Sam Adebayo: Sandblasted Bent Egg with Boxwood and Bakelite Tobacco Pipe

Sam has a thing for vintage bakelite as you can see, and though I haven't heard of him naming Chris Askwith as an influence, the two clearly share an appreciation for outgoing colors. As far as the pipes of this first batch of Adebayo briars goes, this one here is the one I'd peg as the most outgoing of all — not just in the choice of shade and tone of bakelite used for the stem, but also in it being the most lifting and lively of the fuller-bodied shapes. Fitting in with that is the cut of the briar itself; of the three fuller-bodied shapes that are sandblasted, this is the only one that isn't cross-cut, using the ring grain's rippling layers to play along with the lift and curve of the shape.

- Eric N. Squires