after searching here in reddit as well as on ELR I finally got around to organizing my flavors. I'm up to just about 200 so it was getting out of control. Some thoughts... First, I settled on brand then alphabetical. Space is tight for me so I used 5 of those 48 slot Markatt nail polish holders. One for TFA, FA, CAP etc. Off the bat I can find whatever flavor I need in seconds instead of minutes. Alphabetical really works well. The only downside is if you are into flavor creation (as opposed to just mixing recipes of others) a better scheme might be to organize by flavor rather than brand - all the creams together, all fruits together etc. I had been sort of using this method before going alphabetical but since at this point I'm mostly just mixing recipes of others it slowed me down.
one more thing - I saw a youtube mixing video and the mixer used this little handmixer - (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E39LYO/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1). that little $7 mixer is fantastic. no more wrist fatigue shaking. it really blends your juice to the point of thousands of tiny bubbles in a few seconds. I haven't tried it in a 120ml bottle but works great in 30 or 60 ml bottles like a champ.
where are you at with your organizing?
I do it by category - alcohol, bakeries, chocolate, creams, etc. The categories themselves are in alphabetical order and then within each section, the flavors are in alphabetical too. If there are two flavors with the exact same name by different companies, then I put that in alphabetical too. Yes, I have a touch of mixer's OCD but it works great for finding stuff and getting ideas.
I organize by brand. Rack for TFA and LA, rack for CAP. Then I have a plastic storage bin with three separate drawers for the rest.
I settled on this method too. Since I mostly search for recipes and then mix them this method cut down my mix time a whole lot. I have no more picking and pecking to find a flavor and when I done I know exactly where to put that flavor back. I may rethink this method when and if I start creating (rather than merely tweaking for taste) new recipes. I'm thinking having all creams or fruits together in one may spark something creative. for now though brand and alphabetical is the bomb.
I organized my flavors alphabetically without regard to brand, so FA Anise is next to INW Anton Apple and CAP Irish Cream is between FA Hypnotic Mist and TFA Jackfruit. FA Black Touch however is between the lemons and limes because it's Licorice, dammit.
The nail polish rack shelves are labeled according to group (Blueberry, Cream) with label maker tags backed with post-it correction tape so they can be repositioned. Which was done many times as the collection grew.
I made an index in Excel, one row for each individual flavor and added reddit reviews to each if they were available. It comes in handy when I can't remember if I have a flavor that I've never used before. Also the notes are useful when selecting from among versions of a particular flavor.
your systems seems like a good blending of the two major ways to organize flavors. food (flavor?) for thought. I use ELR to store my flavor list. If I can't remember if I have a flavor or not I just do a quick flavor search in my stash. really convenient.
I like Hotrod's calculator. I keep all my concentrates listed there and mix from it. Each time you mix something it will deduct the amount from your list so you can see what you need to order and it has a lot of other great features too and helps you keep track of everything. It might take a bit to set up if you have a lot of stuff already but once you get it set up its super easy to maintain and you can see cost of each mix and things like that.
I still use ELR for flavors in development but once I nail one(or find someone else's that I like) I add it to the calc and then export and back up my ingredients and recipes via cloud and cold storage back up so if something happens I don't lose them. You never know how long these websites are going to be around and when something happens then you're screwed. As soon as I get another HDD I'm going to try to do site rips of ATF and ELR as well and then try to keep them updated for archival purposes.
https://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/threads/new-calculator-to-try.480587/
http://www.diyjuicecalculator.com/
I did a board game method and foam boxed a Tupperware. I divide by brand as well. Cheap foam craft inserts to divide and hold on place, and trays or bags depending on side of that brands collection for easy removal. I don't have an after pic but this is the Tupperware before bagging and foam inserts. I have everything except my gallons of VG/pg(I keep 120mls in the box) and only 15ml of my nic.
http://imgur.com/a/PWKBy
I have them separated by fruits, berries, custard & creams, chocolate & vanilla, additives, candy, bakery, and drinks. Also have a misc bin for all others.
I have a container for each brand I own and I organize each flavor by name inside each container. I also have a standing spice rack that fits into one of my Kallax squares and I put the flavors I use most on that. This way they're kind of on display and I don't have to do much digging to find the ones I use most.
I also keep my flavors organized on my Web app, Mixejuice.com. This lets me see what flavors I have and how much without having to actually dig through my flavors. I have hundreds of flavors so sometimes it's hard to remember if I have a certain flavor or not, but with this method I can figure that out quickly. Also, when I go to restock I can see which flavors I need to restock on without having to look through all my flavors.
Initially, I organized by flavor. Not bad. I have reorganized by manufacturer and alphabetical, better.
I totally agree. I made a HUGE flavor purchase from a company going out of business. I went from about 90 flavors to just about 200. I purchased 5 nail polish compartment bins which hold 48 bottles each. When I went from flavor group to manufacturer and alphabetical the amount of time I spend looking for flavors went to almost zero. Now it's as simple as picking up the TPA or CAP or FA bin and going to the first letter of the flavor I need. Takes me way less time to mix any juice now. Putting it all away is easy and fast too since each flavor has a dedicated space.
I still use large Tupperware containers with them all in there. I write the names on the top of the Caps. It sounds like organized confusion but honestly after doing it so long I know where each one is.
I never got any of those racks because I don't like the idea of having a "flavoring shrine" sitting around in my house, even though it makes things easier. With the Tupperware boxes I can tuck them away and keep things hidden from view.
I hear you. I basically do the same thing. My "tupperwear containers" are Makartt nail polish cases. I have 5 of them - one for each manufacturer and one for misc. flavors. The case have 48 slots and each juice goes in by manufacturer and then alphabetical. I can put the cases away in a cabinet when I'm done.
