Smokingpipes.com Blog

Tuesday Therapy ~kathryn~

2013-03-26T11:20:00-04:00

Tuesday isn't particularly important for the Smokingpipes team. It's a graceful point in the week after the stress of Monday's update melts, and before the stress of Thursday arises. It's the hour of orange glow between night and day. It's a moment for us to slow down and recollect ourselves. For some, this could be turning the music up a little, or shooting rubber bands at one another. For many, it is an opportunity to pull out some nice tobacco and have a long smoke. Whatever your Tuesday therapy may be, there is something else to add to that routine, starting today: YouTues! (YouTube Tuesday) Today we bring you a video tour of Lasse Skovgaard's workshop, and a conversation between Sykes and Lasse about his first experiences with making pipes. There is more to this interview, which will be making its way to YouTues soon, along with many others from Eltang, Heding, and our recent visit with Michael Parks. We will post most of them here, but don't forget to follow our channel to stay up to date. So, without further delay, Happy Tuesday, and Happy YouTues!

Kathryn Mann: Social Media Liaison

Video: Weaver, Prevost, and Batson - The Power of the Pipe ~brandon~

2013-03-06T16:05:00-04:00

The walls seemed to be made of industrial tarps, and the roof appeared to be tin. The space itself was filled with wooden support posts and rustic round tables. It was as if I were sitting in a pub fabricated from an old carport that had been transplanted to the heart of the city. Three feet away, beyond the tarp wall, a cold mist was falling. I struck a match and took a few puffs, pulling the cool smoke into my mouth and savoring the moment. It had been a while since I last enjoyed a good bowl. I had recently made the journey to Nashville from South Carolina, land of tobacco and sunshine, in order to visit a few pipe carvers (Grant Batson, Bruce Weaver, and Pete Prevost). I sat, listening to Pete go through pint recommendations for the evening. We had what Pete called the “Nashville Experience,” which was a trip to a honkytonk and a PBR. Needless to say, it was fun. As the evening progressed, we mapped out the next day, which was to be filled with plenty of pipe enjoyment. Bruce was planning on working out of Pete’s shop that day, due to the construction of his new home and shop.

As I pulled into the drive, I was greeted by the sound of air compressed sandblasting. This is when it occurred to me that I was going to have the opportunity to witness Bruce perform his famous sandblast technique. It should be noted that witnessing certain sandblasting processes is much like witnessing a unicorn having tea with a mermaid… It’s a rare delight (So rare in fact, that it wasn’t captured on film for risk of destroying its soul. Just kidding of course, but seriously). Anyhow, I spent a good portion of my day simply soaking it in. Pete was to my left and Bruce to my right. Pete was working on a few new pipes, one of which was a volcano that I’m particularly fond of, and Bruce decided to take a break from his blasting to shape a blowfish.

Both carvers seemed to work in complete complement of one another, as if they were working on the same project. In a few painless moments, Bruce shaped his blowfish and handed it to me with a quick, “Take a look at that grain.” I slid down in my chair and admired both the grain and Bruce's ability to see it in a piece of raw briar. I could have stayed in that shop the entire day, but Grant Batson was expecting me soon, so I needed to be on my way.

“My house is the one with the pile of bikes in the drive. Just come through the garage.” simple and understandable directions. As one becomes familiar with pipe carvers, one quickly realizes many of their shops are based out of their home. This makes visiting them even more of an honor, because one is welcomed as family or a friend, and that’s exactly what the Batson family did for me.

I followed the instructions and soon found myself greeted by a bearded fellow. He was clinching his pipe between his teeth, with a leather apron strapped across his front, finishing up one of his Tormented Blowfish (Here’s a bit of a side note, but if you’ve yet to see these, you should soon remedy that). Grant and I chatted as if we’d known each other years ago and bumped into one another by sheer happenstance. It was as if we were simply catching up on life. He showed me some of the pipes he’s getting together for Chicago, we shared thoughts on tobacco, and enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.

Grant’s priority in life is certainly his family. This was apparent and refreshing. Periodically, one or more of his children poked their head through the shop door to talk to him, or to ask for help with their geometry homework. It wasn’t long before Jill, his wife and a fantastic hostess, offered us some delicious cobbler and cream.

