On Friday of last week I pitched in and helped out at Market Magic Shop in Seattle for a couple of hours. A couple of magicians came out and we jammed a bit, it was a lot of fun! One of the things that we were goofing off with was pressed pennies. Here’s a trick … Continue reading “Magic Shop Jam!”
On Friday of last week I pitched in and helped out at Market Magic Shop in Seattle for a couple of hours. A couple of magicians came out and we jammed a bit, it was a lot of fun!
One of the things that we were goofing off with was pressed pennies. Here’s a trick with one:
It’d be an amazing giveaway if you had your own custom penny made, or better yet a quarter and did the trick and gave them away. The initial cost would be crazy, but would be a giveaway that they’d keep!
A couple of months ago I recorded my Coin in Chapstick magic trick and haven’t looked at it. I’m glad I finally did, the trick looks great! My only problem with it is that it doesn’t really have a place in my show. I did a blog post about it awhile ago about how just … Continue reading “Lip Bomb!”
A couple of months ago I recorded my Coin in Chapstick magic trick and haven’t looked at it. I’m glad I finally did, the trick looks great! My only problem with it is that it doesn’t really have a place in my show. I did a blog post about it awhile ago about how just because it’s an everyday object doesn’t mean it’s right for your show.
You can watch my trick here:
The trick would be better suited as a “street magic” type video than it would in formal show. I’ll probably write it up and publish it in Vanish Magazine.
There’s a classic beginner’s card trick where a card is selected and returned to the deck. You then drop the deck onto the table and their card appears on top of the deck. The working is simple, you control the card to the top of the deck, sidejog it and drop the deck onto the … Continue reading “Try Another Way”
There’s a classic beginner’s card trick where a card is selected and returned to the deck. You then drop the deck onto the table and their card appears on top of the deck. The working is simple, you control the card to the top of the deck, sidejog it and drop the deck onto the table from about a foot up. The air hitting the sidejogged card will flip it over as it falls. It’s a great trick.
My problem with the trick is that I’ve never had more than about a 50% success rate with it. I’m not sure what I’m doing right or wrong. The other day I was killing time between shows and figured out a way to get a 100% success rate with the trick.
Here’s what I came up with:
Doing the trick this way is a lot harder, but works every time. What I’m doing is a one handed top palm as the cards are dropped to the table. The palm is something I could already do, so adding it to the trick was no big deal. If I didn’t already do the palm, I probably wouldn’t learn it for this trick…however I would recommend learning that and I consider it something every magician who does card tricks should be able to do.
If you’ve got a trick that doesn’t work (technically) for you, start to explore other ways to do the trick. I’m pretty sure someone has to have come up with my solution to the flip over card trick before, however it solved a problem for me.
The other day I was hanging out with a magician friend, we were working on something not magic trick related. At some point we always end up goofing around with magic. and that’s when the good ideas come out. Unfortunately this day it was just goofing around. One of the things we were playing with … Continue reading “Play Around…”
The other day I was hanging out with a magician friend, we were working on something not magic trick related. At some point we always end up goofing around with magic. and that’s when the good ideas come out. Unfortunately this day it was just goofing around.
One of the things we were playing with was a bottle cap. Here’s one of the things that we did:
It’s not a great trick, or even that original, however it’s a good example of part of the creative process. It’s just playing with an item and seeing what comes up.
In the past I’ve written about my dislike for magic apps, and my fascination with them. I think they are interesting, but the main problem is that the majority of them either rely on an internet connection or using your phone. In my opinion there’s no way around having to use the internet for apps … Continue reading “App Free…”
In the past I’ve written about my dislike for magic apps, and my fascination with them. I think they are interesting, but the main problem is that the majority of them either rely on an internet connection or using your phone. In my opinion there’s no way around having to use the internet for apps that work that way, and that makes them not as reliable as I’d like. As for using your phone, well, you just need to justify it.
I just started playing with an idea that uses my phone to take a picture for a prediction. The idea of using a picture that you are taking in the moment makes more sense that a random pic in your gallery that’s been there for months.
Here’s what the rough idea looks like:
This is a trick that I don’t think really has a place in a formal show, but as an informal trick, I think it’s great. The nice thing about it is they can pick any of the items and they can pick up the phone to reveal the prediction. It’s pretty hands off once you take the pictures.
In the past I’ve mentioned that jamming with other magicians is an important part of the creative process. This has benefits beyond just coming up with ideas, you can also learn new techniques by hanging out with other magicians. Here’s a magic jam from yesterday: In the video you may have noticed the Coin in … Continue reading “Bouncing Ideas…”
In the past I’ve mentioned that jamming with other magicians is an important part of the creative process. This has benefits beyond just coming up with ideas, you can also learn new techniques by hanging out with other magicians.
