MagicSchool

Magicians through the ages have used the catch-cry, "Now you see it - now you don't", to accentuate the disappearance of an object. The size of the object can vary from a coin, to a tiger or something similar. More recent magicians have upsized to trains, aeroplanes and even the Statue of Liberty. The video presented depicts a twist on the theme, by reversing the process. Here is a case of 'Now you don't see it - now you do". The magician displays a piece of rope with three knots along its length. A plastic washer is then taken (it may be inspected), and promptly vanishes. In an instant, the rope is tugged and the washer re-appears tied onto one of the knots. Once again, all items can be examined closely by the audience. The method is revealed in the latter part of the video. It's a good effect with very little practice required.

By nature, a magic demonstration involves the unexpected. This is the element that causes the 'OMG' reaction. But every now and then, a magician will tell you what is about to happen. But beware. If a magician tells you what to look for, he/she is probably fooling you. The scenario depicted here is just such a case. The magician directs the attention of the audience to a coin, which is covered with an inverted glass tumbler. This in turn is encased in a paper napkin or serviette. The audience is told that the coin is about to disappear. When this fails to occur, the magician (not wanting to disappoint) causes the glass tumbler to vanish instead. This is a very simple trick that any-one can perform at their next gathering. Full instructions are provided in the video.

If I hear of one more fake magician bending spoons and making dead watches spring to life, I think I'll scream. For heaven's sake, let's be honest - it's a trick. Here's a video of me pretending to be a bozo with powers of the mind. A pencil is placed inside a glass tumbler, and by 'brain power' alone, the pencil is seen to rise and lower within the glass. The demonstration is followed by an explanation of how this is achieved (if you haven't guessed already). Spoon bending is also available - what a great skill to possess. Who doesn't need their spoons bent at some point in their lives?

Do you know a child who is sometimes at a loss to know what to do with their time? It seems that, especially during extended school holidays, a young person can become easily bored and in need of some stimulation. Here's a simple magic trick that can be easily made and operated, to keep those moments of tedium at bay. The effect is as follows: The magician holds a playing card in two hands. He/she suddenly lets go of the card, and instead of falling to the floor or table, it hovers in mid-air. It then shoots across space to be caught in one hand. It uses just a drinking straw, thread, scissors and sticky-tape. This trick can be made in a few minutes and can lead the interested party to discover more similar projects which abound on the internet. Instructions are on the video to assist in the creation.

Everybody knows that magnets will only attract metal objects. But here is a demonstration of how a plastic straw can be attracted to a plastic highlighter, chosen freely by the audience. There are two straws from which to choose, and likewise two highlighters. Various combinations are tested, but it is only the chosen straw and the chosen highlighter that are attracted to one another. The secret is disclosed toward the end of the video.

A magic trick performed with a twist at the end is always greeted with surprise. Here's a card trick with such an ending. One single card is shown, and is covered for an instant with one hand. The hand is removed to display the card has changed to a different value. The normal response is for the audience to demand to see the reverse side of the card, but when their request is met it is shown to be something quite unexpected. This is known as a 'sucker effect', where-in the magician leads the audience to believe they've worked out the secret. In the end of course, the magician reveals that their assumption is wrong. Watch the video to the end to discover how this trick is done. It's easy to make your own and have fun fooling your friends.

Magic tricks using unprepared everyday objects, that all can examine, have a particular intrigue. Whether it be a borrowed deck of cards, a hankerchief loaned by an audience member, or any well-known, easily recognized object the effect of the trick is somehow enhanced. I've presented a video that utilizes simple elastic hairbands that can be inspected at any time. It seems that when a hairband is placed on any finger/s, it can instantly jump to the alternate finger/s of the same hand. It uses a very easy principle that can be mastered in no time at all, to present a puzzling display to your on-lookers. The short demonstration is followed by a revelation of the working, to have you astounding your friends.

Have you ever felt trapped in a situation that you'd like to avoid? Then maybe you'll relate to this video in a minor fashion. A hankerchief, representing the forlorn captive, is placed in a glass tumbler. This is covered by a cloth and sealed with a rubber band, thus securing the hapless prisoner. The magician, being sympathetic to its plight, reaches under the cover and plucks the victim from its confinement. In order to prove its identity, the rubber band and cover are removed to show that the tumbler is indeed devoid of its contents. This simple trick, easy to learn, is disclosed in the video for your satisfaction.

