If you're as passionate about card magic as I am, then you're in for a treat. There's a new online magic course that's about to rock the world of card magic, and I couldn't be more excited to share it with you. It's called "Unreal Card Magic" and it's hosted by the renowned magician Ben Earl.

As you'll see below, this course is more than just a few tutorials. Ellusionist and Studio52 have been teasing this online for a few weeks already, but I'm excited to say that the campaign has finally launched on Kickstarter.

Back it on Kickstarter

This course is going to be a game-changer, and here's why you need to jump on board.

Unleash Unbelievable Card Magic – No Special Abilities Needed!

Imagine blowing people's minds with card tricks that leave them speechless. Well, with Unreal Card Magic, that's exactly what you'll be able to do. The best part? You don't need special hands, extraordinary abilities, or any prior knowledge. Ben Earl and the team at Ellusionist and Studio52 are here to guide you every step of the way.

Whether you're a complete beginner or a seasoned pro, this course has something extraordinary to offer you. It's all about making the impossible possible with a simple deck of cards. So, if you've got a deck in your pocket, you're ready to dive into the world of awe-inspiring card magic.

Don't have a deck yet? Part of the physical reward of the Kickstarter campaign is 2 decks of playing cards, so no excuse there!

Unreal Card Magic – Your Fast Track to Magic Mastery

For those of you who are new to magic, get ready to become the life of the party. Magic isn't just about tricks; it's about forging connections, building confidence, and captivating your audience. With Unreal Card Magic, you'll learn the tricks that matter, so you can quickly become the center of attention in any room.

And for the pros out there, this course is your golden ticket to the next level. Ellusionist has been at the forefront of magic secrets for years, and they've chosen Ben Earl to reveal the most advanced techniques and insights. This isn't just another magic course – it's a game-changing opportunity to redefine your performance and take your magic to heights you've only dreamed of.

Discover What's Inside the Box

So, what's waiting for you when you dive into Unreal Card Magic? Let me break it down:

• A unique and stylish Unreal Card Magic art piece that will spark conversations.
• Two premium decks of playing cards – the same ones Ben Earl uses for his own magic.
• The highly anticipated WTF book, hidden within the art piece.
• Access to hours of video tutorials, covering everything from basic handling to mind-boggling techniques and tricks that will leave your audience screaming for more.

Imagine holding in your hands the secrets that will transform your card magic game forever. That's exactly what you'll get with this incredible course.

It's Time to Join the Magic Revolution

Who is this course for? Simple: everyone. Whether you're looking for the perfect gift, aiming to build confidence, or hoping to ignite your own passion, Unreal Card Magic has something for you. And don't worry if you're feeling a bit rusty in the social skills department – this course is here to help you thrive, no matter your starting point.

Unreal Card Magic is about more than just tricks; it's about confidence, connection, and crafting moments that last a lifetime. And the best part is, you won't have to waste years or thousands of dollars searching for the right techniques. This course brings you only the cream of the crop – the tricks that have been battle-tested and proven to captivate audiences time and time again.

Become the Master of the Impossible

One of the biggest fears for new magicians is getting caught using trick cards. But fear not, because the magic you'll learn in Unreal Card Magic starts clean and ends clean. Your deck will be ordinary, and your audience will be left in awe, scratching their heads in disbelief. 

Unlock the Hack to Learning Magic Faster

We've all been there – rushing through the basics, trying to learn as much as possible, only to realize that not all tricks are created equal. Unreal Card Magic is here to save you from the time and effort wasted on less impactful tricks. Instead, you'll dive straight into the heart of the matter, learning only what's necessary to create maximum impact.

Why waste time on dozens of techniques when you can master the best one? Ben Earl's insights and teaching methods will guide you to become a magician who doesn't just perform tricks, but who captivates and astounds with every move.

Join the Magic Family Today

As the CEO of Ellusionist, Geraint Clarke knows magic like the back of his hand. He's seen thousands of tricks and worked with the best in the business. And after nearly two years of convincing, he's managed to secure the expertise of the best card magician in the world – Ben Earl.

