Pictures – Page 5 – MagicShow.Tips

Oil and Water

Awhile ago I found a set of lecture notes called Something From the East by Haruhito Hirata. In the notes there was an oil and water trick that wasn’t for me, but it did have one part that did appeal to me. The cards were dealt out in rows and then the rows were mixed. The cards then separated by color.

The method was fairly complex and involved. I thought the trick could be streamlined a little bit, so I came up with this:

Then I realized that I could get a bonus trick out of it if the cards had different colored backs, so here’s the second version:

I’d like to get a third effect out of it, but not sure what that would be. Maybe it’ll come to me one day…

-Louie

Seance Spirit Hand!

One of the things that I make every now and then are seance/spirit hands. These are hands that tap messages from ghosts. I just make and sell the shell of the hand, it’s up to the buyer to gimmick them or use a gimmicked board wit them. The hands are also unpainted so that they can be decorated for whatever look the buyer wants.

Here’s one of the hands that was decorated and packaged beautifully by someone who bought on of my seance/spirit hand shells!

No one really makes a these hands and if you want one, the hand shells that I make are a good starting point!

-Louie

Magic Show Production

This summer I ran the video elements of my library show with iQpro. I still ran the audio with showcues as I was really comfortable with that. If the video didn’t work it was not big deal. If the music didn’t work, that was a bigger deal. The show still would have went fine, but the music adds more to the show than the video does.

I’m now very comfortable using iQpro for the video elements of my show. The nest step is to get confident using it for the audio. This week I’m at a state fair and going to use iQpro for the audio of the show, and run video with it as well. The video won’t show anywhere but my iPad and no one will see it, except me. However this is good practice for using it for both video and audio.

-Louie

A Simple Trick to Not Forget Anything

One of the challenges of doing your show is packing up. Specifically not forgetting anything. One thing I do is the “Dummy Check” where after you’re packed out, you visually look where your stuff was one more time to look for anything you forgot.

One of the challenges with this summers library show is that the show used a lot of power and I tried to charge the batteries while I was packing up a show. For a normal day of two to three libraries, it’s not a big deal. However there were many days where I had four or five shows in a day. That meant that if I could charge the batteries for 10 or 15 mins while I packed up, it made a huge difference for that last show.

The technique I would use to not forget to the batteries was to put my keys near where they were charging as the plug wasn’t always near the performing area. Without my car key, I couldn’t load out. For me this was a fool proof system to make sure I left with the batteries!

If you’re worried about not packing something, put your keys near it!

-Louie

Magic Monday in Seattle!

I was up in Seattle on Monday last week, so went and performed at Magic Monday! This show happens on the second Monday of the month and has been running for something like 25 years!

Before the show I met up with Chris Beason for a quick drink at Teddy’s. This bar was one of the places where Cliff Gustafson used to perform when I was a teenager (and not old enough to get in to see him)

The performers were Jim, Evan, Payne and me.

Sorry Jim, somehow I didn’t get a picture of you.

It’s not just the show, a lot of magic happens, like Ruben doing some close up magic for the audience after the show.

I look at this show like a magic open mic. It’s a place to try new stuff for a great audience! It’s also like a magic club meeting as we all get together in the pub downstairs and hang out after the show.

If you’re ever in Seattle on the second monday of the month you should come out to the show!

-Louie

Fixing a Vanishing Birdcage!

A while ago I got a text from a friend who found a vanishing birdcage that was for sale. It was in really rough shape, it was missing a bar, had another bar that was loose and two of the corner bars needed to be fixed.

I bought the cage with an experiment with my bird cage guy to see if he could repair it. It came back and it looks like a totally different cage!

Not only were the bars replaced/fixed he also cleaned the cage. The cage was pretty loose when I got it and he tightened it up a little bit so it’s less like handling a jellyfish!

I’m glad I tried this and it’s good to know that there can be a second life to some of these old broken cages!

-Louie

Best Spoons and Forks for Metal Bending!

Frequently, I see people ask in social media groups “what are the best spoons/forks for metal bending?” The answers are all over the place, from ones specifically being sold at magic shops to Walmart. For me, you can’t the the Costco spoons and forks!

The cheap ones less than 31 cents per fork and less than 27 cents per spoon. They’re soft and ready to go out of the package. The normal Costco doesn’t normally stock these but the Business Costco does! A normal Costco membership will get you into the business Costco and walking around you might find other things you need for your show that the normal Costco doesn’t have.

I don’t know if Costco sells them online, but you should be able to search based on the info in the pictures above.

Happy spoon/fork bending!

-Louie

Out of Town Shipping Notice

**The Daily blog will continue to be updated below this pinned post**

This is a quick heads up that I’m out of town now (7/19)through August 12th 2025.

No orders will ship during that period or work on products will happen while I’m away. In stock items will ship on Tuesday 7/12/25.

**The daily blog will continue to be updated below this pinned post**

Library Magic Show

A couple of weeks ago I did a magic show at a library and their marketing department recorded my show and made a little promo reel about the show.

I think it came out pretty well! It’s always a nice surprise when I the venue does something like this. It may end up being something I send out to other libraries in the future.

-Louie

Magnet Ankle Switch

I have a prop that I altered to run off of an ankle switch. I made a simple holder for the straps to hold the magnet and the switch. These are the tops of an old pair of socks that I cut off.

I simply folded them in half upwards to make a little pocket. Then I sewed them to make the pocket hold the magnet or button. Simple solution, however if I keep the prop running this way, I’m going to make a better version.

-Louie