Sandblasted Pot Tobacco Pipe

Sergey Ailarov was born in Vladikavkaz in southern Russia and studied music as a young man, later leaving the North Caucasus for Moscow to pursue photography. He began to collect pipes after receiving one as a present for his 30th birthday, then decided to make his own. Stemming from his fondness for art and dedication to the craft of pipe making, Sergey sketches his designs over and over until he has them perfectly memorized, only then beginning to shape the briar.

This Pot of Sergey's making is sandblasted to draw out significant straight grain all across the walls of the bowl, which is squat and lightly tapered in a Brandy-like manner. A dark stain colors the entirety of the stummel, giving the straight grain a strong appearance against the slight growth rings. The shank is round and muscular in its stretch back to the saddle stem of vulcanite, which flares almost imperceptibly outward at the shoulders before the slender mouthpiece stretches back to the bit. It's a great display of Sergey's abilities with both design and finishing, a testament to his meticulous process and appreciation of the craft.