Standard 20-Minute Daily Structure
Practice Tips
- Practice purely on cardistry for a set amount of time
- Practice over a bed to catch cards that fall
- Perform moves slowly and smoothly before speeding up
- Keep a deck in your hands to build muscle memory
- If a grip is uncomfortable, just hold cards in it to get used to it
- Focus on a small set of moves at a time
- Do cardistry with your idle hand during the day
- Try using fewer cards for tricky moves
- Take breaks; come back to frustrating moves later
More: Lotus in Hand on practicing efficiently · Teo Chun Chieh on improving
Finger Warm-Ups
- Greg Irwin's "Finger Fitness"
- Rise Magic's finger exercises
- 52Kards finger rolls
- Or just warm up with basic moves until your hands feel loose
The r/Cardistry community-selected tutorial list. Star moves as you learn them. Paid tutorials are marked BUY; please support creators rather than using pirated copies.
Before You Start
- Cardistry isn't easy, but it's extremely rewarding when you nail it. Take breaks, try other moves, and come back to older ones if you get frustrated.
- Any deck works, but cheap Bicycle standard decks (~$3) are recommended. You'll wear cards out fast early on.
- Practice is the best way to improve.
- Your hands are NOT too small. Plenty of great cardists have small hands, so keep at it!
- Don't worry about creating moves or claiming originality yet. Have fun learning the basics.
Which Deck?
Start with standard Bicycle decks. If you're sticking with it, a brick of 12 decks runs ~$16 at Costco or Amazon.
Use paper, poker-size cards. Plastic or bridge-size cards make some moves harder and build bad habits.
Other good cheap handlers: Aladdin 1001, Tally-Ho, Copag 310, Aviator. Every deck handles differently, so try a few. Ultimately the best deck is the one you like most.
Where to buy: online shops list · sell via eBay or r/PlayingCardsMarket
Breaking In a Deck
Riffle shuffles, faro shuffles, swing cuts, LePaul spreads, and springs all break in a deck. Do them in both directions to keep the deck straight.
Guides: Lotus in Hand · 52Kards · Rise Magic · _th3truth_'s conditioning & fanning guide · EndersGame article
When to swap? When it's grimy, clumps up, or stops springing back to shape after springs/LePaul spreads.
Fixing Problem Cards
"Click" / warped cards: usually humidity or temperature changes. Press under heavy objects, store in a card clip, or faro half the deck face-up into face-down and box it with a couple of extra cards to keep it tight. Springs and LePaul spreads help wear the click out.
Dented corners: Figure52's fix.
Clumping / won't fan: leave the deck in its box for a couple of days. Still bad? Try fanning powder (Jaspas · Lotus in Hand).
Care: clean hands, no dirty or humid spots, avoid drops. 24 tips for making cards last.
Stuck on a Move?
Practice more and re-watch the tutorial by the original creator. Then search r/Cardistry or ask the Cardistry Discord. When posting, explain the part you're stuck on and include a video.
Which hand? Whichever's comfortable. Most tutorials put the deck in the left hand (for righties). To mirror a video, use a browser extension or VLC's flip option.
Do I have to learn every basic? No, pick what you like. Learning them all does make later moves and original cuts easier.
Creating Your Own Moves
Learn the basics first. New ideas often come from mistakes or from a nifty mechanic you expand. Don't force it, and don't worry about originality early on.
- Matthew Beaudouin: Cardistry Con talk · free book Exploded Process
- Lotus in Hand creative series: 1 · 2 · 3 · 4 · 5
- Dimitri Arleri: Hold my brain
- Patrick Varnavas interview · Creative block cures
Filming Your Cardistry
- Quality over quantity: a short video of great moves beats a long one
- Do multiple takes so every move is clean
- Avoid repeating moves (multiple angles are fine)
- Good lighting; cards are the clear focus; keep moves in frame
- Clean or interesting location (+1 for outdoors)
- Music that fits the pace (+1 if moves sync to it)
Ethics
Most cardistry tutorials are free from the original creators. Some creators make a living from it, so when a tutorial is paid, buy it instead of using a pirated or "free" knock-off. Never claim a move you didn't create, and don't make a tutorial for someone else's move without their explicit permission.
Tutorial Channels
Community
Books
- Dimitri Arleri: Hold my brain
- Jerry Cestkowski: Encyclopedia of Playing Card Flourishes
- Matthew Beaudouin: Exploded Process
- Nikolaj Pedersen: New York Notes, Take a Break
- Oliver Sogard: Rectangular Thoughts
- Tobias Levin: Threedom, OH Ideas, Cardistry from Time to Time
- Jaspas: CoSEA Lecture Notes
Move list, tutorials & tips adapted from the Cardistry Hub (r/Cardistry Beginner's Guide by /u/LogicRevolution).