Whether you're an aspiring magician or a seasoned professional, the secrets Ben Earl reveals in Unreal Card Magic are going to be more than worth it. And the add-ons, like the Primary Movement coin trick and the Hand Intelligence Moves Expansion Pack, will take your skills to a whole new level.

If you're ready to join the revolution and redefine your card magic game, then Unreal Card Magic is your ticket. Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn from the best and astonish audiences like never before. And with the Kickstarter campaign in full swing, there's no better time to get involved.

So grab your deck of cards, fuel your passion for magic, and prepare to enter a world where the impossible becomes reality. Let's make magic happen together with Unreal Card Magic.

Back it on Kickstarter

Note: This blog post contains affiliate links. By signing up for the course through these links, you're helping support the blog while also embarking on an incredible journey of card magic mastery.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this blog post is based on the content available on the Kickstarter page as of the writing of this post. After I receive the art piece, book, decks, and go through the video tutorials myself, I will not only update this post to be even more reflective of what's included, but I will also post a content review!

What exactly is Decked Out August? It's a list of playing card post prompts for the community to use, but nobody asked for!

Back in 2019, a friend on Instagram kicked off a several-month long "decked out" event. It started as one month, then the next, then it transformed into a "Decked Out 365". Post prompts for every day! Unfortunately, it didn't actually survive the full year, but it was pretty great while it lasted. Ever since then, I've been resurrecting it from time to time and it's been a really fun participation event for the community.

The concept is straightforward. I have provided a playing card theme for every day of the month. If you're stuck trying to think of something to post, or you just want to mix things up a bit, you now have a list you can reference to help get those creative juices flowing.

It's not a "challenge" and there are no official prizes at the end of the journey. However, you do meet a decent number of new folks in the process so I guess you can call "building your community" as a prize =]

How to Participate

1. Instagram
   This event is on Instagram, so make sure you post your content there.
   
   
2. Follow the Theme of the Day
   Your post should be either a photo or a video matching the theme for the day. For example, if the theme is "Aces" you could post a photo that's showing off a really nice Ace of Spades, or all four Aces, or Aces from a deck series, etc. Or, maybe you'd prefer to make a video with an Ace Production, or Ace color changes. The sky's the limit!
   
   
3. Use the tag #DeckedOutAugust
   If you're participating in the event, don't forget the tag! This let's others easily find your content by searching for the tag, and if they're like me they're likely following it too.
   
   Due to Instagram's whacky idea that people would rather see "top posts by tag" instead of "recent posts by tag", after the first few days it is nearly impossible to track recent posts in the Instagram Search page, but if you're following the tag then your home feed should be filled up!
   
   
4. Tag me, @gbabbits
   This is totally optional, but if you tag me then I'll re-share your post to my story to help get extra eyes on it.

That's pretty much it! If you really want, follow the #DeckedOutAugust tag on Instagram too so you can keep up with the content.

I also suggest that you re-share some of your favorites as they come out. The community will love you for it <3

Post Prompts

What I love about having short prompt titles is that they can be interpreted in many different ways, entirely depending on the individual.

Here are the daily post prompts for August, 2023:

1. Classic
   Showcase your favorite classic deck of playing cards, classic cardistry move, or classic card trick!
   
   
2. Borderless
   Let's see a deck where the design knows no bounds and goes straight the the edge!
   
   
3. Flourish
   Display a deck that flourishes in the light, or display some impressive flourishing card handling skills (it could be cardistry, or fancy deck handling during a card trick).
   
   
4. #FanningFamFriday
   Nothing like a good #FanningFamFriday to set the mood! Or, if fans aren't your thing, make it a #FlourishFriday instead!
   
   
5. Monochrome
   Embrace the beauty of simplicity by featuring a deck that's primarily one color. Bonus points if it's not a NOC deck! (though, mine will likely be a NOC deck =P)
   
   
6. Cardistry
   Show off your cardistry skills with some sweet moves; or, simply show off a deck that was made for cardistry!
   
