What Does a Good Double Lift Look Like – How to do Card Magic Tricks

Zoby writes:

What makes a good double lift, and how do I perform it?

That's a good question which has an annoying answer. The reason it's annoying is because the answer is different for each person.

Everyone develops their own style of technique, so each move performed should blend into your existing styleof card magic. If you tend to handle playing cards in a way that looks like you don't have any card skills (See the card magic of Lennart Green as an example of this), it will look very odd to suddenly perform a complex flourish as you turn a playing card over. Each move you perform should be invisible. Making every action look natural, and in keeping with all your previous actions with the playing cards, helps achieve this overall impression.

What to do:

Pick up a deck of cards and turn a single playing card over. Don't think about how you will turn the card over, just do it.

A good double lift should look EXACTLY like that.

Anything you add to the action, weakens your technique. Film yourself performing the simple action of turning over a playing card. You want to record your natural method, before you start playing with that action. Refer back to it as you learn the double lift. The closer you can get the sleight to resemble your natural action, the better your double lift will become.

How to learn the double lift:

If you are looking for expert tuition on a double lift, including a range of magic tricks that use the move as their core technique, these sources may be ideal for you:

Double Take By Gregory Wilson

Advanced Card Control Series

It's important that you choose a source of instruction that gives you some card magic tricks that use the double lift. Once you drill the technique in isolation, you need to be able to rehearse the move within the context of a full magic trick or routine, This will help you to develop the timing and flow of the move.

How to do a Deck Change or Deck Switch with Playing Cards – Magic Tips

by Merchant of Magic 1 Comment

Struan asked for help performing a deck change or deck switch to introduce gimmicked playing cards: 

‘I’m struggling to get ready for my first performance in public. There’s a cafe near me which asks for volunteers to go in and do acts, which I’m going to try.But I’m new to magic, and I’m having trouble stitching together a coherent routine – a few of the tricks I use gimmicked playing cards, so I need to somehow introduce them. What’s my best bet? Should I just be open about the deck change? Or should I do a secret deck change, or palm or cop the gimmicked cards in?’

Firstly Struan, well done for finding a venue where you can practice your magic in a live situation- the best way to improve your magic is to perform regularly for real people, so you are on the right track with what you are doing.

Keep It Simple Stupid!

It is great that you are thinking about how you will transition from one trick to the next, and the fact that you have identified a potential problem at this early stage is a real positive. You may find yourself in a position similar to a lot of other magicians whereby in trying to come up with a perfect solution to your problem you end up over-complicating the deck switch, to the point where your solution is completely impractical for real world performance.

Whatever method you use to achieve the deck switch, your focus should be simplicity. By keeping it simple, there will be less for you to worry about when you perform- and the less you have to worry about the more relaxed you will be. The more relaxed you are, the smoother your performance will be.

Being Direct.

Perhaps the simplest way of switching decks is to be open, and draw attention to the fact that you are using a new deck. It sounds obvious, but sometimes we overlook such straight-forward methods because we don’t feel like we are being deceptive enough.

There are a number of ways you can justify openly switching decks depending on your style and the magic tricks you are performing. If, for example, you begin your act with a regular deck of Bicycle playing cards then you could introduce an old-looking deck of playing cards and tell your audience that the magic trick you are going to show them was first performed by the original owner of these cards years ago (if you have a magic trick which lends itself to a story presentation). You could even bring out playing cards with a different colour back design and cite ‘superstitious’ reasons for the change. As long as you come up with some kind of covering line and deliver it confidently, this kind of deck switch will not be questioned.

‘Bringing In’ Individual Playing Cards.

A simple way of either adding gimmicked playing cards or removing them from a deck ready for your next trick is to put the whole deck of cards into your pocket whilst you show the audience that there is nothing ‘tricky’ with your hands and nothing up your sleeves. You remove the deck of cards from your pocket to continue performing along with any extra gimmicks from your pocket, or without gimmicks from your previous trick that are left behind in your pocket.

Palming or ‘copping’ playing cards to and from the deck whilst it is in play is a very useful technique to have, and if you have mastered these sleights then undoubtedly you are well equipped to switch playing cards in and out without any fancy gimmicks or apparatus. Having said that, if you are at all uncomfortable with the technique then you may wish to consider some easier alternatives for your first time in the new venue so you are not putting yourself under unnecessary pressure…

     Considering Your Options.

Your concern about deck switching is something that some of the best minds in magic have given a lot of thought to- so you are not alone!

Former FISM world champion Henry Evans has devised a truly elegant and simple way of switching decks without actually switching decks! In his excellent trick Modern Times, Henry causes a red and a blue deck of cards to visually switch places. Because this trick requires 2 decks of cards to be used, you can simply put one deck away when you are finished and continue to use the second deck of cards that is already in view. The great thing about this approach is that the method for introducing a new deck of cards forms part of a stunning magic trick on its own!

The great magician Tommy Wonder came up with an extremely straight-forward method for a deck change which a lot of professional magicians still swear by. You can watch Tommy teach this in-depth on his DVD Wonderized or you can read about it in the phenomenal BOOKS OF WONDER    .

Gimmicks.

