hands they were opened, and it was seen that the silk square had disappeared—if that is not a bull—and in the hands was an egg—presumably the one placed in the goblet. On removing the handkerchief from the goblet, the silk square was seen in the glass, but the egg had gone.

The explanation of the trick is simple: the egg that is placed in the goblet has been blown, that is, it is nothing but an egg-shell, the egg itself having been cleaned out by means of two holes, one at each end. By blowing in one hole the contents of the egg comes out at the other. It is not a pleasant job to prepare such an egg, and for that reason many performers use a wooden egg or, what is much better, one of celluloid, which is made specially for conjurers' use. When the performer is about to place the egg into the goblet, it is lying on the large handkerchief, which is spread over his left hand. A fine black silk thread about four inches long attaches the egg to the center of the handkerchief, and between the two is the silk square which is folded into as small shape as possible and concealed in a half-fold of the handkerchief. To fold this properly it is plaited back and forth until it is one long strip, and then the strip is plaited in the same way until it is about an inch and one-half square. Folded in this way, the natural resilience of the silk will cause it to open out when released.

As the performer is about to cover the goblet with the handkerchief after the egg is in, he relaxes his hold of the silk square and drops that in, also. Back of the second square of silk, which is on a table, is concealed a hollow metal egg, with an opening on one side. The silk square and this egg are picked up together, and as the square is drawn into the performer's hands, he works it into the hollow egg, which he finally shows to the audience, who suppose it to be the egg that was placed in the glass. Going to the goblet, the performer lifts up the handkerchief and with it the hollow egg, and shows the square of silk, which has, apparently, passed invisibly into the glass.

In place of a hollow metal egg, the performer often prepares a real egg. This can be done by soaking the egg for some time in strong vinegar. After a while the shell will become so soft that it may be cut, without splintering, by driving a sharp pointed penknife in with gentle taps. When the piece is out, the contents are scooped out, and the egg is washed out with a weak solution of carbolic acid, and then lined with a thin coating of plaster of paris. Prepared in this way, it is infinitely better than any imitation.

Another and better method:—An improvement on this trick is to use a drinking-glass, the bottom of which has been cut out. This must be done, of course, by a glass-cutter or engraver. He should be instructed to leave a narrow rim around the bottom, that is, the bottom should not be cut close to the edge.

Provided with such a glass, the performer may use a real egg and dispense with the duplicate handkerchief, as only one is needed. Besides the egg and the handkerchief a piece of rather stiff letter-paper is required. This is rolled into a cylinder which will fit easily over the tumbler, as a cover, and is fastened together with a small pin.

This method of presenting the trick has long been a puzzle to many professional conjurers. It is now properly explained for the first time.

Everything being ready, the performer, with an egg concealed just under the lowest part of his waistcoat, advances to his audience, and begs for the loan of an egg. Addressing one of the company, he asks, "Will you, sir, accommodate me with a fresh egg?" extending his open left hand at the same time. "Thank you; lay it here, please." As the performer leans forward to receive it, his right hand goes, naturally, to the bottom of his waistcoat and gets hold of the egg. At the same time the closed hand moves to the gentleman's mouth, and the concealed egg is allowed to show itself at the tip of the fingers. It appears as if the egg were taken from the mouth. The egg is placed on the table along-side a goblet.

In the next move the performer obtains the handkerchief. This he produces "magically," by means of a false finger or any one of the many ways.

He now inverts a glass goblet, placing it mouth down on the table, and on the bottom of this he stands the bottomless tumbler. "I place this here," he says, "so that it may be seen easily, and in it I put the egg which the gentleman has lent me." In putting this in, the performer is careful to have it rest on the rim which is left at the bottom of the glass. "I hope you all can see the egg." As he says this, he picks up the tumbler with his right hand and places it on the extended palm of his left hand. "I will shake the glass so that you may hear the egg as well as see it. Listen." In shaking it thus the egg is dislodged and rests on his hand. With the paper cylinder, which is ready, he covers the tumbler and in front of it, on his fingers, he throws the handkerchief; then picking up with his right hand the empty tumbler, still covered, he replaces it on the bottom of the inverted goblet. The egg is now in his left palm, but the handkerchief conceals it. He turns the hand with its back toward the audience, and bringing his two hands together begins to roll the handkerchief into a compact ball, which he presses into his right palm and holds it there concealed. He then brings the egg to the tip of his fingers and shows it. "See!" he exclaims, "here is the egg, and in its place in the glass we find the handkerchief." As he says this the performer allows his right palm to come over the top opening of the cylinder, into which he drops the handkerchief, which passes into the tumbler. At the same moment he lifts the tumbler cover, showing that an actual change has taken place.