   
7. Minimalism
   Highlight the beauty of simplicity and minimalistic designs in card decks. During #DeckedOut months, we often see decks full of deep and intricate designs; let's mix it up and show off how nice a lighter design can look.
   
   
8. Account Shout-out
   I like to set aside a day each month, at least one, where we give a shout-out to someone else. It can be a single account, 2 accounts, 3, 10, you name it. Personally, for these days, I've always shared a single account (since I'm giving shout-outs daily during the whole month) -- but it's 100% up to you.
   
   
9. Book Lover's Day
   Did you know that today is International Book Lover's Day? I know, me neither! Let's highlight some book action today folks. It could be an actual book (magic, or otherwise), or even a book-themed deck... oddly enough, I have a few of those.
   
   
10. Card Castle Creations
    Build an impressive card castle or show us your card stacking skills. Can't stack cards? Perhaps you have a castle themed deck? =P
    
    
11. #FanningFamFriday
    Nothing like a good #FanningFamFriday to set the mood! Or, if fans aren't your thing, make it a #FlourishFriday instead!
    
    
12. Contrast
    Let's create striking visuals by contrasting different elements in our card photos or videos. Think contrasting colors, or light vs dark, or maybe even a simple color change trick.
    
    
13. Left Handed
    Whoa, a holiday to celebrate all those who are Left Handed! Let's show off a left-handed deck (yeah, they exist), or a trick done with the left hand.
    
    
14. Orange Deck
    It's Creamsicle day! Yeah, the U.S. has some odd holidays, but who's counting =P. To celebrate, let's show off our orange decks. And yes, OPC's Creamsicle deck counts too.
    
    
15. Summer Vibes
    We're at peak-summer vibes here in the Northern hemisphere, let's embrace it and flaunt those decks that scream "Summer!"
    
    
16. Card Collector's Paradise
    Share your card collection organization tips, or display your most treasured decks. Plural is key here (tomorrow will zoom-in on a single deck)!
    
    
17. Deck Showcase
    Feature a prized deck from your collection and tell us the story behind it.
    
    
18. #FanningFamFriday
    Nothing like a good #FanningFamFriday to set the mood! Or, if fans aren't your thing, make it a #FlourishFriday instead!
    
    
19. Nostalgia
    Evoke feelings of nostalgia with a deck (or decks) that remind you of cherished memories. When I thought of this prompt, a deck immediately popped into my head so I knew I had to make this one on a Saturday (for "Saturday morning cartoons")!
    
    
20. In Motion
    Capture the beauty of cards in motion. It can be cardistry, it can be an aerial, or even a simple card trick (or a harder one, like a good ol' Haunted Deck). My personal idea for this one is to take a still shot of a card moving, captured "in motion".
    
    
21. Artistic
    Highlight the artistic side of playing cards, such as beautiful designs or more abstract card-themed artwork.
    
    
22. Reflections
    This one will be a fun one -- we can go super simple and use a deck (or decks) that have cards that appear as a reflection of another (i.e., mirrored Jokers, or a court card that is "holding a mirror"), or we can go more literal and use reflections to create our photos or videos with any deck.
    
    
23. Galactic Gathering
    There are a lot of space-themed decks out there, and I've found August to be a great star-gazing month (since it's hot and we're always outside late into the night). Let's journey to the stars together and show off our space-themed decks, or maybe a magic trick that's inspired by the cosmos.
    
    
24. Back to Basics
    Share your love for standard Bicycle or Rider back decks, or the classic effects you perform with them.
    
    
25. #FanningFamFriday
    Nothing like a good #FanningFamFriday to set the mood! Or, if fans aren't your thing, make it a #FlourishFriday instead!
    
    
26. Dynamic Duos
    Showcase the dynamic synergy between two different decks. Don't have two decks? Feature two magicians instead!
    
