Name: Nicholas
Age: 23
Occupation: Student
School (If you are a student): Ngee ann poly
Years of Experience: 0
Magic Scope (E.g Cards/Coins/Ropes.. Etc..): cards and coins

Actually i just got interested in magic. Hope to get to know more pple to help me out and learn some tricks. Got inspired by Cyril Takayama and Blaine. Stay in serangoon ^^ if theres anyone nearby pls msg me thx

Hmm... no reply so far... anyway i just went to borders and kinokuniya today. Borders didnt have much except a "Street Magic" book. At Kino there was more. There was this "Complete course to magic book" which i forgot about the author's name. Can someone tell me if its good?

Hi there, love your nick ---> Chocolates!

Anyway I would recommend that you start out with DVDs rather than books. Do read through the forums and you will be able to find tons of recommendations. As always, consider before making purchases.

Oh and a warm welcome to SMC :)

Thanks. I was considering, thats why i havent bought anything yet. But i dunno where to get the vids... can tell me where?

You can get from online dealer heer like TLMS or me ... Or you can check out marketplace for second hand stuff.. :D

I think you'e refering to Mark Wilson's Complete Book of Magic which I highly recommend. This book is suitable for all levels.

I went to kino again today just to flip through the book. Its not bad as u mentioned. But to start, wat kind of cards do i use? paper or plastic? how many decks?

THeres also this book "Modern Coin Magic" by J B Bobo and "The Royal Road to Card Magic" by Jean Hugard. Anyone heard of them? How issit rated?

Hm... did any SMC members meet today at cine? I was there in the afternoon for sushi buffet before i went off to PS... haha...

Go get Bicycle decks. They are quite cheap and can last rather long.

hi, i love your chocolates too. :wub: :P
i'll recommend Bee decks for the start as you required alot of hard actions with your cards. they're durable :g:

2 red or 2 blue deck are enough for sleights training.

now the next question will be on where to get the decks at the best prices?

ok cool thanks for the advice. :lol: one more thing, for card magic, which one should i learn first or is there some sequence to learning the tricks cause some magic could be inter-related in the method rite?

yups. learn the basic moves first.
oh and welcome to smc!
did i mention i live in serangoon? =)

You should learn Ambitious Card Routine first. That was the MOST basic card trick that a magician should learn.

u could get Ammar Series or Daryl ACR.

But which are the basic moves? i want to make sure the book i get will be able to teach me all those. I kinda want to specialise on coin and card magic... yeah...

Oooo thanks.. i wanted to learn ACR too especially that jump up card thingy... the bent card that jumps to the top of the deck

basic moves are all in Oz Pearlman Born to Perform CArd Magic

it teaches basic in becoming a CARD magician.

i suggest that u focus on 1 type of magic etc cards

then when u are really good in cards then move to coins . (coins tend to be much more difficult)

Is that a book? Havent seen that book in borders or kino...

I thought of focusing in one type too. i prefer cards and coins cos its easier to bring around and more commonly found everywhere.

Here are a few Dvd recommendations for ACR(ambitious card routine)..

I learn it mostly from

1.Crash Course 2
-Teaches Double lift, pop up ...and all the basic stuff but quite useful

2. Daryl ambitious card
Okay..but he teaches quite fast...=)


3. By looking at other people doing their different variation of ACR..



Btw, Two card monte is also quite a powerful trick after you learn ACR..=D

Looks like these are only available through the internet rite? Anywhere else in Singapore where they are being sold?

Anyone have anything to say about the books?

Didn't Magicdow already give positive reviews on the books? He is experienced enough to know so I guess the question now would be whether you're going to get it or not :)

i'm more of refering to the coin book since the other book is reviewed. i'm currently planning my expenditure for next month haha so.. yeah...

Bobo's Modern Coin Magic is the bible for coin magic. If you're serious about coin work, this is a must.

There's plenty of stuff in it, from beginner's sleight to advance. There's simple routines and long routines in it too. The writing style is a bit old (even though the book's title says "Modern") but you'll still be able to understand.

If you're serious about coin magic, my advice is to get the hard cover as it contains 1 chapter more than the paperback. Otherwise, the paperback is fine too. The price is rather cheap.

I havent seen the hardcover yet. Kino don have it. Where can i get it?

Kino won't have the hard cover. You can get it from online magic shops but it'll cost a lot more than the paperback.

Do u know wat that extra chapter covers?

That chapter consists of longer routines and more sleight of hands are needed.

arghhh... so the hardcover is much better? Will the paperback suffice?

I think for a start, the softcopy, as you put it, will suffice.

ok i'll get it by end of this week and start practicing. hope it will still be on the shelf for me

If you go to the Magic Section at Borders, look for a book called Now You See It, Now You Don't by Bill Tarr. If you're just starting out, it's an excellent book for learning cool-looking moves and effects for beginners.

Magic For Dummies is also available at Borders.

I would advise AGAINST getting DVDs first. Since you're just starting out, your performing personality is virgin and pure. Too many people watch DVDs to begin with, then IMITATE the performer on that video. They end up looking like a poor copy of the original.

Books are better as you HAVE to focus on the mechanics of an effect/sleight first, and slowly develop your own personality after becoming comfortable with how to do an effect.

With DVDs, you'll be able to start showing effects to people more quickly, but your magic will suffer in the long run as you're starting off emulating, rather than developing.

So get the books. Borders is perfect and sufficient for the time being.

Also don't fall into the consumer trap. Too many people think you need to spend lots of cash to become good. Rubbish. With Bill Tarr's book and Magic for Dummies, you can be set for 6 months.

- Raoul

i was hoping there was a book primarily on card tricks. Cos its like i get the book and if only a part of it is cards, then the others is like not used. i found the coin magic one... which i think i'll be getting tml at kino. At borders, there was only 1 book at the magic section. Its the "Street Magic" dunno by who...

Even so, Borders is still sufficient. Just looking at my shelf, I have Card Control and Expert Card Technique which I bought from Borders.

I know Karl Fulves has a book called Self-Working Card Tricks which you can also get there. There are loads of books, so you shouldn't have a problem finding any.

By the way, I would recommend getting at least one general magic book. It's good to get an overall picture of the art. Plus they usually have sections on showmanship and acting so that can benefit your card work.

- Raoul

ooo ok, i'll keep that in mind. Prob going down to get the book today

woot i got the Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic... tried some tricks... lol tricked my bro but it wasnt very smooth. Cant fan properly also... :o

Congrats on your buy, don't worry everything takes time. I can't fan for nuts also -_-

How much did you get it for mate?

$37.68

cool chocolate!
time to meet up and show me your magic! :lol:

lol gimme time to learn man... my school just started u know? everything not stable yet.. more like i need u be my mentor lah haha