How to Do the Invisible Touch Magic Trick

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Master the "PK Touch" psychic mentalist trick, with or without props
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The invisible touch trick makes it seem like when you touch one volunteer on the nose, the other volunteer who has their eyes closed can feel it in the same place. It’s a classic trick among mentalists—performers who appear to use powers of the mind for their magic—and while it looks like you only touched one of the participants, in reality, you actually touch both of them. The secret is an invisible elastic band, but you can do the trick with nothing but your own hands and 2 participants, and we’ll show you both ways.

Doing the Invisible Touch Mentalist Trick

  1. Wrap a clear elastic band discreetly around your hand.
  2. Tell Person A to close their eyes.
  3. Slide a finger underneath the band discreetly to stretch it between your hands.
  4. Wave your hands around person A's face and lightly graze their nose with the band.
  5. Touch person B's nose with the edge of a playing card.
  6. Ask Person A if they felt anything.
Method 1
Method 1 of 2:

Performing the Trick with an Invisible Elastic Band

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  1. Invisible elastic bands are thin and clear so they’re very hard to see up close or at a distance. Put your hand through the elastic band so it’s wrapped around your palm. Position the band so it’s in the crook of your hand between your thumb and index finger. [1]
  2. Recruit 2 friends, or look for 2 volunteers in the audience or on the street to help you perform your magic trick. See if there are any people who are in a relationship or are related in some way so you can use their “bond” as an explanation for the trick. Ask the participants to stand on opposite sides of you so they’re about 4–5 feet (1.2–1.5 m) apart from one another. [2]
    • Or, just choose 2 strangers if people watching you don’t know one another.
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  3. Choose 1 volunteer to close their eyes. [3] Ask them to confirm that they can’t see anything. Have the other participant keep their eyes open. Ask the person with their eyes closed if they can see anything at all to confirm that their eyes are closed.
    • Or, use a blindfold on the person who has their eyes closed if you want to be absolutely certain they cannot see.
  4. 4
    Wave your hands around the person who has their eyes opened. Keep your hands about 3 in (7.6 cm) away from the face of the person who has their eyes open. Move one hand on either side of their face, without touching them. [4] Wiggle your fingers so it looks like you’re “sensing their energy” so you can perform the trick.
    • This is the “setup action” of the trick, and helps with the illusion. You’ll do the same action with the other person in a moment, but with one important difference!
    EXPERT TIP

    Christophe Fox

    Magician and Mentalist
    Christophe Fox is a Magician and Mentalist based in Virginia. He travels around the country as a full-time performer, providing various entertainment programs, from headline shows as a keynote speaker to close-up magic. He specializes in pressure management, teaching clients and audiences how to live more productively and creatively. His speaking clients have included PBS, Bloomberg, Deloitte, J.P. Morgan, the U.S. Army, and many more. Christophe’s programs deliver jaw-dropping entertainment with a signature blend of magic, mind-reading, and audience interaction.
    Christophe Fox
    Magician and Mentalist

    Encourage them with the instructions that you give with as much clarity as possible. Reassure them that they're doing everything great and they're doing it right.

  5. Now, move your hands to the face of the person with their eyes closed, without touching them. As you do, slide the index finger on your opposite hand under the elastic band to stretch it between your hands. Once you have the elastic band on your finger, pull your hands 4–5 inches (10–13 cm) apart to stretch it out. [5]
    • Be sneaky when you do this! Do it quickly, and when you’re turned slightly away from the first person, so they don’t see.

    Warning: Be careful not to stretch the elastic too far or else it may snap and ruin the rest of your trick.

  6. Move your hands around the face of the person with their eyes closed, but don’t let the elastic touch them just yet. Then, with the elastic pulled tight, hold your hands on either side of the first person’s face. Lightly move your hands downwards in front of the person’s face so the edge of the elastic band grazes the tip of their nose. [6]
    • Be sure to stay fluid and deliberate with your motion so it looks natural. At the end of your movement, make fists with your hands, but leave the elastic around your palm.

    Warning : Don’t go too fast or else the elastic could snap and possibly hurt your volunteer.

