So I keep hearing start off by only mixing one flavor at a time. I would like some elaboration on that statement. I bought probably 80 flavors in total. Do I test each one individually and take notes on strength, suitability, and accuracy? And this goes into my next question. Advanced DIYers how did you start?
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Would like some input on a beginners issue.
- Thread starter MilkManWannaBe
- Start date
I started off making Frozen Watermelon, Watermelon and Koolada. Get a bunch of 3ml bottles and fill with your PG/VG mix of choice without nic. Add a few drips of flavoring, shake, and vape in a dripper or bridgeless atomizer. That way you can get get to know the flavors, and can even mix in a dripper with a few drops of one flavor and a few of another. Experiment! That's the fun part.
I started mixing single flavors at low percents in 3ml batches 90% VG/10% distilled water. I was forcing myself to do it that way because i too had read it was the best route to getting familiar enough with the individual properties of each to start mixing on my own. After a couple of weeks I got bored, though. It was laborious instead of fun. So I started mixing simpler recipes from here and ECF (mostly HIC to begin with, too!) and that was so much more satisfying. Ever since then I've been switching off--sometimes I take time with a new flavor and other times I jump right in using it in a mix.
It was so intimidating at first--the prospect of mixing--that the best approach for me was the one that took the pressure off me to either 1) come up w/ something fabulous or 2) follow the conventional advice to the letter.
It was so intimidating at first--the prospect of mixing--that the best approach for me was the one that took the pressure off me to either 1) come up w/ something fabulous or 2) follow the conventional advice to the letter.
After I found this forum and the wealth of wonderful FA recipes posted here by HIC and others, I just ordered the flavors needed for about a dozen recipes that sounded good and had received great reviews and comments. Then I just carefully followed the recipes and mixed them up one at a time. I enjoyed every one of those recipes and I did not have to reinvent the (already excellent) wheel. Since then I've collected hundreds of great recipes and I've learned a lot about flavor profiles and mixing conventions along the way. Now I can change recipes to my taste and even make some creations of my own. The point is, that vaping 80 flavors stand alone is not the only way to get started. Best of luck to you!
Sigmardin
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I started out by, and still do putting 1 drop of every new flavoring on my hand and licking it to see what it tastes like raw. Since my palette is different than yours and everyone else's I find that to be the best way to know what it could potentially do for my mixes. I smell it in the bottle as well just to see what it smells like.
I don't vape anything standalone just to see how it tastes because (this is my personal opinion and I assure you MANY will disagree) it doesn't tell me anything about how it's going to taste when I mix it with other flavorings.
I start out by writing down the flavorings I think I need or want to use to achieve a desired flavor, put in x amount of drops of the one I want to be dominant and then add x drops of the next flavoring. I shake the bottle with my finger over the top and then taste it off my finger. Because I know what the flavorings taste like, I can easily determine if what I've just tasted is even going in the direction I want and I can easily adjust from there. I suggest reading HIC's article on mixing small batches. That single post has saved me a ton of time and money. The short version of it is: 1 drop = 1%, 100 drops = 100%.
I.e. 6 drops(6%) TFA Cinnamon Red Hots
4 drops(4%) FA Arctic Blast
2 drops(2%) TFA Koolada
18 drops(18%) PG
70 drops(70%) VG
Substitute x% nicotine for an equal amount of PG or VG
100 drops is quicker and easier than 15ml
I don't vape anything standalone just to see how it tastes because (this is my personal opinion and I assure you MANY will disagree) it doesn't tell me anything about how it's going to taste when I mix it with other flavorings.
I start out by writing down the flavorings I think I need or want to use to achieve a desired flavor, put in x amount of drops of the one I want to be dominant and then add x drops of the next flavoring. I shake the bottle with my finger over the top and then taste it off my finger. Because I know what the flavorings taste like, I can easily determine if what I've just tasted is even going in the direction I want and I can easily adjust from there. I suggest reading HIC's article on mixing small batches. That single post has saved me a ton of time and money. The short version of it is: 1 drop = 1%, 100 drops = 100%.
I.e. 6 drops(6%) TFA Cinnamon Red Hots
4 drops(4%) FA Arctic Blast
2 drops(2%) TFA Koolada
18 drops(18%) PG
70 drops(70%) VG
Substitute x% nicotine for an equal amount of PG or VG
100 drops is quicker and easier than 15ml
Great reply!!
I started by buying a bunch of flavorings and mixing recipes I found online, most of which used LOTS of flavoring. I didn't have a very good experience with that. lol In trying to figure out if I had a "bad bottle" of flavoring, I tried some flavors on their own. I was stunned how horrible some of them were (often didn't taste like they were named at all) and assumed that was because they needed to be used in combination with other flavors to taste right.
