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Mary Mowder Inner circle Sacramento / Elk Grove, CA 3669 Posts 
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I recently discovered a very nice thread for Gypsy Thread. It is easily broken and just thick enough to show but be easily hidden when necessary.
The outer casing of Magicians cotton rope (not the center part you core out) can be teased out, first in strands of three (if yours is grouped in such a way) and then separated into single strands. There will be a crimped look which can be ironed out or wound around a 2 liter bottle for a while. It has a very natural and old fashioned look for Renaissance workers. If you pre-cut the rope to the length of thread you want the teasing will work best. Just hold the three strand group and gently pinch milk down the length of the rope over and over. Remember that we like this thread because of its low tensile strength so be careful till you know its limits. I know it sounds like a lot of work but it is surprisingly easy once you get the knack. This may not be of much use to those who like to work from a spool but it is great thread and works very well with the wrap around the business card method. Let me know if this works for you. -Mary Mowder |
Dr_J_Ayala Inner circle In search of Vlad Dracul and his 2169 Posts
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Actually when I first started in rope magic, I wanted to perform Knotty Knot and ended up making my own. I took the cotton core strands out of a small section of red rope and ended up using them to tie the red section to the normal white rope. A little trimming with sharp scissors and I had a rope that worked perfectly, and even close up it looks lie a white rope with a section dyed red. I used Uday rope for that, which worked perfectly. It looks and handles perfectly.
I had never thought to use any of those parts for gypsy thread - Mary, that is brilliant! I will try that myself when I get a chance to get some more rope. By the way, I see no reason for this to hinder the use of a spool. You could either single out a strand long enough to wrap around the spool for multiple performances. Another way is to take a little bit of the rope section and wrap it around the spool, gluing it into place to make it look like a full spool, then wrap the prepared set around the spool one performance at a time. The business card method works, and so would the little box (as one would use in the Eternal String or Dragon Thread presentations) with the thread wound up neatly and placed inside. Thanks for posting! |
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Mary Mowder Inner circle Sacramento / Elk Grove, CA 3669 Posts
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Dear DR...
I have never seen "Knotty Knot" but from the description on the Murphy's Magic site it sounds a little like Daryl's "Amazing Acrobatic Knot" or Pavel's "Jumping Knot of Pakistan" for effect. Is this true? Inventive solution. You are right about the spool but I have not tested how long a strand you could tease out since I use about 38 inches total for mine. I know that is short by some standards. Those hiding a longer thread will have a bigger bundle but many men have bigger thumbs and fingers than I do so at least those types can hide a bigger bundle. -Mary Mowder |
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Bill Hegbli Eternal Order Fort Wayne, Indiana 22797 Posts
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Hi Mary, no Knotty Knot is nothing like the tricks you mentioned. It is more of an appearing color changing red knot, then it jumps to the other end, and finally you open the knot to reveal a red section of rope. It is one of those tricks you like, even though it does not make a lot of sense or reason. I seen Meir perform it and bought it right away. It is intriguing.
I previously mentioned that if anyone is looking for a heavy string to perform Gypsy Thread, then I found that Cotton Twine (sometimes called "Butchers Twine" is perfect. The twine is make up of 10 strands of string, these are only twisted, so the remove very easily. It breaks with only a tug. http://www.amazon.com/Cotton-Butchers-Tw......00I1WNV0 This type of sting can be purchased most anywhere, hardware stores, Walmart, etc. |
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Mary Mowder Inner circle Sacramento / Elk Grove, CA 3669 Posts
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I've been searching for this string but have not found it. I'll try Walmart. Some places have it listed on a website but the stores don't carry them. I'd rather see (and hopefully, touch) the string before I buy it.
The untwisting is not as easy as it looks. If You make a floor spinde of sorts (like a top) it makes it easier. -Mary Mowder |
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Dr_J_Ayala Inner circle In search of Vlad Dracul and his 2169 Posts
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Knotty Knot, by the way, was marketed by Aldo Colombini - first through Meir Yedid and then others.
