Jared Coles: Sandblasted Skater Tobacco Pipe

Jared Coles is an American artisan pipe maker who resides in California and produces precise, often Danish-inspired designs. This is the first Skater we have received from him, a less-often seen design in general, but one that does have a place on classic pipe charts, with a pointy heel and bowl that leans back in profile giving it a windswept look. The design carries a lot of implied momentum, and I really like what Jared has done with it here, shaping to the briar's grain to yield rippling growth rings climbing the bowl in concert with the unique profile.

A dark mahogany sandblast gives the grain a pleasing texture, and graduates to a lower-profile iteration on the shank to encourage comfortable draping of a digit. The inherent organicism is amplified by the natural plateau that erupts from the rim, altogether striking an interesting marriage of nature and intentional design. The pipe is carefully rendered to keep the weight feather-light for easy clenching, a design supported by the precisely hand-cut vulcanite saddle stem which curls slightly downward to offer a comfortable smoking posture.