Hello Theory11 Community

[CAndrew]

I have just joined the Theory11 forums and to kick things off I'll be posting a little bit about myself here along with a few questions I already have.

My name is, of course, Andrew and I am a high schooler. I'm relatively new to card magic and cardistry with only 2-3 months of experience in cardistry and about a month in card magic. I know the fundamentals of cardistry and have a few moves in my arsenal. As for magic I am a complete beginner and hope that you guys can help me out in any way I can. I spend my time practicing my DL's and the only real trick I can do pretty well is the biddle trick as I am not confident with my DL's enough to perform others. Now, on to questions:

1. I was thinking about making a cardistry move and was playing around and thought: is there anything known as "freestyle" cardistry, where you just make things up on the fly?

2. Not really a question, but are there any pointers you can give me to help me improve in card magic. Anything as to easy/fundamental tricks or effects to techniques and just tips in general. I really want to get more involved in card magic so I want to head in the right direction.

3. How do you practice a DL? Do you just try over and over and over until you get it consistent?

Thanks for taking the time to read this and hopefully responding. I might have some more questions that haven't come to mind yet so I'll post them when I remember.

 

[William Draven]

Hello Andrew, on behalf of the ermm... "Unofficial theory11 forum welcoming comitte" (forgive me, it's a growing inside joke here) I wanted to extend a warm and heartfelt hello to you, and of course welcome to the forums!

We have an amazing community here full of knowledgeable, and friendly magicians from just about every aspect of the art. From Hobbyist to Professional, from close-up to stage, they haunt these forums, and are usually eager to help you out. If you have any questions, you have but to ask.

You can find the forum rules here, so please take a moment, and review them at your convince.

To answer a few of your questions:
1) I don't think there is such a thing as "freestyle" magic, and I'm not quite sure how that would work out as magic is a methodical process of deception designed to fool the audiences senses, and acceptance of known reality all in the sake of entertainment. That really leaves out much of the potential of the spontaneousness of free-styling, if you ask me, however I'd be interested in hearing more on this idea of yours. Just because it hasn't been done doesn't mean it can't be done.

2) I can sit here and rattle off books, and DVD's until my fingers bleed, however I think it's a better idea for you to give us a better understanding of your skill level, interests, or inspirations. Usually though Royal Road to Card Magic, Expert at the Card Table are your go-to's for card magic. Eventually, I think we all cross those bridges at some point.

3) As for practicing a DL, basically, yes you're right. You just sit there, and work on it until it feels natural.

All the best to you, and once again, welcome to the forums!

 

[RickEverhart]

Welcome to the boards Andrew. You will have a great time here and meet a lot of good friends. There is so much knowledge and expertise on these forums it is sickening. Make sure you look over the forum rules and get yourself familiar with the layout of the site.

1.) I am not a cardistry guy so I am unable to answer this one.
2.) As far as card books you cannot go wrong with Royal Road or Card College or Card College Light to get yourself moving in the right direction. After that you will be ready to move on to more advanced techniques.
3.) My mentor who is a professional sat with me through 2 sessions to get my DL perfect. I would also sit on my couch and go through the entire deck doing DL's while watching TV until it was second nature and flowed smoothly without any edges flashing.

PS....dang you Draven...beat me again.

 

[William Draven]

Draven 3 Reaverhart 0

Come on man.... you're getting slow!

 

[CAndrew]

Thanks for the warm welcome and answers.. I remember hearing about how The Expert at the Card Table was a good book, I'll go check out the other books you guys recommended. Draven, for my first question I was referring to cardistry, but if someone was able to make up magic tricks on the fly that would be genius. I also forgot to mention I'm more into impromptu magic then ones which use gimmicks. Now if you'll excuse me I have to go sit on a couch and practice my DL's over and over and over.......is there any one technique you prefer for DL's? I usually grab the corners or i riffle down with my thumb two cards and push the deck together to get them to pop up slightly.

 

[mehar]

You may want to check out the 'strike' for a double lift.. I find it looks extremely simple. All it looks like your doing is flipping the cards from right to left! No breaks either

Also... Welcome to the forums! Like Draven said, everyone here is willing to help you in any area of magic, or anything else!


(Draven beat you by 3 minutes... Youre getting closer reverhart)

 

[alexlopez00]

Another DL you can try is Daryl's Double Lift its pretty simple, i think

 

[renome]

To answer that question about "freestyle" cardistry:

Although you won't find competitions on the internet regarding "freestyle" cardistry, and although all flourishes you see will be skillfully designed by some crazy manipulators, this "freestyle", as you call it is a part of my flourish creation process, and I really doubt I'm the only one that does that.

P.S. If by "freestyle" you mean on combining already known elements, like one-hand cuts and such, I woul suggest you buying Xtreme Beginnerz by De'vo.

 

[MarcusChristiansen]

Welcome, Andrew! I have to give you credit for a thorough presentation!

The people before me have already answered your questions so I'll just stop here. Once again - welcome!

 

[CAndrew]

Thanks again for the welcome. I'm currently working on Daryls DL and I've never heard of the strike, I'll have to look it up. Thanks for the answers to all my questions.

 

[Aaron.Williams]

Welcome to theory11! The people here are really helpful (as you can see already) and pretty nice.

Since you're new to card magic, I suggest getting the free download, What to Read by Jason England. He gives you a nice list of books that would help you get started in card magic. You should also check out some of the downloads that theory11 has already released such as "The Double Lift". They've got some great tricks for sale and most are fairly easy to do.

Once again, welcome! I hope you enjoy it here!

 

[Jacob L]

Welcome to the forums!
I saw that you said you prefer impromptu magic, and while that kind of magic is great and can be hard hitting, I still wouldn't want to shy away from gimmicks and/or organic magic.
Read my post on it here and maybe it'll change your mind, it did for a few other people.

I second all the recommendations you have been given, and possibly even check out other magic sites like Penguinmagic, ellusionist, vanishing inc and paper crane. All these sites have loads of material, some even unique to their own site. You might find plenty of other helpful advice and material to suit your needs from them, or here at Theory11. Enjoy your stay!

Jacob

 

[saborfang17]

You may want to check out the 'strike' for a double lift.. I find it looks extremely simple. All it looks like your doing is flipping the cards from right to left! No breaks either

Also... Welcome to the forums! Like Draven said, everyone here is willing to help you in any area of magic, or anything else!


(Draven beat you by 3 minutes... Youre getting closer reverhart)

This is bugging the hell out of me, but I absolutely HATE when you refer to the double you do as strike. Strike's a term that refers to the fact that it is instantaneous in the sense that it doesn't require a get-ready break under two cards. Do you know how MANY slightly different techniques there are that require no get-ready? I'm pretty sure the one you do is probably Dr. Daley's one anyway, from the various times you describe it, but can you PLEASE describe it better than "strike"?