Street Magic XL Trick

Effect: A magician walks toward a person on the street and asks if he could demonstrate a quick magic trick. He tries doing the magic trick but then ........his neck starts to hurt really bad. He grabs his neck and starts to sneeze...... . He then sneezes hard and his head jumps down to the middle of his body. While one hand is holding his head, the other holds on to his jacket. The magician then pulls his head back to the normal position above his shoulders. The magician then calmly walks away.

Preparation: Get a black shirt, lay it out on a surface and carefully cut it with scissors so that it has a V shape cut down to the middle of the chest area. Then you will need a jacket and another black shirt but don't cut the second shirt ! You will also need a long metal coat hanger. ( See photos at bottom of this page )

Get Ready : Put on the first ( the uncut one) shirt on..Then put the cut shirt on, on top of the uncut one. Next, on goes the jacket. Now get the coat hanger and lay it out flat so that it looks like a long rod. ( Make sure that the hanger reaches from shoulder to shoulder ). Grab the rod shaped coat hanger and and put it between the cut and uncut shirt, so that it looks like you have big tough shoulders.

Performance : Outside in an area with a potential audience around, approach someone and ask them if you can do a simple magic trick. While you are trying to do the trick, you suddenly get a neck ache you then reach back with your left hand and grab a hold of your jacket collar (and the rod shaped coat hanger ).Then pretend to sneeze ! harder and harder ! on about the fourth sneeze, you pull your jacket up by pulling on the coat hanger rod and push your head down through the V shape in the prepared cut shirt. You then pull your head back up with your right hand. Remember to keep hold of your lowered head with your right hand.

1) Cut V shape along white dotted area..	2) Squeeze coat hanger into rod shape.
3) Insert coat hanger under cut shirt.	4) Pull coat hanger to give impression that head has lowered.

Practice this street magic trick in front of a mirror to get it right and also try performing the trick at a slight angle to the spectator and not directly face to face

Ace Shake Trick

This trick was performed in David Blaines second special where he made the spectator sign a card, the card was put back in the pack and was made to appear from between two aces.    

The only real skills necessary are good verbal communications and misdirection. Richard Marcus a renowned card cheat always emphasized the importance of misdirection. It was an invaluable tool as all of his casino moves have their foundation in this technique.                                                                                                    

This page will show you how to do a great version of David Blaines card trick.

Secret: Give the spectator, the two red aces and tell them to hold them.

Fan out the deck and tell the spectator to touch a card.

Square the deck up leaving their card stuck out to be signed and shown.

Now you secretly put the card into " palm position " when you square up the deck so you can easily palm the card when you want to.

It must stick out of the lower corner of the pack meeting your inner thumb .

Let them sign the card and then hand them the deck, secretly palming their card.

After they are convinced that the card is well lost in the deck, ask for the two aces and sandwich the face down palmed card between the aces, showing only the aces face up.

Tell them to hold the deck openly and start to shake the aces  directly over the pack, tell them to watch their card rise from the deck into the two aces, shake a little more loosely and watch as to their amazement, their signed card appears from between the aces .

Jumbo Linking Paper Clips Trick

Jumbo Linking Paper Clips Trick

Challenge: Bet your friends that you can link two paperclips together without touching them. This sounds impossible but its easy when you know how. Find out how this easy magic trick is done by watching the solution on the magic instruction video on this page.

The trick can be performed almost anywhere as all you need to perform it are a money bill and two paperclips.

 

Amazing Vulcan Mind Trick

A famous twentieth-century magic inventor and author once said that if you know 100 ways to find a card and only one way to reveal it, your audience will think you only know one card trick. But if you only know one way to find a card and 100 ways to reveal it, it looks as if you know 100 card tricks.

Magic Category: Card Magic Trick with Stunning Revelation

Equipment Needed: Deck of cards.

Method: The Vulcan Mind Trick is another great revelation or way of revealing the identity of a chosen card. An example of an easy card prediction trick are shown below and how to perform this "mind meld" type finish are also explained. Take a full deck of cards and shuffle them.  Fan the cards on the table face down and ask an audience member to select a card from the fan.

Tell them to remember what card it is while you gather up the remaining cards and shuffle them some more. Now, with the deck of cards face down, cut the cards or lift half of the deck so that your audience member can place their card face down in the center of the deck. 

