DIY Meetups Gauteng

[Bunnypoison]

I would like to gather a group of individuals interested in meeting up for DIY mixing sessions, DIY tasting and trading events.

I think many DIYers could benefit from this group, from your noob DIYers like myself that want to learn more, to the more experienced for guidance or just wanting opinions to perfect their new vape recipes.

If there is a lot of interest, we can split the group up into areas for regular events and have larger gatherings once or twice a year with the whole of Gauteng.

*EDIT* - WE HAVE SUCCESSFULLY HAD MULTIPLE MEETS. THEY ARE HELD EVERY FIRST SUNDAY OF THE MONTH FROM 10:00 - 17:00.
IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO JOIN, I NEED TO RECIEVE A DIRECT MSG AND ARRANGEMENTS WILL BE COMMUNICATED FROM THERE.
WE HAVE LOTS OF FUN AND HOPE TO HAVE YOU IN OUR TEAM!!!!! ( All caps because I am sooo excited! )

 

[craigb]

I'm keen from the point of view of getting to meet others and to broaden my flavour horizons.

There might be some specific concentrates or profiles that I'm curious about but uncertain. Would be nice to park off, talk k@k and even just have a smell of the other concentrates or exhalations of other wonderous concoctions to help me decide.

As much fun as it is chatting online, it's always nicer to talk in person, which opens up non verbal communication.

Thread officially watched to keep track

+1 @Bunnypoison for taking the initiative and actually trying to walk the talk.

 

[Bunnypoison]

I'm keen from the point of view of getting to meet others and to broaden my flavour horizons.

There might be some specific concentrates or profiles that I'm curious about but uncertain. Would be nice to park off, talk k@k and even just have a smell of the other concentrates or exhalations of other wonderous concoctions to help me decide.

As much fun as it is chatting online, it's always nicer to talk in person, which opens up non verbal communication.

Thread officially watched to keep track

+1 @Bunnypoison for taking the initiative and actually trying to walk the talk.

I appreciate your enthusiasm, remember that this was also due to your input and shared vision
I would be more than willing to share some of my concentrates to those that are missing a couple of pieces for a recipe and don't want to order a bunch in order to save on shipping. I think that a lot of noobs would benefit from this as start up costs are high. It also helps to be able to smell a concentrate before investing in it if you want to experiment with your own recipes. I truly hope this takes off and I will wait for a consensus on our first date soon, even if we are a small group, more pizza for us.

 

[darryn.britton]

Great thread and I'm definitely on board. I don't have any good juices to trade or show off yet but hopefully in the next few months I will In the mean time it'd be a great opportunity to meet other vapers and gain some DIY knowledge. Plus... pizza.

 

[PsyCLown]

I would be super keen on something like this, I have always thought something like a DIY Whatsapp group could be great however at the same time you do not want to remove people from chatting and sharing knowledge on the forum.

So a bit of a catch 22 there as the forum isn't the best place to ask and discuss random stuff and often Whatsapp will be quicker for replies and feedback.

Where as get together like these, well, you get to meet the people face to face and talk and share info and experiences and build a friendship with them and so forth. Probably the better option. I just hope it is based somewhere in JHB North.

@Idiot I am sure you would be keen on such an event too?

@Bunnypoison what could be nice, provided the group is on the smaller side is to have a table where people are able to leave some of their DIY juices which are marked and then a book to jot down some notes and opinions of the juice. Like a testing station in the vape shops - although DIY juices of course.

Would be easier than trying to find people and asking them if they'd like to try your juice and give you their opinion haha

 

[Bunnypoison]

Great thread and I'm definitely on board. I don't have any good juices to trade or show off yet but hopefully in the next few months I will In the mean time it'd be a great opportunity to meet other vapers and gain some DIY knowledge. Plus... pizza.

I think the best way to start is to have a small evening where we can do it all, mix together, share experiences and those that would like to show off their mixes can do so, those that would like to swap, bring it. The more we will get to know each other, the more we will get a feel for what our next meetings should include. A casual, no expectations start would be the best in my opinion, that way no-one will feel excluded.

 

[Bunnypoison]

I would be super keen on something like this, I have always thought something like a DIY Whatsapp group could be great however at the same time you do not want to remove people from chatting and sharing knowledge on the forum.

So a bit of a catch 22 there as the forum isn't the best place to ask and discuss random stuff and often Whatsapp will be quicker for replies and feedback.

