My children and I annually go to the Colorado Renaissance Festival in Larkspur. Today I came across a gentleman who sells nothing but magic wands. These aren't the type of wands that we might normally find, e.g., the ebony variety in one unchanging diameter with white tips similar to a fancy dowel. Rather these are hand turned on a lathe with some beautiful woods in various sizes and shapes. I picked up a beautiful wand with what appears to be a cocobolo handle and ebony tapered shaft, very 'Harry Potterish" for a bit over $50. It has a 'secret compartment" - the handle unscrews - which provides some added fun for card work, billets, etc. where a spectator might hold a card corner or the like only to have the card appear inside the wand that he himself is holding - lots of possibilities.

I know I've rarely used a wand (cups and balls perhaps the only exception) because of the nerdish connotations it somethings brings. These however are quite impressive and well priced. The artist Gary Hall does have some quite spectacular wands on his website with multiple layers of wood that are quite pricey; I didn't see any of these and didn't know about them until I returned home. However, if in the market for something unique for less money than I've seen others in the marketplace or if looking for a real collector's piece, I'd suggest you have a look.

The website is http://www.whirlwood.com and I believe he travels around to other renaissance and Xmas fairs. He is from the LA area. For those worried about a 'plug' I simply as passing along a real find in my opinion; nothing was given or asked for in this review. Check them out! I'm very glad I found them today.

These are quite pretty!

My personal favorite along these lines is the work of Brian Humphrey at Fortress Wand Works -- http://fortresswands.com -- for not only a lovely selection of styles, but an impressive variety of domestic and exotic woods (NOT just finishes). And every wand is custom! (Plus, he's a great person to work with -- which is why he is the official wandmaker of the Chicago Magic Competition.)

Best,
Neil