The Monsters
The late Curtis Kam used to hold court during sessions at The Orleans. He was so knowledgeable, skilled, and creative. It was great. In previous years, I made a habit of visiting with him briefly to share ideas I've been playing with. He was supportive and encouraging. This year, I spent quality time with his students. Danny "Coin Monster" Cheng, Richard "Card Monster" Hucko, and Richard's wife Kristi told me things about Curtis that made me respect him even more, and wish I'd spent more time with him. 
Danny and Richard live up to their monikers. Danny is a wellspring of coin magic plots, sleights, and toys. He is a serious student, citing the history and lineage of the techniques and plots in his vast repertoire. Richard demonstrated a flurry of incredible effects utilizing his finger-stretching Mechanic's Shift. Watching him do card magic feels like watching Mike Jones playing piano before the Penn & Teller show-- drowning in overwhelming virtuosity.
Kristi Toguchi told me Curtis told her to have her prodigy study my coin manipulations, so she did. Her student, a young lady named Sierra, is an aerialist, not a magician. But she can do roll outs better than you, and can do the full circle display. This year I taught her a 5 coin production sequence, as well as how to roll 4 coins across her knuckles. I'm making an monster that's me-shaped.

The Mentalist
I've had the privilege of watching the Limitess show at The Venetian a handful of times. Shin Lim has worked with several mentalists over the years, having them perform about a third of the showtime, for variety.  A crewmember of the show told me they believe the current mentalist, Stuart MacLoed has the best act of the bunch so far. As half of Barry and Stuart, MacLeod is an OG celebrity magician with tremendous experience. I was asked to show my exotic wands, coin purses, baseballs, and pouches to Stuart and Daniel Garcia. MacLeod suprised me by calling my pouch a gibeciere-- it's technical name. I got to share a pun I tell people who know the term, and he laughed.
Having dabbled in mentalism, I know a lot of mentalists, use and experiment with risky psychological/mystical "real" magic as a part of their working repertoire. I asked if MacLeod does anything along those lines. He doesn't-- his skeptical background, education in psychology, and professionalism involves methods that are near-certain and reliable. He also prefers low-tech methods, for similar reasons. I look forward to seeing his part in the show.

The Change
Last but not least. My favorite thing from those few days. Danny Cheng showed it to me and attributed it to Jeremiah Zuo and Tom Dobrowolski. I've been told Ed Marlo came up with something similar. 

Isn't that neat? [feat. the King Wand]

The "Wild Coin" routine is a modern classic-- several coins change into a different coin one at a time, then they all change back.
I recently devised a visual ball change, adding to my collection of techniques. Combining several together makes for a fun "Wild Ball" effect. It can be performed preceding the Cups and Balls.
Some friends have encouraged me to publish the routine, so it is a project in the stack.

The baseballs I've been making handle well for the techniques, and are eye catching and interesting for people checking them out. 

Legendary magician Michael Ammar developed and taught a creative cups and balls routine that became a model for a generation of magicians. He also published "The Complete Cups and Balls" book and DVDs, teaching the fundamentals of the routine, as well as useful tools and classic routines.
In his books, videos, and personal work, Ammar had used "Mike Rogers baseballs." These are handmade miniature baseballs, sized for use in the cups and balls. Many students learned the cups and balls from photos and videos of Ammar working with MR baseballs. Rogers made smaller balls for the main phases, and final load balls that were small enough to fit tennis ball sized cups. Long out of production, they now command collectors prices.
However, Rogers didn't account for time when he produced his final load balls. The cores he used were hollow rubber, and many owners report that they have degraded and deflated in as short a time as a few years.

As always, with Street Strong longevity as one of our values, this was eye opening revelation, and made decisions easier to make. When R&Ding cores for final load balls, there was the option of using lighter, cheaper hollow rubber balls. Knowing that people might be using them in 20 or 30 years meant entropy had to be accounted for, so we went with solid balls. The exotic leathers produce brand new balls that already appear aged-- like a spitball from a lively game a century ago. The robust construction and materials mean that it will look that way for many decades to come.

I recently had the pleasure of getting some validation for creativity from a grandmaster. On a trip to Las Vegas a couple months ago, I met Allan Ackerman, a living encyclopedia of card sleights, and we discussed multiple shifts. I'd been using a technique in one of my workhorse routines that's fine, but wasn't quite to my liking. Ackerman showed me a control that was very very close to what I was after, but his move shifted the cards to the bottom of the deck, and I needed them on top. Still, it was inspiring seeing him work. Ackerman showed me a routine from his new book set "All In," and I ended up on his youtube channel.

Click the photo above to see the video. [Note, the reason I'm looking silly at the beginning is that Ackerman shuffled face up and shuffled the 6 and 7 of diamonds, and I am a self-amusing person]
Since the evening of the video, I developed a control (based on what Ackerman showed me) that does exactly what I want. A few days ago, I caught up with Ackerman and showed him my new move. He said he hadn't seen it before. He showed me a technique Cardini had come up with that is mechanically similar, but different, for context. It was fun learning that a technique that helped my workhorse routine improve by 10% might also be original. 

