Coming tomorrow night to subscribers’ email-boxes, The JAMM #11.
I like this one a lot. While the theme of the issue is using magic in the context of gift-giving, a number of the ideas provided can be utilized in a much broader range of contexts. The tricks that bookend the issue present frameworks that you can use for a number of different effects.
Below is our JAMM Muse for December, Amanda, with a festive take on this James Randi promo shot.
In the 90s, those star-shaped rubber bands came out and everyone thought, "Ah! I know! I'll do that thing where I weave a star out of a rubber band, but I'll do it with one of these. And then it will seem like the band magically became the star shape!" It's a pretty obvious idea. But what it lacks in originality it makes up for in simplicity and the fact that people seem to enjoy the trick. And it makes for a mildly cool souvenir.
I used to do this so much that one time, at a party, two women I had performed it for bumped into each other. They both had their star band on their wrist. Apparently it bummed them out. They had thought they were special. They were special. But me making them a star rubber band wasn't evidence of that.
It's also an ideal way to distract a kid who's spazzing out on a plane or something. I don't have a ton of stuff in my repertoire that's as good for kids as adults, but this is one of those things.
I don't consider this some mind-bending miracle. But it's always something I thought was fun to perform in low-key situations. And I have a couple of things to add to the effect that may interest some of you. One is a way to bring in both rubber bands in a manner that makes it seem like both have been examined. The other is the story that goes along with it. It's just a dumb little spiel, but it affords me the opportunity to do my favorite style of presentation where I get to act like an idiot and brag about something stupid.
I'll start with the presentation first then give you details on the move I use to allow them to seemingly see both rubber bands as normal.
I have two rubber bands on my wrist (just two). Occasionally someone would ask me what they were there for.
"Oh, I do rubberbandigami," I'd say quickly, like it was a thing, while keeping my attention on the tv or my drink or whatever.
"What?" they'd ask.
"Rubberbandigami," I'd say again. Then I'd turn my attention to them completely. "Wait... do you not know about rubberbandigami? Oh my god... you don't pay any attention to the world around you, do you? Rubberbandigami is like, sweeping the country. Well, the world, actually. Everyone is doing it."
I then rattle off a few celebrities. The first one is already dated and it only gets worse from there.
"Yeah, everyone. Jamie Lynn Spears. 'Blanket' Jackson. Jonathan Lipnicki. Adam Rich."
"I'll show you."
I pull one of the rubber bands off my wrist and toss it on the table.
"Take a look. It looks like a regular rubber band, yeah? That's because it is. But rubberbandigami is about doing something extraordinary with them. It's about twisting and weaving them into photo-realistic representations of other items. I'm not bragging, but I'm pretty good at it."
I then demonstrate some rubberbandigami for them.
A piece of pizza
An hourglass
A uterus
"You can do it with multiple rubber bands too. Which actually makes it easier because there's more material to work with."
I pull the second band off my wrist and hand it to the person.
"It just uses normal rubber bands that you can get at Staples or wherever."
"There's a ranking system. It's like karate with their belts. Except here the ranking is based on stars. Once you progress your way through the star system, and learn how to construct each star, you're considered a master rubberbandigamist. That's where I am."
"I'll show you. Here's level one. Two rubber bands. Two hands. One star."
"Next is level two. That's two rubber bands. Two hands. Two stars."
"Level three is much more difficult because it uses one less rubber band. Can you hold this one in your fist for me? I'll show you something cool with that in a minute. Level three is one rubber band. One hand. One star. There are about three dozen people in the world who have reached this level. That looks like this...."
"Finally," I say, "is level four. Six people have attained level four status. Level four is: One rubber band. One star. NO hands. Let's see if I can get this."
I toss the band in my hands aside and breathe deeply a few times and then catch my breath and hold it, then let it out after a few moments.
"I think I got it," I say. "Open up your hand." She does and finds a rubber band in a permanent star shape.
