Magicians Fingernails – A Quiet Word in Your Ear

magicians-manicure

“Psst.. Over here… Listen! I’ve got some advice that you need to know. You won’t hear it from your family and friends, your agent probably assumes you already do it, and your clients don’t really want to think about it… It’s your fingernails, seriously, you need to do something about them!”

What would you think, if someone took you aside on a gig and told you that? It would be very embarrassing, but it does need to be said.

If you perform close up magic tricks in restaurants or at tables, you need to make sure your hands look good. I’m not just being metrosexual here, it’s a basic level of professionalism and hygiene that really should be followed if your hands are on show. A restaurant puts a lot of care and attention to every detail of the table, the plates, the cutlery and the food. Your hands also form part of that display and should be pleasing to look at.

Magicians Fingernails

I was working at trade show recently with another magician and got into conversation about how often he changes his deck of cards. The magician told me he makes sure he uses a new deck of bicycle playing cards at every gig, as his cards go grey at the edges and he feels they don’t look professional. I couldn’t help noticing the state his hands were in. His nails were a homage to a gardening TV show hosted by Freddy Krueger.

Your hands are the tools of your trade, showing pride in them is not vanity, it’s something that reflects on your whole act.

Many barber shops now offer a nail service too. You can get your nails done and cuticles removed every other week with your haircut. If you are nervous about going to a nail bar to have a manicure, there really isn’t any need to. Most of their customers are female, but they all have a LOT of male customers too. Just tell them you are a close up magician and relax. If you prefer, do a quick google search and it will bring up a load of mobile manicurists that can pop over to your home and fix your nails in private. You can even do it yourself.

Check out this guide for the perfect magicians fingernails

There’s no need to have clear vanish applied to your nails, although many professional men do, but you should at least have them trimmed shaped and the cuticles removed.

Still think it’s only for girls? Just be aware of it for a few days:

Notice how many of the male TV presenters have perfect nails.
If you have a stack of magic DVDs go though them and sort out the ones featuring top working professional magicians. Check out their hands.
Watch the shopping channels and look at the hands of the presenters. Even the DIY guys have great looking nails.

While I’m on the subject of personal hygiene and magicians fingernails, I should also add that a clothes brush, and can of deodorant should also be in your close up magic case. Sometimes a long gig in a marque can get very hot. And looking and smelling your best should be a standard feature, not an added bonus.

There… I’ve said it… I’m glad we could have this little chat…

Studying Close Up Magic – How Not To Fall Into The Trap

by Merchant of Magic 8 Comments

I received a question today that gets asked quite often, so I thought I would answer it on this blog instead, so as to get your opinion too.

The Question:

‘What do you think constitutes a true magician? Using 100% gimmicks 100% of the time, is something that feels a bit disingenuous when calling myself a magician. What do you feel is the perfect balance between real sleight of hand and gimmicks when performing close-up magic?’

Well, my answer tends to be that I don’t think it matters AT ALL. The method really isn’t important and focusing attention and time on it is actually one of the traps that stop people learning to become a magician.

ASK YOURSELF THIS:

Do you want to be studying close up magic or to become a magician?

The two options are actually quite different, but their paths both lead through the doors of a magic shop, so people can often end up switching to the wrong path along the way.

Magicians are made one trick at a time. I recommend you choose a magic trick because it looks amazing and because you feel it would suit you. Then learn it and study any sleights needed to perform it perfectly. If it uses only gimmicks great. If it uses hardcore sleight of hand that’s great too. The world’s top magicians only care about how amazing and entertaining their magic trick looks, not the method. If fact, they work hard to find a method that is as easy and direct as possible.

Knowing lots of sleights and techniques doesn’t make you a magician, it makes you an encyclopedia.

What makes a surgeon? Would you call a surgeon a fraud for using the latest medical equipment? Should he or she insist on only using a scalpel and a piece of wood for the patient to bite down on? No, quite the opposite. I want my hospital to use every piece of the latest equipment possible to get the job done as well as possible. The surgeon’s job is to fix people. Your job as a magician is to amaze and entertain people. It’s the end result that defines the job title.

What magical powers would you like to have?

Definition of magician

noun

a person with magical powers.

a person who performs magic tricks for entertainment.

From Oxford Dictionaries

I couldn’t find any reference to a person that knows lots of magic techniques and moves in the definition anywhere. Only someone with magical powers and someone who entertains with them.

Instead of collecting moves and sleights in an endless cycle of studying close up magic in general, decide what magical powers you would like to have. Do you want to be able to fly? Would you like to be able to read peoples minds? How about being able to move objects just by wishing it? Go ahead and choose your powers, then search for magic tricks that would show those powers to your audience in the most entertaining way possible. Once you have that, you can then learn the methods to allow you to perform just those tricks only. That’s one of the real secrets of magic.