I placed the spoon in the empty bowl, lifted my pipe and lit it. Surveying the room slowly, I found myself in a moment I would not soon forget. To my left sat Grant in an arm chair, minus the arms, and directly in front of me were Jill and the kids sitting on the couch. The conversation was as rich as the cobbler. Worries seemed to melt away, and so did the evening. I was reluctant to call our evening to an end, but found it necessary considering my early flight.

As the Batson family walked me outside, I found myself wanting to make my way back to Nashville with my family soon, in order for them to meet our new friends, strangers only hours ago. Ah, the power of the pipe.

Brandon Bellegarde: Pipe Manager

International Pipe Smoking Day! ~sykes~

2013-02-20T08:45:00-04:00

Today, Wednesday, the 20th of February, in the year 2013, is International Pipe Smoking Day. So what does that mean? It means that everything you order from us is discounted at an extra 10% off. Everything. Pipe-cleaners? 10% off. Pipes? 10% off. Tobacco, be it bulk or tinned? 10% off? Yes, 10% off.

Now that I think we're clear on that, I'll not take up any more of your time -- you have pipes to smoke, after all. Perhaps, having heard this news, you've also got pipes to add to your collection, or tobaccos or accessories to stock up on while the stocking-up is good (and 10% off).

Video: Photography and Videography at Smokingpipes.com ~kathryn~

2013-01-10T12:07:00-04:00

Currently sitting on my desk is a beautiful piece of art. It happens to be a Danish Estate crafted by Tonni Nielsen, fresh from estate restoration, and scheduled for today's update. Though I could write a thousand or more words about this Bent Brandy, its fine-looking grain and exotic wood accent, there are times where words simply fall short. That's why the images on Smokingpipes.com are so important. Although text relates information not outwardly visible and gives a little historical context for brands and pipemakers, it is the photograph that best describes -- and often sparks an infatuation with -- a pipe.

Our photography and videography team: Peter Kogler, Katie Ranalli, Chris Johnson, and John Sutherland have perfected their craft. For each update, they have less than three days to capture and edit photos and video for an average of 200 pipes. Additionally, many of these pipes get multiple photos from various angles -- all told, the gang takes well over a thousand photographs each week. Great pains are taken to ensure that what is seen on the web is exactly what sits in the tray in front of them. The light cannot just bounce off the shiny finish of a smooth pipe, it has to illuminate the intricate details of the grain. The stain needs to be just the right shade, which can be difficult for some of the colorful pipes we offer. The silver needs to be polished, and the stamping needs to be as legible as possible.

Of course, all of this effort would be pointless if we used one photo to "symbolically represent" a category of pipes like many other online retailers. For us, that is not enough. The pipe you see is the pipe you get. We do not use stock photography. We do not use bulk photography. This means, if we get 10 Peterson Darwin System Smooth (B42) with P-Lip pipes, we photograph each one with the knowledge that, although they are given the same title, each pipe is unique. Isn't that part of what makes pipes so special after all?

I could tell you that these guys work really hard, and that each photo is perfection... but why not go with the theme of this blog post and show you? It is for this purpose that we have stalked them with cameras and created a short video illustrating just that. So, without further rambling from myself, please take 2 minutes and 40 seconds to witness the endless work the guys and gal do to make the Smokingpipes.com update stand out.

Kathryn Mann: Social Media Liaison

Video: A Conversation with Peter Heding ~sykes~

2012-12-31T15:49:00-04:00

Back in August, Ted and I went on the annual pipe pilgrimage to visit lots of Danish pipe makers, plus the Mac Baren tobacco factory. As always, it was a bit of a whirlwind. Ten pipe makers and a tobacco factory were crammed into just five full days on the ground. Even so, we were able to spend quite a bit of time with each of them and were able to chat on camera with a few, including Peter Heding, our interview victim in today's video.

Peter was about as excited about being interviewed on camera as I would have been (as in, not terribly excited), but being the incredibly nice, accommodating guy that he is, made this video possible. So, thank you Peter, as well as thanks to Ted Swearingen for taking the video and Alyson Wilford for editing it.