You can find instructions for the different star shapes on youtube, I'm not going to go through that here.
I will describe the one move in the routine which is something I came up with myself, but I don't have much background in rubber band magic and it certainly could be part of the literature and I'll happily give credit if someone can provide it.
So I have two rubber bands on my left wrist (more than two makes the upcoming move less clean). One of the bands is a star band. I take off the normal band and hand it to the spectator to look at. I take it back and then make a few shapes with it on my left hand. When I'm done I leave it wrapped around my left hand at the base of my fingers.
I then say, "You can add another rubber band too." And grab and pull up on the star band on my wrist with my middle finger and ring finger of my right hand.
I start pulling that band off my wrist and as I'm passing the band on my fingers, I pinch that band between the forefinger and thumb of my right hand and drop the other band off my right-hand fingers, leaving it in place of the original band that was wrapped around my left palm.
Here's what it looks like in motion.
To say this happens on the offbeat is an understatement. It happens before anyone even knows a trick is going to happen. So there is no heat on the move at all.
Here it is with different colored bands so the switch is clearer.
And here's a kind of slowed down version from behind.
It's a fun little 2-3 minute bit. Give the star away as a souvenir and people will say of you, as the Spinners did of that other Rubberband Man:
Oh boy, this dude is outta sight!
Everything he does seems to come out right
This is the third and final part of the Jerx guide for magic adjacent gifts you may want to ask for this Christmas.
This printer is about the size of a cell phone and it's something I've used quite frequently in the past in magic tricks, see The Look of Love and Variations on the Konami Code.
There are undoubtedly other small printers that are on the market now that I don't know about as I've just been using this one for a few years now. I'm sure any of those would work just as well. The only thing I might be concerned about with a different printer is that it might not be as quiet as this one, which would make it not quite as good for use in a covert sense.
I've found tricks incorporating photographs to play extremely well. Photographs have always had an emotional resonance with people. And with actual physical pictures being less and less common, I think that's even more true now. These types of portable printers are great for creating these tricks and moments on the fly.
I've just linked to an example, but there are all sorts of different types of puzzle boxes to be found out there. You can find some that take dozens of steps to open.
What to do with them?
Well, I just think they add a general air of mystery to the proceedings. If you want to pull out some strange artifact, it becomes even stranger if it's stored in this box. Or if you keep a prediction in there, it makes the prediction somewhat more intriguing than if it's just in an envelope or something. You could have the steps to open the box written on different cards, have them mixed and laid out in a row by the spectator and it turns they've somehow placed out the cards in the order required to open the box.
Or just stick your weed in it, you fucking burnout.
For a long time I thought of optical illusions as things that 10-year-old boys liked and no one else really cared about. But in recent months I've been working on a number of pieces where I transition from an optical illusion into a magic trick and I've found it remarkably easy to not only make that transition in a seamless way, but to capture people's interest in the first place with an optical illusion. The key is to look for illusions that retain some element of surprise in them. The ones where it's like, "Which line is longer? Actually they're the same size," are so well known that nobody really cares.
Having a deck of cards like this has been useful for me both in generating ideas for effects and also as a Hook that can be left out on an end-table to capture the unsuspecting little minnows who pick it up.
App Store and iTunes Gift Cards
Gift cards are a bit of a cheat. I mean, as a gift it's pretty lazy. And maybe it's even a bit of a cheat for me to include them on this list. But there's no denying that they fall into the category of being a not overtly magical gift that you can easily use in your practice of magic.
The obvious manner to do this is, of course, with magic apps. I recommend Marc Kerstein's apps, just because those are the ones I'm most familiar with and actually use. I know there are other great apps out there but I just haven't played around with them enough to recommend them.
Another app I'd recommend that isn't a magic app, but I use it all the time to help in keeping my magic repertoire orgainzed, is called Tap Forms. It's a personal database that lets you track pretty much anything. I have two main databases that I keep in this.
