Games with ropes and threads

The impossible knot

THE GAME

Give your friend a piece of string and ask him to hold one end in each hand. Tell him to tie a knot without letting go of both ends: will believe that it is impossible.

THE TRICK

Watch him with his arms crossed as he tries to tie the knot. When i give up, you tell him to give you the rope and, with arms crossed, take the extremes. Now, spread your arms: There's a knot in the rope!

The candy on the thread

THE GAME

Announce to your friends that you can drop a candy strung on a string whose ends are held by two people. Tell them to look closely.

Use a candy with a hole and thread it on a thread, whose ends you will give to both people. Cover the candy with a tissue and speak some magic words. After, remove the handkerchief and show the candy in your hand.

THE TRICK

This game requires practicing it several times and some preparation.

The secret is to use two candies. Before playing the game, cut one of them in half. After, moisten the cut parts and join them until dry. So, the candy won't make a noise when you break it. Put this candy on top of a bunch of them and put the handkerchief and another whole candy in your pocket. When starting the game, take the split and glued candy and thread it on the thread. At the same time take out the handkerchief and cover with it the thread with the strung candy, holding the other candy in the closed hand.

Put your hands under the handkerchief, as the illustration shows. Break the candy that you had recomposed and grab it with your hand. At this time, you should already have the whole candy in the other hand. To take out the handkerchief, use the hand that holds the broken pieces. Look at the illustration. While everyone looks at the whole candy, put the handkerchief and the other's fragments in your pocket. Make sure these fragments go to the bottom of your pocket so that, if anyone wants to see the handkerchief, you can take it out without discovering the trick.

Run a string through a soda straw, cut it with scissors and pull out the entire thread.

THE TRICK

Before everything, make a groove of about 5 cm in the center of the straw. Pass the thread through it in view of your friends. Fold the straw down the center, as shown in the illustration, with the groove at the bottom. Hold the straw hiding the thread between your fingers, cut it into two pieces and pull out the thread.

After, show everyone the thread, so they can see that it has not been cut.