The Pass

One of the foremost artifices resorted to in card conjuring is that known as the "pass," "shift," or sauter la coupe, as it is called in French. By this sleight a card which has been placed in the middle of the pack is transferred to either the top or the bottom without any one perceiving it. The position of two or more cards may be changed as readily as that of one card.

In order to do this the lower part of the pack on which a chosen card is placed must take the place of the upper part, which, in turn, goes to the bottom; in other words the positions of the two halves or portions are reversed.

When a card that has been selected is to be replaced in the pack, the performer opens the pack, as shown in Fig. 1. The card is received on the lower portion of the pack, which is then closed. In closing it, however, the tip of the little finger of the left hand is inserted between the two portions. The pack is now lying in the left hand in the position shown in Fig. 2, that is, with the thumb on the top of the pack and the fingers on the opposite side, the little finger dividing the pack in two.

Fig. 1

Fig. 2

Placing his right hand over his left, the performer grasps the lower portion of the pack between the thumb at the bottom and the second finger at the top, as in Fig. 3. The top packet which is now held by the fingers of the left hand, the little finger below and the other fingers on top, is drawn away by opening out the fingers, and when it is clear of the lower packet the fingers are closed again, bringing it thereby to the bottom. So that the two packets may clear each other in passing, the right side of the lower packet must be raised a little, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The part marked A in Fig. 4 presses steadily against the root of the left thumb. At BB it is held between the ball of the thumb and the second finger of the right hand. While in this position if the lower part of the left thumb exerts a pressure at A, the side CC will be raised, the thumb and second finger of the right hand at BB acting as pivots. The movements of the two packets must be simultaneous, and be made noiselessly. The right hand acts as a screen to hide the manipulations and should be held motionless. The pack is held at an angle of about forty-five degrees.

Fig. 3

Fig. 4

The manipulations should be practised before a mirror and slowly until the exact moves are reached, but until then speed ought not be sought.

Instead of opening the pack bookwise to receive the selected card, it may be spread out like a fan between the hands, and the little finger inserted when closing it.

Fig. 5

When it is desired to bring the selected card to the bottom of the pack instead of the top, the little finger of the left hand must be placed under the card.

The "pass" may be made with one hand, but as it is almost impossible to make it invisibly it is of little practical use, and need not be considered here.

For this trick, credits to classicmagic.net

Coin Disappear

Effect:

The magician shows a glass, upside down, and a coin on a sheet of colored paper.

He puts a handkerchief over the glass and moves it over.

He pulls the handkerchief off and Abracadabra! the coin has disappeared.

Supplies:

A sheet of construction paper (1), a clear glass, a handkerchief and a coin.

Preparation:

Trace the glass onto the sheet of paper and cut the circle out. Then tape it to the glass so when you put it onto a piece of paper the same color it blends in.

Secret:

When you do the above put the glass onto a piece of paper and just basically move the paper covered glass over the coin while the whole thing is under the handkerchief so the glass covers the coin. Pull off the handkerchief. The coin will have "disappeared".

Crazy Eights

Effect:

Someone in the audience chooses one of eight cards while the magician is out of the room (or has his back turned). The magician's assistant points to the cards one at a time, asking the magician if each is the chosen card. The magician guesses the correct one.

Supplies:

~8 cards -- one of which must be an eight (let's say the eight of hearts for our explanation)
~an assistant who's in on the trick
~OPTIONAL : magic puppet

Preparation:

Arrange 8 cards in the same pattern as the hearts on the eight of hearts.

Secret:

Have the magician leave the room. If you're using the magic puppet, let it stay -- if there are young kids in the crowd they'll get a big kick out of thinking the magic puppet is the one giving away the card.

