How to Do a Back Palm Vanish

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: February 16, 2023 References Tested

If you’ve ever seen a magician make a card vanish into thin air and then make it reappear, you may have been impressed and wondered how they managed to do it. Chances are, the magician used a sleight of hand technique called a back palm to make the card vanish. It’s actually a lot easier to do a back palm vanish than you may think. Once you learn the proper way to grip the card, it really just takes a lot of practice to pull it off well enough to fool an audience. Once you get really good at it, you can even try making multiple cards appear out of nowhere using the same technique!

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Back Palming a Single Card

1
Hold the card between your thumb and middle finger. Get a good grip on the card so you can hold it in place when it comes time to use the sleight of hand that makes it appear to vanish. Use your thumb and middle finger to grip about ¹⁄₄ inch (0.64 cm) from the bottom edge of the card.^{[1]
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- Hold the card firmly, but not so tight that it looks rigid and doesn’t move.
2
Wave the card around to convince your audience. Use movement to add a bit of showmanship to the trick and to make it look like magic. Wave your hand around and swivel the card in your hand by loosening your grip and using your ring finger to move the card.^{[2]
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Tip: Use a 3-count to raise the excitement of your audience. As you wave the card around, say, “1, 2, 3,” and make the card vanish on the 3.

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3
Wrap your pinky finger and index around the edges of the card. As you’re waving the card around to capture the attention of your audience, use your pinky and index finger to hold the card. It will appear as though you’re holding the card with your thumb and middle finger, but you’re really holding it by the edges with your index and pinky finger.^{[3]
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- Don’t move your thumb from its position so the audience doesn’t know that you’ve changed your grip on the card.
4
Bend the card and bring your middle and ring finger underneath. Use your index and pinky finger to curve the card. Then, tuck your middle and ring finger beneath the edge of the card.^{[4]
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- Line up the fingernails of your ring and middle finger with the edge of the card.
5
Open your hand to flip the card. After you’ve tucked your middle and ring finger beneath the edge of the card, extend all of your fingers to open your hand. The card will then move to the backside of your hand, held in place by your index and pinky finger.^{[5]
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- Keep your fingers squeezed tight together to grip the card and to prevent the audience from seeing the card through your fingers.
6
Bring the card back to the front. To bring the card back to the palm of your hand, keep the card held between your pinky and index finger, and curl your middle and ring finger inward. The card will flip back to the front. Catch the card between your thumb and index finger so it’s back to its original position.^{[6]
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- The movement has to be quick so the audience doesn’t see the card flipping back into position from behind your hand.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Using Multiple Cards

1
Get comfortable holding multiple cards in the back palm position. Holding multiple cards in the back palm position is done the same way as a single card: grip the edge of the card between your pinky and index finger and keep your fingers flush so the audience can’t see the card. However, holding multiple cards puts more tension on your fingers and takes a lot of practice to master.^{[7]
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- Make sure you’ve mastered the back palm vanish with a single card before you try your hand at doing it with multiple cards.
Tip: Try gripping 3-5 cards in the back palm position to get used to holding multiple cards.
2
Hold 3 cards in the back palm position. Start the magic trick with a good grip on 3 cards in the back palm position, with your fingers held tight so the audience doesn’t know you have any cards. Keep the edges of the cards lined up evenly so none of the edges get caught and ruin the trick.^{[8]
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- Practice with older or worn out cards, which are easier to bend and grip in the back palm.
3
Curl your middle and ring finger in to bring the cards forward. When you tuck in your middle and ring fingers, it will cause the cards to flip over to the front of your palm. You don’t need to curl them so much that the cards come all the way around to the front, just enough so you can reach the card with your thumb.
- The motion needs to be done quickly and smoothly so the audience doesn’t see the cards coming forward.
4
Loosen your pinky finger and extend your index finger to release 1 card. As the cards come to the front, slightly loosen your pinky finger and place your thumb on the front right corner of the card so you can remove it. Extend your index finger to release the single card to the front.^{[9]
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- Keep the rest of the cards held between your pinky and index fingers.
5
Extend your fingers to return the other cards to the back palm position. Open your hand with the single card in your font palm. This will cause the remaining cards to return to the back palm position and out of view of the audience.^{[10]
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- Drop the card you’ve made appear onto the floor or set it on a table so you can produce another card from the back palm.
6
Repeat the process with the remaining cards. After you wow the audience by making a card appear out of nowhere, follow the same steps to make another card appear. Curl your middle and ring finger to bring the cards forward far enough for you to grip another one with your thumb. Remember to loosen your pinky and extend your index finger to release 1 card.^{[11]
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- Master magicians are able to make up to 40 cards appear!
7
Practice making multiple cards appear. This sleight of hand trick takes lots of practice to master to the point where you can fool an audience. Start with 3 cards at a time until you get confident enough to add more cards to the back palm position.^{[12]
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- The only limit to how many cards you can make appear is how many you’re able to hold in the back palm position!

Community Q&A

Question

Does this work for people with short fingers?

Community Answer

Yes, but you have to use smaller cards, such as the ones from "Fantasma Magic".
Question

How much time does it take to master this trick?

Community Answer

It really depends on how big your hand is, but it will likely take several days to several weeks in order to master it.
Question

Will this work for someone with smaller hands?

Community Answer

Yes, you will just need to bend the card more than someone with bigger hands.