Smooth Apple with Bamboo Tobacco Pipe

Tom Eltang, like the noble sloth and giant panda, certainly has an affection for bamboo. He may not (to my knowledge) spend his lunches feasting upon chutes and leaves, but he does manage to work the stuff into a number of his pieces. Specifically, his "smoking machine" Poker shape seems to often benefit from two knuckles of the pale, honey-blonde material, making the already featherweight briars positively weightless.

Here, he's employed two knuckles to serve as the shank of this gorgeous Danish Apple, with the natural, slender undulating lines pairing splendidly with the supple curves of the bowl. It's a shape that's surprisingly rare amongst his output, though when we encounter one, it hardly makes it to the site before some ardent collector snatches it up. And looking at all the flame grain highlighted on this fellow by one of Tom's stunning contrasts, it's likely to meet the same fate. Beautiful.