You will need to remember which card is on the bottom of the cut because that will be the card directly on top of the chosen card.  

Shuffle the cards some more, taking care to stay away from the center cut, or you can ask your participant to cut the cards a couple of times – or both a cut and a shuffle, it’s up to you how to present the trick.   

To conclude this easy magic card reveal trick, simply fan the cards face up on the table and find the card in the deck that is directly after the one that you memorized from the bottom of the cut, and that will be the card.  You can also flip the cards one by one until you come to it, or put your own swing on the trick to make it more fun and believable.

Card Revelation: This is the way that a magician announces, reveals or displays the chosen cards identity. The workings of a trick can be really easy but the real impact comes from the finale of the trick, the performance that you use to build an atmosphere of mystery and excitement.

To perform the Vulcan Mind Trick finish, practice your acting skills and continue as follows :- Place your fingertips on the volunteer’s temples and act as if you can catch a glimpse of their card by reading their thoughts. Tell them that human thoughts resonate at certain frequencies and vibrations and that they can be picked up by your fingertips with a little practice.

Reveal their card after a little struggle and battling with yourself between the choice of a few cards before narrowing the choice down to your audiences chosen card to make the finish of the card reveal, more interesting.

As mentioned before, the Vulcan mind meld trick is just one of almost unlimited possible themes that you could use for the card reveal at the end of the trick. Use your imagination and I am sure you can think of some entertaining routines.

Torn And Restored Illusion

Here is a simple magic trick where you can perform a torn and restored illusion with a paper straw wrapper. The illusion is easy to do but looks very convincing to your audience.

Method : You require a few straws that are covered with a paper wrapper. These are normally quite readily available in fast food restaurants. A little practice to learn some easy sleight of hand moves and you should be ready to try out this cool trick.

The video below, shows the performance of the paper wrapper being torn and restored. the explanation of the trick then follows for you to learn.

  

As with all good magic tricks, a little entertaining chat can really help to make the performance more entertaining both for your audience and for you the magician.

Money Making Magic Trick

Amazing free card trick where some magic happens with some blank pieces of paper.

Effect : Here is an excellent routine where some pieces of plain paper are magically transformed into dollar bills right in front of your eyes. With a little easy preparation, you can soon be performing this amazing trick,

The video below, first shows you the trick being performed, then reveals the clever secret. Look, listen, learn and most of all, enjoy watching this magic trick.

  

This trick requires a little time to prepare and even more time to practice, but I think that you will agree that the time invested is worthwhile to obtain a smooth effect.

Simple Card Trick With Power Finish

Effect: The spectator is shown a fanned out set of cards and asked to pick one & concentrate on that card. The chosen card is not revealed by the spectator. The magician appears to read the spectators mind and pulls out or even tears up the spectators secretly chosen card.

Preparation: For this trick you'll need two sets of cards, each with five cards. (The cards should be five different cards, but should resemble each other (for instance, if you had a Jack of spades in one, use a Jack of clubs in the other). ie SET ONE : JC,KS,KH,QS,JD. and SET TWO: JS,KC, KD,QC,JH.

Method: Hide the second set of five cards, but keep them somewhere close, so that you can secretly switch them with the other set of five cards. Now, fan out the five cards. Tell the spectator to remember and concentrate on one of the cards. Now, as you collect the cards, you'll need to switch between the two sets. Now spread out the second set of cards on the table, face down.

Use some play acting and appear to be concentrating deeply as if reading the spectator's thoughts. Place a finger on one of the spread ot cards and slide it out from the rest of the cards. The finishing move is up to you, either

1) Turn over the remaining four cards to show that the spectator's card has been removed.

2) Tear the card that you removed into small pieces, making sure that the spectator does not see the face up side of the torn card.

A simple trick but with a powerful finish. This trick is only as good as the performance and patter that you can use to make it entertaining

Glass On Card Balance Magic Trick

Amazing free card balancing stunt. Credit your finely honed senses with magically balancing a glass of water on a playing card.

Effect: A playing card is shown to the spectator and is placed upright on a table, with the short edge of the card facing upwards.
You then proceed to balance a glass of water ON THE EDGE !! of the card. Watch the video below to view the performance and learn the secret to this cool magic card balance trick.