    
27. Vintage Vibes
    Celebrate the charm of vintage decks, whether the deck is vintage or simple vintage themed.
    
    
28. Mail Call
    If you're like me, you accidentally let boxes pile up for a month or two before opening them -- so many that you've forgotten what's inside! Let's use this day to open some of them up for all to see!
    
    
29. Tuesday Trickery
    A day devoted entirely to tricks! For photos, try to create an optical illusion with cards -- maybe a card that's just floating midair. For videos, well, perform a magic trick!
    
    
30. Blue Deck
    Guess what, today (or tonight) has a Super Blue Moon! That means it's the second full moon in the same month (the 1st was on the 1st of August), and because of the position of the moon it'll appear "larger", hence it's called Super! To celebrate, let's see those blue decks folks =]
    
    
31. Favorite Deck of August
    Let's end the month with a grand finale and feature our favorite deck from the month. Too many decks to choose from? Well, then go out with a bang and show off your collection, hot cardistry moves, or a killer card trick that says "goodbye, August."

If you have any questions about what the prompts mean, and there's always at least a few questions, please reach out and I'll be happy to provide more info. And remember, just have fun!

Happy August <3

On Sunday, Vanishing Inc., the online magic shop, celebrated the 3rd anniversary of the Vanishing Inc. Masterclass with a special event hosted by Joshua Jay and Andi Gladwin. The event brought together a community of over 400 magicians, featuring past Masterclass teachers and exciting announcements. Despite a minor disruption, the event showcased the camaraderie and shared passion for magic.

I first heard about the event from an email announcement on Saturday -- the day before the event itself. Luckily, I didn't have plans at the time it was scheduled for so I figured I'd tune in. I'm glad I did!

Vanishing Inc. Masterclass: A Brief Overview

Summarizing a bit from the Vanishing Inc. Masterclass description itself (because it says it all quite well), but Vanishing Inc. Masterclass is an exclusive and inspiring platform that offers magicians worldwide unparalleled access to the best in the industry. Designed to ignite your creativity and propel your magic to new heights, each month brings you captivating lectures and exciting new tricks from the most innovative and talented magicians around.

Once subscribed, you'll be able to immerse yourself in two 1.5-hour lectures on the first two Sundays of every month, where you'll gain invaluable insights, practical advice, and a deep understanding of what excellence in magic truly entails. Moreover, the Masterclass experience goes beyond the lectures, with a live Zoom Q&A on the third Sunday, providing an opportunity to interact with the instructors and ask any burning questions you may have. As a bonus, you'll also gain access to the extensive VI Studio video library, featuring incredible content from renowned magicians like Roberto Giobbi and Juan Tamariz.

The 3rd Anniversary Event

The 3rd anniversary event was an hour long live Zoom meet, right before the Q&A with this month's Masterclass host, Jörg Alexander. It was hosted by Joshua Jay and Andi Gladwin and unlike the normal Masterclass sessions, it was completely open to the public for free!

The magic duo were the hosts, but the schedule was already set and they called upon a handful of magicians to give brief talks. We heard from David Regal, David Williamson, Matt Pritchard, and John Guastaferro -- and yes, each of them were previous Masterclass hosts.

In between folks, they even had cameo appearances by Matt Baker and Jeki Yoo! Matt's appearance was just a "hey Matt, say hi!" type of thing while Jeki's was to drum up some excitement for his upcoming Masterclass in August. I'm excited to see that one!

Magic Trick Giveaway

During the event, Josh and Andi mentioned that they would be giving away some goodies throughout it and they definitely came through!

All-in-all, everyone attending received three free magic tricks:

• Joe Puzzle by David Regal
• Card Productions by David Williamson
• Hands Off by John Guastaferro

Each of these tricks come from the respective magicians' Masterclass sessions, but the free downloads that they gave all of us are cut and setup to stand alone. If you weren't there to claim these, or if you don't have the Masterclass sessions, I highly recommend seeing if you can get these tricks though -- from experience, they're pretty great. Joe Puzzle is one of my favorite tricks and it's not even card related (though the version I perform is).

