Fall is in the air and kids are back in school. Perhaps it’s time for you to consider a bit of “continuing education”. Lots of great items have hit the shelves recently. Why not stretch your mind and magic skills by picking up something new? Here are a few great choices to get you started...

• Compressed Deck: It goes without saying that this is one of my new picks. I wrote about it already in my last blog post, so I don’t think there’s much more to say. I am very pleased with this new Elmwood Magic product and I think you will be too.
• On The Mark, Hip Pocket Edition: We sold this item when it was originally released with the full size wallet. It was in Paul’s Picks then and it makes another appearance now. Back then the ONLY issue anyone ever mentioned is that they wished it was available in a smaller wallet. Well, wish granted! This has become a part of my real world work and I personally love the new design. Another winner from Mark Elsdon!
• Wormhole: This reminds me a great deal of an old Bob Solari item called Bookmark Miracle. While similar in method to Bob’s effect, Ali Nouira and the folks at Big Blind Media have really refined the approach and have included some GREAT bonus ideas and effects. The effect is simple and requires virtually no moves at all. I also enjoyed the bonus routines using the blank card and the joker, so don’t pass up those ideas on the DVD. All in all a very nice product for those looking for signed card magic with a minimum of skill.
• All Will Be Consumed: Christopher Wiehl has created a very clever gimmick for doing a signed coin to sealed bottle. This works with almost any plastic bottle as long as the item actually can fit through the mouth. It can be used with a ring, coin, even a Sharpie! The included gimmick will work with a Gatorade bottle but you can easily make another to fit other kinds of plastic bottles. Lot’s of good information on the DVD and some excellent tips and presentations as well. Don’t miss Chris’ idea for how to handle a repeat performance for the same audience…I thought it was GREAT!
• The Regal Ring Chain: David Regal is one clever little man. I love his stuff not just for how commercial and practical it is but also for how diabolical his methods are. The Regal Ring Chain is a worker and I can see it easily making its way into the repertoires of most working professionals. All it will require is the ability to vanish a ring – you can make that moment as simple or as complex as you like – other than that the skills used are just about zero. This makes a nice change of pace from ring flight type effects and can be used at any point in your performance.
• Note: I must admit I was skeptical when I first popped this disk in, it sounded a little too good to be true. But I’ve been very impressed by the other items from Matt Sconce, so I decided to give it a try. I’m glad I did. This is VERY strong stuff and I could see this be used to really fry someone. The “gimmick” is very low tech and simple to use. You can make just about anything appear on the spectator - a shape, a card, a word, initials - the field is wide open. The DVD covers all aspects and approaches, no stone is unturned. If the effect appeals to you, I think you’ll be very pleased with the method and the product.
• Photosynthesis: I went back and forth on this one. I really love the way it looks and the method. But I’m still not 100% sold on doing this effect one on one. I think it’s best used in a formal show, it could even be used for a small stand up performance. One on one, I think there would be too much heat on the photo which might be an issue. However, I think that could easily be dealt with when staging it for a formal show. I think this looks so weird and the effect seems so impossible that it’s well worth working on...very cool stuff!