The Best Magic Tricks of 2018 – 2019

Every year it seems that the standard of magic being released is getting better and better. More innovation and time is being spent to bring top quality, useable magic to market. 2018 has been no exception. We have had so many brilliant and creative new tricks pass through our hands that picking the top ones has been a real challenge.

How the award winning magic tricks are selected.

MoM is a magic shop and market place for magicians. So, right from the start, we should point out that we stock most of the items that have won a best magic tricks award. However, Merchant of Magic is a ‘whole of market’ magic shop, with over 27,000 different magic tricks on sale. Merchant of Magic accepts no payment from manufacturers for listing in this award list. We have not included many items that are produced by The Merchant of Magic, so as to be as impartial as possible.

The winners of a best magic trick 2018 award are chosen from these sources of opinion:

Customer feedback.
Quantity of sales.
Level of returns.
The views of magic shop demonstrators.
Reviews and feedback from magic forums.
Real world testing by professional magicians.

The list is in no particular order.

Static Marker

Static Marker has consistently sold out within days of being restocked. This has been one of the hottest sellers of 2018 without a shadow of a doubt. A versatile prop built into a working Sharpie. Perform Haunted decks, Moving objects, PK ring or even give a spectator a simulated electric shock on their finger tip. There is a reason this has hit our top trick list… Find out more

Rubik’s Cube in Bottle

Take a Rubik’s cube, show all sides and give it a twist, bring out a glass bottle which the cube could clearly never fit into. Somehow fit that cube into the bottle right in front of your spectator. You read that correctly. That is exactly what this can do. No switching, no ditching. The cube you have just displayed is inside the solid glass jar… And yes, the cube can be signed! Rubik’s Cube magic has exploded over 2018 and this really is as good as it gets! Find out more

Winner’s Dice

Winner’s Dice has been another repeat sell out effect. Winner’s Dice is one of those tricks that is so cunning and well engineered that you can’t help but grin the first time you use it. We played with this for a while before launch and loved every second of it. Imagine asking a spectator to name any number from 1 to 6 and then throwing a dice for it to land on that exact number. Then to do it again, straight away with a different number, or to have the dice rolled 4 times and have it to predict your spectators pin number… Find out more

Balance

Joshua Jay has done it again. He has constructed a work of art, twisted in magic, narrated by a heartfelt story. 6 ordinary items are inspected by any member of the audience, they are then piece by piece built into an impossible object. Defying gravity, physics and plausibility these objects balance in an ever increasingly impossible way… F ind out more.

Cheese Smile

Cheese Smile was the app of the year in our eyes. Any named playing card appeared in a photograph taken of your spectator. The real photograph saved in your camera roll depicted your spectator holding their freely named card, pinched in between their fingers. No need to force any cards, or even have a deck of cards to hand. This impossible souvenir only used your phone and their imagination… Find out more.

Rainbow Deck

Rainbow deck is a collectible, it is a magic trick, it is elegant, simple and self working. Constructed from 52 collectible decks of cards, it could be framed and hung on a wall. Or it can be performed as a mind blowing feat of wizardry. Either way our customers have gone mad for the Rainbow Deck, and it’s not hard to see why… Find out more

Deformer

Deformer is a cunning utility device for the metal benders out there. It allows for cutlery or keys to have very complex bends put in them in a very simple way. Deformer allows you to stay cool whilst pulling off some normally very strenuous bends. Knives, forks, spoons and keys all bend like butter in your hands with Deformer! Find out more.

Principia

Principia was by far the hottest selling book of 2018. We could not hold this on our shelves at all. Each new batch that came in was sold before we knew what was happening. Principia is our very favourite kind of magic book: the kind of book that you pour over every page, trying out each and every piece of magic inside. EVERY single effect in the book is practical, fun and radically new… Find out more.

Which of the 2018 best magic tricks have we missed?

We’ve missed out a load of great magic tricks released in 2018! Everyone is so different, and we have probably missed the trick that you discovered and have loved performing.