Where as get together like these, well, you get to meet the people face to face and talk and share info and experiences and build a friendship with them and so forth. Probably the better option. I just hope it is based somewhere in JHB North.

@Idiot I am sure you would be keen on such an event too?

@Bunnypoison what could be nice, provided the group is on the smaller side is to have a table where people are able to leave some of their DIY juices which are marked and then a book to jot down some notes and opinions of the juice. Like a testing station in the vape shops - although DIY juices of course.

Would be easier than trying to find people and asking them if they'd like to try your juice and give you their opinion haha

I think a Whatsapp group is a great idea. As soon as we know who is truly interested we can start one that relates to this forum and thos that want to be included can ask as to not bombard people with nuisance "tings" while their at work

Its always nicer to socialize in person, there is only so much that can be accomplished online, you can give feedback on the taste of a vape or taste a recipe before making it for instance. I am based in the East Rand but we can always look at more centralized locations or take turns hosting.

 

[Bunnypoison]

@Bunnypoison what could be nice, provided the group is on the smaller side is to have a table where people are able to leave some of their DIY juices which are marked and then a book to jot down some notes and opinions of the juice. Like a testing station in the vape shops - although DIY juices of course. @PsyCLown

This is a great idea, I think this could come into play as a small competition among ourselves where the winner can have bragging rights and later on we could talk about having a collections for future prizes.

 

[GregF]

great initiative @Bunnypoison. If I can I will be there.

 

[Bunnypoison]

great initiative @Bunnypoison. If I can I will be there.

If you can't make it to one, we shall have plenty more.

 

[PsyCLown]

So we have at least 13 people who seem to be interested.

How big would you want this to be? For the first few? Obviously not everyone will be able to make it.

 

[Bunnypoison]

So we have at least 13 people who seem to be interested.

How big would you want this to be? For the first few? Obviously not everyone will be able to make it.

So my idea is to limit the first couple of meetups to around 10 or less, as soon as more people are interested we break up into regional sections meeting in a large froup less frequently and only for swaps or tastings. This will also make travelling less at a later stage. As mixing takes up alot of space this will limit the amount of people per gathering.

 

[spiv]

@Bunnypoison, I love the idea, and mixing in a group would definitely be fun... But would everyone just go their own way and wait a month for that amazing custard creamy coffee cake (I call that flavour "Alliteration") to steep properly?

Perhaps adjusting it to DIY tasting sessions and recipe swapping. If old ladies can do it, so can we. It would be great to also have some of the premium juice mixologists there, like a @Mike, @Paulie or @method1 (to name but a few), to help out with what's that one thing that's making your great juice amazing.

 

[Silver]

Have been in touch with @Bunnypoison on this

Great to see someone with so much enthusiasm. Congrats on the nearly three weeks stinkie free @Bunnypoison !

Have been discussing with her the possibilities of also working in some DIY elements to the next ECIGSSA JHB VapeMeet

 

[Bunnypoison]

@Bunnypoison, I love the idea, and mixing in a group would definitely be fun... But would everyone just go their own way and wait a month for that amazing custard creamy coffee cake (I call that flavour "Alliteration") to steep properly?

Perhaps adjusting it to DIY tasting sessions and recipe swapping. If old ladies can do it, so can we. It would be great to also have some of the premium juice mixologists there, like a @Mike, @Paulie or @method1 (to name but a few), to help out with what's that one thing that's making your great juice amazing.

It would be fantastic to get some pro mixologists involved, thanks for the tags. I was thinking that each person starts off bringing a recipe and ingredients they would like to try for themselves and maybe bring that mix to the next meet to show off and let everyone taste. The reason I would like to keep the mixing aspect is that the opportunity will be there for people to use concentrates that they might not own. I myself have a list of about 8 concentrates I am willing to share and will list them as soon as a date is set. This will enable noobies with only 5-8 concentrates to mix a recipe that they might only be missing one or two ingredients. It will also showcase each individuals method and general setup, this will lead to others taking note and the experienced mixers to give advise or demonstrate better methods of doing things.

I propose a small gathering at first to get thing started which will include all aspects as well as a group brainstorm on how we will go forward with the input of admin like @Silver.

A meeting just for swaps or tastings would be able to draw bigger crowds as the space needed will be less, recipe swapping with the pro's is definitely something to look forward to. Also input on "tweaking" recipes to be just right would be a great benefit to and from the more experienced mixers that have been doing it for a while and want criticism on their own recipes from other pro's.