Have the assistant choose someone from the audience to pick one of the eight cards. Show it to everyone (including the magic puppet if you're using it). Place the card back in the correct position.

Have the magician come back in the room (and retrieve the magic puppet if you're using it).

Have the assistant point to cards one at a time, in no particular order, asking "is this it".

Now here's the trick... the assistant must point to the 8 sometime before they point to the card that was chosen. When the assistant points to the 8, he should point to the heart on the eight that is in the same position as the card on the table (remember, we arranged the cards just like the hearts on the eight). This will tell the magician which card is the correct one.

If using the magic puppet: When the assistant points to the correct card, have the magician about to say, "no, that's...", but then have the puppet interrupt him and whisper something (unheard to the audience) in his ear. The magician looks at the puppet and says... "are you sure?" The magic puppet nods it's head and the magician says, "I guess that's the card that was picked!"

Young children will go on about how having the puppet watch was "cheating" *grin*

Spell it Right

Effect:

The magician shuffles the deck and takes the top thirteen cards. Holding the cards face down, he proceeds to spell the first card name, Ace. "A-C-E," and for each letter, he puts one card under the packet of thirteen cards. He then flips over the next card (the fourth,) and it is an Ace. He repeats this process for each card number, Ace through King. At the end, he has all thirteen cards face up on the table, in sequential order.

Supplies:

~a deck of cards

Preparation:

Remove and arrange 13 cards in the following setup, top card down: Three, Eight, Seven, Ace, Queen, Six, Four, Two, Jack, King, Ten, Nine, and Five. Put these on top of the deck.

A magic teacher named Harold wrote to share a little story he tells his students to help them remember the setup for this trick: "Three hundred & eighty seven years ago there lived a Queen that was sixty four years old. She had two children. One named Jack, the other named King. Jack was ten years old and King was nine years old and the were both in the fifth grade." 3,8 7,A,Q,6,4,2,J,K,10,9 and 5 Thanks Harold! (Harold's Site)

Secret:

To start, pretend to shuffle the cards, leaving the top thirteen untouched (young children can skip the shuffling part and just begin with the 13 cards.

Remove the top thirteen cards as a group and arrange them like a fan, so that your audience can see their faces. Square up the cards, and hold them face down.

When you spell out each card, do it as follows: let's say you're spelling the word ACE. Spell A, remove the top card and place it on the bottom. Then spell C, and remove the top card and place that on the bottom. Next spell E, remove this top card and place it on the bottom. Flip the new top card and show that it's an Ace, and place it ON THE TABLE (not on the bottom of the deck).

Continue in this manner until all the cards are face up on the table. (eh: You spell the cards in order: Ace, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, J, Q, K) Your audience may realize that the cards must have been set up beforehand, but this only adds to the mystery - and you can treat it as a puzzle for them to try to figure out.

I know what you choose!

Effect:

The magician gives two volunteers each half a deck of cards and leaves the room (or turns his back).

Each volunteer choses a card from the OTHER person's deck, memorizes and shows it to the audience. The volunteers put the cards they chose into their own deck.

The magician takes each of the decks and spreads them out on the table and tells the audience what the cards were.

Supplies:

~a deck of cards

Secret:

You need to split the deck into cards with a flat (or sharp) top and cards with a round top

(the 3 is usually made with a flat top, but sometimes is rounded... look at your deck to figure out which pile it should be in for your trick)

FLAT TOP:

3 4 5 7 J K A

ROUND TOP:

2 6 8 9 10 Q

with practice it will get easier to spot these cards quickly.

Put the two halves together, one on top of the other. When doing the trick, turn the cards so they're facing you and split the deck so that one half is the flat top and the other is the round top (I usually make this easier by putting the ACE of SPADES where the two halves divide. That way, when I see the ace, I know where to split the deck in two

Give each volunteer one of the halves (one volunteer gets the flat tops and the other gets the round tops).

When they chose the cards and put them in their own deck it ends up that there's one flat top in the round top pile and one round top in the flat top pile.

With practice you'll quickly be able to spot the oddball when you spread the decks out on the table.

Read the Cards

Effect:

Magician lays out 11 cards and asks a volunteer to move several cards over from the right side to the left side while the magician's back is to the cards so he/she doesn't see how many.

