Floating match on card

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The Floating Match on Card is a classic close-up magic effect.

[edit] Effect

A match is placed on the back of a playing card. The magician causes the match to appear to float about one centimeter off the playing card. The magician may pass another playing card under or over the match to "prove" it is not being suspended by thread or wires.

[edit] History

This effect was originally created by Ben Harris in the mid 1980s. The effect was sold under the name Cosmosis: The Original Floating Match. Harris's original effect was intended to be used with a regular playing card from a normal deck of playing cards.

Over the years many copies of the effect have been made. Most of them include a pre-made gimmicked card to be used for the effect.

[edit] Method

A gimmicked card is used to accomplish this effect. This gimmick can be constructed by hand, but more often is purchased pre-made from a magic vendor. Pre-made gimmicks vary in construction, but they all use the same principal method. About a half a dozen fine (and fragile) threads run across the length of the back of the card. These thin threads blend in with the back-design on the gimmicked card, and are difficult to see under most lighting conditions.

The magician can safely show the gimmicked card to the spectator(s), but it is not examinable. The magician places the match on the back of the gimmicked card, perpendicular to the threads. By simply bending the card by squeezing on its short ends, the threads separate from the card, and bring the match up with them. Thus the match appears to float. A card can easily be passed over the match, and there is enough space between the threads and the card to pass a second playing card between them, underneath the match. The magician can then release pressure on the ends of the card to bring the match back down, and then simply tip it off the card.

You can look at this simple diagram to get a better idea of how the gimmick works.