The first is for people I meet. My lifestyle has me coming into contact with new people almost daily. You may think it's creepy or nerdy to create a database of people like this, but whatever, it's pretty much a necessity for me. It's nothing weird. It's not like, "Karen: The redhead. Her boobies are a 10. But her face is just a 5." I'm not an asshole. I'm just keeping track of people's names, where we met, when we met, their birthday, their job, if they're married and/or have kids (and the names of those family members). This is all stuff I find out from them directly, I don't do research behind their back. And it's all the sort of thing that I think most people would hope people would remember about them.
I also keep track of the tricks I've performed for them.
And that is the second major database I keep in this app, the tricks in my repertoire. I keep track of: the name of the effect, where it can be found, who created it, what the requirements are, how long it takes to perform, when I've performed it, the reactions it got, and so on.
So now I can search for any combination of things in regards to the tricks in my repertoire. I can look for what tricks are impromptu and coin tricks, for example. I can look for the ones I haven't performed in over two years. I can look for the ones that consistently don't seem to get the reaction I would expect and either modify them or ditch them altogether. Or I can look up a particular person and see exactly what tricks I've performed for them and which type of trick seemed to generate the strongest reaction from them.
Tracking people and tricks like this may seem excessive, I get that. But if you're performing a lot and meeting a lot of new people it won't feel that way. And this database app has been the easiest way I've found to keep track of it all.
This is a piece of "playable art" that goes from a helix form to a burst form with a twist.
I think it's just generally a neat little thing. But I have also used it in a magic context as an Imp. Essentially as a form of a magic wand that is visually representing the "magic" that is happening. Think of any trick where something goes from chaos to order, like a shuffled deck returning to new deck order (via a double indexed deck). I spread the cards, showing a mixed up deck, then square them. Then I twist the "lollipopter" making it go from spread out to the helix form. Then I spread the deck and now it's in new deck order.
If you had two of these and two double indexed decks, you could do a transposition where the shuffled deck follows the "shuffled" lollipopter.
GLOMM "Elite" Level Membership Kit
I know I mentioned just a week or two ago that I don't ever believe in lowering the prices on things because I think it screws over the people who've supported this site early on. However I have made an exception here. You can direct your loved one to this page on the GLOMM site and they can purchase a GLOMM Membership Kit as a gift for you for one penny less than it normally sells. And the kit will arrive with one piece of tinsel.
The penultimate issue of the JAMM features three tricks related to gift giving. One to be done with a group at a holiday gathering, another that can be done across vast distances, and a simple trick utilizing an item that I buy in bulk (for about $5/each) and carry with me throughout the holiday season (and much of the rest of the year) as a cool giveaway that everybody keeps.
While I've crammed all of these effects into the theme of gift-giving, the truth is they are effects that you can use year-round in other contexts as well.
You can still buy full volumes and individual issues of the JAMM here.
The Jerx Amateur Magic Monthly, the gift that keeps on giving. Until January. Then it stops.
We continue the list of magic adjacent gifts you may want to ask for this holiday season...
Storage Boxes
The biggest change I made that transformed me from someone who dicked around with magic and performed mainly for my couch cushions, to someone who had an ever ready workable repertoire of material that I showed real people on a regular basis, was getting my shit together organizationally. I covered the basics of my system in this post on organization.
Organizing your ideas and your props makes rehearsing the effects in your repertoire so much easier, which makes you more likely to rehearse regularly, broadening your repertoire, and not limiting you to the same two tricks you always do.
I like to have my repertoire broken up by the requirements of the effect: The effects that just require a normal deck, the ones that require a deck and a marker, the ones that require a normal deck and one or two gimmicked cards, the ones that require a special deck, the ones that use normal coins, the ones that require gimmicked coins, the ones that require everyday objects, the ones that require small gimmicks.
