Collection: Vapor Plumes

The plume of vapor from an electronic cigarette (e-cig) is a central element in many advertisements. The thick vapor, sometimes arranged as perfect blow rings and described in adulatory terms, glamorizes the act of vaping.

For instance, an ad for Vapestick is a close-up of sexy red lips partially clouded by e-cig vapor along with the tagline, “Vaping is the New Sexy.” Another ad by the same brand is of a glamorous woman with fishnet stockings lying down in bed blowing a thick plume of vapor. The slogan “Rock the Vape” written in bold font occupies a major portion of the ad. V2 Cigs advertises itself as “The Thickest Vapor In The Business.”

The appeal of a thick plume of vapor has led to stores and brands using the word in their name. The brand name “Ploom” conjures to mind thick clouds of vapor. Retail stores associated with the word include Plumes, The Plume Room and Plumes of Vapor.

The smaller e-cigs, which are similar to a conventional cigarette in shape and size, produce less vapor compared to the larger high-end personal vaporizers, frequently called Mods, that are designed to produce a very thick and visible vapor. In vaping lexicon, the thick big clouds of vapor produced from Mods are called “Cloud Chasing” and people who produce them are called “Cloud Chasers.” Blowing out thick plumes of vapor in a variety of designs is so appealing that some e-cig and eJuice brands even offer “cloud chasing” competitions.

It is interesting that while some e-cig brands play up the vapor plume in their advertising, some other companies go out of their way to advertise the discreteness of their product. White Cloud, which sells Invisi-Vapor E-Cigarette Cartridges, advertises the product as a way to “you to use your e cigarette in places where being discreet is important, all while delivering the same amount of nicotine and flavor.”

While the plume of smoke may appear glamorous and even safe, as it is often advertised as “pure water vapor,” this is not the case. Studies have found that e-cig vapor can lead to nicotine toxicity as well as respiratory and cardiovascular problems.