My First Pipe

     In February of 2010, I saw a beautiful Dunhill looking, black sandblast ring grain pipe.  This beauty was sitting on a pipe rack, sadly un-smoked and dusty.  I was drawn to it, it was love at first pipe!  It belonged to my best friend Kenn.  I thought it was the most stunning I had ever seen,  At that point we are only 4 months into our pipe adventure, Mike was collecting only factory pipes.  The only other pipe I had ever seen that looked like the one Kenn had, was a Dunhill Shell. (That Dunhill is now in Mike's pipe case.)
     It had never crossed my mind, that I too was going to be a pipe owner and collector,  This had been Mike's adventure, I was just along for the ride.  But as each evening would come, you would find us on the deck, Pipe in hand, there was a very happy Mike, I would have my cigarette and we would enjoy the night.  But after a month or so the amazing aroma of the pipe tobacco stirred my interest.  I started taking sips of Mike's pipe, Just little tastes, But as time went on, Mike started to have to ask for his pipe back, more and more. This was no longer just a Mike adventure, I was starting one of my own. 
      It wasn't just the husband who was looking at the pipes, now I was too, These pipes started to grab my attention more and more, No longer was I looking for something for my husband, I was looking for me.  So there I was at Kenn's place one afternoon, when we found each other.  Kenn has a very nice collection of pipes, but hiding in the back was this amazing find.  Later I would learn that this work of art was a 5 dot Sasieni from England,  I demanded to know why this pipe had not been smoked! This pipe was begging to be loved. Kenn tried to explain that he had lots of pipes and that one was just to nice to smoke, I thought that was crap, This pipe was demanding to have tobacco placed in it and smoked.
      So the harassment began, Every time I was at Kenn's, I would handle this pipe and demand that someone needed to smoke it, But sadly it just sat there unloved. I just could not understand what was wrong with Kenn, Why wouldn't he smoke this pipe? 
     So one Wednesday afternoon on our weekly lunch date, Kenn hands me a box, This was odd because my birthday wasn't for two more months, I opened to find the pipe of my dreams.  Kenn made it very clear, that this pipe was for me, Not my husband, This made me cry, I now had my very own pipe, And so it began.
     Every time I smoke this pipe, the experience is incredible, Nothing tastes bad in this pipe and I can keep it lit for an amazingly long time.  It was the greatest possible first pipe ever! I was now a pipe owner and collector. 
     As time has gone on, there is now other pipes in my collection.  And I am sure there are more to come also.  But my 5 dot Sasieni was my first, and it will always have a special place in my heart.

Tracee Lancaster-Co-Founder TPC for Women

January 10, 2013

All Or Nothing!

Where to begin………..I can begin with the day I smoked my first pipe, or I can begin with attending my first pipe show! I think the best way for me to start out this blog is with an observation. A dear friend of ours From Denmark when confronted with the question of what he thought about American culture stated that he thought we were people of extreme. For example everything we eat and drink until recently had huge amounts of sugar and salt. That is until we found out it was bad for us, now everything is bland and tasteless. After he made this comment, I was rather puzzled. Is it true? Are we really all or nothing?

Then it dawned on me not only is my culture all or nothing, but I happen to be living with the prime example of go big or go home! My fiancé has always been a bit obsessive compulsive with his hobbies, so when he began smoking a pipe I thought to myself oh boy here we go! The sad part is it went far beyond my expectations. Smoking a pipe was no longer enough he wanted to start making them.

This did not come without its complications. We had no workshop and no room for shop equipment. A lot of you ladies may be in shock when I say this but……I gave up my closet. That’s right I removed all of my clothes, shoes, and accessories and replaced them with a drill press, scary looking files, and a band saw.  I thought I must have lost my mind! At least if I didn't lose it already the dust it created and the random hideous sounds the equipment made would pretty much finish the job. Let’s just say I was over being a cool girlfriend and he got the okay to build a workshop.

When Steve finally got his stuff out of our closet and began working in the shop it was amazing! No dust, no noise, just me my book and I. Now there comes a time in every woman’s life where she has to get out of the bath. I found that though I had my room back I lost him. I began going into his shop more often sometimes to chat, other times to read a book while he worked. Naturally, I became curious. All of this noise, dust and sacrifice, for what?

I decided to make the leap and smoke a pipe with Steve. I had a lot to learn, and being an ex cigarette smoker made it rather difficult, but I eventually got the hang of it. Now I will go into Steve’s shop around the loud equipment I once despised to have a bowl with him. A lot of you ladies may find this to be blasphemous but here goes. I find smoking a pipe to be more relaxing then soaking in a hot bath, but that’s not where it ends.

 I have found not only a piece but a bonding agent between my fiancé and I. His love has now become mine. Pipe smoking to me is not just a social activity or the accumulation of objects. It has opened so many doors and has been the foundation of many amazing friendships. In fact that is how Tracee and I met, and as a result I now write this blog and join her in supporting the growth of woman pipe smokers. I started this blog out with an observation, so I feel it is necessary to end this blog with one. One I found for myself and my own experience. I was against it at every turn I didn't understand the hype, but as I started to ease up and work my way into it, I found that not only do I like it, I've become obsessed with it. I have the bug! Maybe our friend from Denmark was right. 

