J. Alan: Sandblasted Bent Egg with Bakelite (1298) Tobacco Pipe

Fitting for his entry in our 2017 American Exposition: The Art of the Accent Stem in American Pipemaking, Jeff Gracik presented us with this gorgeous pipe, featuring the first ivory colored Bakelite stem we've seen from J. Alan. While Jeff has used Bakelite in the past, these mouthpieces have been quite rare in his overall production and generally limited to a very light yellow color palette.

Here, however, he's used a pale-as-cream version of the material to produce a striking contrast between mouthpiece and briar, with the near white shade offering a bold juxtaposition to the otherwise extra dark and reserved stain of the stummel. To really highlight that contrast, Jeff also kept the overall shape here reserved as well, essentially being a more conservative iteration of this Ivarsson-esque Blowfish or bent Egg shape, hold the teardrop shank. He did add a little asymmetric flare to the orientation of the bowl, however, giving it a bit more of a dynamic aesthetic as well as a more comfortable feel in hand. Excellent entry from J. Alan here.

- Andrew Wike