Villamonte's Magic Kit!
A couple of months ago
my friend Lou Villamonte told me that he was going to come up with a magic kit
that he was going to
sell in his magic shop and online. So, basically, I watched this project
almost from the initial concept to the finished product. I must say
that it was an interesting process to observe.
Well, a couple of weeks
ago, Lou showed my the finished product, and I have to say that I was blown away
by it! I could tell that
a lot of hard work and love of the the art of magic went into the creation of
this kit. In this little revue, I will work from the outside packaging
all the way inside to the some of the effects and the instructions. Please
note, that I will NOT be divulging any secrets here, so I will be very
general in my descriptions.
The packaging of the kit is very nice looking. As you can see there are some pictures of the effects included in the kit and nice photo of Lou and his wife Rogene. The kit also has a handle built right in, so it is easy to carry around. The back of the kit has a nice photo montage of some of the other kits that Lou has put out there, all of which are available at www.magickits.com
Once the kit is opened,
the tricks and effects, including the instruction booklet, are arranged in a
very appealing manner. Now to the meat of the subject here and that is
what is included. First off, let me say that is, in my opinion, a
beginners' magic kit. That doesn't mean that the tricks and effects in
this kit are childish, not at all. These effects are some tried and true
effects in magic, that will teach the novice the basics of the craft.
Some of the effects included are The Magic Money Changer, The Cups and Balls,
The Multiplying Balls, and The Genii Bottle. There is also a particularly
well made prop that all magicians use, and that is just the "tip" of the
iceberg. There are also numerous other effects in the kit, that utilize
other props. The kit includes an instruction booklet that explains 120
different effects, now all of the props needed are not included, as many of them
use household objects such as cards, coins and rubber bands. The booklet
has clear instructions for the effects, and some interesting names for the
effects. This is explained in the instructions as they are named after
various members of the Villamonte clan, and members of the Magic Mafia.
These "named" effects are the first tricks that were learned by there various
namesakes, which I thought was a very clever addition.
Now don't think that just because I know Lou, that I don't have anything but praise for the kit. After looking through the kit and reading the booklet, there were a couple of things that I think could improve it. One of the main things that I thought could have been added was a silk, to perform the vanishing hanky, and maybe a deck of cards. The instruction booklet I felt could have benefited from a list of the included apparatus, with perhaps a crosslisting of the pages on which the effect in which they are used. My only other concern with the booklet is that illustrations are sometimes fuzzy and hard to read. This last point isn't all that important, since the booklet does have a URL for a secret website, where many of the effects are explain via a video presentation of the effect followed by the explanation. The presentations are done by Lou's children, so it is quite apparent that these effects are attainable by most ages. I believe that there is also a companion DVD that is available through the magic shop. I feel that these additions more than make up for any defects in the booklet.
Overall, I think that this kit is awesome, especially for anyone just starting to learn the art of magic. I have seen a lot of magic kits in my day, and this one stacks up with most of them as one of the best. I would definitely recommend this kit to anyone who seriously wants to learn. And that is just my Humble Opinion.
By the way if you are interested in this kit, check out...
Photo courtesy of MagicKits.com and Lou Villamonte.