I hope you enjoyed my very first blog as much as I enjoyed creating and sharing it! Happy smoking! 

-Jamie 

How It All Began

You see, Mike had always wanted  a tobacco pipe. So there we were, one day out doing our errands and there was a smoke shop,  I asked him if he would like to go in and look at a pipe,  So in we went.  We found a “pipe”, yellow and black, made to look like a wood pipe, It had a screen, which the guy behind the counter said we could take out Also a one pound bag of cheap and very dry pipe tobacco and we thought we were good to go.  Looking back, we knew this wasn’t what he was really looking for but it seemed close enough.  I could tell it was really a pipe for something else but he was so excited to finally have one I let it be.

  We had no idea what we were doing.  That was Saturday, Come Monday I had to go to a doctor’s appointment, being Mike, he was nice enough to drive me there but there was no way he was going into wait for me.  So as I hung out with the doctor, Mike went off to the Tinder Box without me.  There he found a real tobacconist at a real brick and mortar shop,   So I was all finished up and waiting.  Finally the husband returned.  Excited as any man can be,  This was a Mike as spellbound as ever I had seen,  It was like a whole new world had opened up to him,  Only the birth of his children had been a bigger event.  He wanted to drag me right back to meet his new “Tobacconist”,  I was laughing because I thought that the title tobacconist was BS.  But being a supportive wife, off I went to meet the said tobacconist.

  This is where we met Adam at the Tinder Box.  I thought he was a bit snobbish,  But he asked our names and was as helpful as anyone could be,  He walked Mike through everything he needed to enter the world of real pipe smoking.  We left with a brand new Savinelli 2^nd , Czech tool and pipe cleaners, plus an ounce of Vanilla Spice tobacco also a nice little paper to explain the whole process of packing and lighting a real briar tobacco pipe.  Mike was in heaven, and I was along for the journey.

   This was only the beginning.  The next day we were back at the shop looking at the pipes, And here is where I meet Kenn, Something clicked that day for me, I can’t explain, but suddenly here was the friend I had been looking for,  Not only was he helping Mike explore the world of pipes and tobacco but he was helping me to understand what it was that I was getting myself into.  A closeness quickly was developed between Mike, I and those men at the Box. Kenn would very soon share some of his pipes with Mike, but more importantly would be giving me my very own pipe.  I was no longer just the wife of a pipe owner, I had become one myself.

   So there we were, every day or every other day,  Looking at pipes, talking pipes, learning about tobaccos and moving quickly into a whole new life and world, But Mike being Mike, this just was not enough. As Mike’s passion began to grow, he searched for an outlet, but to no prevail… Hence TPC was born.

   At first, I was happy that Mike had found a way to express his growing interest in pipes and all things pipe related,  It all seemed so simple at first, A little Facebook  page for him to play with.  Really, what could happen?  But Mike being Mike, he became a little fanatical to say the least.  When he wasn’t at work he was on his phone doing his TPC thing.  I was happy for him, I really was  For him to have an outlet for his growing passion, Yet this thing began to grow into a beast that became more than just a hobby, this was turning into a life altering, ongoing experience.

   To say I was still supportive at this time would be a lie, I was jealous of this venture that had turned into his mistress,  It was now his other love,  Mike never does anything half assed. Suddenly this had gone from a simple Facebook page to a YouTube channel, on to a website, making hats and other TPC related goods, to a Twitter account,  Any and all social media outlets had been found and exploited.  I didn’t want to feel this way,  I have always taken pride on being the supportive wife, but it seemed to me that things were beginning to get out of hand.

   I came to realize that this was now a way of life for him and for me.  But then a life changing opportunity presented itself by way of Steve and Jamie Liskey, An invite to the 2012 West Coast pipe show in  Las Vegas. This show truly changed my life, I walked in and my husband was like a rock star.  With Mike’s focus having been on independent pipe makers, this was his holy grail. All these people that had been just names and photos and videos suddenly became very real.  Never had Mike and I felt so welcomed and part of the pipe making family.  As we all know the pipe making community is a close nit group of people.

  One of those names and faces was Jamie.  Out of a room full of men there was only a handful of women.  We instantly bonded over a pipe and a smoke.  Here was someone who understood what it was that I had been feeling, Who helped me quickly come to the understanding that I should have a feeling of pride about what my husband had been able to create.  This also created a spark in me,  To lend my female voice to this mostly male dominated community,  Jamie and I decided to start TPC for women, we talked to Mike about it and he agreed. We needed an outlet  so that others like the two of us would know that they are not alone.

  We wanted to create a place where women pipe smokers, women pipe makers and pipemakers wives could come together and share in the passion and the knowledge of this amazing world of tobacco pipe collecting.

   So here we are now. TPC for women is now a reality.  We will be doing our best to expand the female voice in this community.  It is our hope that the we can put our twist on this wonderful family of pipe smokers and the artists that create these works of smokeable art.

So puff on my lady piper friends, Tracee Lancaster Co-Founder Tobaccopipecollectors for women

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