Magic tricks utilizing everyday items and just your hands is, to my way of thinking, more baffling than employing fancy canisters and such. I immediately suspect that the unusual item is specially made for a specific purpose. The trick depicted in this video genuinely uses only the four coins presented, and a tiny bit of sleight-of-hand. The magician displays four coins and proceeds to place one in each hand. The remaining two coins are to be placed on the fingernails of each closed hand, but an audience member is requested to help with this, to keep the magician 'honest'. So with a coin in each hand, and another coin on top of each hand the magic is about to happen. Keeping the hands wide apart, the magician grabs with each hand and immediately opens them. In one hand, there is only one coin, while the other hand holds the remaining three. Watch the entire video to discover the working of this easy trick.

How many times are we enticed to try the newest get-rich-quick scheme? And how many times do we recognize yet another plan to relieve us of our hard-earned dollars? This is a light-hearted look at how a coin can more than double in value in a heartbeat. In it, the magician shows a playing card and a coin of certain value. Simply by making a shallow tent with the card, the coin is flicked through the tent and immediately emerges as a larger coin with its value increased. Both the card and the coin may be examined by the audience. By following the explanation, you too can illustrate your money-making skills.

Here's a card trick with a difference. Normally a chosen card is discovered, but this one disappears without a trace. From an unprepared deck of cards (these may even be borrowed), one card is freely chosen. A clear jug of water is then introduced, as well as a hankerchief or cloth of some description. The card is placed underneath the cloth and is suspended above the jug of water. An audience member is invited to hold the card through the cloth. On command, the card is released and is heard to enter the water under cover of the cloth. However, when the cloth is removed the card is nowhere to be seen. The card may then be recovered from an alternative location. The video shows how this trick can be accomplished, once more proving that magic tricks are easy when the secret is known.

I particularly enjoy magic tricks using everyday objects that can be inspected before and after. The history of this one goes way back into my distant childhood, when almost everything appeared as magic to innocent eyes. A coin (it may be borrowed) is covered with a hankerchief. Audience members can feel the coin through the fabric if they so desire. The magician then lifts a side of the hankerchief to show that the coin is indeed still there. Covering the coin once again, he/she proceeds to gently tug at the coin, which inexplicably and visibly passes right through the hankerchief and into the hand of the magician. There is no fancy sleight of hand or switching, It's a simple and puzzling effect that's easy to master. The video includes a 'Secret' section to explain exactly how the effect is accomplished.

It's one thing for an object to be damaged by accident. It's a case of "That's a blow, but what can you do?" But when a magician attempts to damage an object on purpose, well that's just annoying. Of course, the obvious conclusion to reach is that he has control and everything will turn out just fine. This magic trick illustrates such an illusion wherein the magician displays a hankerchief (which may be examined). He takes the centre of the hankerchief and with a pair of scissors purposely cuts the centre right out of the hankerchief. After appropriate magic theatre, it is shown that the hankerchief is completely whole once more. The secret is revealed in the video, so anyone keen to try will be well informed.

There are some magicians, both young and not so young, who tend to write-off a particular trick because they consider it to be too simple. Quite often they unintentionally do themselves a disservice by discarding the obvious. With a little theatrics, a simple concept can be spruced up to appear more acceptable to an audience. Here we have an easy move with two paper cups, one passing through another, which in its normal setting is not very impressive. However, with the addition of a sticker or two and some misdirection, it can become a shade more intriguing. The magician shows two paper cups and attaches a sticker to one of them. The cup with the sticker is placed inside the second cup and struck forcibly with the hand. Immediately, one cup drops to the table top and is shown to be the cup with the sticker. It seems to have passed right through the second cup. The video includes instructions on how to perform this trick. Easy fun for idle moments.

You're sitting at a table with your friends or family. Imagine the interest and intrigue that would be created, if one of the group produced a couple of coins for a demonstration. That person might as well be you. Here's the illusion:- two coins are presented, and may be examined. You take one of the coins in one hand and place it underneath the table top. With the other hand, you take the remaining coin and hold it above the table top. Bringing this coin down to touch the table, you make a slight rubbing motion and a 'clink' is heard from underneath the table top. You withdraw your hand from underneath, and display both coins in the one hand. The other hand is completely empty. Only two coins are used. The secret is explained in this video, so with a minimum of practice any-one can astound the spectators at your next gathering.