I then store all of the requirements for each grouping together so I can run through them regularly and rapidly. I don't just keep my magic gimmicks organized, but also normal objects that I might need for a trick. That way I'm not constantly looking around for the right coins I need, or a pen, paper clips, rubber bands, or whatever. It's all ready to go.
Here are some of the storage boxes that I use:
Akro Mills Hardware and Craft Cabinet - For storing all types of small gimmicks. Tell people you want it to put your nails and screws in, like a real man. But don't oversell it. Don't be like, "I promise you, I'm not going to be keeping fake thumbs and manipulation thimbles in there, like a bitch. It's more for tools and tool parts. Things which I definitely know the name of."
Vaultz Locking Utility Box - I've mentioned this before. This is a small pencil-box sized box. I use it for the stuff I'm currently most excited to work on and/or perform. Then it's almost like a toiletry bag. I travel a lot so when I go somewhere I can just grab this and know that it will have the stuff I'm most interested in playing around with.
Quiver Game Card Carrying Case - In my old organization post, I was using wooden cassette cases to store my decks of cards. Once I left my place in Brooklyn though, I ditched those. Like a Seven Mary Three song, they would be too cumbersome to lug around with me. Instead I got these Quiver cases. Each case holds around 22 decks. I wouldn't suggest buying them for your fancy decks you want to display. But if you have a number of gimmicked decks, these are a good option for holding those. Each of my gimmicked decks or one trick decks has a little code written on the bottom so I know what it's for. And when I want to rehearse them, I just pull out the full case and go through the decks one at a time to keep the working and the handling fresh.
Just search around for storage boxes that fit your needs. For my purposes I don't want a big huge box with everything in it. Instead I prefer a series of smaller boxes and cases set up for a specific type of material. But you may have your own organizational style. And for you, maybe some big thing like this would fit that style. Whatever keeps you organized and makes performing and practicing easier is a good thing.
Cards and Coins
These things aren't "magic adjacent." These are examples of props you can use in your actual performances, but that you don't have to send someone off to an online magic store to buy them for you.
It seems that most of the collectible decks of playing cards that are put out by Ellusionist or Dan and Dave can be found on Amazon. For instance, I asked for the Rocket Deck this year.
I prefer to ask for one of these collectible types of decks of cards rather than just a brick of Bicycle cards or something. That may be more "useful," but it's like asking for a 24-pack of paper towels for Christmas. Practicality isn't very festive.
When I get a gift of a deck of cards, I'll generally put it with my other collectible decks and have it stacked for a specific trick. Then if the person who gave it to me visits and comments on the deck, I'm ready to go into a trick on the spur of the moment.
Coins are also a great option for a technically non-magical gift that you can, obviously, get a lot of usage from as a magician. I don't do too much coin work with half-dollars/silver dollars, so I'm not the best to comment on that. But if I did, I'd take the opportunity to maybe ask for some semi-rare (or at least unusual) coins. Imagine I ask for four Walking Liberty half dollars. The person who gave me those as a gift is now going to bring a different level of interest when I perform something with them. And, if after the fact I buy a matching shell or something, that will add to the deceptiveness of the trick, because they're thinking of the items being used as seemingly being limited to those items they bought. They almost have the innocence of borrowed items.
Books
You can ask for magic books, of course. But what I'm really talking about are books you could buy to serve as Hooks to allow you to get into your material.
Some examples:
The Book of Forbidden Knowledge: Black Magic, Superstition, Charms, and Divination
Spirit Boards for Beginners: The History & Mystery of Talking to the Other Side
Connecting with Coincidence: The New Science for Using Synchronicity and Serendipity in Your Life
The Essential Guide to Remote Viewing: The Secret Military Remote Perception Skill Anyone Can Learn
Psychic Empowerment for Everyone: You Have the Power, Learn How to Use It
The idea is not to use these things as part of your presentation. The idea is—as described in the Hooks post—just use them as that first domino your friend knocks over that eventually gets you to a trick.
