Mike Sebastian Bay: Rusticated Tomato Tobacco Pipe

Mike Sebastian Bay is one of the most accomplished young artisans in Denmark, and his journey into the world of pipe making happened seemingly as an act of providence. While scouring Denmark to find someone who could competently repair some of his father's pipes, he happened to find himself in the workshop of the legendary Tom Eltang. After talking, the two bonded and Bay was apprenticed to the master who taught him the intricacies of the Danish design tradition, and gave him experience in finishing, shaping, and drilling. Bay is one of the select few people that Tom has given the blessing of being able to utilize his signature rustication, the same rustication that dresses this Tomato, but according to Bay's own creative interpretation.

The Tomato is a shape we've been seeing quite a bit from Bay in recent memory, and I'm absolutely delighted by this, because his renditions of the shape are quite handsome. Coming in at just a touch over five inches long, this is a compact piece sure to lend itself well to travel, and it boasts a light weight that lends itself to easy clenching. The shank here ebbs out of a transition wide enough to easily drape a digit, flaring out slowly to the end where it meets a demurely curved cumberland saddle stem, the pair comprising an understated S-curve that makes for a comfortable smoking posture. Of course, the Tomato is a profile most recognized by its iconic low-set bowl and healthy plumpness, something Bay has translated here very well. The bowl sits squatly atop a lifted heel and flares out to a broad waist before tapering to a softly inflated, smooth rim, its contours extremely comfortable in the hand no matter how it's held. The aforementioned craggy rustication à la Tom Eltang is here dressed in a deep, inky stain that's contrasted excellently by the warm tones of the cumberland stem and the light hues of the smooth rim