Cold Day in the Woods

Fortunately we have built up an insulating layer of holiday fat to keep us warm as Mark and I start to feel the call of the winter woods. We met at the spillway at Arkabutla a little before sunrise this morning for a nice hike on the trails. It was just us and a dozen or so men fishing the Coldwater river. I thought the fishermen were crazy to be out there in such a chilly morning, but Mark pointed out that they probably thought we were nuts to walk around the woods without any real goal in mind ... other than walking, smoking pipes and talking. I guess everyone has different priorities. Anyway, we had a great time as usual. As soon as my bones get warm, I'll be ready to do it again. -T

Merry Christmas!

Glædelig Jul

Joyeux Noel

Froehliche Weihnachten

Feliz Navidad

Sretan Bozic

Vesel Bozic

Nollaig chridheil huibh

God Jul

Srozhdestvom Kristovym

Nadolig Llawen

Cestitamo Bozic

Mithag Crithagsigathmithags

Nollaig Shona Dhuit

Mele Kalikimaka ame Hauoli Makahiki Hou!

Kala Christouyenna!

Zalig Kerstfeest en Gelukkig nieuw jaar

Warren William as Perry Mason

I'm a big fan of Warren William and a big fan of his pipes. Does anyone know anything about what brand(s) he may have smoked? -T

Santa's on His Way!

And for me he is stopping by France to bring me this great looking new pipe from David Enrique. It's one of his ( David's, not Santa's) Gamma DE line, which is made from old preturned stummels from one of the legendary french pipe making companies in St. Claude. I have 2 of these pipes ( a dublin and and apple) that I love and smoke all the time. I am looking forward to Christmas morning, when I can jump out of bed early and run to the Christmas tree and see what Santa brought. That same breathless anticipation I had when I was 5. You can bet I will be smoking my new toy before the sun rises very high in the sky. Merry Christmas! -T

12/28- I've smoked my new Gamma DE several times so far and I am very pleased with it. Another fine pipe from David. I can't wait to get the my next Enrique (which fortunately is on the way as I type!)-T

Strike Anywhere?

Okay- I'm working on pipe racks. 2 more to finish and ship for Christmas. Paint is drying and I sit down for a minute and load my next pipe. I'm sitting in my old rocking chair in the studio and next to it I have a small table w/ a shelf underneath. Mark found a supply of Strike Anywhere Kitchen Matches and he was kind enough to give me several boxes (it was really a payoff for some new leather gloves of mine that he axed the fingers off of ...but that's another story.). I keep an open box of these matches on this lower shelf and strike them on the floor by my rocker ... well this time the match broke and flew into the open box which BURST into flame! I stared in shocked stupor for a minute and then grabbed it and threw it on the floor and on my hands and knees began blowing. Nothing like pipe smoking for making a fellow live on the edge. -T

Water Valley Lodge Pipe Cabinet

Rusty red paint and a stylized hart w/ black trim finish this rack.

It holds 8 pipes and has a drawer for your possibles. -M

$200 (Available

Pipe and Book Desk Set

Sorry to say this one is still available. I thought it would sell. Just goes to show what I know. -T

2 piece set with drawers for storage

$250 (Available)

Free Shipping through Dec. 31st!

All (Available) Racks will receive FREE shipping in the Continental US from now until Dec. 31st ('09). Anyone outside the lower 48 that's interested, we'll work out an equal discount for you. -T

Andrei Mikhailovitch Rodzianko (AKA Puppet Stage)

Here's one that I always liked but I did get a couple of "where's Punch and judy" sort of remarks ....
I had planned or was at least in the planning stages of telling an elaborate tale of a Russian Nobleman who fled Russia during the revolution w/ only a few cherished possessions. This pipe rack being one of them. He was to travel Europe - Paris, London Vienna- and eventually the world. A romantic figure, a noble gypsy making the scene at all the right places and always w/ his pipes in tow. But I soon realized that I would have to be Tolstoy to tell the tale I wanted to tell ...and I'm no Tolstoy. So here's a nice pipe cabinet w/ a romantic flair. You'll have to fill in the story line for this one. -T

Holds 6 pipes in comfortable elegant surroundings
16.75"W x 7"D x 21.5"T
Drop front storage along with open top storage

Original oil painting on door.

$250 (Available)

Going Back to Church

 You'll be able to go to church for a full week with this one. Made to hold Churchwardens up to 16" long and with extra depth to accommodate the curving stems of the gracious pipes. Drop front compartment holds your 'baccy and such. Trimmed out in Hunter Green, ready for your wall or table. -M

$300 (Available)

Santa's Workshop

We're not elves ... and we really have no affiliation with the man in red (although I have covered for him for several years now. Maybe my kids weren't as good as I thought ...) ... anyway, we're helping out in our own way. Here's a couple of floor cabinets in the works. The painted one in the foreground holds 40 pipes and has plenty of storage space (88 50g tins will fit below). The unpainted one holds 56 pipes and also an abundance of room for tobacco or whatever. -T