You Need: A deck of cards, paper glue or double sided sticky tape.

How It's Done: Prepare your gimmicked cards as follows.

Glue a second card to the back of the front card, making sure that you only glue or stick half the card ( lengthwise ) together. This should allow one lengthwise edge of the second card to be pulled back to form a "T" shape when required and support the glass.

Tips: Practice this trick with a plastic tumbler or glass until you can perform it confidently and know how much weight, the cards can hold when you transfer the balance of weight of the glass to it.

You can strengthen the gimmicked cards by gluing two cards completely together and then half gluing a third card to the back of them, this will give the gimmick a little more rigidity.

Easy Card Moves - Pull Cards From Thin Air

Easy Card Moves - Pull Cards From Thin Air

Appear to pull cards from thin air with this easy to set up guide to one of the classic and enjoyable basic moves of card magic.

Do not be fooled by the simplicity of this easy card sleight. It is very visual and can be a real reputation maker.

This move is timeless and you will be able to perform an impressive card production easily and confidently, after following this easy sleight of hand guide. Effect: Amazing audience reaction because even though it's clear your hand is empty, you appear to grab card after card from behind their ears, under tables, even from thin air!

You Will Need: 1) Pack Of Cards 2) Practice, practice, practice.

How To Do The Trick:

A small stack of cards should be held in the palm of the hand in palm position . Choose an amount of cards that you feel comfortable holding. It is not necessary to hold a lot of cards ( try and work out how many you plan to produce and count them out before the trick )

Grip the edge of the pack with your fingers and use your thumb to peel of the top card.

		Continue using your thumb to move the card up to the audiences view, held beween the thumb and fore finger.

At the same time as you are pivoting up the card, the hand should be lunged forward slightly as if the card has been grabbed from thin air

Continue to produce cards from the air in this manner, throwing down each card to the audience before producing the next card as if by magic. Practice this trick in front of a mirror to see it from an audience eye view and get to get the best angle for the trick to be performed.

Super Card Warp Trick

Amazing free card trick where two cards are folded together and one of the cards undergoes a seemingly impossible transformation right in front of the spectators eyes. This is visually baffling close up magic.

Effect: Two cards are folded in half and one is placed inside the fold of the other. The card inside the fold is shown to have performed an impossible transformation with both the face side and the card backing, being visible on each side. This stunning effect as well as the secret of how to do a card warp trick is explained in the video.

Highlights:

Can be performed almost anywhere at a moments notice.

Good ice breaker for a street magic performance.

The little preparation that is needed to perform this magic is time well spent as this trick can look really baffling to your audience

Cool Number Tricks

Two easy tricks with numbers for beginner magicians to try

Educated Guess

You Will Need

A sheet of blank paper, folded into thirds
3 pencils
3 friends

1. Tear the sheet of paper neatly along the folds so that you have three sheets of equal size. The smaller sheets may seem identical, but the centre sheet will actually be frayed on two of its sides, while the end sheets are frayed only on one side. No one will notice this, but you will see it is an important difference, which will help you succeed with this trick!
2. Hand the centre sheet and a pencil to someone in your audience. Ask them to write down any number and then to fold the sheet into thirds. Tell the participant to concentrate on their number.

3. Hand the remaining sheets and pencils to two other audience members. Ask them to write down numbers and to fold the sheets of paper into thirds.

4. Then collect the papers and scramble them.

5. Pull out the first volunteer’s sheet. You’ll know it’s theirs because it’s the only sheet with two ragged edges. Hold up the sheet and ask the volunteer if it is their number, and they will be amazed that you picked the right one!

Extra Digits

Tell your friends that you have eleven fingers, and that you can prove it!

1. Using your left index finger, point to each finger of your right hand, counting "One, two, three, four, five".

2. With your right index finger, count the fingers on your left hand, "Six, seven, eight, nine, ten".

3. Say "Funny, I'm sure I had eleven. Let me count them again."

4. This time, count backwards, pointing to the fingers of your left hand, say "Ten, nine, eight, seven, six...". Then stop, hold up the right hand and say "Plus five equals eleven! I told you I had eleven fingers."

