change bag

change bag (plural change bags)

1. (stage magic) A bag, consisting of two or more compartments (pockets), that allows for the illusion of transforming an object into another, or making an item disappear.
   • 1949, Al Baker, Jean Hugard, Mental Magic, C. W. Jones, page 41:

     Some years ago, before the demise of vaudeville, when acts of this kind were so popular, the necessary switching of the papers was done by means of the magician's change bag.

   • 1973, Marvin Kaye, The Handbook of Magic, Stein and Day, →ISBN, page 264:

     What You Need: A wooden egg. A Mesh Egg Bag. A hollow rubber lemon. A change bag (the kind without a handle).

   • 1996, Caroline Feller Bauer, Leading Kids to Books Through Magic, American Library Association, →ISBN, page 19:

     Remember that you will want to use your change bag for many different effects, so it is especially important that you do not reveal its secret.

   • 2018, Linda Cruse, Leading on the Frontline: Remarkable Stories and Essential Leadership Lessons from the World's Danger Zones, Wiley, →ISBN, page 97:

     There was only one moment when the day nearly came a cropper. It was when Jill the Juggler brought out her magic change bag. She began by walking around the stage and into the audience, proudly showing her big plush red velvet bag. She turned it inside out, showing everyone the sparkly blue lining so they could see it was empty.

2. Synonym of diaper bag.
   • 1981, Anne Moose, Berkeley U.S.A., Alternative Press, →ISBN, page 189:

     Well, a week passed, and I still hadn't gotten my baby back, and there was a guy who always wanted to take me out for a drink. He was a truckdriver who used to come through there every month or six weeks. And I kind of liked him, and I talked to him, and chatted to him. I guess I was still carrying the change bag—I wasn't dealing yet.

   • 1999, Ann Douglas, John R. Sussman, The Unofficial Guide to Having a Baby, Wiley, →ISBN, page 336:

     Always repack the change bag the moment you get home.

   • 2021, Emma Smith, 100 Ways in 100 Days to Teach Your Baby Maths, Troubador Publishing, →ISBN, pages 269–70:

     If you get into the habit of having a book in your bag, in the change bag, attached to the pushchair, in your car (you get the idea), your first instinct will be to reach for a book several times a day. The reading habit will not only benefit your baby but help you get through any awkward, unscheduled waiting times, too.