Mac Baren HH Old Dark Fired ~ted~

2012-09-14T10:00:00-04:00

As many of you likely know by now, Sykes and I were in Denmark a couple of weeks ago to visit pipe makers, look at pipes, buy pipes, and talk about the current state of pipedom. Because I fail at math, and because it was a pretty hectic trip, what with having missed another flight on top of the sheer number of people to see and things to do, when Sykes says we saw eleven pipe makers in five days, I believe him. It was a whirlwind. And it was awesome (in the not over-used, absolutely literal sense of the word).

Certainly one of the highlights of the trip was whisking away to tour the Mac Baren factory, as I've long been an ardent fan of many of their blends. Plus, factories are cool. Sykes and I sat down with CEO Simon Nielsen and Product Manager Per Georg Jensen and talked pipe tobacco (only a slight deviation from the normal conversation to be had on the trip), new pipe tobacco blends, and the current state of pipe tobaccodom. Then Per guided us through the warehouse and factory, paying attention especially to those things pertaining to Mac Baren's latest creation, HH Old Dark Fired. Thankfully, we had the presence of mind to bring a camera...

Ted Swearingen: Vice President, General Manager

Video: Interview with Lars Ivarsson ~sykes~

2012-08-21T23:34:00-04:00

Almost a year ago to the day, I was at Lars Ivarsson's home in the north of Sjaelland, Denmark's largest island. Pipe maker and friend Jeff Gracik made the trip to Denmark with me and he kindly helped take the video presented here. Also present were pipe maker Nanna Ivarsson, Lars' daughter, and her sons, including Sixten (named for his great-grandfather) who makes a brief guest appearance in the video too.

I've long wanted to document Lars' stories of the beginnings of Sixten's career in the 1940s and 1950s, which marked the beginnings of what we think of as Danish modern pipe making today. Without Sixten and those he taught, hand made pipes would be very different today. Sixten's story is central to the larger pipe narrative of the last seventy years and no one is in as good a place as Lars to share those stories.

Anyway, I'll let Lars tell the rest of the story:

Sykes Wilford: Founder/President

Video: All Time Favorites ~sykes~

2011-09-20T09:20:00-04:00

We've been making pipe and tobacco related videos for over a year now. There are a handful that particularly stick out for me, either because of occasions they commemorated or the quality of the interviewee or some particularly good editing work (by Ted or Alyson; my editing work is abysmal). I thought it might be fun to revisit some of my favorites. I have a ton that I really like, but in the interest of not going terribly overboard, I'll keep it to just four. Enjoy!

The first one is the interview with Trohls Mikkelsen, factory manager at Orlik, talking about tobacco varietals. His explanation of these things sheds considerable light on the subject. And getting it from such a knowledgable source is particularly special.

I love this set of two videos for a whole host of reasons. Jeff and Adam are excellent interview subjects, the editing by Ted is great, and the sentiment Tokutomi shares is just lovely.

Here's the video from our visit to the Peterson factory in February. I think this short, music-only vid is just a ton of fun.

Interview with Luigi Radice ~alyson~

2011-08-19T16:46:00-04:00

Another video from our June travels. Luigi Radice & Luca DiPiazza chat with Sykes about the new calabash shape that he and sons Gianluca and Marizo have been working on. Take a peak!

Sebastien Beaud Interview ~sykes~

2011-08-10T17:20:00-04:00

Back in June, Alyson and I visited Sébastien Beaud, owner of Genod and maker of the Sébastien Beo pipes. We took lots of great video that day and I conducted an interview with Sébastien about Genod, St. Claude, and, of course, the new Sébastien Beo line. Enjoy!

IPCPR Vegas in Video ~ted~

2011-07-25T15:30:00-04:00

And now as a supplement to Sykes' last post regarding our time at the Vegas show, here's a spiffy video for your enjoyment. Cheers!