Here’s a magic jam from yesterday:
In the video you may have noticed the Coin in Chapstick that I’ve been messing with. It’s an interesting idea, and it was fun two work out some of the finer details with these magicians. I think the trick got better after getting some good feedback!
Currently I’m using Audio Ape to run the music to my show. I really don’t care that people know or are aware that I’m using a remove control, versus a sound guy running the music. I keep the remote on my belt and push it as needed. Pretty simple. Lately I’ve been thinking about adding … Continue reading “Adding an Ankle Switch…”
Currently I’m using Audio Ape to run the music to my show. I really don’t care that people know or are aware that I’m using a remove control, versus a sound guy running the music. I keep the remote on my belt and push it as needed. Pretty simple.
Lately I’ve been thinking about adding a ankle switch to one of my remotes (I have two). Essentially what this will do is allow me to play music without having to push a button with my hands. For me there are a couple of moments where I want a sound cue, but my hands are full and hitting the cue can be a bit awkward.
Yesterday I added an ankle switch to both of my Audio Ape remote controls. It was super easy to do, especially after I found this tutorial:
One of my worries about altering a remote to run off an ankle switch was that I would no longer function as a remote and that I’d need a magnet to run that button. I was surprised to learn that the remote functions normally as well as functions when run with a magnet!
Yesterday I wrote a post about the Linking Pins. Today I’m going to write a bit about one of my favorite things about the routine. My routine uses a gimmick, but only for a small part of it. The rest of it uses ungimmicked pins, but by the time the gimmick is in play, I’ve … Continue reading “Using a Gimmick…”
Yesterday I wrote a post about the Linking Pins. Today I’m going to write a bit about one of my favorite things about the routine. My routine uses a gimmick, but only for a small part of it. The rest of it uses ungimmicked pins, but by the time the gimmick is in play, I’ve totally negated the idea that I could be using what I’m using.
In the first three phases of the routine that don’t use the gimmick, they look just like I’m using the gimmick. Also they get the audience to check out the pins, when there’s nothing to find, so when they is something to find, no one is looking!
Here’s the final phase with the gimmick:
In the video you see how I put a lot of “tension” into what’s going to happen. The guy can see and feel them together. I’m building tension with that. Once they go through each other, he has to relax. That release of tension gives me a natural moment to get rid of the gimmick.
This week I’m an a conference for the fair industry. A good friend of mine, who is a great magician was also there and we were chatting magic and the subject of the Torn And Restored Newspaper came up. We were chatting about doing the trick outdoors, and the challenges of doing it in the … Continue reading “Dealing With The Wind…”
This week I’m an a conference for the fair industry. A good friend of mine, who is a great magician was also there and we were chatting magic and the subject of the Torn And Restored Newspaper came up. We were chatting about doing the trick outdoors, and the challenges of doing it in the wind.
He doesn’t do it outdoors, where I do. There’s one difference that allows me to do it outdoors (usually) and that’s the style of newspaper tear we do. He does the Gene Anderson Newspaper Tear and I use Nick Lewin’s Slow Motion Newspaper Tear. The Newspaper Tear that I do has less pages to it, so that means less changes for the wind mess it up.
The routine that most people use with the Gene Anderson Tear, is the one that I think was popularized by Doug Henning:
In this routine the newspaper is held open and flat a lot. Also all of the tears happen from the newspaper in an position where it’s flat. In Nick Lewin’s version, the newspaper is tear is started from a folded position and that helps a lot with wind.
One of the easiest ways to create things is to put conditions onto what you want to do. For example, I’ve always loved the Three Ball Routine or Balls in Net. What I didn’t like is having to bring two people onto the stage to hold the net. I felt it added blocking issues and … Continue reading “Simple Step To Creativity”
One of the easiest ways to create things is to put conditions onto what you want to do. For example, I’ve always loved the Three Ball Routine or Balls in Net. What I didn’t like is having to bring two people onto the stage to hold the net. I felt it added blocking issues and a lot of wasted time bringing the people onto the stage.
The condition I added to the Three Ball Routine was that it needed to be done with just me onstage. With that condition in place, it created a lot of challenges, like where to put the balls. John Rogers has an interesting solution to this in his The Walrus Three Ball Routine, however that wasn’t what I was going for. Some options were having the net hung between two mic stands like a hammock or simply setting them halfway into your top jacket pocket.
I wanted the whole routine being done in the hand as the cleanest way to do it. It got me thinking of Coins Across routines that are done entirely in the hands, specifically Jay Sankey’s Mexican Jumping Coins. With Jay’s routine in mind, I got to work on putting together my routine with balls.
Here’s what I came up with:
By putting in the condition of having no one from the audience onstage, it made the routine much easier to build. I think if I had initially added a “no net” condition I may have gotten to the solution much faster. Honestly I want the net from the beginning, but figured I may need it to hold the balls.
Look at the tricks that you do, and figure out what you don’t like about them. Add removing that as a condition and you’ll be on your way to creating something new!