  7. Take a playing card out of your pocket and show it to your audience and the volunteers. Hold the edge of the playing card and slowly run it down the tip of the second person’s nose. When you’re finished, put the playing card back in your pocket. [7]
    • Lightly touch the end of the playing card against their nose so you don’t accidentally give them a papercut.
    • Or, use an index card, a credit card, or anything else with a thin edge that’ll make a similar sensation as the elastic band.
  8. When you’re finished, tell the person with their eyes closed to open them. Then, ask if the person felt anything while they had their eyes closed. When they say they felt someone touch them, ask them where they felt it. The person who had their eyes closed will say their nose because they felt the elastic. The audience can’t see the elastic, so they’ll think the person with their eyes closed felt something when you touched the second person’s nose with the card. [8]
    • Make sure that you thank your volunteers for helping you before they sit back down.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 2:

Doing the Trick without an Elastic Band

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  1. 1
    Ask 2 participants to stand about 4 ft (1.2 m) away from each other. Ideally, find 2 friends, siblings, or anyone with some sort of relationship, which can help explain the “bond” and adds to the illusion. Ask them to face each other, standing a little apart and with their hands at their sides, and position yourself between them, but don’t block their view of each other.
  2. 2
    Ask Person A to close their eyes, then subtly tap their hand. This is where the trick happens. Ask one of your participants to close their eyes, and to confirm that they can’t see anything. Then, turn toward Person B. As you turn, subtly but firmly tap the back of Person A’s hand with your nearest hand. Make it slick, and don’t let Person B—or the rest of the audience—see.
    • To help, keep gesturing with your free hand and talking to keep the audience distracted. Being a good mentalist means keeping your audience’s attention where you want it!
    • It helps if you sort of “hover” around Person A. Wave your hands around their body to demonstrate that there aren’t any wires or hidden threads, and as you do, touch their hand.
  3. Ask Person B to raise their hand. Take it in your hand and, with great concentration, tap their hand hard in about the same spot you tapped Person A’s hand. Remember, it’s all about showmanship—keep talking, and make it a big deal. If you give them lots of instructions, says mentalist Christophe Fox, they’ll be more distracted, but also more comfortable, and the trick will work better.
    • For example, say, “Now, focus on where I’m about to touch you, but don’t say anything. Try to communicate it to your friend using only your mind.”
    • You might pitch the trick as though you’re helping these 2 people read each others’ minds .
  4. 4
    Ask Person A if they felt anything. Tell Person A to open their eyes. Then, ask them if they felt anything. They’ll say they felt a tap on their hand, and everyone else will be astonished! Of course, they felt the tap earlier, while you were setting up the trick, but they’re only reporting it now, once you’ve asked. This is called “dual reality”—you touched both people, but the audience believes you only touched 1, and it’s what the audience believes that matters. [9]
    • This version of the trick is a little less effective, since Person A will probably spill the beans. We suggest you get out of there or move on to the next trick before they have a chance to talk to each other about it.
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Community Q&A

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  • Question
    Is it possible to perform this at any time?
    Community Answer
    Yes, if you have at least two people and are in an appropriate setting/environment.
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  • Question
    What do I do if people don't believe I did the invisible touch trick?
    Community Answer
    People will know you can't make actual magic happen, so they will know it's a trick. But, even if they do, try to make the trick as tricky as possible and they may wonder, or at least be impressed at your abilities.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
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  • Question
    Is there a mentalist training guide for tricks?
    Community Answer
    Yes. Check out the book "13 Steps to Mentalism" by Corinda. It was written almost a century ago, but it is still the best. It covers all the basics and most of the tricks you might have seen, at least in rudimentary form.
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      Tips

      • Practice this trick until the movements become fluid and easy. Otherwise, you may end up drawing attention to the rubber band around your hand.
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      Warnings

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      Things You’ll Need

      Using an Elastic Band

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      References

      1. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGouH-GcOwI&feature=youtu.be&t=51
      2. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRf2aYYPrkc&feature=youtu.be&t=46
      3. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRf2aYYPrkc&t=55s
      4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRf2aYYPrkc&feature=youtu.be&t=57
      5. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGouH-GcOwI&feature=youtu.be&t=68
      6. ↑ https://magicmentalism.com/dual-reality-mentalism/
      7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGouH-GcOwI&feature=youtu.be&t=130
      8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRf2aYYPrkc&feature=youtu.be&t=73
      9. ↑ https://magicmentalism.com/dual-reality-mentalism/

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      To perform the invisible touch trick, ask 2 people to stand 4 to 5 feet apart in front of you, and get one of them to close their eyes. Then, wave your hands around them and tell the audience that you’re detecting their energy. When one of your hands is near the shoulder of the person with their eyes closed, lightly and quickly touch it with a finger so nobody notices. As you tap the person, point towards the other person with your other arm to divert attention away from what you’re doing. Once you’ve touched the first person, deliberately touch the person with their eyes open on the same shoulder so everyone can see. Next, ask the person with their eyes closed if they felt anything and where they think they were touched. This will trick the audience into thinking you touched both people at the same time. For tips on how to perform the same trick using invisible bands, read on!

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