Steffen Mueller (The Pipemill)

Steffan Mueller is perhaps one of the most interesting pipe makers we’ve had the pleasure of meeting. Operating out of Germany, Steffan made his first pipe in 2009, and with the help of other carvers such as Cornelius Maenz, Bertram Safferling, Roger Wallenstien, and Rainer Barbi, quickly came into his own. Unlike many of his contemporaries who are influenced by the modern schools of design, Steffan’s take on pipe making is almost entirely free of derivation, and when he does choose to incorporate design or stylistic cues developed outside of his repertoire, Steffan finds a way to make them uniquely his own. Steffan has the ability to see the melody in lines, the harmony in composition, and he doesn’t stop until the pipe in front of him has developed into a symphony of color, shape, and texture.

Steffan loves to play with different finishing techniques, often incorporating vibrant colors. He is one a several European carvers to master the driftwood style finish. But don’t let this whimsy fool you; Steffan is just as apt to use naked briar and wax as he is to use a multi-hued driftwood smorgasbord. Stems are an integral piece of any composition, so Steffan hand cut’s all his mouthpieces from high quality German ebonite, often of equally vivid tones.

When he isn’t stunning the pipe world with his truly novel compositions, Steffan is a quite accomplished photographer and lover of other mediums of art. We’re thrilled he graciously allowed us to represent some of his very limited production work here at Blue Room Briars. If you to hear the clarion call of a good smoking pipe, please feast your gaze on some of Steffan’s masterpieces.