Konstantin Shekita: Lattice Tomato Tobacco Pipe

Calvin Miller (the savant visual arts wizard to my butcher of the Queen's English) walked by my desk, pulled up short, picked up this hypnotic-by-twice Konstantin Tomato and asked "How on earth does he do that?!" Ever eager to impress a newer employee with my encyclopedic knowledge of all things pipe-related, I replied, "Beats the crap out of me". The mystery first started when neither Eric nor I could figure out how Konstantin Shekita carves his famous intricate lattice. On top of that, I now find myself marveling that Konstantin was able to maintain the integrity of that flawless filigree, while perfectly encircling this massive Tomato with a unified Celtic knot (the "leather" tie-off is underneath). Can you imagine the amount of labor involved in duplicating the grain pattern of natural leather? Yes, this finish is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, outside of a "Wow!"

--R. 'Bear' Graves