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How to Build Your Own Illusion

An illusionist uses equipment with hidden mechanisms to make his or her tricks work. Build an illusion cabinet that will let you make a child seem to appear from inside an empty box. Supplies from a hardware store and tools found in most homes are all that you need to create a device for fantastic performances.

Things You'll Need

Plastic tarp
Cardboard box, 3-by-3-feet
3 matte-black spray paint cans
Utility knife
Tape measure
Black masking tape

Instructions

- 1
  Place a plastic tarp on the floor. Place the cardboard box on the tarp with the top facing up. Fold the flaps in so that the top is open. Shake the can of black spray paint for 10 seconds. Spray the inside of the box with the black spray paint. Let the paint dry for three hours. Turn the box over.
- 2
  Spray the outside and bottom of the box with the black spray paint. Let the paint dry for three hours.
- 3
  Cut through the bottom of the box with the blade of a utility knife and remove the bottom. Place the bottom face-up on the tarp. Spray the bottom with the black spray paint. Let the paint dry for three hours.
- 4
  Measure in two inches on the sides and at each end of the cardboard bottom. Cut horizontal and vertical lines through the bottom with the blade of the utility knife at the two-inch mark on the sides and at each end. Remove the cut sections from the cardboard bottom and dispose of them.
- 5
  Place one end of the cardboard bottom alongside one side end of the top of the box. Tape the cardboard bottom to the box with strips of black masking tape to form a hinge. Let the cardboard bottom flip into the box to prepare your illusion box for presentation. Place the tarp away.

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