Then, when the volunteer is done the magician turns back around. He/she waves his hand over the cards and turns over one of the cards. The number on the card is the number of cards the volunteer moved.

Supplies:

11 cards from a regular deck of 52. Take 1 joker, an ace and all the numbers up to 10.

Secret:

Lay out the cards face down in this order: 6 5 4 3 2 A J 10 9 8 7 (A is Ace and J is Joker).

Then have someone move the cards one at a time from right to left.

Say they moved three cards (the magician wouldn't know it though) the position of the cards would now be

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 A J 10

Then wave your hand over the cards and silently count 7 cards over from left to right. Turn the 7th card over. It's the three!!!

It doesn't matter how many cards they move over, this will always work.

Always count 7 cards over (starting with the setup above) and it'll be the number of cards they moved.

If they decide not to move any at all the card will be a Joker and this tells you they didn't move any at all.

Changing Pockets Trick

The Effect: Borrow a coin and have it marked. You say that you are always losing money through a hole in your pocket and then you drop the marked coin into your pocket. "What's weird", you say, "is that the hole isn't in this pocket (the one in which you dropped the coin), but in this one!" You lift up your other foot and the borrowed marked coin is there!

The Method: You need an extra coin. (Well, how did you think it was done?) Most people have a quarter on them, so let's say you want to borrow a quarter. On an "off moment", secretly place the extra quarter under your left foot. (I sometimes adjust my socks and stick it under the shoe.) Have someone loan you a quarter and ask them to mark it in some unusual way with a pen.

Take the quarter and just drop it into your right trouser pocket. Shake your leg as if you are shaking the coin into the hole and down your leg. Then say, "What's weird is that the hole isn't in this pocket (the one in which you dropped the coin), but in this one!" You lift up your other foot and the borrowed coin is there!

Then - and here's where you've gotta have guts - pick up the coin with your right hand and place it (don't drop it!) into the right trouser pocket as you pick up the other coin with the same hand. (Just switch them.) With your hand still in the pocket, look confused and say, "I'm sorry, did you lend me this or was it mine?" He'll tell you it was his and you'll return his coin (the marked one). He'll, of course, inspect the coin for the mark. It's gutsy, but it works.

X Ray Vision Magic Trick

A jaw dropping trick that will stun your friends! The object of this trick is to cut a pack of cards into three face down piles. You then gaze at the three piles for a few moments in total concentration and correctly name the top cards of the three piles.

Here is how the trick is done.
Before you start the trick you must know the name of the top card of the pack, which is easy to find out. Simply glimpse at the top card as you spread the pack to show the spectator that it is an ordinary pack of cards!
Now put the pack of cards face down on the table and ask the spectator to cut it into three roughly equal piles, keeping all the cards face down. As the cards are being cut you must keep track of the pile with your known card on top, let's say the "King of Spades".
You now say to the spectator"I have x-ray vision. I have enough of this x-ray power to see through paper and other materials to a depth of about a millimetre, which is just about deep enough to read through a playing card, most of the time!"
Now tell the spectator to write down on a piece of paper each card that you have seen with the "x-ray vision" so that no mistakes can be made.
Now point at one of the piles (not the one with your known card on top), frown for a second and say "That card is the King of Spades" Lift the card up from the pile with your left hand without the spectator being able to see the face of it, smile as if you were right and remember the card (let's say its the five of diamonds) and keep it hidden in your right hand.
Now point to the other pile with the unknown card on top and say, "That card is the five of diamonds" Lift the card up with your left hand and look at it again smiling confidently. Remember this second card, let's say it's the "Jack of Hearts" and hide it with the first card in your other hand.
Now look at the third pile (the one with the King of Spades on top) and say, "That card is the Jack of Hearts". Lift up the card and smile again as you look at it and then place with the other two cards.
Now ask the victim "What cards did you write down?"
As the victim reads out the names of the cards you turn them over one by one showing that you do indeed have x-ray vision!