Poor Witches

Working on pipe racks this morning and even though I have a fire going in the fire pit, I still am worrying about those poor witches in their metallic undergarments. Man, they must be chilly! -T

The Craftsman Pipe Cabinet

Holds 7 pipes and is decorated with a design inspired by Arts and Crafts tile designs from the early 2oth century. This rack is finished in a distressed black w/ brick red, moss green and ochre accents. It has a generous drop front storage compartment on the bottom and two smaller drawers to stash your stuff. -M

$350 (Available)

Khepera Pipe Rack

Here's a beautiful rack that Mark made a while back and I can't understand why he still has it. It's great! -T

Khepera, the beetle, pushes the sun towards the horizon at the closing of the day. I have adorned this cabinet with a design featuring the mythical insect and as the sun sets you may want to reach for your pipe and favorite tobacco. -M

Holds 14 pipes /w a generous drop front storage compartment underneath.

$375  (Sold)

No Pipe Racking Today

Mark may be working on pipe racks- he has a great, huge shop, but I do a good deal of my work outdoors and today is a typical drizzly, chilly day. So, it's painting for me. Normally this works fine, but I have several orders that I need to be working on. I guess they will have to wait until tomorrow. Tomorrow's forecast is cloudy w/ a 20% chance of rain and a high in the upper 50's. That's 80% chance of no rain, so I'll keep my fingers crossed. T

McCarty Farm Redux ....Redux

This is a reworking of a pipe cabinet I made some time ago. It's a little larger and has a couple of features the original lacked. One of the new features is the ability to remove the pipe rack section and use it as a table top rack. More photos are available. Let me know and I'll email them to you. -T

Holds 7 pipes w/ 2 storage shelves for tobacco and what-not.

$250 (Sold)

Leftovers!

It's the day after Thanksgiving and I have been over-indulging in leftover turkey and dressing and pie ... ok pies. I'm restuffed. This seems like a fitting time to relist a Two Cousins leftover. Here's a little 6 pipe "Victorian" rack. -T

Victorian 6 Pipe Rack

$95 (Available)

Thanksgiving!

What a great holiday! Family and friends, food and wine! It's my favorite. Starting w/ the Macy's Parade and ending w/ a pipe and a glass of scotch. I hope everyone out there has a great day! And thanks to those of you who purchased a pipe rack this year. I hope you are enjoying them. you made this a good year for the cousins. Thanks! -T 

Just in Time for Black Friday.

Here's a 12 pipe rack that I just finished. I will be posting other available racks in the next few days. We still have a little time to accept custom orders for the holidays, but we are getting backed up. We would hate to turn orders away, but there's only so much time in a day... -T

12 pipe rack w/ drop front storage below.

$195 (Sold) 

Those Cotton Fields Back Home

Moving to another part of the world comes up from time to time. Years ago, my wife and I thought of moving to New Mexico. In the end we chickened out. We had no money and the thought of being jobless and broke in a new and strange locale was just too scary. Over the years we've continued to dream of "the perfect place". Now as the years rush by, I can't imagine leaving the Memphis area. So many memories are here. Both our families have come from this area for at least our living memory. And I guess I have to admit I love it here. I'm not sure I could be me anywhere else. I can't understand artists who move to New York or Berlin. What would I paint in Berlin? Cotton fields probably. I guess it's taken me years to learn what Dorothy learned in one short adventure- it's all right here in your own backyard. -T 

He's Back!

I just heard the news. Neill Roan has restarted his A Passion for Pipes blog. I know a lot of people have missed Neill's thoughtful articles for several months now. I certainly have and I am very happy to once again be able to add this to my morning ritual of coffee and computer time. Not only is this good for the Pipe World, but I think, for the Universe in general. -T 

Oh Boy!

Mark bought a new table saw a while back and I have been jealous, green w/ envy and covetous ever since. Well, I finally forked over the dough (thanks to several customers!) and bought one. I can't believe the difference it makes. What an improvement over the 12 yr old piece of crap I was using. It's like they aren't even the same breed of tool. I don't know that the pipe racks will be any better, but I can sure make them faster and w/ greater ease. -T

We're Still Working

A rumor that maybe we are no longer making pipe racks has come to our attention. It is NOT true. We are as busy as ever. We haven't updated our website in a long time and that is due in part to the fact that we are busy making racks and cabinets. If anyone is looking for a nice home for their favorite pipes, please send us an email. We will be more than happy to create a perfect place for them. -T

Annual Tishomingo Camping Trip

Towards the end of each October, for the last 3 or 4 years (my memory doesn't seem to go back that far), Mark, his son John and I have been going for a weekend camping trip to Tishomingo State Park in northeast Mississippi. This year our buddy Chuck came with us. We had a great time. We smoked so many pipes and cigars, it looked like fog was rolling into the woods. -T

Spanning the Globe

One of the great things about making pipe racks and selling them on the internet is that you come in contact with people from all over the place. lately we've sent racks to Idaho, California, Texas, Kentucky, Virginia, Maryland, Florida and Illinois. There's one in the works for France. This is pretty cool for two old guys living in the boondocks. -T

Hey! I'm Famous ....

oK- I can still go to the grocery store w/o paparazzi swarming around. In fact the cashier pays no more attention to me than she does an empty bag. But in our small community of pipe smokers I've achieved something I never really even considered achieving - The cover of P& T magazine! Obviously the clever folks at P&T are way too smart to actually put a photo of me on the cover  .... or even include one in the depths of the magazine, but I've got to figure that is good for me as well as them. Anyway- I'm pretty happy w/ the whole experience. Please pick up a copy if you get a chance. I don't want the P&T staff to think they made a terrible mistake. -T

Undisputed Champs!