Rip A Phonebook In Half

Want to show off your strength at the next party? There are few strongman tricks so impressive as ripping a phonebook in half with your bare hands. Try doing it, however, and no matter how strong you are, it will be nearly impossible. With the right technique, though, almost anyone can frighten foes and dazzle everyone around them with this trick.

1) Fold the phonebook in the center with your thumbs.
Use your thumbs to bend down the center of the phonebook. Put your thumbs close together in the middle (though still along the top edge) of the book. Push down with your thumbs so that the center of the book bends down to form a sort of crease.

2) Place your index fingers to the sides of the fold. While your thumbs will be on the top side (the front) of the book, your other fingers will all be folded over the edge so that they grip the bottom side (in other words, the back) of the book. Your index fingers (also called "pointer fingers") should be right against the sides of the fold your thumbs have created.
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3) Note the tiny air spaces in the crease.
Bend the side edges of the book downward with your fingers. Keeping your thumbs (and the crease) in position, begin to bend the corners of the book down while also pushing inward on the crease. You'll feel your chest (pectoral) muscles being used if you're doing it right. The crease in the book will become more accentuated, and if you look carefully at the crease, you'll be able to see pockets of air form between the pages.

4) Begin the tear by pulling the edges downward and outward while keeping the crease folded.
Rotate your hands to tear the book. Twist the right side of the book up with your right hand while twisting the left side down with your left hand (this can be reversed depending on what's comfortable for you). Maintain a firm grip on the book at all times, and use your pectoral muscles to keep firm inward pressure on the book. The book should begin to tear.

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5) Continue tearing. Rearrange your hands if necessary.
Tear through the book. If you're strong enough and maintain a good grip on the book, you may be able to rip the book all the way down the center of its length in one shot. Otherwise you may need to reposition your hands and continue ripping less gracefully. Either way, it will be impressive.

Anti Gravity Magic Ketchup Trick

Amazing but incredibly easy trick, where you command a ketchup sachet to rise and fall, inside a bottle at your command with a simple hand motion. Very visual and amusing levitating trick.

  

You Will Need :- A clear plastic bottle such as one that has been used for soft drinks or mineral water. You will also need a condiment sachet, these are usually found in fast food outlets.

Method :-

1) Take the label of the bottle so as to make the contents clearly visible.

2) Fill the bottle, near to the top with cold tap water.

3) Insert the sachet into the bottle, it should float at the top of the bottle.

4) Holding the base of the bottle, as if to steady it, apply gentle squeezing pressure to the base. The increase in pressure inside the bottle should cause the sachet to float slowly downwards. Releasing the grip on the bottle will allow the sachet to float magically upwards.

5) To make the sachet stop in the middle of the bottle, you need to apply just the right amount of pressure, this can be found with practice.

The beauty of this magic style trick is that the audience are completely unaware of the technique as their attention is drawn to the motions of your other hand, beckoning the sachet to rise and fall as if by magic. Add an interesting line of patter and you have a great impromptu levitation trick that is easy to set up and can be used in a wide variety of places or as a pub trick.

cool As Ice Magic Trick

cool As Ice Magic Trick

This trick is so easy, you may think its not convincing . Don't believe it, it works a treat.

This trick is best done at a party where the props are available.

The Secret: You need a cup or glass that you can't see through. You also need a small sponge and an ice cube.

Preparation: Prepare the cup by placing the sponge into the bottom of the cup. Then, drop an ice cube into the bottom and you're all set.

To Perform: Pour a small amount of water (about an ounce) into the cup. The sponge absorbs the water. Blow into the cup, wave your hands over it and dump out the cube.

Ta-da! A miracle!

(If you use a paper cup, just crumble it up and throw it in the trash after performing the trick. This will save the onlookers from inspecting inside the cup.)

This trick is very visual and can really entertain a crowd.

Penny Prediction Magic Trick

Effect :- A hat or bag containing ten pennies ( quarters will work, just as well ) is passed to the audience. They are asked to examine the coins to confirm that the coins have different dates.

A member of the audience is asked to choose a coin at random and pass this around for the other members to see.

The coin is then placed back in the hat with the other coins and the hat is then presented to the magician. Eyes closed and appearing to be concentrating deeply, the magician puts his hand in the hat and retrieves the chosen coin.