The Travelling Cards

This is a pretty trick, and one that is always much commented upon by spectators who have seen it neatly performed. The performer has a couple of cards chosen, which he brings to the top of the pack; then, addressing the company, he refers to the notion that the sleeve of the coat is employed by conjurors for their concealment. He deprecates the attempt, made by many performers, to deny the immense aid afforded by this portion of the attire, especially for the effective concealment of eggs, pigeons, cannonballs, and other articles equally easy of manipulation (this as sarcastically as he pleases), and says he will now proceed to demonstrate, conclusively, in what way the sleeve is employed. "So far from there being any difficulty, ladies and gentlemen, in concealing cards, in the sleeve, for instance, it is a very easy matter to cause them to travel up or down with great rapidity, and invisibly. My waistcoat, as you see, contains nothing". The performer cannot very well unbutton and open his waistcoat before the company, so, to show it is empty, he places his hand inside, and performs the action of emptying sufficiently vigorously to dislodge anything that might be there. He next palms a dozen or more cards from the top of the pack, and then, extending the left arm, ruffles the edges of the remaining cards. This act, he explains, has had the effect of sending a card up his sleeve, and he affects to watch its progress. A jerk of the arm is made, the contraction being caused, the performer says, by the passage, by the card, of the elbow. Plunging the right hand into the vest, the cards palmed are dropped there, one card only, taken from the bottom, being slowly extracted. A second card is made to pass in the same way, and another indifferent card extracted. The performer now asks the choosers of the two cards on the top at what numbers they shall pass up the sleeve. This feat is easy of accomplishment, as the cards are taken from the bottom until the proper number has been reached. When the cards in the vest have been exhausted, more can be palmed, and the operation continued until all the pack has been employed; but this finish is by no means necessary to the success of the trick, which may be considered concluded when the two selected cards have been withdrawn, although it is as well to continue passing cards until no more are left in the vest.

The Walking Coin

Simple as this little trick seems it is very deceptive. Attached to the lower button of his vest the performer has a hair or, if at some distance from his audience, a piece of fine black sewing silk. At the other end of this hair or thread is a little pellet of wax, which is stuck to another button of his vest. Asking for a small coin, a dime or a cent, the performer secretly gets hold of the wax and sticks it on the coin. Then he takes a tumbler or goblet in his left hand and drops the coin into it. Shaking the glass and at the same time extending his arm, he causes the coin gradually to creep higher and higher in the glass until it reaches the fingers of the right hand held out for it. The wax is quietly removed and the coin is returned to its owner. By taking care to shake the glass continually, the modus operandi of the trick will be completely concealed.

Tie a Knot Instantaneously

Take an end of the handkerchief in either hand between the thumb and forefinger, the end in the left hand pointing inwards, and that in the right hand outwards, the hands being held so that their backs are towards the company, the thumbs on top and the little fingers below. Open the fingers of each hand at the first and middle fingers, and then bring the hands together until they overlap a couple of inches, the right hand on the outside. This will bring the end of the handkerchief in either hand between the opened fingers of the opposite one. The fingers close on the ends, and the hands are at once separated, when the knot will be found to be tied. This may be first practised with a piece of stout string, and the learner must not be satisfied until he can tie the knot by merely bringing the fingers together for an instant, the knot being tied apparently by means of the mere collision of the two hands. It is astonishing what perfection can be attained by means of practice, the knot at last seeming to appear on the handkerchief, instead of being tied.

Floating Ring Trick

Make some really thick salt water. REALLY thick. soak a piece of thread in it somewhere between 45 and 60 minutes. take it out and let it dry. Now you are ready. Ask someone for a ring. Tie it to the end of the thread. Hold the string so its like a pendulum. Now take a match and light the string down by the ring. The string will burn but the salt crystals can hold up a fairly light ring. An awesome effect.

Light a used match

Effect :

You take out a box of matches and go to light your cigarette or candle but when you open them they are all used.
You then say I hate that when people put used matches back in the box, oh sorry it was me I hate it when I do that. You then proceed to take out the used match and strike it and it lights. You can have them already stashed in the dirty ashtray and take one out and then light your cigarette or candle.
Secret:

All you have to do to make it look like it is a used match is dip the match in black ink, and then wait for it to dry. Then dip it in ash and it will look like a used match but when you strike it the match will light like any normal match

Quick Coin Vanish

Effect:

A coin is placed onto the table. It is picked up and it magically vanishes.