I sampled some flavors "standalone" from different brands and found a few from each brand that tasted fine all by themselves. When I tried a handful from FlavourArt like that, I liked all of them. So I got more FA, tried them all standalone, and realized I liked most at about the same percentage. Well, that makes DIY life easier. As I continued collecting those, I found it really useful to try each one standalone and verify what percentage was "strong enough" for me, and what higher percentage was just too much. Sometimes "too much" tasted horrible, sometimes the flavor actually faded as I went too high. Taking notes was really helpful! It did take time to work through them all, but it has paid off for me. If a mix doesn't taste as expected, I can quickly figure out why and fix it. I can have a flavor in mind and write down a rough guess recipe that's a reasonable start, so DIY is faster. Even my bad guesses are better than the results I got in my first round of DIY (mixing with unknown-to-me flavorings and random online recipes).
IMO IF you take the time to test each one as you collect flavorings, you'll save yourself a lot of time and supplies down the road.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFoe3PEb1_7sAY1ZgehNP3A
This is a great youtube video and channel in my opinion. Im only 2 months in to my DIY mixing and have recently branched in to making my own recipes and am starting to have a few successes. PERSONALLY as a newbie what has been or is working for me if it is any help would be:
1) Start by mixing simple recipes from here that dont have many flavours in. Its more fun than doing stand alones and you can get a rough idea of flavours from it
2) Take notes from everything you mix as it helps moving forward. The great thing about doing flavour art based recipes is there is already a great section by HIC of my notes on which doesnt of course corrolate directly to you, but gives great guidelines and will save you a fuck load of time (hope a lot of the 80 are flavour art hehe)
3) When you do try your own mixes, start with simple ones and personally I would say try and use all concentrates in it from the SAME brand. I found it really awkward mixing flavour art and the perfumers apprentice together at first as the strengths are so different until I learned a bit more from experience to match them up
4) Realise quite a large percentage of your initial efforts will not work as you will make mistakes......5% ginger is a big one to make!
5) The thing that has probably helped me more than anything so far...read up. There are hundreds of recipes with comments on here, youtube videos, flavour concentrate reviews etc etc, the more knowledge you can get from more experienced people BEFORE you try and make your own recipe will hopefully mean when you do "trial and error"....there should be less error.
6) Finally my little tip to making your own recipes easier...there is a recipe for most flavours you want to make you can either adapt or add to your recipe. For example I had a crazy idea of making a donut with cheesecake cream filling and frosted cupcake cream....so from here and elsewhere I managed to find a donut recipe, HICs make your own cheesecake recipe (filling only) and a butterscotch cream recipe and knew from reading here that marzipan can add a glaze/frosting, put them altogether and hey presto....well not quite, it needs adapting but hey haha
Anyway Im no expert, just a beginner like yourself but thought you may appreciate the views of someone nearer to where you may be at that is starting to have a bit of success
This is a great youtube video and channel in my opinion. Im only 2 months in to my DIY mixing and have recently branched in to making my own recipes and am starting to have a few successes. PERSONALLY as a newbie what has been or is working for me if it is any help would be:
1) Start by mixing simple recipes from here that dont have many flavours in. Its more fun than doing stand alones and you can get a rough idea of flavours from it
2) Take notes from everything you mix as it helps moving forward. The great thing about doing flavour art based recipes is there is already a great section by HIC of my notes on which doesnt of course corrolate directly to you, but gives great guidelines and will save you a fuck load of time (hope a lot of the 80 are flavour art hehe)
3) When you do try your own mixes, start with simple ones and personally I would say try and use all concentrates in it from the SAME brand. I found it really awkward mixing flavour art and the perfumers apprentice together at first as the strengths are so different until I learned a bit more from experience to match them up
4) Realise quite a large percentage of your initial efforts will not work as you will make mistakes......5% ginger is a big one to make!
5) The thing that has probably helped me more than anything so far...read up. There are hundreds of recipes with comments on here, youtube videos, flavour concentrate reviews etc etc, the more knowledge you can get from more experienced people BEFORE you try and make your own recipe will hopefully mean when you do "trial and error"....there should be less error.
6) Finally my little tip to making your own recipes easier...there is a recipe for most flavours you want to make you can either adapt or add to your recipe. For example I had a crazy idea of making a donut with cheesecake cream filling and frosted cupcake cream....so from here and elsewhere I managed to find a donut recipe, HICs make your own cheesecake recipe (filling only) and a butterscotch cream recipe and knew from reading here that marzipan can add a glaze/frosting, put them altogether and hey presto....well not quite, it needs adapting but hey haha
Anyway Im no expert, just a beginner like yourself but thought you may appreciate the views of someone nearer to where you may be at that is starting to have a bit of success
I've attempted diy for a few months now and have had very little success. I've been confused why online recipes have had such good reviews but with my attempt to create the same great flavour has failed, disappointed after many tries is an understatement
. I only stumbled across this forum in the last week and already I've picked up some great tips, from the likes of yourself and others who seem so willing pass on your knowledge of mixing, much appreciated.And now with this tip I'll certainly be trying my flavours standalone, certainly seems important to find your own strengths and hopefully it'll be the key to me having some success.
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