Somebody's card is lost in the deck. You hold the deck upright in one hand, wave the other over it, and one card slowly climbs up out of the middle all by itself.
🌟 Level 1: Apprentice
⏱ 5 minutes to learn
🃏 Cards
🎒 Ages 6+
Works by itself, or one simple move. It works the first try.
What you need
The secret
Get ready, before anybody is watching
Get their card to the back of the deck first: the key card trick's cut does it, or simply have them put it on top and turn the deck round.
On a big stage, floating uses hidden supports, careful lighting and angles that stop you seeing what's holding the weight. Close up, it's usually a finger or a thumb you can't see from the front. That's why a floating trick works from one direction and gives itself away from the side.
What is misdirection?
Misdirection is deciding where people look. If you look at your right hand, your audience looks there too, and your left hand can do the secret. A question or a joke at the right moment moves attention just as well as a big gesture.
Somebody's card is lost in the deck. You hold the deck upright in one hand, wave the other over it, and one card slowly climbs up out of the middle all by itself. It's a level 1 apprentice trick for ages 6 to 11 (grades 1st–5th), takes 5 minutes to learn, and needs one thing you already have. Flick, the shop's rabbit, reads every step aloud with a picture, so a child can follow it alone.
The secret
Your little finger is behind the deck, out of sight, pressed against the back of their card. Straightening that one finger pushes it up.
What you need
A deck of cards
Get ready, before anybody is watching
Get their card to the back of the deck first: the key card trick's cut does it, or simply have them put it on top and turn the deck round.
How to do it
Get their card to the back of the deck, with the faces towards your audience.
Hold the deck upright in your fingers, little finger curled round the back.
Wave your other hand over the deck and say the magic word.
Straighten your little finger slowly. The card climbs out of the deck.
Take the card with your other hand and show it. It is theirs.
Magic words to say
“Cards are mostly lazy. Yours isn't. Yours has been trying to get my attention since the moment you put it back, and I think it's about to make a run for it.”
Pro tips
Stay facing them. One step to the side and they see the finger, so this is a front-only trick like the floating cup.
Practise in a mirror until the rise is smooth and your face is looking at the card, not at your hand.
Make the wave big and the finger small. The big move covers the little one, which is the whole of misdirection in one trick.
If something goes wrong
If the card sticks, take it out with your other hand and say "it needed a lift". Showing their card is still the ending.
Safety notes
Only from the front.
Practise in a mirror.
No fire, no flames and nothing sharp in a child's hand anywhere in the Magic Shop. Nothing ever goes in a mouth, a nose or an ear.
What kind of trick is this?
🪽 Levitation. Something floats. Almost every trick ever invented is one of eight kinds, and knowing which one you're watching is how magicians work out how a new trick is done.
The skill it teaches:Misdirection. People look where you look. Perform it and it counts towards the Card Keeper badge.
Questions about the rising card
How do magicians make things float?
On a big stage, floating uses hidden supports, careful lighting and angles that stop you seeing what's holding the weight. Close up, it's usually a finger or a thumb you can't see from the front. That's why a floating trick works from one direction and gives itself away from the side.
What is misdirection?
Misdirection is deciding where people look. If you look at your right hand, your audience looks there too, and your left hand can do the secret. A question or a joke at the right moment moves attention just as well as a big gesture.