This is an impressive mind reading style trick.

Items Needed :-10 pennies or quarters with different dates on each, a hat or paper bag.

Secret :- There is no secret setup. There is no force of which coin to chose. The trick is reasonably simple if you think about it.

As the coin is passed through the people's hands, it becomes warmer than the rest.

So, all you have to do when you put your hand into the hat is find the coin that is the warm one. A paper bag will do just as good as a hat.

Disappearing Toothpick

A simple but effective vanish magic trick, similar to trick shown on television by Criss Angel

Check out the video shown below, to learn how to perform a cool impromptu vanishing magic trick. This stunt is easy to learn and perfect and has the advantage of needing very few props . Hence it can be performed almost anywhere. watch and enjoy

This trick benefits from some practice to perfect the moves and timing before performing it in front of an audience.

This is a great impromptu trick to perform as it requires very few items and the materials needed are usually readily available in many restaurants and fast food outlets. As such it is a cool table magic routine to perform.

Amazing Optical Illusion Magic

Amazing Optical Illusion Magic

Effect: Check the two images below. Sitting at your computer, Mr Angry appears on the left and Miss Happy, appears on the right.

If you now stand up and view the image from a few feet away, you will see that the two images, have miraculously swapped places. Try it and see for yourself.

It is said this illusion was created by Phillippe G.Schyns and Aude Oliva of the University of Glasgow.

Indestructible Money Bill Trick

A money bill is visibly seen to be speared right through its center but on examination immediately after this, it is found to be unharmed. Visually baffling impromptu magic trick explained.

Effect: A money bill is openly presented to the audience and then folded. A square of paper is attached to the bill and both are folded together to form a pouch. A pen is placed in the center of the pouch and pierced straight through it. This all happens right in front of your audience. the pen is removed and on examining the bill, it is found to be totally undamaged ???

This trick is a very convincing effect and is surprisingly easy to perform. The magic instruction video below here shows the performance of the magic trick and then follows with an explanation of how to do the trick.

There are a few tips to enhance your performance listed after the magic instruction video.

Tips and Hints :

Watch your angles, so that your audience do not see that the pen has been placed between the bill and the paper. Practice in front of a mirror to perfect the angles.

A little bit of entertaining patter will enhance this trick and indeed most tricks. It will give them a more memorable appeal.

Make A Cigarette Vanish And Reappear

This trick can be done almost anywhere and requires minimal preparation. It is a good ice breaker and can look absolutely baffling to your audience

Preparation : This trick requires the use of a cigarette or a short straw. If using a straw make sure that it is about the same length as your thumb.

Performance : A cigarette or straw is shown to be held in your hand up close to your spectator. A magic wave of your hand later, the cigarette has vanished into thin air, right in front of them !!

To make this awesome close up magic trick even more amazing, a further magic wave of your hand, makes the cigarette reappear.

  

This is an impressive close up magic trick and the performance and easy secret are explained in the video above. Like any trick, practice the trick before performing in front of an audience.

Melting Match Morph Trick

Easy trick where you appear to melt two matchsticks through each other.
This is easy to master but is still a very convincing bar trick.

Easy Trick Method

Two matchsticks are removed from their box and are held out and shown to your spectators.

Each matchstick is held between the thumb and first finger of each hand. The matches are rubbed together showing that they are solid and is is an impossibility for one to pass through the other without breaking it.

As if by magic, you achieve the impossible and pass one match through the other, effortlessly. Learn the secret to this easy bar trick by watching the following magic instructional video.

Don't forget to practice the angle that this cool pub trick is performed at in relation to your audiences view. This is where some practice in front of a mirror to perfect your angles, comes in really useful

Indestructible Money Bill Trick

Indestructible Money Bill Trick

A money bill is visibly seen to be speared right through its center but on examination immediately after this, it is found to be unharmed. Visually baffling impromptu magic trick explained.

Effect: A money bill is openly presented to the audience and then folded. A square of paper is attached to the bill and both are folded together to form a pouch. A pen is placed in the center of the pouch and pierced straight through it. This all happens right in front of your audience. the pen is removed and on examining the bill, it is found to be totally undamaged ???