This isn't about turning tricks into bizarre magic. If you make these things part of your presentation you will lessen the interest they can generate. That's been my experience. Once you start going into some long-winded dissertation about this stuff it becomes a "show" not an experience.
Be casual about it and let the other person draw the connections.
For example, they pick up The Grand Grimoire. "What the hell is this?" they ask, flipping through it.
"Oh, it's nothing. Well... supposedly it teaches you how to summon and control demons but I don't really-- Actually... do you want to try something weird?"
That's going to grab people. That's going to intrigue people. It may even scare people.
But if you're like, "In 1521, Antonio Venitiana del Rabina, prepared a book transcribed from the genuine writings of the mighty King Solomon, which were obtained by pure chance...." And you go on and on with some lecture, you've turned your Hook into just a prop. And now you're doing something that has been rehearsed and planned, which is the enemy of gripping amateur magic.
Coming Friday, the final half-dozen or so items you might want to ask Santa to bring you if you haven't been a naughty little boy.
As I mentioned would be happening last week, the Jerx Deck bonus period for JAMM subscribers is now over. Those who paid for a full-year subscription in a lump sum, or in monthly payments, will be receiving the deck when it becomes available. Hopefully in about a month or so. I will also hold a deck for those of you who subscribed later in 2017 and who want to change your monthly subscription to a full year purchase. Those of you who fall into that group will have until the end of January to take me up on that.
This is the first post in a week-long series dedicated to my gift taking guide.
Yes, this is a guide for things you might want to ask for this holiday season. Not things you might want to give. If you're legitimately looking at some generic gift guide, like this one from Walmart, to find something to give to someone you love, just end that relationship now. You two clearly haven't maintained it in a way that's good for either of you. You have 5 kids together? I don't care, end it. Ultimately that will be a much better gift to give than a Conair Foot Bath. Let her go find someone who cares about her enough to keep track of what she might want throughout the year.
Moving on.
Here's something I wrote in the last issue of the JAMM:
With most any other hobby, the holidays are a good time to ask for the things you might want related to that hobby. If you’re into bowling, then it’s perfectly normal to put a new bowling ball on your wishlist. And because the people who love you want to get you something you’ll enjoy, they’re happy to get you that bowling ball. Everyone’s happy all around.
But if magic is your primary hobby, it can be a little weird to be like, “Hey, for Christmas can you go to Penguin Magic and buy me this peek wallet?” Especially if you end up performing for these people in the future. “Oh, you want to put the word I wrote down in that special wallet I got you for Christmas? Okay, sure.”
The thing is, people want to get you something related to your interests. And if magic is a big interest—and you don’t let them know something particular—then they may go off on their own and get you some weird magic shirt or a Criss Angel biography or something.
So I think it’s good to have some magic things on your list that a loved one can pick up for you that are magic related but that aren’t specific effects you plan on performing for them. All the better if they can be found on Amazon or Ebay or something.
So this week I will be discussing items that are somewhat magic adjacent that you may want to consider adding to your wishlist this year.
These aren't affiliate links or anything like that. I'm not trying to make 1% off your transaction. I'm genuinely mentioning these sorts of things as items that I have put to good use in my magic practice, and they might serve you well to. And they're all things you can ask for without directing someone straight to Ellusionist or something.
Today's post is dedicated to just one broad category:
Accessories
I'm not a big believer in wearing all sorts of crazy nonsense. In the mid-2000s there was this concept called "peacocking" in the pick-up artist community. This was the idea that you wear a bunch of outlandish shit in a desperate attempt to get people to pay attention to you. The pioneer in this field was the pick-up artist (and amateur magician) known as Mystery.
Here he is peacocking with a fuzzy hat, goggles, eyeliner, corny earrings, labret piercing, beard-lette, four rings, painted finger nails, big belt buckle, necklace, and outfit from Hot Topic's Gay Pirate collection.
Did this get him laid? Apparently. Good for him. I'm just stuck in that rut of using my charm and personality instead. But when that fails, fuzzy hat here I come.
