The Traveling Assistant
Though I do not perform regularly, it occurred to me how terribly inconvenient it is to carry a close-up mat with me. Couple that with my unfortunate need to lap everything in site, and you have a dual problem: how does a table hopper gracefully tend to the need of carrying a clean performance surface and providing a means to lap things while standing up? Well, I pondered this one evening, and here's what I came up with: a very commercial item which I reserve rights to for all future commercial production (dealers, take note!).
All you need to make the basic model is a vinyl, legal-size folding portfolio, like the kind stationary stores carry. They usually open up and have a pocket on one side and a clipboard on the other. In addition, you will need a close-up mat, some rubber cement, and a pocket cut from an old pair of jeans. Mind you, this is just for the basic model. After you construct it and see the beauty of it, you can improve it with a variety of additional holders and devices.
Open the portfolio, and remove the clipboard clamp with a pair of pliers; don't worry about being neat or ripping the vinyl. Next, cut the close-up mat to fit the right side of the portfolio and rubber cement it in place. On the left side, glue the old pocket. That's it.
Now you may carry this closed beneath your arm without the need for a rolled or folded mat (which never seems to lie flat). At the drop of a hat, you simply open your portfolio and allow the pocket side to hang off the back of the table. You are now guaranteed a clean working surface with a vinyl, washable back (no more sticky mats), and you have a small servante at your immediate disposal -- just in case you cannot sit down to lap.
There you have it -- a very economical and easy "Traveling Assistant." You may add reels to the pocket side, or a variety of coin, deck and thimble holders. By adding a cardboard flap and some felt hinges, you may enlarge the capacity of the hidden side to store or catch quite a large load. Play with this utility item and let me know what you think.
Frozen in Time
Yet another idea which recently has come to mind which I would like to share with you is "Frozen in Time." Have you ever spun a coin and noticed that it looks like a striped spinning ball? Go ahead and try it right now. Spin a quarter and tell me it doesn't look like a ball. Well, imagine being able to freeze time and pick up a spinning quarter and show that it is a striped ball! Then reverse the process by spinning the ball and allowing it to finally fall flat against the table as a coin.
It would be quite an excellent illusion. All that would be needed is a ball painted to look like a spinning quarter -- something clear, perhaps with a few bronze stripes painted on it to give it that blurred look.
To perform this effect, you need only have the ball finger palmed in your right hand. Spin the quarter hard with your left hand, and be sure to call attention to the fact that it looks like a spinning ball. To accent this illusion, spin the quarter a few times and ask your spectators "What is the color of the ball?"
Once it stops spinning and lies flat on the table, pick it up with the left hand, shuttle pass it to the right hand, and spin the ball hard on the table. Talk about being able to freeze time, and pick up the spinning ball to show what a frozen spinning quarter would look like. Bounce it and roll it on top of the table. Finally, reverse the shuttle pass, and allow the spinning coin to fall flat once again.
By no means is this a strong effect in and of itself; however, thrown into the beginning of a coin routine, you will immediately set your audience up for an even more startling routine. Furthermore, the transformation is more than enough misdirection for you to steal other coins for your other routines.