Tips

What Makes A Great Beginner Pipe?

September 5, 2025 by Kayla Ivan

7 Comments

When you're just beginning your pipe-smoking journey, it's easy to become overwhelmed by the myriad brands, sizes, shapes, and styles of pipes available. Do you start with a straight or bent pipe? Briar or meer? And which stem material? While selecting your first pipe ... Read More

Microwaves, Coffee Grinders, and Pipe Tobacco

July 18, 2025 by Chuck Stanion

6 Comments

Mary McNiel of McClelland Tobacco once asked me how I prepped my tobacco, and when I told her, she didn't grimace, but her microexpressions were impossible even for such a graciously well-mannered lady to conceal. She disapproved. She wouldn't say that because she's ... Read More

Summer and the Pipe Smoker: Conquering the Hobby in the Heat

May 22, 2025 by Kayla Ivan

4 Comments

As Memorial Day approaches, remembering and honoring the sacrifices of the bravest among us in the United States Military and unofficially commemorating the beginning of the summer season in the U.S., we'd like to describe a few ways your summer smokes can hopefully ... Read More

The Why and How of Estate Pipe Purchases

March 22, 2025 by Chuck Stanion

33 Comments

When I first learned about estate pipes, back when I didn't know a Billiard from a bathysphere, I was horrified. Used pipes? Pipes that had spent years in the mouths of who knows who smoking who knows what while fraternizing with who knows who from who knows where? Why would these pipes have any value? Sanitizing a used pipe, I deduced, must require an hour in boiling water. ... Read More

A Pipe-Smoker's Guide to Everyday Carry (EDC)

March 21, 2025 by Truett Smith

8 Comments

Today we're going to be talking about pipe smoking EDC, or everyday carry. EDC is a theme across numerous industries, but it's especially applicable to pipe smoking for those of us who like to smoke a pipe every day; We need a setup that allows us to do that as easily as possible. These are my essential tips ... Read More

Words Every Pipe Smoker Should Know: Pipe Terms

March 13, 2025 by Kayla Ivan

16 Comments

If you're new to pipe smoking, you've probably already noticed we have some pretty unique jargon. When we write our pipe descriptions, blog posts, and newsletters, we try to describe the pipes as accurately as possible; often that means using a specific set of terms recognized by the pipe community to mean very ... Read More

How to Care for Vulcanite Stems

March 7, 2025 by Rose Kiser

53 Comments

Pipes are deceptively simple. They're blocks of wood, for the most part, carved into a bowl with a stem. That's the simplest description of a pipe, it may even be the description you used when you started smoking. But as we begin to learn about the technical parts ... Read More

The Secrets to a Non-Offensive Smoking Room

August 29, 2024 by Chuck Stanion

10 Comments

Because pipe and cigar smoking are accompanied by aromas that are underappreciated by the uninitiated and uncivilized, some of us restrict our smoking to the outdoors. The outdoors is great, but it isn't perfect. We sometimes deal with blizzards, floods, hurricanes, lightning, mosquitos, bears, pterodactyls — I had a friend named Levi Jenkins who stepped outside for a pipe one night and never returned. His wife swears ... Read More

How to Start Your Own Pipe Club

August 22, 2024 by Rose Kiser

6 Comments

While pipe smoking can often be a solitary hobby, there's just something about sharing a passion for pipes and tobaccos with friends and peers. What if there's no pipe club in your area? Well, why not start your own? Follow these easy steps and you'll be hosting your own meetings in no time. ... Read More

Travel Destination Tips For Cigar Smokers

August 8, 2024 by Kayla Ivan

1 Comment

The backdrop might not seem like the most crucial element when enjoying a favorite cigar. However, cigar smoking can be a transcendent experience connecting you to the moment, elevating your senses to create lasting memories around your favorite company (which could very well be your own). As summer sizzles ... Read More