Martin Romijn Smooth Nosewarmer Egg w/ Juma Handmade Briar Pipe, New

Within the modern artisan community, there are many pipe makers with backgrounds in other forms of art, manufacture, and handicraft, and who apply skills learned in their previous vocations to the creation of their pipes. Some artisans are former machinists; others were carpenters; some were even painters in their past lives. Martin Romijn, on the other hand, belongs to a small minority of pipe makers whose previous career was in stonemasonry. Like Germany’s Frank Axmacher, Romijn spent much of his adult life cutting and sculpting stone, doing so across a broad range of practical and ornamental applications. While those days are now behind him, Romijn still carries with him much of what he learned from working with granite, quartz, and marble. The skills and philosophy he cultivated as a stonemason continue to inform his pipe making endeavors, just as they did when he set his sights on briar nearly a decade ago. And, when asked about his technique regarding the latter, he cracks a wry smile, stating simply that “pipe is already inside the piece of briar, I only have to reveal it by taking away everything that doesn’t look like a pipe!” Not unlike Ivorite, Juma is a resin material that has been increasingly used in pipe making over the last few decades, mirroring the ivory accents and mouthpieces of pipes of yesteryear but in a more eco-friendly manner. In this instance, Holland’s Martin Romijn has coupled a hand-cut, flared Juma mouthpiece and brass-stabilized push fitment with a rather Danish, stacked egg bowl, not unlike those pioneered by Former, or Jess Chonowitsch. Romijn’s rendition is, like quite a few of the pipes in this latest batch, a little shorter than the norm, making for a perfect pocket pipe that still boasts a generous chamber capacity.   Details: Length: 4.6″ / 116.8mm Bowl Width: 0.79 / 20.06mm Bowl Depth: 1.85″ / 46.99mm Weight: 1.6oz / 48g