This is a great little trick. I'll have to admit that it's pretty darn convincing. When I watched the demo, I could see a move that was suspicious... but I suppose laymen aren't watching that closely.

Nick does, as usual, a great job teaching this. He's very clear and goes nice and slow. This trick is essentially a mini-routine as you actually do a variation of the linking laces twice (and if you choose to, you can even start with Nick's version of the self-tying shoelace).

Speaking of self-tying shoelace, I will just say this right off the bat: when I heard that there was a bonus trick of the self-tying shoelace, I was excited to see how this would be done gimmickless. To be honest, this version, in my opinion, is not as good as the original... so it doesn't replace it. HOWEVER, it is a sufficient method that works. So I would use it. In fact, my idea would be to attract spectators by leading with the Jay Noblezada self-tying shoelace... and then have your other foot ready for the linking laces mini-routine. You could, in effect, be redoing the self-tying shoelace using a different method. If you have some smart butt out there that knows the original trick and calls you out, you can let him examine this other leg (where you just did it a second time). I guarantee you that if he looks for a gimmick and doesn't find it, his mind will be BLOWN.

Now regarding the actual trick, it is definitely a brain stumper as well. Nick's presentation really makes this feel like a magic trick (instead of just some topographical manipulation or tricky knot). The fact that this is done on a spectator's shoe instead of your own is a huge bonus.

The only downside to this trick is an obvious one... this is a limited viewing trick. You'll want to position your body so that everyone can easily see what is happening. Either that or use a stool to prop the spectator's foot up for easy viewing.

This is an impromptu trick that, once you learn it, will enable you to always have something when people ask and you have nothing else. It's organic (everyone wears shoes) so you don't have to have cards or coins.

All in all, I say that this is a great trick. I give it four stars... I generally reserve 5 stars for the mind-blowing extreme visual stuff. Get this trick!

(By the way, I always try to be honest and straightforward in my reviews, while being respectful to the magician. If you appreciate my reviews, can you please click the "Yes" button below beside the question, "Did this review help you?" It's not like I actually benefit in any way by your clicking it... but it would be nice to see if my reviews are helpful or not. I hope they are. If you ever have suggestions or comments or questions about my reviews, please feel free to leave me a constructive comment. I'm just trying to be helpful. I love the Penguin community and hope that I can someday contribute my own product. :-) Thanks for reading and for any (hopefully positive, but either way, at least kind) feedback.

Before buying this know what you are actually performing. The trick has two phases. The first phase creates the ILLUSION of the two laces being linked together. It involves a relatively simple move, but you have to watch your angles (which is easy to do if the person with the shoe is looking straight down). In part two you actually re-tie their shoe lace in a special way that allows the laces to be literally linked together. The knot is complex and takes a fair amount of practice in order to be able to tie it quickly and smoothly so the spectator thinks you are just re-tying their shoe. The final result is pretty slick though. The advertising is deceptive and the price ($10) is high for what you get.

This is not a feature effect by any means, but as a throw-away impromptu you can’t go wrong. If someone has laced shoes with long-ish laces you are good to go. Phase one sets up the second phase which leaves your spectator with permanently linked laces.

The bonus effect of ungimmicked self-tying laces is a bit iffy, I have trouble keeping it set as I walk around but you can be 90% set and complete it discretely.

because I want as few as possible other than me doing this trick! Just kidding. This is one of the best impromptu tricks that you can perform where you link a spectators laces together. Not only that, they walk away with their shoelaces still linked, a huge smile on their face and puzzled to heck. There is no preparation required, no gimmicks, no set-up just learning the trick and having it your arsenal at all times and ready to go in a pinch. Yes, they have to be wearing shoes with laces, I’m sure you will be able to find someone. If not, no problem, demonstrate it on your own shoes.

Nick does an amazing job of teaching you how to do this and the camera work is excellent. He also relates many useful tips to help make your performance as perfect as possible. I and you I’m sure will learn the first phase in just a couple minutes. The second phase where they walk away with their laces still linked will take a bit longer but it is very well taught. One you learn it, you have it! Use one or both phases, it is up to you. Great to transition into after doing some linking rubber band magic. As a bonus, you will also learn a ‘gimmickless’ version of the self-tying shoelace. The tutorial is 40 minutes long and there is no wasted time.

You will wish that you had known how to do this earlier and realized all the missed opportunities you had to blow away your spectators minds. This is really a fun trick and you will enjoy doing it as much as the spectator will enjoy having it done on them.

It's a great impromptu trick but can only be done on shoes with long laces.If you perform it flawlessly,which isn't hard to do with an hour or two practice, they will be baffled and won't forget what they just saw for a long time. I like it because it's not cards or coins and you don't need anything to do it. Just a pair of shoes. How simple and organic is that? Paul Harris is a genius. Get it.

I love having a video tutorial on this link! I'm a longtime owner of this effect. I've owned this in its print form for over 10 years. I did learn the special knot from the text and pictures. Though over time I've forgotten the knot.

Now that I own the Penguin video I can easily relearn the effect and special knot without trying to make sense of the intricacies of the knot from text.

Yay!

Recommended.

First, I have to say it's very well taught and it does take some practice to do smoothly. But I thought when am I going to use it - I live in Florida the land of flip flops. I learned and practiced it because I figured it might come in handy one day.

And it did. Yesterday at the gym. I was having a conversation with a gent on the treadmill next to me and was asked what I did for a living. I answered magic.

"Show me something," he said.

"Do you know that trick where magicians link those metal rings," I started.

Need I say more ...

I feel like we are the lucky ones here. I do own the original. But it came with pictures. So it’s easy to see why a video of something I already love is so good. I don’t think I can add anything to the reviews that hasn’t already been said. I can promise that once you learn how this is done, ( it’s sooo easy ) you’ll be performing this on every pair of shoes that has laces. This is something I can recommend and encourage others to pick up. It’s worth every penny.

This will take some practice but it's nothing the average person can't master with a little patience. I suggest you learn it with the soft, flat type of laces (as opposed to the harder, round type) and, as suggested in the video, have lots of lace length to allow for sizable loops in the beginning. I especially like that the spectator can walk away with their laces linked (which is another reason to look for the soft flat laces because the final link is less likely to come undone prematurely later). I was torn between a 4 or 5 star rating only because I'm not sure this is something I will use regularly, but I decided on a 5 because it's clever and leaves the spectator with a nice souvenir.

I have written quite a few reviews, I love new magic. This trick has got to be one of my all time favorites for a couple of reasons. Number one, it's impromptu, you may want to scout out your favorite shoe to work with but that's it. Second, your spectator is going to walk away wearing what you just did. They're going to be showing their shoe to people and talking about what the "Magic Guy" just did. They are wearing the physical evidence of a little miracle. You will definitely need to practice this until it's ultra smooth. Nick gives great advice about how to get ready and what you need to do before giving this a go in the real world. He is an outstanding teacher and the camera angles in the tutorial are perfect. This is a worker and you don't need to carry a thing except the knowledge of what to do. Practice hard and give people something their going to walk home with !!!