I hope my answer helps
Dominic Reyes

Have I missed something? Do you disagree? Do you have any suggestions that would also help someone studying close up magic? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below:

Make Your Playing Cards Last Longer – 10 Tips for Bicycle Playing Cards

by Merchant of Magic 20 Comments

Playing cards are the most popular bit of kit owned by every magician. 52 pieces of paper that produce more magic tricks that any magician could learn to perform in a lifetime. The most popular brand for magicians are Bicycle Playing Cards, although, can use any deck of playing cards for most magic tricks, but they all have one problem, they wear out very quickly. Here are 10 tips to make your decks last longer.

1) Wash your hands to make your playing cards last longer
They may not look grubby, but to the clean white edges of a deck of playing cards, your hands are the enemy. Grime and oil from your skin can turn the edge of your playing cards gray very quickly. Before you pick up your playing cards take a moment to clean and dry your hands.

2) Pick up your playing cards carefully
You may not be practicing the 52 card pick up, but chances are you are going to drop those playing cards on the floor a few times while using them. Don’t scoop them up, you will be scratching the surface of the cards and also coating them with tiny bits of gravel or dust, that will then sit between the cards in your deck and make mischief. Pick up each card individually. It takes time, but your cards will love you for it. Bicycle Playing cards have an air cushion finish that can help prevent this to some extend.

Looking at purchasing data over a five year period, the average reorder time for playing cards by non-professional magicians is 3 months. Source – MagicShop.co.uk

3) Dry your hands
Skin retains moisture, but the paper does even more. If your hands are clammy, your deck is soaking up that moisture. Moisture also can get trapped between the playing cards in the deck which can warp and ‘thicken’ the playing cards over time.

4) Make your playing cards last longer by keeping them in their card box
Leaving a deck of bicycle playing cards on the tabletop, out of its box is like leaving a sponge on the kitchen work surface. Moisture from the room will seep into the paper stock. If you have been using them, they will be warm, and some will be bent, keeping them in their box, or even a Card Clip can help prevent the deck expanding and also squeeze them back into shape.

5) Store your playing cards in the fridge
Many playing card collectors keep their playing cards in cooled storage. Although this may be ‘overkill’ you might want to try storing a deck in your fridge and see if that helps it keep its shape.

6) Spring or faro your playing cards
Springing playing cards look cool, but it also has a purpose. The air will help keep your playing cards dry, and the action of the spring, will help iron out any warping, helping them sit together well.

On average, most professional magicians use one or two new decks of Bicycle Playing Cards each time they do a show or booking.

7) Don’t carry them in your trouser or jeans pocket
Heat from your body will expand and warp a deck of playing cards. Carry them in a jacket pocket instead. If you need to keep them in a trouser pocket, use a metal card guard to keep the deck tight.

8) Use fanning powder to make your playing cards last longer
As your playing cards get older they will spread well for a short time when you remove them from their card box, but will very quickly go ‘sticky’ and clump together. The coating on the surface of your Bicycle playing cards has degraded. You can greatly improve this by applying a little fanning powder to the deck when this happens. Some magicians use talc powder instead, with similar results.

Avoid damaging the edges of your cards when you pick them up: If you drop a playing card on the table or floor. Use another playing card to easily scoop under it.

9) Use cheaper decks of playing cards for practice
Many magicians recommend to use a cheap brand of playing cards for practice and save the more expensive bicycle playing cards for performances. We are not sure if this is a good idea, as it’s important to be totally used to the feel and control needed for a deck. Practicing with a low quality deck, doesn’t teach your hands, the level of touch and control needed when you switch to a higher quality Bicycle Playing Cards deck. Learning the ‘feel’ of a deck is an important part of your practice. If you are going to use a practice deck, make sure you change it quite often. You need to avoid getting used to working with an old deck of playing cards, so it does not feel strange when it’s time to perform with a new one.

10) Use a soft touch
When you begin practice, it can often be the case that you have a lot of tension in your hand. That can cause you to apply way too much pressure to the deck, bending it over time. Relax your hands while practicing. It’s not a battle between you and the playing cards. The playing cards are on your side! A light touch not only gives you a more professional image, it also stops your playing cards bending and warping as you riffle and shuffle them. Elegant displays of sleight of hand never show tension.

If you make your playing cards last longer, you can save you a fortune over time as you train towards doing magic professionally. Commercial magicians can build in the price of their Bicycle Playing Cards, into their fee as an expendable. It you don’t perform for money, using these tips will greatly increase the lifespan of your playing cards.

What tips do you have to make your playing cards last longer? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Magicians Fingernails – A Quiet Word in Your Ear

Check out this guide for the perfect magicians fingernails

Studying Close Up Magic – How Not To Fall Into The Trap

noun

Make Your Playing Cards Last Longer – 10 Tips for Bicycle Playing Cards

How Bicycle Playing Cards Are Made

Which Playing Cards Last Longest? – Durable Bicycle Playing Cards

How to hold Bicycle Playing Cards Correctly