This trick is a very convincing effect and is surprisingly easy to perform. The magic instruction video below here shows the performance of the magic trick and then follows with an explanation of how to do the trick.

There are a few tips to enhance your performance listed after the magic instruction video.

Tips and Hints :

Watch your angles, so that your audience do not see that the pen has been placed between the bill and the paper. Practice in front of a mirror to perfect the angles.

A little bit of entertaining patter will enhance this trick and indeed most tricks. It will give them a more memorable appeal.

Coin Roll Knuckle Trick

A quick tutorial to demonstrate the deceptively easy coin roll sleight where a coin is continually rolled between the knuckles. This coin flourish is commonly seen being used by magicians and even by poker players using poker chips.

Preparation : There is little preparation required other than choosing the right size and weight of coin to perform the trick. The flipping of the coin from finger to finger is assisted by gravity and so a coin with a little weight such as a silver half dollar can help produce a smooth flowing movement.

Method : Start with a coin balanced on your thumb pad and slide the coin onto your first finger at the part of the finger nearest the knuckle. The hand should be held so that the finger joints that are balancing the coin are facing horizontally upwards.

Now to transfer the coin from the first to middle finger, first lower and raise the middle finger so that it pinches the side of the coin flipping it over from first to middle finger.

Repeat this action with the next finger so that the coin flips on to it.

With the coin balanced on the finger next to the little finger. Place little finger on top of the coin and slide the coin under your fingers far enough along so that you can grip it with your thumb.

The thumb can then continue sliding the coin around on to the top of the first finger again. You can then repeat the cycle as many times as you like.

Tips : The only way to get this trick up to speed is practice. You are sure to drop the coin several times, this is normal. Practice doing the move over a soft surface such as paper or cloth. This should cut down on the noise of the coin falling and help stop it from rolling away.

Try tilting your hand at a slight angle when flipping the coin from finger to finger, to help gravity assist you in flipping the coin.

Snap Vanish Quarter Trick

Snap Vanish Quarter Trick

This is an easy to pull off snap vanish trick which can be performed with a quarter or playing card.
The coin or card appears to mysteriously vanish into oblivion when you wave your hand over it.

Find out the easy secret to this amazing coin trick by watching the video demonstration. Don't forget though that you should practice this coin trick until your are confident performing it before trying it in front of your friends or an audience. Great impromptu street magic trick.

This trick is easy to do and you should soon be performing it to a good standard. Take a little time to practice the angle that the coins are directed to, so that they are out of view from your audience.

Elbow Coin Vanish

A coin is seen to be rubbed into your elbow and made to completely vanish into thin air. Learn the secret to this easy to do coin vanish trick.

The elbow coin vanish coin trick is one of the oldest popular coin tricks around. It is still a great trick to learn as it can be performed competently with just a little practice. The magic instruction video below shows the coin trick being performed which is followed by an explanation of the simple but clever secret.

Take a little time to perfect the sleight of hand required when appearing to transfer the coin from hand to hand and you will have another great easy magic trick to add to your collection.

This close up trick can be helped along by the magician chatting to the audience members and making eye contact with them during the performance. This will help to draw some of their attention away from your sleight of hand as they feel obliged to be listening to what you are saying.

Up & Under Impossible Bill Switch Trick

Up & Under Impossible Bill Switch Trick

Amazing free magic lesson where two different money bills are seen to swap positions in a seemingly impossible move.

Effect: Two different money bills are placed one on top of each other, the bills are then rolled up together and the spectator pins each note to the table with their fingertips to ensure the bills cannot move. When the bills are then unrolled a seemingly impossible switch of places has occurred.

Watch this cool magic trick being performed in the video demonstration below, then learn how to perform the magic trick in the free lesson that follows.

You Need:Two different money bills and an audience.

How It's Done: You will see the easy explanation and method in the video. This cool stunt is easy to do but like all tricks, a little practice makes perfect. Also you can enhance this close up magic stunt by adding some entertaining patter of your own.

The beauty of this sleight is that it requires no set up and very little equipment and can be performed almost anywhere.

A good source to enable you to learn coin magic and sleights is Modern Coin Magic: 116 Coin Sleights and 236 Coin Tricks which is a highly regarded book to help you learn some coin tricks.