As William said, it starts out as a white knot that jumps from end to end a few times, then changes color to red, jumps from end to end a couple of times, and just when they think you are sliding a tied-on red knot along the rope, you untie it to show it as a white rope with a section of it dyed red. Very fun to perform. This can also be found on his Roped-in DVD. |
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Dr_J_Ayala Inner circle In search of Vlad Dracul and his 2169 Posts
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Mary, I usually get mine here:
http://www.cutleryandmore.com/norpro/cotton-twine-p115792 This is similar to that little trussing strand with the two yellow tabs at the ends, which comes with Butterball brand turkeys. You can also look into stores like Sur La Table, Williams Sonoma, The Kitchen Store, The Chef Store, Le Gourmet Chef and Bed, Bath and Beyond. They all carry similar 100% cotton trussing twine. |
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Bill Hegbli Eternal Order Fort Wayne, Indiana 22797 Posts
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Quote:
On 2011-09-25 04:24, Mary Mowder wrote: Mary, you are not looking for string, look for twine. Twine is like an 1/8" thick when relaxed. It is made up of 10 strings, just like kit string. These individual strings are very week and break easily with only a pull, but when it is with it partners in a group of 10 it is very strong. This twine is also the type of string/twine used in the old trick found in most beginner books on magic. Show 2 short pieces of string, between the index and thumb. Cover the 2 short ends and pull the twine from your hands and they are one long piece of twine. The secret is using twisted twine. Go to the hardware store and ask the clerk for cotton twine. |
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Mary Mowder Inner circle Sacramento / Elk Grove, CA 3669 Posts
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Thanks Bill.
-Mary |
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Magiguy Inner circle Seattle, WA 5488 Posts
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I'm not sure if this helps, but here is what I use:
Gypsy Thread |
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MysticJohn Regular user 191 Posts
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Quote:
On 2011-09-25 04:24, Mary Mowder wrote: Try Here: http://www.camirandmagic.com/ac_040_s.html |
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Dr_J_Ayala Inner circle In search of Vlad Dracul and his 2169 Posts
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This thread is getting older every day, but I just found a source for a larger spool of thread. I am not sure how thick it is, but one could always call or e-mail Mr. Ljungberg and ask.
The link is here: http://www.gycklaren.com/en/articles/2.35.385/gypsy-thread By the looks of it, you get quite a good-sized spool of the thread for $15. The only concern is how visible it is. Check out the rest of the Gycklaren shop - it is a fun place to visit and they carry lots of quality magic products there. |
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nonvpro Inner circle 1844 Posts
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 Gypsy Thread is one of my all time favorite effects and I've beem performing it for over 25 years. I have used just about every type of thead I could find and settled on 100% Yellow mercerized cotton thread. It worked ok, but was a little on the thin side and somewhat difficult to break. Then I came upon "Cotton Hand Basting Thread". This thread is about 4 times thicker than the thread I had been using and simply a breez to break. In my opinion it's absolutely the best thread you will ever find for Gypsy Thread. This thread was brought to my attention by someone here at the Café, however, I'm sorry to say I can't remember who it was. Here's a Link for the thread: http://www.thesewingplace.com/advanced_s......6886c414 As you can see by the picture above, it does not come spooled. I use my Mikita Drill to wind the thread on my wooden spools. Here is a link for just about any size wood spool you might want: http://www.craftparts.com/beads-spools-w......244.html I will set-up about 10 spools before I begin my set. |
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nonvpro Inner circle 1844 Posts
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Just picked up 5 more 18 gram skeins.
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bwarren3Avatar.jpg "View Profile"){kind=avatar} Special user 518 Posts
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I've been using the glo thread from Camarind magic but I just ordered some yellow from the sewing place, ths looks great. I also ordered some of the cotton butcher's twine off Amazon. I did receive this week the new Tony Clark refill thread touted as the easiest to break...boy do I have bad news for people like me that ordered it...you better have The Incredible Hulk on stage as your partner....not worth it...sorry...Really looking forward to the yellow from the sewing place..
Will post the update when they arrive..Thanks everybody for posting... |
Richard Doyle Regular user Maryland 125 Posts
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I heard that waxed dental floss works. I don't know from personal experience but have seen other people use it.
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RS1963 Inner circle 2736 Posts
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Quote:
On 2012-06-02 13:16, bwarren3 wrote: The String that Tony supplies isn't that difficult to break, But you do have to give it a tug to get it to snap in two, That's the key right there. With what you buy from Tony you're not breaking it like you would basting thread. You are snapping it so it's going to take a bit more effort to do that. But it's not that hard to do. It is is very good if you are a stage performer I strongly suggest checking out Tony Clark's Gypsy balloon. Even if you're not, The string maybe to your liking anyway. |
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bwarren3 Special user 518 Posts
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The sewing place yellow arrived yesterday, this breaks like a dream, no problems at all. Used the link above to order some of the wooden spools also. Thanks everybody!!!
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Posted: Sep 25, 2011 01:36 am 