Yeah that's the only thing is everything is kind of shoved in there because not having slots. But it works for me. I mix in my kitchen so I put everything on a shelf. 2 large Tupperware containers. The other nice thing is once the lids are on it hides all of the scent that lingers. . I just mixed a couple 60mls I didn't have any problem finding anything I needed. If it works then it works lol
I hear you. I have just about 200 flavors so I need those slots. It cut down dramatically the amount of time I spend looking for flavors. I know what you mean about the smells. It kills me (in a good way) when I open a case and I'm hit with all these floral smells. In the end if your system works for you, that's all that matters.
I have a basic, three drawer setup with each drawer subdivided into more specific categories. Top drawer, fruits, then split into strawberries, blueberries, the like. The second drawer is baked goods and additives. Third is dairy/cream. The rest of the subdivision is based on personal preference due to what I think go together.
I've got 2 of those plastic drawers from Walmart/Target, each one has 3 drawers. I use them for all my 10-30ml bottles which are in little plastic organizers in each drawer. I have them organized by flavor type. Really should look in to racks but I have like 400 bottles so I'd need a few at least. Then for my 4-16oz and all my mixing equipment I have a massive home office desk with tons of storage. Just recently got a silicone mat for the surface, makes clean up a cinch!
Mine are all dumped in a box. It's a nightmare.
an easy fix is the Markatt nail polish case available at Amazon. They are $24 each but a 30 ml bottle fits in each slot perfectly and each case holds 48 bottles. If you use say the 10/15 ml bottles there is a cheaper option. Search for thread spool case. It's the same as the $24 Markatt case but the slots DO NOT hold 30 ml bottles well - it's a tad too short; but does hold all the smaller bottles perfectly. I just got 5 of the Markatt cases and now all my flavors are perfectly stored. One case each for TPA, CAP, FA; one case for misc. FW, LB, INA and one case for minor overflow. Stored alphabetically. now takes me about a minute to get all the flavors I need for any mix. I swear by those cases.
The reason I have them in a box is because I don't have the room for any fancy displays. I already have 2 cupboards taken over with oneshots and juice. I just have to deal with it.
the markatt cases are not fancy displays. look it up on amazon. they are about 12 x 10 or so. you could easily get 3 or 4 of them in a cupboard. I have mine in a cupboard in the garage. They just organize and tighten up your storage. would definitely take less space than a big box in a cupboard.
I have a spreadsheet that has all my flavors listed, and numbered. I label the top of the bottles with the number of the concentrate that corresponds to this spreadsheet. I then put them in boxes, in order. I can then refer to the spreadsheet, sort however I need to, then find that bottle number and tada, I have what I need.
this is appealing. for me though, it's too much upfront work although in the end the payoff is clearly there. I use clear cases and I can pretty much everything easily.
It was a lot of initial upfront work, but now new flavors go to the bottom of the list and get the higher numbers and go to the last box. I can pull flavors for a 5-6 flavor juice in a minute and when I'm done, I can drop them right back where they go. Also, I will note the flavor numbers on my recipes, so I don't necessarily have to go back to the spreadsheet to make something. When I first got into DIY, I went all-out and bought like 60 different flavors and I was quickly overwhelmed. I found myself fumbling around, making messes and generally flustered. This helped a lot.
same here. I was fumbling for flavors too. In the end you have to have some system. as long as it's a legit system it will work. I use a case for each manufacturer and then alphabetize. so far it's working like gangbusters for me. I can pull what I need and mix a juice in a minute or two rather than the 10 minutes it took me before. As I get deeper into mixing I may revisit my system and perhaps catalog my flavors.
Mine is half assed but I use zip lock bags alphabetized by brand. It's OK until I put one back into the wrong bag. I'd like to find a bandolier like for shotgun shells but with clear pockets. Probably doesn't exist.
try the 48 slot nail polish case from amazon - it's called the makartt nail polish holder/case. I have one for each manufacturer - works like a charm. a slot for every juice and every juice has it's own slot. I can find and then replace a flavor in seconds instead of minutes.
So with getting into large bulk, I've decided that a drawer system with dividers will help with clutter the best. Drawers based on vendor and letter. I am going to be making the dividers, because the ones for sale are gonna be crazy expensive for 400 flavors. I was trying to find one that is at least 3 inches deep, 4in should be good for a lot of 120ml bottles lots of companies have.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00RZ9DPOW/ref=psdcmw_490631011_t1_B01J15NHJK
I have something almost identical to that cart that I use for another purpose. one thing I will tell you is make sure you go to some other physical store that sells something similar before you purchase from Amazon. The cart I have doesn't hold the drawers well - they constantly slip off the track unless you push them in exactly so. With 400 flavors you are going to constantly be opening and closing drawers and if they constantly slip off the track that will be a miss. If I were going to use something like that for flavors I would make sure it was much more sturdy than that particular type of cart tends to be. Drawers like what you have in your bedroom furniture would work much better. But do check it out and let me know if it ended up working for you.
Have you found anything sturdy online? I had a buddy who said he could build me one.
no. that style of drawers doesn't really meet out needs - too flimsy and every time you pull a drawer it comes off the track. I use mine for my kids art and crafts supplies - so it's not like we have to open the drawers all the time.
If you want to go this route I would check your local Salvation Army/Goodwill and look for a small chest of drawers. It doesn't have to be perfect - just no broken drawers etc. I can GUARANTEE you are not going to like that Amazon thing. The drawers will constantly come off the track. Of course it's possible the Amazon cart has been updated or is better quality than what I have. If that's the case you don't have to worry about the drawers constantly coming off track.