Magic Money Bill Fold

Magic Money Bill Fold

This is a fantastic piece of impromptu magic that can be performed anywhere at a moments notice.

How To Do The Trick :

The magician takes a dollar bill (or any bill he chooses) out of his pocket and presents it to the audience. While displaying in his hand open palm up with the bill unfolded and flat in the magician's palm, it suddenly begins to move. But its not just moving, its folds itself up. First in half, then sideways until its completely folded neatly in the magician's palm!

You Will Need :

1. A Dollar Bill (or any money bill you choose to use).
2. Magicians thread - . A good alternative is black nylon line, but make sure its extremely thin!
3. Clear Scotch tape.

 

Note: Using invisible thread
One thing to keep in mind when using invisible thread is that you should be wearing light colored clothing to act as the backdrop to the thread not dark shaded ones. Darker shaded clothes cause the light to reflect in a way that reveals the magicians thread. So wear non reflective light colored clothing.

This way it is more "invisible" to the spectators. Also, pay attention to the lighting in the area that you are performing and attempt to have the light source pointing directly at you if you can. You do NOT want the light source to come from behind you as it will will reflect off the thread and reveal the thread to your audience.

Setting up the Self Folding Gimmick

 

The beauty of this money magic trick gimmick is that it's extremely simple to construct. No complex mechanism to this gimmick, just string and tape!

First thing you should do is fold the bill in half 3 times. Take a look at the photo to get a good idea of how to fold.

The next thing to do is to take the invisible thread and using a sewing needle (get the thinnest gauge you can find so it doesn't leave a sizable hole), pass the thread through half of the bill. Take a look at the illustration to get a good idea on where to do this.

I recommend finding a point in the bill where you are passing through just the green part of the bill and not the white. Also the part you are passing through is going to be the bottom of the gimmick and into the middle fold [See photo 4]. The area you are passing the invisible thread through should 4 layers of the bill. I usually place the bill flat on a piece of wood and push the needle down through the bill so that I don't poke myself or widen the hole the needle will make.Carefully pull the thread through the folds.

Once you have the thread through, you need to attach it to the area adjacent to the hole on the other side of the fold (should be the center area). Use the clear tape to do so. Your bill should look like photo 5. Photo 6 shows a different angle where [A] is where the thread passes through and [B] is where the thread is attached. Use a exacto knife to precut the clear tape smaller, or alternatively, use rubber cement or professional modeling glue (not the type that is for plastic parts) to attach the thread. If you do that, make sure it dries completely before you use it, otherwise it will be tacky and eventually break the bond.

Now cut the thread on the opposite side from where you have attached it. Your cut should be about 12-15 inches [or more, you will see how long] away from the bill and attach that end to something you carry in your pocket. I recommend you read through the entire article first before cutting so that you can get a better idea of how long the thread should be. Attach it to something like a wallet or deck of cards or whatever you might carry in your front pocket. It really doesn't matter what it is, because it's just acting as an anchor and will not be seen in the trick. Therefore, make sure its has some weight to it.

Performing the magic trick!

Preparation for this magic trick is pretty simple after you have constructed the gimmick. Just carefully unfold the bill so that its open [photo 7 & 8]. Give the thread enough slack to allow you to adjust the bill. I also would make the line a little slack just so when it starts to pull tight, it will cause a small movement in the bill to make it more dramatic.

Now, to make it clear, when you pull the bill out in front of the audience, it should be folded. Try to be as casual as possible when unfolding. Once unfolded your bill should be laying in your palm like in photo 9. The thread that is coming out the bottom should follow between your fingers next to your palm area like in photo 10. The thread will run from under your hand down into your pocket and attached to the anchor.

Find a comfortable length to hold your arm in front of you and make sure you uphold a natural position. This will dictate how long you should cut the thread also. So make sure you have your hand at a natural position with the palm up displaying the unfolded bill.

It's time for the magic! To make the bill fold itself, gently move your hand away from your body. As your hand moves slowly (and hopefully unnoticed), the bill will start to fold itself! First it will fold itself in half! Then it will fold over in a different direction, and finally it will fold itself one final time! Practice in front of a mirror to determine the best speed and motion to do this with. Once the bill is folded all the way grip it with your thumb and fingers and put it back in your pocket!