Method:

First, let me tell you this is about as easy as a magic trick as it gets. Set the coin onto the table with your left hand. Say something like "Check this out" and reach over with your right hand. Then press down on the coin with your index, middle, and 3rd fingers with your hand and arm parrallel with the table. Slide the coin towards you keeping in mind it should be completely covered up. Slide the coin off the table so it falls into your lap. Touch your thumb to your middle finger as if you are picking up the coin as it reaches the edge of the table. Keeping all your fingers closed still. Stare at where the coin should be as you slowly move your hand away from you back to about 6 inches above where the coin originally was. Start moving your thumb in a circular motion as if the coin is dissapearing. Slowly turn your hand around and spread your fingers apart. Now the rest is up to you. The more surprised you act and if you act like you were all fortunate to see a miracle, people will believe the trick even more and remember it.

Ice, Ice Baby

Effect :

Pour some water into a cup, blow on the cup and then turn it upside down where out pops some ice cubes.
You need a cup or glass that you can't see through. You also need a small sponge and and some ice cubes.

Method :

Prepare the cup by placing the sponge into the bottom of the cup. Then, drop a few ice cubes on top of the sponge and you're ready to go.
To perform pour a small amount of water (about an inch) into the cup. The sponge will absorb the water. Blow into the cup, wave your hands over it and dump out the ice cubes.
If you are using a disposible plastic cup for the trick, just throw it away at this time.
Watch the look of surprise on your friends faces.

Card Levitation

Effect:

The magician puts 1 or 4 cards under his hand. He slowly lifts his hand and the cards float with his hand. Holding his hand above the table, the magician pulls the cards of his hand and drops them on the table.
You will need: A ring, matchstick, card(s)

Secret:

1. Put the ring on your middle finger. Then put the matchstick under the ring so that both sides of the match stick out.
2. Place your hand palms down on the table and place a card under your palm but above the matchstick. You need to practice this move to make it look like your just placing a card under your palm not above a matchstick.
3. Now you can lift your hand from the table. Press your fingers down a little on the back of the cards, they will remain in position and appear to be levitating..

Coin Warp

Effect: Magician displays three coins, (nickels) on the table. One coin is picked up by the right hand and placed into the left hand. A second coin is picked up and placed in the left hand along with the first coin.The third coin is placed into the right pants pocket.

The left hand is opened to show that the third has travelled by magic into the left hand, making a total of three coins! The three coins are then dropped onto the table.

This entire sequence is repeated again revealing the coin has again travelled back into the left hand. The three coins are dumped onto the table.

This time the magician drops one coin into his left hand and places two coins into his pocket. Now when the left hand is opened, instead of the coins travelling back into the hand, the coin transforms into one big coin, a half dollar.

Preparation: To do this you need you need four coins instead of three. Ahha, that's the secret! You also need a larger coin for the transformation. I like to use four quarters and a silver dollar. I've also used four nickels and a half dollar. Basically you want to have a definite difference in the size of the coins, so that the transformation will be more dramatic.

Here's what you do before you start:

(I'll assume that you're going to use four nickels and a half dollar.) Place the big coin into your right jacket pocket. The extra, (4th) nickel is hidden in the right hand. Just try to relax the hand and not grip the coin with too much force. The other three nickels are on the table.

Performance: Pick up one coin from the table with the right hand, ( don't let anyone see the hidden coin. ) Place this coin into the left hand. Say to audience, "One coin in my hand."

(As soon as the left hand has the coin - make sure to close that hand.)

Grab another coin from the table. Place this coin into the left hand along with the first coin, but, at the same time secretly drop the hidden coin into the left hand as well, making a total of three coins. Say," Two coins in my hand." (Make sure to close your left hand after the coins are in it.) The audience believes that you have two coins in your left hand. Pick up the last, ( apparently 3rd coin ) from the table with your right hand and openly place it into your right pocket. Say, "And a coin goes into my pocket." But that's not what really happens! Here's what's really going on: you pretend to place the coin into your right pants pocket, but really come back out with it hidden in your right hand. Just let your hand relax naturally by your side.

"Did you see it jump back?" As soon as you say this, open your left hand and dump three coins onto the table to show that the 3rd coin has magically jumped from your pocket and back to your hand! ( Everyone will be watching the three coins so the heat will be off the hidden coin it your right hand .)

