There's a young magician you want to buy a present for that they will treasure for years to come- where do you start? Cheap magic sets are a false economy As an experienced magician who entertains kids and teaches them magic I can guide you so that you find quality magic tricks suitable for children that will bring many hours of joy to the apprentice wizard! It's too easy to look at the pretty box of a children's magic set and buy it on sight, a closer look at the contents of the box reveals that the cheap plastic tricks inside were not made with as much care as the box! Most boxes of magic tricks are full of cheaply made, plastic props and poorly written instructions.
One reason for this is the manufacturers trying to give the illusion of value by cramming in lots of tricks- unfortunately, most times, this means lots of poor quality tricks that will end up in the bin! Quality over quantity There is an easy answer to this- buy quality magic tricks, books or DVDs rather than a box full of plastic! To start with find out what level of interest and competence your young magician has and if they have any area of magic they like best such as card magic or "street magic".
Whether they are a complete beginner or an enthusiastic amateur you can find magic they will treasure.
Books and DVDs A good starting point is to look at available books on magic- these days there are some very good quality magic books available for the general public that contain secrets only available to specialist a few years ago.
Similarly, DVDs provide inspiration and show exactly how each magic trick can be presented- an advantage over a book if you're trying to handle props at the same time! Another advantage of seeing the magic performed- is that it's possible to see how amazing the magic looks before you find the secret- this is vital because once you've seen the secret, you cannot see it as magic any more.
This is where your young magician can learn that magic is all about how they perform each trick and not about how it's done.
Avoiding the tragical to find the magical! If you want to buy a trick instead of a book or DVD then you need to be sure the child hasn't already got the trick and you definitely need to buy quality- here's the rule of thumb, only buy a magic trick you've seen performed.
Online magic stores have excelled in producing slickly made adverts and videos which don't really show a real life example of the trick.
There is a simple solution- find someone, preferably an amateur young magician, performing the trick on a video site such as YouTube.
So, next time you see that pretty box of "over 100 magic tricks" avoid it and get something that your apprentice magician will really enjoy!
One reason for this is the manufacturers trying to give the illusion of value by cramming in lots of tricks- unfortunately, most times, this means lots of poor quality tricks that will end up in the bin! Quality over quantity There is an easy answer to this- buy quality magic tricks, books or DVDs rather than a box full of plastic! To start with find out what level of interest and competence your young magician has and if they have any area of magic they like best such as card magic or "street magic".
Whether they are a complete beginner or an enthusiastic amateur you can find magic they will treasure.
Books and DVDs A good starting point is to look at available books on magic- these days there are some very good quality magic books available for the general public that contain secrets only available to specialist a few years ago.
Similarly, DVDs provide inspiration and show exactly how each magic trick can be presented- an advantage over a book if you're trying to handle props at the same time! Another advantage of seeing the magic performed- is that it's possible to see how amazing the magic looks before you find the secret- this is vital because once you've seen the secret, you cannot see it as magic any more.
This is where your young magician can learn that magic is all about how they perform each trick and not about how it's done.
Avoiding the tragical to find the magical! If you want to buy a trick instead of a book or DVD then you need to be sure the child hasn't already got the trick and you definitely need to buy quality- here's the rule of thumb, only buy a magic trick you've seen performed.
Online magic stores have excelled in producing slickly made adverts and videos which don't really show a real life example of the trick.
There is a simple solution- find someone, preferably an amateur young magician, performing the trick on a video site such as YouTube.
So, next time you see that pretty box of "over 100 magic tricks" avoid it and get something that your apprentice magician will really enjoy!
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