King of the Blues ~sid~

2010-12-20T10:45:00-04:00

Albert King, (Albert Nelson) was born in the central region of Mississippi called the Delta. The region is saturated with blues heritage and Albert King is a pioneer of modern music. In addition to being hailed the "King of the Blues" - He was a pipe smoker. The bluesman was often seen smoking a pipe and playing a Gibson Flying V guitar (strung right-handed but played left-handed). He named the electric guitar Lucy, and she became his signature instrument.

His influence flows into present day through Blues, R&B, and Rock genres. It is apparent that Jimi Hendrix was influenced by Albert King. Jimi used a right handed guitar flipped over and played left handed. Even Hip-hop owes a toast to Albert King, with samples from his recordings used by Biz Markie, Wu-Tang Clan and Public Enemy.

Pipe Like A Pear Tree ~ted~

2010-12-15T23:59:00-04:00

Not too long ago, pipe makers Brad Pohlmann and Jeff Gracik put their heads together and puzzled out this year?s Smokingpipes.com Christmas pipe. Since then they?ve produced a total of seven, gorgeous sandblasted pear shaped briars all of which have been banded in sterling silver. Luckily, Sykes and Alyson were ?video recorder ready? when present at the conceptualization of this series.

By the way, these pipes will be made available to you very, very soon?

Video: In Search of Pipe Dreams ~ted~

2010-11-22T16:15:00-04:00

While on the west coast for the most recent pipe show held in Las Vegas, Sykes had the opportunity to sit down with Rick Newcombe to talk about the release of the sixth edition of his popular book 'In Search of Pipe Dreams'. Among other things, Rick is an avid pipe collector, having written more than his fair share of articles for 'Pipe & Tobacco Magazine' as well as a recognizable personality in the general pipe community. Here he talks about the latest edition of his book and the inevitability of its most recent colorized edition which hits retailers today.

"Smoking or Non-Smoking?" ~ted~

2010-11-02T18:00:00-04:00

Betrand Russell. He was a mathematician, philosopher, logician, and pipe smoking Nobel Prize Winner. You've probably heard of him. He lived to be 97. Here, briefly, he shares with us an anecdote concerning himself and his pipe.

Video: Brian's Pipe Primers ~ted~

2010-10-26T15:00:00-04:00

The first time I tried to cellar some tobacco for future smoking bliss I messed up bad. I'll spare you the agonizing details of my absolute failure, but I will mention that it cost me eight ounces of Stonehaven. I'm sure many of you know how difficult that stuff is to come by, so needless to say I was pretty disappointed. Yes, lessons were learned.

The next time I got around to storing up some leaf I was so anxious about it that I ended up complicating the process beyond belief. While there are dozens of forums crowded with hundreds of experts, most of which have their own senstive system of cellaring tobacco, Brian has taken the time to show us that cellaring tobacco can be quite simple and inexpensive.

Keep in mind that the tobacco you intend to store and age should be kept from light and moisture. My "cellar" is a closet. Enjoy the video!

Video: Kristoff Cigars from IPCPR 2010 ~sykes~

2010-10-23T19:35:53-04:00

The other day, Brian asked me about this video interview. He remembered having done it, but we'd never put it up. It sort of got lost in the mass of footage we took at the show in New Orleans in early August. We're glad to finally get it up on the blog. It's a little difficult to hear the first few seconds, but it clears up after that. Generally, the sound required serious fiddling which, for some reason that I'm sure some serious sound guy might be able to explain, worked much better with Glen's voice than Brian's. Anyway, I hope you enjoy it!

Also, I've been really impressed by the Kristoff Ligero line especially, though I find that a hearty meal preceding smoking helps tremendously...

Video: Interview with Alex Florov: Part III ~sykes~

2010-10-22T13:08:40-04:00

Here's the third and final entry in the video series of my interview with Alex Florov. Being not a terribly structured interview-- Alex and I both have a tendency towards free association, wandering from topic to topic without much structure-- it's more like just a conversation between old friends. I hope you enjoy it! We certainly did.