Big shout-out to Vanishing Inc. for giving away such awesome magic!

Zoom Bombing Incident

Unfortunately, not all was fun and games. During David Williamson's segment, some crappy individual (or individuals) thought it was a good idea to try to hijack the event. They started auto-sharing their screen, which included some very graphic and inappropriate content -- so much so, I hope no children were tuned into this event, though I'm sure there were at least some.

Vanishing Inc.'s staff handled the situation swiftly and professionally, even as the annoyances continued for several minutes. The consequence of the incident was that they had to not allow any more users to join, and they disabled other sharing settings as well. Quite unfortunate indeed!

Exciting Announcements

During all of the talks, we learned a couple of neat things. To briefly summarize them here:

• David Williamson runs Sleight School, an online learning platform, for magic. While talking about it, he said something that I (as an adjunct professor myself) have been known to say for many years now: teaching is the best way to learn.
  
  
• John Guastaferro has a new book coming out titled The Nth Degree, a sequel to his popular One Degree. I, personally, don't have One Degree and it's long-since sold out but still in high demand. It's said that The Nth Degree will focus on strategy and implementation and also includes a lot of routines! I'll have to check it out when it's being released.

Conclusion

The Vanishing Inc Masterclass 3rd Anniversary Event was a memorable celebration of magic, featuring prominent magicians, exciting announcements, and a strong sense of community. Despite the unfortunate Zoom bombing incident, the event showcased the resilience and dedication of the Vanishing Inc team. As the Masterclass service continues to thrive, magicians from all skill levels can look forward to enriching their craft and fostering connections within the magical community.

Thank you again, Vanishing Inc!

Fellow magicians, it's time to step into the Amazon Prime Day plane and wrestle with our wallets. Wave your wands or snap your fingers and order some useful magic accessories!

Magic, or "magician's supplies", isn't a category that you'd expect to see pop up in a Prime Day sale. I've been keeping my eye out for pre-Prime Day sales and didn't come up with much, but today's the big day and wow are there some good deals on cards and card accessories! I'm posting this with the first batch of things I've come across, hopefully as an easy one-stop list for you, but I'll also try to update it throughout the day with anything else I see. If you find something magic related that isn't included here, please let me know!

When is Prime Day?

Prime Day is running from July 11-12. It'll be an interesting mix of deals across Amazon, and a lot -- I can't emphasize this enough -- of deals for just about anything!

To participate, you have to be an Amazon Prime member. I've personally been a member for well-over a decade now and wouldn't want it any other way. The fact that I get free same-day or one-day deliveries on a lot of my purchases is a no-brainer in cost savings, plus the epic deals from Prime Day and other deals? Heck yeah!

If you're not already a member, check it out and sign-up here:

Amazon Prime

Decks of Cards

Finding deals on decks of cards is a little like pulling teeth because you have to know what you're looking for. However, here are some good ones that I found:

• Bicycle Standard Rider Back, 2 Pack (Red + Blue) -38%!
• Theory11 - Harry Potter Playing Cards, Gryffindor (Red), -20%!
• Theory11 - Harry Potter Playing Cards, Slytherin (Green), -15%!
• Theory11 - Avengers Playing Cards, Purple, -23%!
• Theory11 - Avengers Playing Cards, Green, -25%!
• Theory11 - The Dark Knight Playing Cards, -20%!
• Theory11 - Star Wars Playing Cards, Gold, -20%!

Magic Accessories

I've used, or have instructions on how to use, all of the items outlined in this section. Some of these are self-explanatory, others might make you scratch your head -- but just know, they're useful in gimmick creation! If you want more info, reach out and we can chat =]

• Blank Face Cards, Bulk (180 cards), -20%!
• Elastic Thread, 0.2mm, -20%!
• Exacto Knife Set, -20%!
• Exacto Knife Cutting Mat, -15%!
• Close-Up Pad (Black, Roll-Up), -20%!
• Card Clip (Black, Stainless Steel), -20%!