When I suggest that accessories make a good gift for someone with an interest in magic, I'm not suggesting taking it to this degree. But I do like to have one moderately unusual item on me that may lead into a topic of conversation that may, in turn, lead into a performance.
For me, this is usually in the form of a ring. I know some people are hesitant about wearing something a little unusual. "I don't want to look like I'm starved for attention." I get that. But as long as it's one small thing, you're not going to come off that weird. Picture me, a normal looking guy: jeans, sneakers, hoodie, and then, if you're looking closely, you notice a slightly strange ring on my finger. You're not going to think I'm some ostentatious weirdo. If you're like most people, the biggest reaction you might have is to ask, "What's the story behind that ring?"
Here are some of the rings in my collection that I've used to get into an effect in a "hook" fashion, or as an actual part of an effect.
Secret Decoder Ring - There are a zillion contexts this can be used in. For example, the spectator creates a "random" number with a calculator, or cards. The number seems meaningless, but when "decoded" becomes some word with some connection to the spectator. You can do this with essentially any technique you know of that forces a number.
Dice Rings - These can be found in six "sides" and 20 "sides." There is an outer band that spins and you can use that as a random number generator. They're primarily used by role playing game nerds, but there are a number of magic tricks that use dice that could use these rings as well. Or you can just use it as an entrée into some mathematical (or pseudo mathematical) effect. "Why do you have that ring?" they ask. "Oh, there's this project I've been working on, not a work project but a personal project. It's a little strange. But I have to feed my mind random numbers throughout the day. It's kind of like a memory exercise. Actually, would you mind helping me out with something?" This is quintessential "hook" technique. I can't over express how different the interaction between you and your spectator is when a performance springs from their queries, and seemingly their direction.
I also just use the dice ring personally as a simple decision maker. (Which is also another presentational subject matter you can use with this ring.)
Handcuff Key Rings - I don't know where mine came from. They were a gift, and my friend who gave them to me a few years ago doesn't remember where he got them. They look like simple brass rings from the top of the hand, but from the inside it's clear that they're not. One of them you unbend to use as a handcuff key and the other just has the key part jutting out of the ring itself.
These can, of course, lead into a story which can lead into a trick. Maybe your mentor gave you one after you successfully completed some bit of training or something. "What was the training?" Oh, funny you should ask....
Here's another example with what looks like a much more legit lock pick there. Although the ring itself looks too normal to serve as a Hook. Here's a bracelet that comes apart to form a handcuff key. Look around and you'll see they've built handcuff keys into lots of different things.
Lastly, I'll let you in on a little secret project I'm working on for myself. It uses a ring that is a bit more conspicuous than the ones above. If you search on Etsy for something like snow resin ring, you will find a number of different options. Many contain a little miniaturized landscape like this.
I think this is pretty magical looking thing. And I'm now working with a craftsman to make a custom version of one of these rings to do a trick with. In the trick, my friend and I will do a visualization exercise that will inject us into the ring and then back out again. There will be "proof" of this journey because there will be a change to the ring and a change to the physical location we're in.
More details about this may come out someday.
If you don't wear rings, I would encourage you too. Even just a normal ring opens up a whole branch of magic for you to perform that you can always have on you and practice or perform at a moment's notice.
Or, if not rings, then find something you are into: sunglasses, watches, necklaces. And then work backwards from there, looking for magic you could use incorporating these items. There's not going to be as many of those sorts of things in the literature as you'll find with rings, but you can track stuff down. It can be an enjoyable process to be like, "Hmmm, if I started wearing watches regularly, what 5 tricks could I then add to my repertoire just because I know have this prop on me at all times."
There can also be a nice full-circle type of thing when someone gives you a gift and then, at a later point, you do some sort of effect with that thing. When you—for example—make the hands on the watch they gave you magically move to the time they're thinking of, that's a nice subtle way of interweaving the magic with other aspects of life.
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