Video: Cigar Tips & Tricks ~ted~

2010-10-21T14:00:00-04:00

Now, while many of you already now that our very own Brian Levine is as expert in 'pipes and tobacco' as they come, few realize that his knowledge of cigars and cigar care is quite advanced as well. Or maybe that's just me. Nevertheless, Brian took the time out of his very busy schedule, which primarily consists of talking to customers about Disneyland, Disney pipes, Disney music (which he tends to often blast from his office) and, on occasion, pipes, to share with us his preferred method of readying a new humidor for cigar storage. As you'll see, the process is a lot easier than it is often made out to be.

Since all humidors are purchased in a dry state, it takes time to 'season' them to the proper humidity for the cigars inside. The ideal standard in the business is 70% humidity - this will ensure that your cigars are stored in a perfect environment for aging, cutting, and smoking. Below 65% will slowly dry out some cigars, and above 75% will make a moist environment that could swell the filler and crack the wrapper (not to mention making burning more difficult).

And now, without further ado... Here's Brian!

Video: In The Workshop II ~ted~

2010-10-13T14:30:00-04:00

Putting together this video was incredibly satisfying. When we were shooting all this footage, now two Mondays past, Tokutomi took a moment to talk freely on his experience in the workshop with Adam and Jeff. Because he is more comfortable speaking Japanese than English he opted to share his thoughts with us in his native language. Eager to understand his sentiments we employed a translator and were pleasantly surprised to learn just how touching his words had been that day.

And now for the second installation of "In The Workshop" with Adam Davidson, Jeff Gracik, and Hiroyuki Tokutomi.

Video: Interview with Alex Florov, Part II ~sykes~

2010-10-10T19:32:00-04:00

Here's the second part of the video interview that we did with Alex Florov when he visited almost two weeks ago. In this entry, we talk about pipe making, his day job, and Sixten Ivarsson, and the centrality of his role in the creation modern high grade pipe making.

Video: In The Workshop ~ted~

2010-10-08T19:00:00-04:00

As you likely know, on Monday, Jeff Gracik (of J. Alan Pipes) and Hiroyuki Tokutomi met with Adam Davidson at his workshop in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina again this year after the annual CORPS show in Richmond, Virginia, so that they might collaborate on a set of three pipes. Fortunately, Sykes was mindful enough to have brought along a camera and a video recorder. The collaboration was an all day affair and from it we've put together the video before you. Enjoy!

(Sorry about our false start with the video. Apparently, we goofed when we rendered it the first time. Audio and video tracks, rather conveniently, now match...again, we're sorry).

Video: Interview with Alex Florov: Part I ~ted~

2010-09-27T00:00:00-04:00

Today we were lucky enough to have pipe maker Alex Florov and his wife Vera visit with us over here at the Smokingpipes.com campus. After a thorough tour and a fine lunch, we got to sit down and pick the man's brain.

Video: Tatuaje Cigars with Pete Johnson ~sykes~

2010-09-25T15:16:00-04:00

Alright, I confess, I'd sort of forgotten that we still had some great footage from the IPCPR show in New Orleans in August. We took a lot of video at the show and with fully three of us behind the camera at various times, I sort of lost track of what all we had. The upside is that trolling through the raw footage is sort of like a treasure trove, as I eliminate video of me tripping over my own words, or Alyson and Susan not realizing that the camera is rolling and continuing their discussion on how silly the boys get when presented with all of the smokable goodies at the show (which, I might add, took place while they themselves were enjoying Kristoff coronas, so I think they have little room to stand on when mocking Brian and me).

Anyway, there's still lots of good stuff left, not least of which is this great interview with our friend Pete Johnson. When Pete launched Tatuaje, we were early, enthusiastic fans of the luscious Tatuaje Brown Label, rolled in Miami. Since then (perhaps a little more than five years ago), Tatuaje has continued to occupy a hallowed place in our humidor and continues to be a disproportionately popular brand both in the store and on Smokingpipes.com.

Video: Mac Baren Rope Tobaccos ~sykes~

2010-09-16T19:13:28-04:00

Mac Baren rope tobaccos-- Dark Twist, Roll Cake and many others-- are some of the best loved blends by the famous Danish manufacturer. One of my favorite processes in the Mac Baren factory is the process of making ropes, which are then cut into coins. This video is longer than most we've posted (at just over eight minutes), but I think it's definitely worth it!