Unfortunately, at least at the current time, items like Rubber Cement, Double-Sided Tape, and Neodymium Magnets -- each needing to be a specific type or style, don't have any Prime Day deals going on. I'll keep an eye out though in case they're dropped later in the day!

Misc.

This category doesn't fit directly into the above, but I think it's worth including nonetheless!

• Box One by Theory 11
  • This is a board game, produced by Theory 11 but created by Neil Patrick Harris. It's designed to challenge only a single person and is full of trivia, puzzles, and adventure!
• The Secrets of Street Magic, A Step-by-Step Guide to Becoming a Master Magician, -24%!

Two weeks ago, I wrote a post where I mentioned that I was creating a "flash card" app to help keep up my practice regime. While there are actual apps like this, I wasn't able to find any that worked on all platforms -- Web, Android, and iOS. And the ones that do exist don't seem to be exactly what I want, so I decided to write my own. I said that I would keep you up to date on my progress too, so here's my update!

I want to be upfront that this isn't an app that's shared or published anywhere. It's not polished by any means, and I don't really have plans to make it "professional grade". At least, not right now.

So, what does it look like? What features does it have?

Basic User Interface

When you think about flash cards, what do you think of? To me, it's just a basic index card where you write a keyword, title, or question on one side, and then the answer (or notes) on the other. It's a basic design in real life, so the digital version should be the same.

In the center is a big ol' flash card with the name of the trick to practice. The source of the trick, if any, is located below the name to help with recall and to differentiate between tricks that share the same name.

If I click on the flash card, it will flip over and display the notes I have for the trick. Some of them are just the source and page number (or timestamp for videos), others are the effect description, and others are a short bulleted-list of steps to perform the tricks.

The buttons across the bottom are to indicate how difficult the trick was to practice. If I clicked on the flash card to flip it over, I have the difficulty default to "forgot" though. I explain how these buttons work below in the Advanced Features section.

The buttons on the top are for managing the system and each pops open a modal window.

• Decks: displays the different "decks", or "categories", of flash cards. I have things like Card Magic, Impromptu, Triumph, ACAAN, etc.
• Add: gives me a form to add a new card to the system.
  

  

• Edit: gives me a form to edit the current card that's being displayed; it's identical to the form for adding a card.
• List Cards: displays all of the cards in the current deck and separates them by "today's cards" and "all cards"
  

  

That's really kind of it. Not sure if the UI needs much more than that right now, but we'll see how it evolves over time.

Integrated with my Online Library

Did you know that here on The Babbit's Grimoire, my library contains 208 items between all of the books, videos, and tricks that I own? The large majority of them are still in "draft" mode, and I have at least 75 more books to add too.

If you've taken a look at any of the books in my library, or videos, you may have noticed that I include a full table of contents for them. What you don't see is that every entry -- on the site's backend -- is fully categorized similar to what you'd find on Conjuring Archive. Beyond that, I have also added keywords -- and sometimes full effect descriptions -- for each entry. This includes both sleights and routines. When I add a book or video (or trick) to the site, I always start with the table of contents. Entering it all takes quite a bit of time, as you can imagine; this is why most are still in "draft" mode and not published on the site yet.

Why all of the effort? Well, one of the reasons was to help with practicing my repertoire -- and this flash cards app is the initial steps towards the culmination of just that!

Not including tricks I've created myself, adding tricks from my library to the flash cards list is just a click of a button! They'll be auto-categorized for me and the flash card info -- both front and back -- is pre-populated. It also allows me to not run the risk of adding the same card multiple times, and identifying when two similar tricks are added; this isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I might be able to merge them into a single card, or display them back-to-back and call them "variations".

Advanced Features

What kind of "advanced features" can a flash card really have, am I right? Beyond what I described above with how I've integrated these cards with my library items, I've also designed the stack timings to reflect how difficult the trick is for me to practice.

