Do The Double Lift Card Sleight

To do the double lift is the art of appearing to lift only the top card off from the pack when in reality, you are lifting the top two cards as one .

When this is done with the correct blend of finesse, showmanship and a little sprinkling of misdirection, you have all the ingredients you need for the ultimate deception.

This little card manipulation will open the door to hundreds of seemingly impossible magic tricks that you can use to astonish and impress.

Here is a Slo Mo example with super exaggerated moves for demonstration purposes.

You can see a basic example of the two card push off version in action above here. A break down of the set up and performance of the move are explained step by step in the photos below here.

In this example we will use the  8 of hearts .

To prepare the deck before carrying out this excellent sleight, make sure that the card that you wish to manipulate is second from the top . In our example we will use the eight of hearts . The actual top card is in reality, the Jack of spades.

The cards should be held as shown in a basic hold known as the mechanic's grip  to keep them in place and to help ensure that your spectator does not get a chance to peek a glance and discover that there are actually two cards being lifted.

You then proceed to push of two cards with the side of your thumb. This is done by applying slight pressure to the deck with the thumb and also using your three fingers on the lengthwise side of the cards to slightly lower and allow two cards to pass over them.

Don't worry if three or more cards push over. Just pinch the top two, with your other hand as shown and use your grabbing fingers to push the extra cards back into the deck.

The secret to a smooth transition is as follows. Hold the top right corner of the two cards as shown in the above photo with your first finger on the top edge and thumb on the lengthwise edge.

You can use your middle finger to apply slight upward pressure to the underside of the card.

This, together with pushing the two cards gently onto the fleshy part at the base of your thumb, will allow you to pivot the cards aroundand then let them fall face side up onto the deck.

The two cards can then be pushed up until they are in line with the rest of the deck.

The gripping position of your hand, holding the deck will ensure that the cards can be glided securely into place using your fingers on one side and thumb base on the other as guide rails, safely without them being seen as two cards.

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During this sliding action, it is useful to maintain a slight pinky break below the two cards to make picking them up together, easier.

The two cards should then be pinched in a similar manner as before with first finger and thumb to keep them together.

The gripped cards should then be flipped up and over until they fall face down back onto the pack.

Your other thumb in the hand thats holding the deck, can be used to help guide the cards flush across the deck as shown above.

The two cards are again squared up with the rest of the pack as before and then the top card is upturned to show that it has miraculously changed from the eight of hearts into another card ???

You now have the secret to one of the most valuable and widely used sleights in magic.

Although it appears relatively simple, it is vital to make sure that it is practiced until you can perform it smoothly.

This can really help to reinforce the memorable impression that a trick has on someone.

The move can be incorporated into thousands of routines, one of the most famous being the ambitious card routine , where a card is inserted into the middle of the deck but keeps jumping back to the top.

Want to learn an easy card vanish method ?