 

[Bunnypoison]

Have been in touch with @Bunnypoison on this

Great to see someone with so much enthusiasm. Congrats on the nearly three weeks stinkie free @Bunnypoison !

Have been discussing with her the possibilities of also working in some DIY elements to the next ECIGSSA JHB VapeMeet

Thank you @Silver , I can see this going forward being a great addition to the already fantastic vape community and forum with the help of yourself.

 

[Mike]

We do small diy meetups fairy regularly in Pretoria although it's evolved into a bit of a boy's club highly recommended though, loads of fun and what you say doesn't have the permanence of posting on line, so it's easier to speak freely

 

[Bunnypoison]

As I have seen a lot of support for this initiative, I would like to start scheduling our first couple of meetups. My suggestion is once a month in order to make it possible for all involved to plan ahead and a missed meetup wont be a complete loss as the next one would not be that far away. I suggest something like the fist Friday / Saturday of the month with 3 hours planned for each meet eg.

Fridays 17:00 - 20:00 / 18:00 - 21:00
Saturdays 12:00 - 15:00 / 13:00 - 16:00 / 14:00 - 17:00

The current location will be at my place in Greenstone Hill in the East Rand. We will discuss possible centralized locations at the first meetup

I would love to hear some feedback regarding this as well as proposed times @spiv , @PsyCLown , @GregF , @darryn.britton , @craigb , @Dietz , @Mike , @alex1501 , @Andre , @Stosta , @DizZa . If I missed someone, please tag them or just reply if I missed you, this is an open discussion.

 

[Bunnypoison]

We do small diy meetups fairy regularly in Pretoria although it's evolved into a bit of a boy's club highly recommended though, loads of fun and what you say doesn't have the permanence of posting on line, so it's easier to speak freely

Mike, it would be fantastic to have a person at one of our meetups that is already doing so for input, please feel free to join at any time.

 

[craigb]

As I have seen a lot of support for this initiative, I would like to start scheduling our first couple of meetups. My suggestion is once a month in order to make it possible for all involved to plan ahead and a missed meetup wont be a complete loss as the next one would not be that far away. I suggest something like the fist Friday / Saturday of the month with 3 hours planned for each meet eg.

Fridays 17:00 - 20:00 / 18:00 - 21:00
Saturdays 12:00 - 15:00 / 13:00 - 16:00 / 14:00 - 17:00

The current location will be at my place in Greenstone Hill in the East Rand. We will discuss possible centralized locations at the first meetup

I would love to hear some feedback regarding this as well as proposed times @spiv , @PsyCLown , @GregF , @darryn.britton , @craigb , @Dietz , @Mike , @alex1501 , @Andre , @Stosta , @DizZa . If I missed someone, please tag them or just reply if I missed you, this is an open discussion.

I would prefer Saturdays, I live in Benoni and work in Braamfontein, so to go from here to there and halfway back again, blech.

Otherwise, very generous to of you to offer to host the inaugral meetup

My stock of concentrates is already conveniently boxed so it should travel very easily.

 

[PsyCLown]

I feel as if Saturday would be a better idea. As for which time, well, I don't want to get there and then end up hungry a few minutes later as it is lunch time and then we all spend a significant amount of time eating as opposed to discussing and tasting juices etc.

So perhaps 2 - 5PM would be best? It also gives us the morning to wake up and get shopping done or whatever else and not have to rush much. Try get people to eat lunch before and then we could look at making snacks available?

@Idiot I am sure you'd love to join in as well

 

[craigb]

then we could look at making snacks available

May I suggest we make this everyone elses problem except the host... as a way to thank them for providing the venue

 

[PsyCLown]

May I suggest we make this everyone elses problem except the host... as a way to thank them for providing the venue

I agree, it would be nice.

Perhaps we can all just bring a few things along or all chip in some money and arrange for someone to purchase some snacks or we could even just skip it altogether. Vape the donut, don't eat it. All the taste, none of the calories.

 

[craigb]

Vape the donut, don't eat it.

What makes that really funny is that I'm currently vaping Bronuts

Yeah, we there to mix, not snack. So at worst, if everyone brings a packet of chips or something, then that's a win. Also, not everyone is in a position to contribute towards stuff like that, so avoiding it prevents anyone feeling undue pressure or awkwardness.

 

[Bunnypoison]

May I suggest we make this everyone elses problem except the host... as a way to thank them for providing the venue

That's very considerate, thank you @craigb