Initially, I created about 30 flash cards and then had the list randomized. That was the starting order. From that point forward, whenever a new card is added to a category, it will be added into the stack 3 days from today.

If a second card is added today, it will go into the stack 4 days from today. This will go all the way to 7 days away, and if I'm silly enough to enter in even more (which is more than 5 new cards in a single day), it'll circle back and add the 6th card to the stack 3 days from today, and so on. Each time a card is added into the stack, it will shift all of the other cards down by one.

Now, those buttons along the bottom of the UI, they indicate how difficult the trick is for me to practice. Here's the logic I have for them:

• Easy: I know this routine and can perform it naturally.
  • It will put the card into the stack 6 days from today.
  • If I click "Easy" for another card today, it'll go in 7 days from today, and so on.
  • If the last time I saw this card I selected "Easy" and it's being inserted the same number of days as last time (i.e., last time it was 6 days away), I increase it by 1 and insert it 7 days from today.
    
    
• Okay: I know the routine, but my handling or performance could be a little better.
  • It will put the card into the stack 3 days from today.
  • If I click "Okay" for another card today, it'll go in 3 days from today too; but if a 3rd card is marked "Okay", it will go in 4 days from today.
  • If the previous rating for this trick was "Easy", I push the card up a day (i.e., if it is in the stack 3 days from today, now it's 2).
  • If the last time I saw this card I selected "Okay" and it's being inserted the same number of days as last time (i.e., last time it was 3 days away), I decrease it by 1 and insert it 2 days from today.
    
    
• Hard: Yeah, let's not show this one to anyone yet.
  • It will put the card at the end of today's stack, to be practiced again.
  • If I've clicked "Hard" 3 times for this card today, it will be placed into tomorrow's stack.
  • If the last time I saw this card I selected "Forgot!", it will be placed into tomorrow's stack.
    
    
• Forgot!: I have no idea what I'm doing. Help!
  • It will put the card at the end of today's stack, to be practiced again.

Any cards that remain in today's stack, at the end of the day, will be in tomorrow's stack. There will always only be 5 cards for any given day though -- when, or if, all 5 cards have been exhausted, the system simply says that there are no more cards to practice for today.

To be clear, the concept of shifting practice times based on difficulty feedback -- as well as the general UI layout -- I adopted after reading a post on The Jerx where Jerxy details a flash cards app that he uses. But because I wrote this one, I can control it to fit my own style.

Does it work?

I mean, literally yes it works. However, the purpose of the question is not whether it functions, but whether it's useful in helping me practice.

At this time, I've been using it daily for a little over a week. I've made it through a total of about 15 flash cards. Why so few? Because when I started populating it with my routines, I made sure to put the older ones from my list in first. I barely remembered the handling for most of them and had to bust out the books!

When I first learned these routines, I liked them and thought they would be great to know. Usually, I'll practice each routine for a day or two -- sometimes up to a week -- and then move on to the next one. Unfortunately, this has led to the loss of memory of the routines.

Bringing back those routines, and including the newer ones that I'm learning as time goes on, has already been great using the flash cards. I'm practicing more now than I was before, the handling of the older routines has been coming back pretty easily. Given the recall algorithm I've built, as long as I keep up with the practice, I don't see "forgetting the tricks in my repertoire" being an issue much longer!

Going forward though, I need to make sure to not let the list of flash cards get too large. A "working repertoire" can only be so big, after all. And, differentiating between a routine that is neat to know, and one that should be included in my repertoire. I've already found one trick from my first batch of flash cards that, even though I have been practicing it via the flash card, I'm certain that it's not a trick I'll be using (but it's a nice little "visual" thing, so I'm practicing to be able to include it in an Instagram edit =P).

Like I mentioned, I haven't been using it for too long yet, and I also don't have my full repertoire entered into it yet. In a few months, I'll post another update that will show better results (whether good or bad).