We're sometimes faced with an interval where nothing much is happening. It's such times that the presenting of a puzzle can fill an awkward pause in conversation. Here's a puzzle to put to your friends or family. You have a sheet of paper with a hole in the centre. You also have a coin, which is larger than the hole in the paper. The challenge to them is to pass the coin through the hole without tearing the paper, or in any way making the hole bigger than it already is. The video will describe exactly how this can be done. Since the exercise is performed in full view of the audience and they can see how it is accomplished, it can't be classified as a magic trick. Rather, it is a poser for them to ponder over, until you're ready to expose the method. Just a little something to have fun with in a moment of idleness.

One of the very first magic tricks I learned from my father involved a coin and a matchbox. I watched him intensely as he took a matchbox from his pocket and emptied the matches onto a table. He then proceeded to close up the matchbox and place it to one side. A coin was taken, and promptly made to disappear -I had no idea where it could possibly have gone. Showing both hands to be empty, he reached for the matchbox and slid the drawer open. There, to my amazement, was the coin inside the matchbox he had shown empty just moments before. In this video, I've reconstructed the magic trick he showed me, and also revealed the method used in this baffling display.

I attended a Magic Conference many years ago, and showed a simple trick I learned from my father. I was quite young at the time, and was astounded by the reaction from the seasoned practitioners looking on. It seems that they were approaching the riddle by searching for some complicated explanation. It was, in fact, "what you see is what you get", but they insisted there must be more to it. As you will see by the disclosure, it's a case of "the hand is quicker than the eye". This is a concept they wouldn't accept. "The hand cannot be quicker than the eye", they posed. "It's misdirection of some kind." Just goes to prove that sometimes the simplest answer is the best answer. They refused to accept my explanation, so I walked away resigned and just a tiny bit smug.

Learn how to perform this neat magic trick by following the video instruction. There are many magic tricks involving coins, and this is one that is worthy of attention. The magician displays three different coins and a glass tumbler, all of which can be minutely inspected by the audience. One of the coins can be freely selected if desired, and this coin will be the last coin into the glass tumbler. The other two coins are taken one by one, and visibly inserted into the open top of the tumbler. (This may be done by an audience member). The last coin, being the one selected previously, is now taken by the magician and thrust through the side of the tumbler. The tumbler is now turned upside down, and all three coins fall out into the magician's hand. Alternatively, they may be tippedinto the hand of an audience member. Once again, after the demonstration, all items can be inspected.

Try this easy magic trick. (All you need is a cloth bag and six balls, all different colours.) A member of the audience selects one coloured ball from a choice of five. All five coloured balls are placed in a bag, and jumbled. The audience member has four chances to withdraw his chosen colour, but fails every time. Only the magician can withdraw the ball first selected. It won't be noticed that the five colours have changed from those originally shown. The audience's attention is focused on just one colour, which remains throughout the trick.

Prepare and perform your own magic trick, using just paper, scissors and some glue. Once prepared, you can show three separate demonstrations from simple loops of paper. You can now become a magician without spending a dollar. Make it yourself and present your magic without it costing you anything. This trick has been around for maybe 100 years, but can still manage to baffle and confound an audience.

How many times do we look at the clock and wish it was a different time? Here is shown a magic trick that reverses the management of time. A painted clock-face will display any chosen time that the spectators nominate. Whether they choose 3:00 o'clock, 7:00 o'clock or any number between 1:00 and 12:00, the magician is able to show that time on the clock-face. Every move is slow and deliberate, with no difficult movements required. The hand of the clock is painted on, and yet with every showing, the time is different.

All you need for this magic trick is a glass tumbler and a coin. Learn from the video and perform it for your friends and family. A coin and glass tumbler are shown freely to the audience. Holding the coin in one hand, the base of the tumbler is brought down hard on the coin. The coin is immediately shown to be inside the tumbler, which is promptly handed out for close examination.

A little preparation is required before the performance of this trick, but the effort gives a fine result. A card may be chosen at random, and placed inside a small envelope. A thread is now passed through both sides of the envelope, with the card trapped inside. The thread is now forcibly ripped from the envelope, leaving it destroyed. And yet the card contained in the envelope is free from all damage.

Learn how to perform a magic trick that has a ball penetrate a hankerchief in full view, leaving absolutely no damage whatsoever. All you need is a ball and a hankerchief, and a little practice. The magician displays a ball and a hankerchief, which may be examined by the audience. The hankerchief is placed over the ball and twisted to hold the ball firmly in position. In view of the audience, the ball emerges upward through the hankerchief and is offered once more to the audience for final inspection.