Video: Brian Interviews Yadi Gonzalez-Vargas ~sykes~

2010-09-06T17:17:00-04:00

Yesterday, I put up a post indicating that we were having some technical problems posting the video. Well, it seems to have quasi-magically righted itself, so here's the promised video of Brian Levine interviewing Yadi about the new cigars from Flor de Gonzalez, Qban and 90 Mile.

Video: Brian's Pipe Primers, Video I ~alyson~

2010-09-05T18:58:00-04:00

This is the first in a series that Brian and I will be working on that covers pipe basics. In this video, Brian talks about his cleaning routine after each smoke. We'll have more coming, covering a range of basic pipe smoking topics, so check back often!

Oh, and while the product placement was entirely accidental (or, at least, Brian did that while I wasn't looking), you can find a Peterson ashtray, and Gloredo pipe cleaners in their respective homes. No one, including Brian, is quite sure where he got that tamper/tool, but you can find lots of tampers with picks here, and the cool older four-dot Sasieni is Brian's and he's not giving it up...

Video: Mac Baren 7 Seas ~sykes~

2010-09-02T18:28:00-04:00

In this video, Per Jensen, product specialist and all round evangelist for Mac Baren, and Frank Blews, brand manager for the US importer, Phillips & King, talk about the new 7 Seas blends from Mac Baren. This is the first serious foray that Mac Baren has made into American style aromatics. Watch the video to learn more!

Very cool 3D model stuff ~sykes~

2010-08-30T16:49:00-04:00

Today, we're putting up the very first examples of something that we've been working on during the past few months. You'll find the new 360-degree flash models used for the new Sillem's lighters. Frankly, I think this may be the coolest thing ever. Or at least the coolest thing to happen this month. Alyson, Bobby and Melissa have been working really hard to pull this together. I think they've done a tremendous job. We're still very much in the Beta phase with this, rolling it out here and there as we can, making sure we have it down before we try to bite off more than we can chew. It's been a long road to get it this far; we have some ways to go before it's more widely implemented.

So, I figured a quick Q&A followed by two examples below might be in order.

Q: What in the world is this and where can I find it?

A: These are high quality 3D models that can be manipulated by clicking and dragging the mouse, making it possible to see the item from every possible angle. On those items that have it (just the six Sillem's lighters right now, but hopefully lots of stuff down the road), a button appears below the description and above the photo offering the 360-degree view, which pops into its own, extremely cool, javascript window thingy.

Q: Wow, cool! How did you make it go?

A: USB driven turntable and Canon DSLR camera are slaved to a desktop computer running specialized software. Flash apparatus is slaved to the camera. We pretty much set it up (which is far harder than it seems like it should be, as we've discovered over the past couple of months) and it takes care of the rest.

Q: What does the setup look like altogether?

A: See the photo below! The odd-looking wooden apparatus (which, frankly, looks like part of a medieval siege engine) lets us orient the turntable either right side up or upside down, depending on what we need it to do. Oh, and I know that which is in the booth isn't that which is on the screen. Alyson was busy with the update, so I took the picture, and it's far too complicated for me to actually make go, so I just pretended it was going. And then realized that I had a pipe on the screen and a humidor in the light tent...

Q: Again, seriously cool! When can we expect to see it on more stuff? Yeah, I am talking about pipes here...

A: Frankly, we're not sure. We have more work to do on lighting and reflections, and on how to consistently get good results with a variety of pipe shapes and finishes. This might take awhile, though we certainly hope it happens sometime soon.

Q: Well, can I see an example?

Sure! See below: (Note, of course, that you need the Flash plugin installed to see these).

See a test example with a pipe.
See an example of a Sillem's lighter

Video: Estate Restoration at Smokingpipes.com, Part V ~susans~

2010-08-26T23:30:00-04:00

This is the fifth and final entry in our estate restoration video series. I'm not yet sure whether I'm glad it's over or if I'll miss it and have to rope Sykes or Alyson into doing a couple of appendices to the series with me. Either way, we'll definitely take a break for a little while and you'll hear from others here. Thanks so much for watching the series!