The next pipe on the worktable came from the US auction block in January of 2018, from a seller in Warsaw, New York. I was attracted to this pipe because of the distinctive sculpted rustication. The canted Dublin bowl and slight taper of the stem was also attractive to me. The final bid favored me, …
Continue reading Bringing Life to a Whitehall Gulf Stream Imported Briar Sculpted Dublin
The next pipe on the worktable is an elegant Prince shape commissioned by pipe man, Mike, who has commissioned other pipes as well benefiting the Daughters of Bulgaria – helping women and girls who have been trafficked and sexually exploited. Mike is the founder and administrator of the FB group, Brothers by Briar, and currently …
Continue reading A New Beginning for an Elegant Orlik Royal Sovereign Made in England 188 Prince
The next pipe on the worktable got my attention when I saw it in January of 2018 on the online auction block from a seller in Hillsdale, Indiana. Even though the only clue to its provenance was the stamp, ‘Italy’, I liked the oval shank and that gentle, slight bend that lends itself to the …
Continue reading A Fresh Start for an Unbranded Italy Slightly Bent Oval Shank Billiard
The next pipe on the worktable came to me in what I have called the St. Louis Lot of 26 which my son, Josiah, discovered in a local antique shop. He sent pictures to me in Bulgaria where we were still living, and I liked what I saw. Josiah had one caveat regarding the purchase: …
January of 2018 was when I saw this Mastercraft Bulldog on the eBay auction block. The Bulldog seemed to have good ‘bones’ from the seller’s pictures, but the straight saddle stem was a bit out of kilter mounted on a bent shank. The stem seemed to be begging to be bent to the proper orientation. …
Continue reading Reviving a Mastercraft Imported Briar Bulldog
The next pipe on the table has some sentimental value to me. It came to me in July of 2018 as a gift from a dear friend in Bulgaria. Svetly actually gifted me 3 pipes on this occasion with the bones of one more. A ‘Nelson’ quarter bent Billiard, London England, a Churchwarden Bruyere Garantie, …
Continue reading A Fresh Start for a Savinelli Oscar Aged Briar 102 Billiard of Italy
The next pipe on the worktable is an Edward’s Sculpted Briar Handmade which I acquired while on a pipe-picking mission at a local antique mall here in the Denver area. The Brass Armadillo is a pickers paradise and I enjoy trolling through the isles of ‘locked’ glass display cases where the good stuff is kept. …
Continue reading New life for a Striking Edward’s Handmade Algerian Briar
It doesn’t surprise me that this unique, petite French Billiard came to me in a lot of pipes I purchased from a seller in Paris. The French Lot of 50 was on the French eBay auction block in August of 2018 when my wife and I were still living in Sofia, Bulgaria. A pipe man …
I acquired this attractive Stanwell Handmade Canadian from a seller in Kallithea, Greece, just south of Athens. The final bid was sufficient and the Canadian made its way to Sofia, Bulgaria, where we were living, and it joined other pipes in the ‘For “Pipe Dreamers” ONLY!’ where pipe men and women can commission pipes that …
Continue reading A Stately Stanwell Handmade Canadian of Denmark Comes Back to Life
The next pipe on the worktable I found on the online auction block in December of 2017. I was drawn to the pipe by its unique shape and deeply carved rustication which could almost pass for an ‘extreme’ blasted surface. As often is the case with online sellers, the pictures don’t always tell everything, and …
The Pipe Steward 