Sleight of hand is a name for a family of techniques which are used to manipulate objects to make them appear, disappear, grow, shrink, and multiply. Sleight of hand is an important part of many magic acts; magicians use it to conjure bunnies from hats, manipulate cards, and perform a range of other tricks. It is used in every type of magic and is crucial for the aspiring magician to learn.

Sleight of hand takes lots of practice but is the base of a majority of all magic -- this mixed with illusion. Sleight of hand, card marking, trick decks and a variety of other ploys are used in performing card tricks. Good sleight of hand card tricks are never easy and improve only with time and practice.

Sleight of hand is by far the most dangerous form of a poker cheat that can be found, however it is also the most difficult technique to learn and perfect. This skill can turn a regular poker player into a dangerous money-stealing criminal who can unfairly take your money right in front of your face without you even knowing. Sleight of hand is mostly overshadowed by much better perks. Sleight of hand resources are found in a number of DVDs and books. Books are a better method of learning in general since you don't pick up the habits of the people who are showing you the sleights, and since patter usually isn't included you are forced to make your own presentation and really be yourself.

With sleight of hand the spectator becomes emotionally involved, as their own items are used to create real magic, sometimes even in their own hands. It is often used in close-up magic , performed with the audience close to the magician, usually within three or four metres, possibly in physical contact. It often makes use of everyday items as props, such as cards and coins .

Sleight of hand is a great art. It involves very definite principles which must be practised a great deal. It's an inevitable part of magic and illusion. It is when you show your audience something, but they don't see what they thought they saw.