 As a magician, every time you wield a magic wand, it is an opportunity to express yourself-- who you are, and what you know. Beyond the magic effect, the way you hold a wand and move can convey your skill and character. With deliberate wand use, you can generate intrigue, rapport, and fascination.

Obviously, the vertical position from the Tarot's "Magician" card is iconic. Incorporating a wand into your performance already makes a statement about being a magician rather than a trickster. Hitting "The Magician" stance further reinforces the archetype you are channeling. The top street magician on Fremont Street in Las Vegas, Mark B, commands enormous crowds with this stance.

More broadly, magic wands symbolize tools-- the means by which our immaterial minds (paradoxically) affect material reality. In life, you use many tools, to varying degrees of competence. If you are competent with any distinct skills, there are likely positions and actions you would recognize as reflecting training and familiarity.

For example, martial arts that involve weapons have codified grips, footwork, salutes, and techniques that are recognizable to practitioners. I find fencing and sword fighting interesting, and have a modicum of training. Rather than forcing that fact into a script where it isn't relevant, I include a fencing salute and en guard position while using the wand organically. The specificity builds rapport with those who recognize the detail, and the comfort with the movements projects professionalism to those who don't.

From baseball bat and golf club swings to weight lifting or brush painting, many skills can be quickly mimicked with a wand. What magic do you practice off stage?

Drummers' spins, pen twirls, and some forms of juggling also communicate literal skills with a stick, and can remind people of your expertise with magic wands because you are a magician. I have a "signature wand spin" to use as a flourish that does not refer to anything in particular. 

Let your magic wand be an instrument for artistic self expression. Plan your movements to show what you know.

A friend recently texted me with some photos of nice looking wood that someone was selling on facebook. He had asked the seller if the wood floats or sinks in water, and the seller replied "All wood floats".
This told me the seller probably doesn't know what he's talking about, and I advised my friend accordingly.
It is a common misconception that "all wood floats." Most trees produce wood that floats, and boats are known for traditionally being made of wood. It seems intuitive that wood floats.
But woods from different plants vary in physical characteristics, including elasticity, hardness, and density. The variation in density includes woods that are both lighter and heavier than water. Balsa wood, which most people are familiar with from arts and crafts, is obviously much lighter than water. Even heavier common woods, such as oak or hickory, are lighter than water.

Then there are Ironwoods.

The term "Ironwood" does not refer to a specific species of wood, but rather to the hardest and densest wood from a given region. They are often slow growing, scarce, and highly valued. In general, woods considered to be "Ironwood" are denser than water. Put a piece in a pool and it will sink right to the bottom. 
All of the wooden wands used in the production of Makoto Street Wands sink in water. Our first luxury magic wand, the Lignum Vitae Street Wand, inspired by Cellini and the staff of Merlin, just happened to be a dense Ironwood that is functional for sleight of hand and cups and balls. In researching and experimenting with dozens of similar ironwoods and exotics, the other woods that were robust and beautiful enough for inclusion in our offering happened to sink in water. 
When people-- laymen and magicians alike-- feel ironwood for the first time, they are often surprised by the weight. An ironwood wand feels like it should be made of stone, not wood. It adds tactile enchantment to the audience's experience of your magic.
And if you teach them that not all wood floats and that your wand is made of a rare Ironwood that sinks, they will be a little more informed than the facebook seller my friend contacted. 

The luxury Shell-Ray Wand is the only material in our leather wrapped wand series that is susceptible to scruffs and scratches. Unlike calcium-armored stingray or other exotic pachyderms, shell cordovan is not even actually leather. It is made from the connective tissue layer exclusive to equestrian hindquarters, and specially tanned for six months.

As a result, it is not scratchproof, but it does recover from scratches and scruffs, while developing a patina. Suppose you've been using your Shell-Ray wand to hit cups or perform the striking vanish with coins. After a while, there are small scratches on the shaft. Here is how we'll take care of it:

Get a 100% horsehair shoe brush and some Saphir cordovan cream.

These are produced to polish shell cordovan shoes and boots.
Get a tiny amount, about half the size of a pea or soybean, and spread it in a thin line along the shell cordovan portion of the wand.

Massage the thin layer around the rest of the shell cordovan surface. Use the horsehair brush to brush the shell part of the wand in a movement perpendicular to the wand. Brush up and down the wand while turning it, to cover the entire shell cordovan area. 
You should notice the shell cordovan is smoother, with the scratches and scruffs buffed out. The process can be repeated for improved results.

The words that paved and lit the road from pitch to pitch on my journey as a young street magician came from three major texts I brought with me everywhere. From Vegas to Chicago to Boston, these books helped me analyze how my day had gone and plan for a better one tomorrow. 

