Nova Rings by Carisa Hendrix

Let’s get this out of the way first: I have never performed a linking finger rings routine. I’ve always wanted to. I’ve bought multiple Himber rings, read/watched many routines, and practiced a couple of routines with the intention of putting them in my show. But I just couldn’t get past that worry of not finding a suitable ring. And I know! “You don’t need a suitable matching ring yada yada yada,” but still, I never felt comfortable enough to try it in a show. I mainly performed for younger audiences at the time where the more ornate Himber rings just wouldn’t look natural at all. Most of the men’s rings I saw were just plain wedding bands. I hardly ever saw a signet ring or a ring with ribbed designs all around. I even bought a more unique Himber ring that was a solid “gold” band style ring, but it felt really cheap and the way it opened and closed was too awkward to actually use. I also disliked how fidgety every version was that I tried. They almost always involve intense focus at all the wrong moments. I remember trying to adjust the classic Himber ring so that it held strong enough to hold the rings but was still loose enough that I could pop it open without needing index finger work outs. I just never felt confident with it. 

All of that investment and subsequent disappointment in never finding a linking finger ring routine that I liked made me particularly interested when Nova Rings was announced. 

Nova Rings is Carisa Hendrix’s (best known as “Lucy Darling”) version of the Himber ring after a decade of performing the linking finger rings routine. The set comes with six rings—THREE gimmicked Himber rings (silver, gold, and black) and three matching rings. I genuinely couldn’t believe you get all three rings colors for the price; I was expecting you to have to pick the color you want. In addition to the six rings you get a holder disguised as a pencil holder that keeps the rings in the perfect position in your case or on your table. That holder can also be used to store the rings between performances. You also get a ninety minute tutorial that teaches how to use the rings, two full stage routines, a closeup routine with just two rings, and several additional ideas. You also get five full performance videos of the routines in front of live audiences so you can see exactly how it plays in the real world. And I have to say, I love Carisa’s approach to creating. It’s always research based and clearly driven by real world performances. Her teaching is excellent as well. 

After playing with them, I can say they are the best Himber rings I’ve ever used. So what makes her ring different? First, the ring opens both inward and outward. This adds so much flexibility to how you put the other rings on and take them off. Second, the hinge is spring loaded and magnetically locking which makes the ring close by itself. The magnet is perfectly configured to close tight enough to hold in place but loose enough to allow the other rings to visually melt off. Third, they look like a plain wedding band. They are actually modeled after the Oura ring, so if you find someone wearing an Oura ring, you can literally do a one for one switch for one of the Himber rings and it looks almost identical. I think this is one of the smartest things because it looks like rings that are getting more and more popular instead of rings that are getting less and less popular. My one complaint is that they are quite big. Vanishing says they are a size 10.5 which I totally understand because it ensures the rings will have room to link and unlink, but it does look quite large compared to my wedding band. It’s a non-issue in performance, but it’s good to know. I can wear the ungimmicked one on my middle finger, but I have dainty little hands so your mileage may vary. 

They are the easiest Himber rings I’ve ever used. The borrowed rings literally slip right on and right off with hardly any effort. You can even do it one handed or without looking. This is the biggest benefit because it eliminates all of the awkward fidgeting that plagues most linking finger ring routines. The downside is that you have to be more careful with the handling once the rings are linked. It’s not difficult, but you have to be conscious of where the opening is because if you get a heavier ring and accidentally rest it on the hinge, it’s going to open and the ring is going to “magically melt off” prematurely. For me, this is absolutely a worthwhile trade, but I could see that being a dealbreaker for some. Clearly Carisa is using this in the real world so there’s no need to worry about that too much. And truly, it’s easier than you think to keep track of the opening and hold the hinge closed when shaking the rings. 

The other big benefit of this set is that it allows for visual penetrations. You can visually link and unlink the rings one at a time. And the last moment that usually needs an additional pencil gimmick to achieve a visual unlink can now be performed without a pencil at all. 

Let’s also state the obvious: the set comes with THREE Himber rings. This means you are guaranteed to find a ring that matches well enough in any audience. The holder that you receive is set up so that once you see a ring you want to use on an audience member’s finger, you can find the closest matching ring in the holder and remove it in the action of taking out a pencil, chopstick, or similar item to hold the rings. 

The routines Carisa teaches are all solid routines. The two stage routines have clever ways of learning who has rings and the routines are both very easy to do. Because you’re practically guaranteed to find a closely matching ring in the audience, her routines don’t need the typical extra switch of rings for each person to confirm theirs is there. The close up routine is one where you link your ring to theirs. You would wear one of the nongimmicked rings, switch it for the matching Himber ring, and do whatever visual links and unlinks you want. The black ring works best for the close up routine because the opening is the most hidden, but really, all of the openings are really difficult to see from just a couple of feet away. The rings have been made to reflect light vertically and that does a really good job of hiding the seam. 

Although her routines are both good, the first is the only one most people will do. The second routine is great, but it’s very “Lucy Darling” and I think most magicians (especially male magicians) would have a hard time pulling that premise off. But for her character, it’s perfect. I want to use them with Ben Hart’s routine from The Darkest Corner. The ease of taking the rings on and off actually make it a superior set for any routine that involves switching one of the linked rings mid routine. 

Overall, this is the best Himber ring set money can buy. The value for the price is insane. It solved a lot of the problems I had with every other set I tried. It makes me want to get out and put it in my show. In fact, I’m working on a new magic show for theatres and I’m going to write this in.

Currently available from Vanishing Inc for $225 here:

https://www.vanishingincmagic.com/stage-and-parlor-magic/nova-rings/