Yesterday was the 29th gathering of friends and family for a 4th of July celebration. We had a great time as always - I feel like someone beat me with a 2x4 during the night, but it's worth it! Friends, family, kids, conversation, food, bocce, pipes, cigars .... what more could you want? Well, I would have liked to beat Mark and Chuck at bocce, but that was impossible yesterday. They were unstoppable! My son, Corey and I made a couple of good tries, but not nearly good enough to whup the dynamic duo of Hendren + Wallace.  There's always next year! -T

Happy 4th O'July!

African Adventure Pipe Cabinet!

I recently received a commission for a 60 pipe cabinet from a man who had spent several years in Africa, He wanted elephants on the doors, so I gave it a try. I think it all worked well. -T

New Mission Style Rack from Mark

Mark just completed a new pipe cabinet in the Mission style for a customer and I think it turned out great! The customer seems to think so too. It's a style that Mark loves and I'm sure you'll see more along these lines in the future. -T

Still Busy

I know that it was Memorial Day weekend, but it felt more like "Labor Day" weekend as I spent most of my time in the shop putting the finishing touches on one cabinet commission and starting another. I am really grateful that Tim and I seem to be busy with commissions even in these tough times. I find that working in the shop is the thing that keeps me happy, keeps me excited. The new commission that I am working on  came from a customer who wanted to know if I could do something in the Mission Style. I couldn't believe my good fortune. I LOVE that style and have books all over my house about the Arts and Crafts Movement that I have been studying for years.  The commission that I am finishing up was a special cabinet that had to meet the needs of a shop that sells pipes and tobaccos. I was able to talk to the customer and figure out exactly what I needed to make it work for his space and his needs. That's the kind of thing that gets me out in the shop and starts the saw dust flying!! It was a fun weekend. -M

We're Busy!

Just a quick note of apology for neglecting the blog. Mark and I have been busy, and that's good! We always come back from Chicago fired up and ready to make pipe racks and fortunately we have customers who want them. Here's a couple we've been working on. -T

Old Clyburne Farm

New Swanborough Road

Home Again, Home Again!

We made it home yesterday afternoon. The Chicago pipe show was superb as always. Mark and I had a great time. We saw old friends and made new ones. We bought pipes and tobacco. We smoked a bunch, ate some good food and talked a lot. We are both worn out. It will take us a couple of days to get our thoughts and photos together- then we'll do a proper post on the show. Until then - here's a photo of my haul. -T

Gone to Chicago!

Get your motor runnin'

head out on the highway

racing w/ the wind

and smoking a pipe all the way!

We'll be back with tales to tell and plenty of photos! -T

Last Minute Teaser!

Anders and Martin ( Vollmer & Nilsson )just sent me an email letting me know they have finished their batch of pipes for Chicago and that they are on the way. They also sent a few more photos as teasers. They seem to have a cruel streak I haven't seen before. They seem to take delight in tempting me. Here's a picture of one of the  really amazing pipes they are bringing to the show. Yes, I have a cruel streak too, so I thought I would spread the temptation! -T

A Musical Interlude

My daughter Maggie came by for the weekend. It's always great seeing her and we always have a lot of fun. Maggie is a young woman of many talents ( visit her website -  luvreforsale.com  ) and while the family was talking it up in the living room, my wife Pat brought up the old Dolly Parton song "I will always love". I broke out the guitar and Maggie and I sort of figured out the tune. Pat grabbed the camera and recorded the event on a whim. Maybe I'm biased, but I think Maggie sings like an angel. Thought I'd share it with you. -M

http://s658.photobucket.com/albums/uu302/hendrenpat/?action=view&current=HPIM0232.flv

Looking Our Best

Mark and I both attempt to keep our pipes clean. We are not absolute pigs when it comes to pipe maintenance - but at this time of the year, we both turn into cleaning machines. We may look shabby, old, slightly pathetic, but our pipes will look good for the Chicago Show! 

I recently had several stems oxidize and turn green rapidly. I am not sure why. Weather? Anyway, they looked bad. As though I never cleaned them. And they were difficult to clean w/ any of the creams, pastes, gooes that I have accumulated over the years. Nothing was working until I saw Jeff Gracik's blog. He had 3 posts on ways to clean your stems and they work. The bits on my pipes haven't been this black and shinny since they were new. Thanks Jeff! -T

Vollmer & Nilsson Chicago Preview.

Here's  a sample of what Martin and Anders will be bringing to Chicago this year. They make great pipes! I own 7 and I want more! -T

Vollmer & Nilsson website