Hi Reed. You've got some pretty impressive tats. Where did you get them and is your passion for magic reflected there?

I have two complete sleeves. (both arms are fully tattooed) I do several tricks with the tattoos. A couple of impromptu tricks.

I force a card, I show it jumped off the card itself and appears on my stomach, I hand them their card and it's blank, or I write something funny on the card.

I was a tattoo artist for a very long time. I loved to create cool pictures. I think art school, sucked it out of me, because I only apply the creative process to the magic I perform now.

I use one tattoo to create the illusion of the card changing. I also do a moving tattoo trick. I am working with a friend to design a tattoo for me right now, working on my friend Jerry Andrus's idea. We are working out a way to apply it to skin. Highly visual, I can't wait.

Just curious if anyone else out here does tattoo tricks?
I always feel they are kind of special for lay-people, as not every magician is hardcore enough to get tattoed just for a trick.

I didn't mean for that to sound harsh.
I just meant it as... well, you guys and ladies, understand. I am just curious how those of you who do have a tattoo use it?
I have about 10 different effects, I do with my tatoos.

I have a couple of tattoos (see http://www.themagiccafe.com/freezer/viewtopic.php?topic=2249&forum=32&14&
that are magic related, but not being one of the creative ones, I couldn't think of any good tricks using them. Anything you'd like to share? A good trick would put me right back in the tattoo parlor.

One of the tricks I do, I use a blank faced card, and a series of doubles, then their card jumps off of the face and on to me.

I usually have some sort of weird thing written on the face of the blank card.
I will leave this to your creativity.

I am in the process, once I get some time, I am going to have a deck ribbon spread across my stomach with one card face down, It's a very cool concept that my buddy and I are working on. He is a great tattoo artist.

This may sound weird to many, but that is why I am me. This is something I can do and get away with. I gotta be me, now where is that singing smilie?

Is this the one based on the Jerry Andrus idea you mentioned earlier?

No, This is not the one.
Based on Jerrys idea is very difficult design wise. It will be something in correspondence with a business card.
So I can do something with the card and tattoo, and give them the card afterwords. Highly visual.

In fact it will look unbelievable. I believe I will be the only one in the world literally to have this illusion on skin.

Once it is done, Hopefully in the next two or three months, I will submit it to Richard Kaufman and see if it's something he would like to run in his magazine.

This is a very new thing, strictly for the hard core magician. I have a moving tattoo trick already, but once this thing is done, it will blow that one out of the water, hands down. Very cool, I think
I checked out your Tattoo, very nice.

Maybe you force the queen, mate of the card and produce it from your arm from a palmed position.

Here's my position on tattoo tricks. I'm strictly a hobbyist when it comes to magic so I'd like to have something where the tattoo is all I need (no need to carry a deck or any other props). Also, it should be something that's repeatable and still looks good because I play to the same audience a lot. Not that I'd do it over and over, but they bring their friends to see it and if I have to keep forcing the same card (for example) it takes something away.

Your moving tattoo sounds very cool as does this Jerry Andrus idea. If Richard doesn't publish it, maybe you could come back and share it with this group. Or at least me.

Sure, we can work something out.
I have almost got the right wording down, to force the card on my side down, so when they name a card it will be my card that's tattooed.

I show them and they freak. but no props are needed cause I always have that tattoo.
The ideas I use are from Wonderwords, Kenton Knepper. Man I love those.