A few weeks ago I organized a magic jam in Seattle and it was a blast! There were a ton of familiar faces and a few new ones. One of the great things about these is that is reminds me of why I got into magic, it’s FUN! A bunch of grown ups can spend the evening playing like children and it’s OK because we’re working!
One of the coin magic props that I really don’t like are coin boxes, like the Okito Box. I’ve never never really had a way to use one that makes sense for me. Recently I came across an O-Korto Coin Box Routine set. This is one lid and three coin box bottoms. There’s a regular Okito Box, a Boston Box and the O-Korto Box, which is a an Okito Box, but with a thicker wall so that the coins won’t fit into them. This set was an old Paul Diamond set and is quarter sized!
I thew this in my close up case and have been playing with it in my roving close up at the fair. I’m familiar with many coin box moves, so adding this is pretty easy. Just because I don’t do something, doesn’t mean I can’t do them or practice with that prop every now and then.
There’s not much to the routine that I’m doing and it’s basically following what comes in the instructions as far as flow of the effects. I did change a bit of the prop managment as the instructions are written for a performer that’s sitting and I perform standing.
The flow of effects is:
Coins go into box and coins penetrate into your hand
Coins won’t fit into the box when spectator tries
Coins now fit and you put the box without lid on your hand so the coins can be seen, then the box penetrates your hand leaving the coins on the back of your hand
Much to my surprise the part of the routine that’s getting the best reaction is when the audience can’t put the coins into the box. I’ve only read about the small box, and thought it was a dumb effect and I did up until the first time I tried it this week.
I love being wrong and having my opinion changes on things!
If you can find an O-Korto Coin Box set or a small box that matches your Okito box, you should give it a try.
When I’m in the bay area, or near it I always try to visit the Magic Garage! It’s always the great to visit and chat with Will Chandler and he also makes an amazing Old Fashioned!
What’s fun about the Magic Garage is that it’s got magicians who hang out there who do all sorts of magic. From close up to parlor to illusions and magicians of every skill level!
I love hanging out here and chatting magic! It’s one of my favorite spots that I pop into!
Many, many years ago I saw a video of Daniel Cros doing Coins Thru Glass. You can watch it here. Basically the effect is the coins go thru the bottom of the glass into another glass one at a time, then the final coin uses a spectator’s hand. I never really like the ending of the trick and the switching from a glass to a hand.
Last night in my hotel room I was playing with the trick but added a hat to it. That gave a slightly different frame to the trick and allowed me to have a “kicker” ending that still followed the frame work of the first coins to go thru the glass.
Here’s what I came up with:
While not great, if I put a little bit more time into figuring out the blocking, the trick would flow a lot better and look a lot less like I just thought of it and don’t know where the props should go.
It’s a fun little thing to work thru, but I don’t know if I’ll put much more time into it as I don’t think I’ll ever do it.
It’s interesting that I’ve come across this now as I’m working on something that uses a similar principle in a wacky way to have a coin disappear and reappear somewhere else.
As for the trick, I think a huge improvement would be using bigger coins, like a Scotch and Soda set. However I do understand that from a marketing angle, using a Scotch and Soda coin set would immediately tip the method. Also making the trick with Dime and Penny sets makes the much cheaper to make.
A few weeks ago I was hanging out with some magicians before the Justin Willman show in Seattle. One of the props we were jamming with was an Apple Air Tag. Here’s one of the more visually interesting things:
It’s an obvious trick to do with an AirTag, but the name lends itself to the trick. This is a trick I’ve wanted to do with an AirTag, but I stopped doing the muscle pass in 2020 and can’t do it anymore. Sure I could probably play with it for a week and relearn it, but I don’t really have a need for it anymore.
If you can muscle pass, this is a great and easy trick with a borrowed AirTag!
My friend Rolando Medina recently started selling Puzzle Coins! These are coins that he’s cut into a puzzle. These are really interesting, and there’s a ton of puns with the word puzzle that you could use.
“Do you want to see the most puzzling coin trick I do?” Then the coin turns into the puzzle pieces.
Here are a few ideas:
1: Show a half dollar. This is a trick that takes me hours to figure out Put the half dollar into your left hand, which makes a fist around it. I never know if I should start with the edges or the middle… Open you hand to reveal the puzzle pieces
2: Have a half dollar sitting on the table, you wave your hand over it and it turns into the puzzle half dollar! – simply use a Raven and a shimmed shell
3: Could use it at a follow up to Karate Coin After you stab the coin on your finger, you then smash the coin into little bits (not specifically revealing they’re puzzle pieces)
I think these coins are great for making social media videos as the close up video of them can really show off the detail.
I think he’s really underpriced them at $39.99 and they should be a few bucks more…but I’ll take them for cheaper than what I think they’re worth! Aside from using them, they are just cool to have on your shelf!
I’m still tweaking my routine with the Craig Petty’s Apparition Coin set. I was trying to eliminate the phases that use the coin purse. I ended up with a three phase routine, however it lacked the punch of the four phase routine that had the coin purse. Once I put the coin purse back in, it immediately was getting better reactions.
Here’s what the routine looks like:
I think the first phase is like a “flash opener” to a stage act. It’s a great visual moment, and sets people up for the transpositions that they are about to see. I’m glad I tested it both ways and have found the best way to do the routine!
When I was at Stevens Magic Emporium a few weeks ago and picked up Craig Petty’s Apparition coin set, it got me doing coin magic again. For some reason I had stopped doing it in my close up set. One of the reasons that I had stopped was pocket space, there’s not a neat way to keep four silver dollars and a shell in your pocket along with everything else I need in my pockets.
The thing that getting the Apparition set got me to do was use a coin purse. Honestly, I’m against using a coin purse, as it’s not something that people see anymore. It might as well be a change bag, it resembles something older people see.
Think about it, when was the last time you saw someone use a coin purse that wasn’t a magician?
The Apparition coin set is a neat little bundle in my pocket, so I needed to figure out how to justify the coin purse. Then it hit me, it was one simple line, “This is my Nana’s coin purse, can you guess what’s inside?”
That’s it.
That line solved the problem, now it’s not a strange prop.
I will say that as I’ve been using the gaffed coins, I’ve really phased out using the coin purse as a gimmick and it’s simply a holder for the coins. I think I’m going to go out and find a cool, vintage coin purse for my current coin routine to give it a bit more character.
I’m working on a coin transpostion, it’s essentially something that I used to do a long time ago. I was inspired to play with it again after getting Craig Petty’s Apparition. This two phase routine uses just the two coins (and a shell).
The effect is a silver dollar and an Asian coin with a hole in it change places. First in your hands and the second time with one in your hand and one in someone from the audience’s hand.
Here’s the routine:
This is my Nana’s coin purse, do you know what’s inside it?
That’s right coins! I had a kid say, “your nana”…That’d be messed up if I just poured out her ashes.
There’s a silver dollar. That’s Dwight Eisenhower, he was a four start general, the 34th president of the United States and he did all of that while bald!
This is an ancient Asian token, it dates back to the Nintendo Dynasty. It says, “Our princess is in another castle”.
The Asian token goes in this hand and like the movie Freaky Friday, they change places!
Here you hang onto the coins. I’m going to take one from your hand…it’s the silver dollar.
Fist bump!
I’ve got the Asian token and you have…
…The silver dollar!
I feel like this needs a third phase. It’s a great two phase routine, but feels unfinished. I might play with adding a one coin routine to the end of it. That may give it a sense of closure.