Now repeat the sequence again. The right hand picks up a coin and places it into your left hand; make sure not to expose the hidden coin in your right hand. Pick up another coin with your right hand and drop in into the left hand at the same time secretly adding the hidden coin. (You now have three coins in your left hand, but the audience is only aware of two.)

Now this is where we change it up for the big finish. The right hand picks up the last coin from the table and places it into the right pants pocket as before, but this time you really do drop the coin into your pocket and grab the big coin, ( half dollar or silver dollar; depending on what you're using ) and bring your hand out of your pocket keeping the big coin hidden from the audience. (Relax your right hand by your side.) Open your left hand and dump three coins on the table to show that the coin has travelled back again!

Ok, here's the final sequence.

(You have three coins on the table with the big coin hidden in your right hand.) "This time we will do it backwards. One coin in my hand." Pick up one of the coins from the table with your right hand and apparently place it into the left hand. What you really do is switch the coins. The right hand drops the big coin into the left hand while holding back the small coin. This takes a little practice, but it's not hard as it sounds. The closing of the left hand around the coin will cover the fact that you've switched them. This is the most important part of this coin trick. If you can this move smoothly, the coin trick will amaze everyone!

At this point the closed left hand has the big coin inside of it. (The audience thinks it has a smaller coin.) The right hand has a small coin secretly hidden in it. (There are two coins left on the table.) "And these two will go into my pocket." The right hand with its hidden coin picks up the final coins (at the same time) from the table and drops all three coins into the right pants pocket. Now you are clean. The left hand has the big coin and the right hand is empty. Casually show that your right hand is indeed empty.

At this point, look at your audience and ask, "How many coins are there now in my in my hand?" Some will answer, "Two" some others will say "three." You reply, "Only one - a big one!" As soon as you say "only one", open your hand to show the transformation and dump the big coin on the table! Every time I do this people grab for the big coin. They want to check it out and make sure it's for real. The beauty of this trick is that you're clean with nothing to hide. Congratulations, you've just performed a miracle! Have fun performing with your free coin magic trick.

Key Points

1. Whenever you have a coin hidden in your hand, try to relax. Slightly turn your body to the left so that the back of the right hand is facing the audience. Also never look at your hand when you have a coin hidden in it. Remember the audience will follow your eyes.

2. Practice the routine in the mirror. Any mistakes will be evident. Especially practice the switch with the big coin. Sometimes people will see a flash of the big coin. That's OK because they will think it's the smaller coin. Remember you're the only one who knows about the big coin!

3. When you have this coin magic trick well rehearsed, you can substitute and use other objects. I've used four grapes and a small lemon or tomato. I've also used four pebbles and a stone. Use your imagination.

Pull Cards From Thin Air

Appear to pull cards from thin air with this easy to set up guide to one of the classic and most enjoyable basic moves of card magic. Do not be fooled by the simplicity of this easy card sleight. It is very visual and can be a real reputation maker.This move is timeless and you will be able to perform an impressive card production easily and confidently, after following this easy sleight of hand guide.

Effect:

Amazing audience reaction because even though it's clear your hand is empty, you appear to grab card after card from behind their ears, under tables, even from thin air!

You Will Need :

Pack Of Cards
Practice, practice, practice.

How To Do The Trick :

Hold small stack of cards in palm position in your hand.

A small stack of cards should be held in the palm of the hand in palm position . Choose an amount of cards that you feel comfortable holding. It is not necessary to hold a lot of cards ( try and work out how many you plan to produce and count them out before the trick )
Grip end of pack with fingers and pull off top card with thumb.

Grip the edge of the pack with your fingers and use your thumb to peel of the top card.
Push up card with thumb and hold with thumb and for finger.

Continue using your thumb to move the card up to the audiences view, held beween the thumb and fore finger.

Move card forward as if reaching out to grab something from the air.

At the same time as you are pivoting up the card, the hand should be lunged forward slightly as if the card has been grabbed from thin air
Continue to produce cards from the air.

Continue to produce cards from the air in this manner, throwing down each card to the audience before producing the next card as if by magic. Practice this trick in front of a mirror to see it from an audience eye view and get to get the best angle for the trick to be performed.