Jerry Zenn: Sandblasted Poker with Bamboo Tobacco Pipe

Tall and tapered, this Poker from Jerry Zenn sits securely on a desk top for practicality's sake, and displays excellent grain for beauty's sake. From it's darkly stained, plateau rim to the high transition, then to the tightly knuckled bamboo and trim saddle stem, it's a wonderment. Light and effortless to hold, it cants subtly for an impression of forward momentum. Rather than a cylindrical Poker bowl, Jerry has opted for a Dublin-esque taper from the flat heel to the rim, an orientation that maximizes grain, which is on obvious display — strands of grain run vertically, while growth rings circle the bowl from top to bottom. Jerry sources some of the most interesting bamboo in the business, populated with tightly packed knuckles, and while finding four knuckles in a shank this abbreviated must have been difficult, but it certainly works to the pipe's advantage here. Almost dainty, this piece is lithe, light and luxurious.