DO THIS: Let us know which trick you think should be added and make sure you tell us why. Please share your thoughts in the comments section below:

Related Posts:

Best Magic Tricks Awards 2017

Best Magic Tricks Awards 2016

Best Magic Tricks Awards 2015

Best Magic Tricks Awards 2014

Best Magic Tricks Awards 2013

Best Magic Tricks Awards 2012

Which magic tricks missed out?

This list should be longer! There’s a few magic tricks missing from the list. They are the ones that YOU like best!

DO THIS: Let us know which trick you think should be added and make sure you tell us why. Please share your thoughts in the comments section below:

– See more at: https://blog.magicshop.co.uk/?s=awards#sthash.tyryUAI5.dpuf

Which magic tricks missed out?

This list should be longer! There’s a few magic tricks missing from the list. They are the ones that YOU like best!

DO THIS: Let us know which trick you think should be added and make sure you tell us why. Please share your thoughts in the comments section below:

– See more at: https://blog.magicshop.co.uk/?s=awards#sthash.tyryUAI5.dpuf

Which Magic Tricks Should Professional Magicians Use?

by Dominic Reyes 2 Comments

Which Magic Tricks

Andrew writes:

Hi guys, do you have any articles on which magic tricks professional magicians should use?

Hi Andrew,

I’ve written quite a few articles over the years that talk about which magic tricks I use myself, or that are recommended by other working magicians… But I’ve not made a specific list of material for professionals. After reading your question, I thought about why I hadn’t published anything on the subject.. I think it’s because of one main reason:

Almost ANY magic trick can be great material for a working magician. It depends on the performer, venues, audience, and the style of the act/set. To decide if a trick is suitable, we have to consider lots of factors about the performer and the situation.

Is the magician a children’s entertainer?
Does he or she perform is restaurants or busy bars and clubs?
Is it material for a stag or hen night group?
Will it be stage or parlor?

A magician might perform for any of these audiences and the magic tricks presented will be different in each case. It might be the case that you perform in several different environments and for a range of different clients. If so, then you will need to build together collections of effects into sets for each set of demands.

The close-up magician

Lets assume that the magician does close-up, performing in venues like bars, restaurants, and parties. Now that’s been narrowed down… It’s easier to examine some of the core features of magic tricks that make them good for professional use.

Before I start to point out ways to narrow down your selection of material, I need to point out that any trick can be a winner for professional performance.. IF it’s been worked on so that weak or impractical parts are ironed out and the magician can perform it in an entertaining way. It’s more about the showmanship and entertainment value from the performer, than the trick itself.

Is the trick Interesting to people that don’t care about magic?

I know… It’s very strange, but most people in the world really don’t get excited about the idea of learning magic tricks.. They’re interested in being entertained and might want to find out the secret out of mild curiosity, but that’s about it. The fact that magic ‘reveal’ TV shows tend to get low ratings is proof of this. People want to be entertained by magic, rather than educated about it. Remember this when choosing which tricks to add to your set.

YOU ARE NOT THE SAME AS YOUR AUDIENCE. You might like a trick because of the method as much as the entertainment value of the effect. Its vital to pick tricks for their entertainment value above all else. When looking at new tricks try to put yourself into the mind of a none magician… Show a performance to a few none magicians and watch their reaction. If it’s entertaining and you think you could perform it well… it’s probably a great magic trick for professional use.

However.. Most tricks need some specific design aspects to make them easy and practical for working conditions:

The demands on material in close up conditions

So.. I put forward that ANY trick is a good choice for a professional IF it can be presented well. But there are some tricks that are much easier to perform professionally than others. These tend to be called ‘Workers’. There are a few features to look for when deciding if a new trick can be a worker. Most of these will already be designed into a trick before it comes to market, but a few will require some thought and effort from you to adapt your material to meet these needs. The most useful features include:

Visual with lots going on.
Repeatable so you can move around the venue and perform the effect several times to different groups.
Quick reset times between performances. You need to get it set up again fast as you move between groups.
Good angles for performing in closed up crowded conditions.
Easy to follow plot so it can be understood by people that have been drinking and are in a busy environment.
Easy to adapt/stop/start as your audience are interrupted or distracted.
Easy on the pocket space. You are likely to be carrying a lot of stuff, so pocket management is essential.
As little risk as possible for maximum reward. The technique should be the bare minimum to give you the perfect effect. Every move that is not needed should be removed to reduce the likelihood of failure and the maximum focus on delivery over mechanics.

