Pipe Show Inspirations!

We all need inspiration on our creative journey!

Tobacco pipe collecting is my “other” hobby (something hubby and I do together). The beauty of hand carved pipes, and the creative passion of the men and women who make them drew me into this hobby.

When the sewing inspiration wanes, I can always count on pipes to help full up the inspiration bucket. We just returned from the Las Vegas International Pipe Show and I am here to share some inspiring work with you.

These are hand carved Meerschaum pipes. Meerschaum is a soft, white mineral composite found mostly in Turkey that can be carved and then dried. It is excellent for smoking tobacco without carrying over flavors and these pipes can last for generations.

The most common tobacco pipes are made from Briar, which is the root ball of a Mediterranean shrub. It is very dense, challenging to carve, and highly heat resistant. It is air cured for several years prior to carving. There are artisans working with Briar stock harvested 20, 40 or more years ago. Stems are often ebonite or acrylic.

What did I come home with? Hubby bought this barely smoked estate pipe for me. (Early Christmas!). It is a 1982 bent Dunhill bulldog (a traditionl shape), with cumberland stem and matching pipe tool, original box, pipe sock, and paperwork! A real find.

And I bought this modern, free style from Grey VanKuilenburg. Will I smoke it? Uncertain. But I am captive to the angles and planes and the way the shapes travel up the stem. I will definitely spend a lot of time looking at it and feeling it.

Like quilting, artisan pipes are a sensory and tactile delight! May you be inspired by other artists and nature in this creative journey we are all on.

Happy quilting!

Lennea