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ok, ive tried everything to "impress" my friends with slight of hand, and other tricks, but everything that i do they figure out on the spot. ive looked and looked for a trick that i can do impromptu, that they wont know how it is done. ive tried:
georges old trick, vanishing throw, kings rising, slick aces, Balducci lev, and the "coin through table" trick (not sure of its true name)

i think that ive found one thats good, the glass stinger sleight, where the cup is pushed through the table. however, im not quite sure about hand placement with the napkin after the cup has been moved under the table. i dont know how to grip it to get the shape of the 'glass' just right. how have yall done it?

thats exposure so unfortunately no one will say, but it is explained quite well it mark wilsons complete course in magic...also the reason they arent impressed is maybe because you are rushing to learn the trick and arent practicing it enuff...like any hobby or passion it comes down to practice practice practice.

everything that i do they figure out on the spot.

You are probably expecting this response, but the most likely thing is that you are showing your tricks far too early before they are technically good enough and before your presentation is slick.

I haven't worried about a spectator figuring out how I have done something for years, and I would guess that applies to many of the more experienced members here, that is the easy bit. The hard bit is getting the presentation right so that a few moves thrown together become an awe inspiring piece of magic.

There doesn't seem to be anything wrong with any of the tricks you have mentioned, they should all be very 'impressive' so I am convinced that their falling flat is more to do with your performance of them.

I suggest that before you learn any more tricks you look into some of the posts here on performance, get hold of some books on the subject ('magic and showmanship', 'absolute magic' and the like) and watch other magicians (probably not David Blaine in this case as most people will find it hard to conect with an audience using a personality, or lack of it, like his).

On top of that, try to come up with a decent plot for your effects. I would put money on the guess that you predominantly talk through what you are doing when you perform (as most of us did to start with) and don't give the trick any context, leading to your audience mentally questioning why the hell you are doing this and coming to the ultimate conclusion that you are showing them a puzzle that they have to work out.

If an effect is presented properly there should be no question of your audience working out how it was done because they won't even try until it is far too late.

Of course it could also be because you perform for the same set of friends most of the time and they are actually going all out to catch you!

i dont know how to grip it to get the shape of the 'glass' just right

Hold the glass. Be the glass. Remove the glass. Close your eyes and hold the glass again.

id never thought about the showmanship part, but when i review the videos i found that every time the magician, including david, has a small plot involved with the trick, maby i should have come up with somithing as well...

as for the glass holding part, i diddnt realize that it would be exposure to reveal how to hold the napkin, as many other tricks, like card tricks, often tell which palms to do, and where to put pressure, etc... my bad

I have to agree with Nickj..

If you are technically competent then it's the presentation that's lacking. I've found that the techniques alone are only half the battle.. you need presentation above everything else as this gets your audience interested, can be used to cover mistakes, provide misdirection, actually distract them from the trick for a moment so they forget for a moment that this is what it's all about and above all make everything appear "natural".

When I started I spent ages practicing to get things right and then it fell flat when I did it (no one guessed how it was done.. they just weren't overly impressed) but after spending as much time on my presentation and what I would do it this or that goes wrong, it made all the difference.

After getting the "Devils Picturebook" it really hit home as there is one trick on there where presentation is everything and the trick iteself is nothing (I'm not saying it's nothing in terms of ide etc.. just that it's so obvious when you know !). So get some books or DVDs on presentation, watch other performances etc.. and things will get better.

Hope this helps.. I know how you feel.

Slippery

i think i finially got it now, ive been teaching myself the glass stinger trick, first without the quarter part, but i realized thats the only reason nobody sees what your doing! yall hit the nail on the head, i need to come up with some kinda story or somithing to go along with my trick

on another note, how well do you think a linen napkin would work for the glass stinger, im planning on using it at banquet saturday, but they obviously dont have the paper napkins that work so well. should i pack my own, ur maby use a few tissues put together?

The linen will work, but it won't hold as well. I would suggest wrapping much more loosly and being more careful whe moving it about.

ok, ill try that, thanks!

Gnoff, I hate to repeat others but when your friends sus out your tricks that's down to lack of practice. Do you know what angles reveal your tricks ??

Pick a new card trick, learn it until you can do it blindfold, sleights and all. If it hasn't gone wrong half a dozen times while you have been practicing it, you haven't been practicing it long enough. You have to know all the ways it can go wrong !!

While practicing it, invent your own story to the trick, don't steal someone else's, make your own up. Everyone steals a card trick, but the story (patter) should be your own (you'll also feel more comfortable with your own patter, and you'll also not forget it if its your own story).

Then, when you can do it perfectly, start practicing it in front of a mirror. Watch your hands in the mirror and get used to not looking at your own hands as you do the trick.

When you are happy with that, then learn your angles. Turn different amounts to the left and right (still looking in the mirror) and you will learn the angles that people can see the trick.

When people are in the angle of vision that will let them see the way you do the trick, gently coerce them into the safer area by saying, "You will miss the best part there, come round here and you will see it all" It works, believe me.

I also practice all the above when I've had a few beers because I perform a lot in pubs and also drink. I can do all my tricks while under the influence, because I've practiced them.

If you honestly put that much work into learning a trick, I promise you, your friends will not sus it out.

It may seem harsh, but its the way to go. Practice under every occasion you may perform. Do not perform a trick until you are 100% sure you can do it perfectly. Then you will do it well, and get away with it.

i know exactly what you mean, im practicing for this banquet on saturday, nothing fancy- just some impromptu sleights during dinner, but i know exactly what you mean about the practicing, it takes alot of time