Sleight of hand or misdirection may not be the way you prefer to perform your deck switch. Sometimes, using a gimmick to do the work for you can speed things up and give you one less thing to work on. Ultimately, we created this blog to help you and your fellow magicians by giving you tips and advice about performing in the real world. This is not just another selling platform, so we won’t bombard you with products because that is not what this magic blog is about. However, this is such a great topic that will be relevant to a lot of people who regularly read the blog so for the sake of completeness we would also draw your attention to 2 relatively new gimmicks from Jeff Kaylor and Christian Engblom respectively called TKO 2.0 and THE COOLER, which are both extremely deceptive and unique sleight of hand free solutions to performing a deck switch.

What You Should Do.

There is no right or wrong answer here. Every magician is different- has their own way of thinking about magic and their own level of capability. Hopefully this article has been able to bring you closer to the answer you seek by highlighting some of the options that are currently available to you, so that you can consider what is right for you as an individual.

DON’T FORGET- whatever you decide, KEEP IT SIMPLE! Don’t try anything on your first night in this new venue that is going to put excess pressure on yourself. Relax, have fun, and BE GREAT.

Best of Luck!

Did you find this post useful? What’s your preferred method for doing a deck switch or switching playing cards? Have you ever been caught out? What tips could you pass on to help? Please leave a comment in the section below:

Inexplicable by Steve Shufton – Questions and Answers

by Merchant of Magic Leave a Comment

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT

INEXPLICABLE BY STEVE SHUFTON

We are getting a lot of questions being sent in from magicians that are excited about the release of the no sleight of hand card trick: ‘Inexplicable‘. Here are some of the most common questions asked. If you have a question that hasn’t been mentioned, just ask it in the comments section below, and we will try to answer it for you, either in the comments section or we will build it into this blog post as we update it.

Is removing sleight of hand from professional card magic a form of ‘dumbing down’?

We don’t think so. Technical ability with playing cards has very little to do with being a good magician. In the same way that being able to read sheet music doesn’t make you a fabulous musician. Reducing the need for sleight of hand brings this magic trick into the reach of magicians who may be amazing entertainers, but have no time or inclination to focus on mechanics.

Are you trying to pitch a magic trick for professionals to hobbyists instead?

Steve Shufton has a truly good take on this. He teaches that often the most experienced magicians ARE the hobbyists!

Professional magicians do a few tricks very well, over and over again. It’s not uncommon for a working magician to use the same magic tricks over his or her entire career. In contrast, an amateur magician has a limited audience. Hobbyists perform for their family and friends, so have a constant drive to learn new material. Over time, it’s likely that they will know much more technique than a professional magician who focuses on his core acts. Some of the most famous magicians in the world were amateurs: (Steve gives examples of Dr. Daley, Ramsey to name a few).

Inexplicable doesn’t need sleight of hand and is suitable for complete beginners, but that’s not to say it’s automatic. Every magic trick needs practice. Good magic is about the presentation and the style of the performer. Like many magic tricks, you could open the trick, read the instructions and start performing it right away, but that would be selling yourself and the magic trick short.

If you love magic like we do, here at The Merchant of Magic, take the time to rehearse and master Inexplicable, even though it is simple to do.

Can the deck of cards be used in other tricks before performing ‘Inexplicable’.

Wow, that last question was a long one, so lets keep this one short and sweet: Yes you can! No need for deck switches etc.

If it’s so good, why is it so cheap?

Steve makes these himself and has handpicked the magic shops in each country that he feels would be best to supply Inexplicable. Because this card magic trick is extremely close to Steve’s heart, it’s important that magicians that use it get only the best support and customer service. As a by-product of this, there are super low distribution costs getting ‘Inexplicable’ to you. No middle men taking a cut and shipping is low as only a few dealers are ordering in VERY large quantities.

Steve Shufton has given a huge amount of time and skill into a relatively low price card trick. In a sense, he hasn’t built the time it took to invent the trick, the hours of performing and tweaking the trick, or the magic secret. Steve often talks about the old days of magic. He remembers only Magic SECRETS changing hands for hundreds of pounds. If he had taken our advice, we would have sold this to few magicians and charged a LOT more for it, but that’s his call to make, and your gain.

Miracle Premonition Vs. Inexplicable.

Miracle Premonition is another magic trick created by Steve Shufton. The concept of the ‘open prediction is the same’ but Miracle Premonition is much more expensive. The price reflects the huge quantity of work and time to manufacture the props. Although are quite a few differences in the performance conditions, presentations, methods, it isn’t wise to do them together. Inexplicable has a much more direct and uncomplicated plot, which suits many more close- up, street, or walk-around magicians. Both Miracle Premonition and Inexplicable will create a similar effect for the audience, but the difference in price makes, Inexplicable a clear winner in our opinion.

Is ‘Inexplicable’ mass produced or made directly by Steve Shufton?

Steve makes his items himself. He wouldn’t have it any other way as it allows the quality of each item to be carefully controlled. With Inexplicable, you are getting something that Steve Shufton has personally followed through the stages of creation. It’s one of the reasons that his magic tricks have such a great reputation with professional magicians.

Can ‘Inexplicable’ be repeated?

Yep. You can do it several times at each gig or venue you attend. As with every magic trick, it’s not wise to repeat a magic trick to the same group twice: ‘Once a trick, twice a lesson’.