Yeti: Smooth Blowfish with Bakelite (711) Tobacco Pipe

The Blowfish has grown in popularity to become a rather ubiquitous shape among artisan pipe makers; however, its broad characteristics allow for a strong degree of creative differentiation across individual designs. As a shape, the Blowfish is defined by a cross-cut orientation that displays birdseye along the flanks and a band of cross grain through the middle. Often times, these aspects are framed and accentuated by crisp facets, and the overall design typically reveals a strong organic sense and dramatic asymmetry. While Micah Cryder's versions usually ascribe to such aesthetic cues, his Blowfish renditions are also distinct in their paneling, presenting intricate, painstaking ridgelines and facets for a uniquely architectural motif that contrasts against the Blowfish's usual organic elements and that make Yeti's iterations standout among pipe making's milieu of Blowfish designs.

This particular Blowfish from Micah encapsulates the Montana carver's characteristic approach to the shape while still maintaining the Blowfish's signature grain orientation. When viewed from above, the stummel's central panel frames gorgeous streaks of parallel cross grain, and it leans leftward in tandem with the grain for an asymmetrical aesthetic evocative of a fish swimming through water. At the transition, then, the edges of the central panel curl downward and flick outward to form fins along the sides — a common cue for Blowfish renditions — however, Micah has deftly paneled the tops of these fins for even more detail facet work, adding complexity and intrigue to the composition.

The shaping of the shank, too, is a departure from the Blowfish norm, which typically sees added asymmetry and panels. Instead, Micah has kept the shank rather uniform and boxy, contrasting the bowl's asymmetry, and such disparate shaping is evident in the grain: Swathes of birdseye radiate across the shank's sides, all captured beautifully thanks to Micah's choice of such a broad form. Lastly, a slanted ridgeline cuts through the paneled cross grain just in front of the rim and extends diagonally down the left flank; in no way does it disrupt the birdseye highlighted there, but it adds added intricacy and a touch of texture, complementing the right flank's broad section of plateau. The entire stummel is dressed in one of Micah's gorgeous, golden contrast stains — a fitting finish for such stunning grain and one that makes all the lines and whorls pop — and a stem of Bakelite completes the color palette with a dramatic contrast of swirling emerald hues. Micah is among the most prolific proponents of Bakelite, and this particular stem was hand-cut from the artisan's vintage American stock.