The most popular ‘workers’ for magicians

That’s why it’s hard to list which magic tricks are best for professional magicians. There are so many, and they depend a great deal on the individual performer and how they present the magic.

I could just list a few items that almost every working magician uses:

You can download a free tutorial for the Anniversary Waltz here

But… do you REALLY want to be a clone of everyone else? Pick a few unusual effects that you enjoy watching being performed. Make them workers with your presentation and some effort to perform them. You only stand out by working away from the crowd…

The first steps to becoming a professional magician

The 3 Best Openers for magicians

Best Valentines Day Magic Tricks for Couples

by Dominic Reyes Leave a Comment

Valentines Day Magic Tricks

These are the magic tricks well recommend to perform for Valentines Day. When selecting these tricks, we consulted a wide range of professional magicians, and asked them which magic tricks they used for couples. A wide range of magic tricks were suggested, but all with the theme of romance, love and people connecting. The magic tricks are also a perfect choice for wedding magicians.

As well as the top 6 Valentines Day tricks, we have also listed 6 tricks that are perfect to impress someone special on Valentines Day.

Valentines Day Magic Tricks for Couples

Anniversary Waltz

Michael Ammar once wrote that one of the principles key to making a magic effect memorable to an audience is to alter an object magically and then give it away in its altered state. A souvenir of this kind will be treasured forever and there’s been perhaps no better example of this kind of effect than one in which two playing cards, signed by the spectators, are magically fused into a single card. Not glued or fasted in any way; they actually become one single card.

Linking Hearts

Paul Romhany has created one of the most commercial routines for magicians who perform close-up, walk-about or street magic. These rings are specially designed and crafted using high quality 5″ metal, and plated three times to make them durable enough for the toughest working conditions. They are the perfect size to fit in your pocket making them one of the most commercial routines for magicians today – the performance possibilities are endless.

One Card Link

“OCL is not a pipe dream. This is the real deal. Destined to go straight into the working repertoire of every magician. Destined to become a classic.” – Richard Sanders

From one playing card you tear two rings, each of these rings is signed. The two rings are held together, one behind the other. With one smooth motion you visually link them. No magnets, no tape, no illusions. They are actually linked.

The best part is, you can immediately hand it out for inspection. Nothing to find and perhaps the most impossible souvenir you could give out.

Twilight Angels

Twilight Angels is Paul Harris’ all time favorite effect from TA. This classic PH Astonishment is finally available with a full deck of 52 different refills…so you can give away a different value card every time you do Twilight Angels!

That’s Amore

Now you will be ready to perform close up magic with a romantic touch that is perfect for such an occasion. Here is a collection of special tricks from Reed McClintock, Sean-Dylan Reidweg, Keven Williams, Michael Sibbernson, Tomas Blomberg, Marcelo Contento, Matt Williams, Luke Dancy, Steve Mayhew, Greg Wilson, and of course Nathan Kranzo.

These are the things that will make them remember you for a long time since it all seems so special just for them. Believe me, when the occasion arises and you do one or more of these effects, you can’t miss!!!

Folding Money Fooling

Folding Money Fooling

From Robert E. Neale’s Preface: “This book contains twenty new and novel models that perform in these amusingly unexpected ways; all are folded from dollar bills. They are created for adults, but many will entertain children-especially the finger puppets in Puppet Poetry and the tale illustrated with many different shapes in A Boy’s Modest Adventure. A rabbit pops out of a top hat in Bunny Bill, a model popular among magicians.”