Smooth Paneled Bent Brandy with Boxwood Tobacco Pipe

Although always drawn to creative pursuits, Tine Balleby hesitated to follow in the footsteps of her father, Danish artisan Kurt Balleby, but over time and with her father's encouragement, she took up the craft of pipe making and immediately fell in love, developing a passion that turned into a career. As one might expect for someone who grew up around pipe making, Tine Balleby has an innate understanding of not only what makes a pipe beautiful but also functional, and she excels at crafting traditional pipes through her personal creative lens. Each of her pieces showcase her elegant finishing techniques and impeccable eye for grain, as well as her affinity for stylish accenting work. Additionally, every Tine Balleby piece is handcrafted from high-quality briar and fitted to a hand-cut vulcanite stem emblazoned with a 14-carat gold teardrop logo, an homage to her father's diamond-shaped stem logo.

A lively interpretation of the old-school shape, this paneled bent Brandy boasts a plump, full-bodied bowl that's situated at the fore of a trim, upturned shank and a demurely curved saddle stem. Eight crisp facets frame the bowl and provide the composition with a structural rigidity that's continued by the paneled shank. The facets along the bowl and shank foster a visual motif that unites either end of the stummel and produces a distinctive silhouette that immediately captures the eye. Additionally, all of the firm ridgelines produced by the intersecting panels lend the shape a unique and pleasing texture. As one might expect from the shape, the bowl here tapers from its wide heel to its taut rim, and as it does, it produces a low-set waistline that conforms naturally to the hand. The shank and stem's fluid curvature promotes a comfortable smoking posture and adds a touch of gesture to the form. An auburn smooth finish dresses the stummel and highlights stellar birdseye across the bowl's flanks, while a boxwood accent adorns the junction and ties the design together with a touch of complementary color.