Among the dozens of books, booklets, and lecture notes I had read on the topic of street magic, Jimmy Talksalot's "To Lure With Spectacle" did the best job of conveying the psychology of being The Busker. There is unmatched advice on developing a performance character that can be adjusted to suit various pitches or venues. Beyond the standard basics covered by other texts, Talksalot offers advice about things as abstract as personal values to nitty gritty scripting techniques to do more successful shows. 

Eric Evans and Nowlin Craver's "The Secret Art of Magic" is unlike any other magic book. The first half delivers a detailed guide to street magic through the lens of Sun Tzu's "The Art of War." The second half is a magic theory book along the lines of Ortiz's "Designing Miracles" or Wiseman's "Magic in Theory", deriving fundamental techniques for misdirection and magic design from war strategy. Interpreting the 36 Strategies of War to make one's magic more convincing is a powerful thesis that the authors successfully accomplish. It's a unique dissertation in magic literature that also offers a path to growth and improvement. Like other practices that apply war strategies-- e.g. games like Chess and Martial Arts-- conscious application of technique leads to faster, smoother, intuitive application. That is to say, having the model of the 36 Strategies allowed me to internalize lessons and continually grow from performing shows. And on the streets we did a looot of shows.

And why do all that magic? At the end of the day, why do magic tricks for people? One can make someone else laugh by telling them a joke, forget about their troubles by watching a show, expand their mind by teaching science, or feel amazed by juggling or doing a back flip. Sam Sharpe's "Art and Magic" ponders art, illusion, philosophy, religion, wonder and the role of magic and the Magician in the cosmos. Sharpe's symbolic perspective of magic helped shape my understanding of the importance and meaning of the magic wand.  With insights ranging from a line or two to several paragraphs, it reads like Marcus Aurelius' "Meditations". Magic can create a uniquely powerful experience of wonder that invites joy, growth, and connection. Good things the world always needs more of.

As a traveling busker in my early 20s, the three books gave me purpose and the means to execute it. Check them out sometime

Master Magician Jeff McBride, Founder of the Mystery School in Las Vegas, was intrigued by an offer to see my handmade exotic magic props in person. My girlfriend had recently moved near Las Vegas for work, so I was regularly in town for the first time in a decade. Mystery School's aesthetics and values aligns with some of our Street Strong philosophies of quality and enchantment, so I contacted McBride, and showed him some photos of my exotic gibecieres and leather goods, and told him about the ironwoods I work with.
McBride's hospitality and enthusiasm for magic was such that our brief scheduled meeting turned into a little magic session. I showed him my coin circle flourish and some wand work. In return, he amazed me with a 14 [FOURTEEN!] coin flourish/display with four coins held in a diamond between his thumbs and two coins classic palmed-- while doing five coin roll outs in each hand. Incredible and inspiring. Reminded me of the first time I saw someone do muscle-ups in person at the local park. A new wand production subtlety I discovered while performing in the Close Up Gallery at the Magic Castle worked on McBride-- as it has every magician and layman I have shown in person. Strong misdirection stuff. He was impressed.
After McBride purchased a handful of items that resonated with him, we discussed some card magic and an underground coin move I have been playing with. He has asked me to perform at Wonderground sometime, so I might make a short set to show the new products together in action.

[Thanks to Wand Gang member Jeff Black for submitting an interesting article]

According to CNN, materials scientists have created a new "superwood" that is "stronger than steel." Because Lignum Vitae, our original Ironwood Street Wand, now has a finite limited availability, I was intrigued by the possibility of a new ironwood, even if it's synthetic.

The headline is a bold claim-- wood that is stronger than steel. Even the hardest natural ironwoods are not actually as hard as steel. Were we going to have a new Street Wand wood?

A big part of the claim revolved around iron being much heavier than wood. A long dowel of the superwood can support weight similar to an iron bar. Obviously, the bar is significantly heavier, and has to support its own weight as well as any load added. But that's merely one metric.
They boast that it is up to "20 times" stronger than common woods and "10 times more resistant to dents." This appears to be a claim about Janka hardness. This is a known number when it comes to our ironwood wands.

The average common wood like pine has a Janka Rating of about 350lb. That means it takes 350lb of force to press a half-inch metal ball into a pine board halfway. If the Superwood process 10x the Janka Hardness, it would be roughly 3,500lb. This is in the ball park of our many of our ironwoods. It is still not as hard as Genuine Lignum Vitae or Snakewood.

The process of making the wood so hard involved removing the materials that aren't cellulose and compressing the remaining cellulose. This would make for a pretty plain looking material that is dry and not resinous. It wouldn't be as smooth and pleasant as natural ironwood.

As far as competing with steel goes, no wood can reinforce concrete structures the way steel rebars do. Steel rebars and concrete coincidentally have matching fluctuations in size due to temperature. This means steel reinforced concrete can stay strong year round. Superwood can't do that. A lot of structural uses of steel is for reinforcing concrete, a job at which it remains king.

The new material sounds promising for medium size projects, like furniture, floors, or stairs. Superwood street wands will probably be off the menu, though. 

Get your own natural ironwood street wands Here.