Good evening all!
I was toying with some small round crystals I picked up at a shop a while back, and suddenly stumbled across a great routine.
What I need to get started is a certain colour change. The crystals are slightly larger than marble-sized and either smokey-white or transluscent black in colour. The effect I'd like to produce is to "suck" the white out from the crystal. An idea I got from Strange Ceremonies by Eugene Burger, describing a routine by Jay Inglee. Jay uses lapping and misdirection, while I'd like to produce something that's more visual. If I smoked I'd like to suck the white out and exhale it, but being a non-smoker that's not possible. And beyond gaffing the balls I'm at a loss for how to produce rthe effect os a sudden colour change in one hand without cover.

The crystal has to be brought to the lips, openly shown to be white and with a sudden inhaling motion, change to black. I'm toying around with some one-handed changes but not coming up with satisfactory results.

If anyone has some ideas on how I might be able to accomplish this effect I'd be very greatful.

Tx!

-Covernton

Particularly with the motion you describe, this sounds like a perfect candidate for a sleeving move. Carl Cloutier has a nice, ungaffed, quadruple color changing ball routine that makes great use of his jacket.

Is this a possibility or does your attire preclude it?

Interesting you should say that because sleeving was the first thing I'd investigated. I'm a huge advocate of sleeving and make use of it fairly often, but the balls I'm using... something about their size doesn't make them suitable for the motion... I'm stilly toying though. Also the finale vanish with the ball will involve sleeving, but a different method =)

Increasingly I think I'm going to make a gaff-ball =)

-Covernton

Hmmm..."slightly larger than marble size" seems perfect for a simple sleeving move - but I trust you.

Have you consdered the "JW grip" - it usually used with coins but (again depending the size of the balls) it may be adaptble for something like this.

that's initially why I bought the balls, for sleeving. But.. something about their weight and texture... it just makes me uncomfortable holding them. with practice maybe...

Never encountered this grip... what's the effect for his grip?

tx!

-Covernton

Reed McClintock and Appollo Robbins both use this a lot. It allows you to hold an object or empty hand up at chest or face height displaying an extremely convincing empty hand while actually concealing an(other) object. It can be used very effectively for productions and color changes.

You can find it on either of Reed's DVD and on the Appollo/Shoot DVD, although the original source in a book by Horace Bennett, I believe.

I have a little experience with crystal balls in magical routines.
Cloutier's video on sleeving seems like the method for your effect.
Part of my solution was the Inertia Pass by Dan Silvester. If you can not use it it is a very useful technique anyway.

just a tip.. you can paint your tongue with the color of the ball as you don´t wanna smoke.