Sometimes it takes a time-out to set one up on a new path. That was exactly the result of a self-imposed quarantine for Van local Liz Fisher, as she struggled with a severe case of coronavirus in the very first stages of the pandemic. 

“I was finally coming back, physically, when I saw an advertisement for a custom-made pipe,” she explained. “Of course, I thought, ‘wonder if I could make that?’”

Like many things which catch Fisher’s attention, this question was given serious consideration. It didn’t take long for a determination to be made. She could learn. 

If one knows Fisher, they understand that once committed to a course of action, it will come to pass. She has what one might call, active hands.   

The departure down the road to pipe-making wasn’t without a nudge from the past. Fisher’s father, the late David Wright, produced scenic carvings as a hobby for years. Fisher described him as a self-made man, who always challenged her. He would pick up a piece of wood or a unique rock and ask her, “What do you see in it?”

That natural artistic vision and curiosity was passed from father to daughter. While Wright used diminutive dentistry drills to create very detailed scenes carved into pieces of oak or pecan or whatever was handy, Fisher had the thought of a custom-made pipe in her head. 

A lot of research and a lot of trial and error followed. With excellent attention to detail, Fisher was soon producing one-of-a-kind, quality tobacco pipes. 

She admitted that it was a natural fit. Not only had she inherited her father’s artistic curiosity, but she had worked in early adulthood as a graphic artist.

“It was a logical progression, from the two-dimensional graphic arts work to the three-dimensions of a pipe.”

A corner of the barn was repurposed as a small (about 10’ x 20’) workshop, and the hobby was launched in earnest.

Taking in the workshop illustrates that pipe-making is both a systematic and original process. A large collection of stummels (the piece which forms the bowl of the pipe), acrylic stems and metal bands are available across one short wall. 

At the opposite end are two display cases and a small seating area to enjoy the fruits of the labor. Between the two are a variety of work benches, each obviously used for a specific part of the creative process. The walls are bedecked with a variety of pipe-smoking memorabilia.      

Although there certainly is a process which must be adhered to in order to produce a quality pipe, Fisher noted, “When I pick up a stummel, it must talk to me…I must be able to see what is in it.”

It was a pipe carved and finished to portray the flower of a rose which proved critical to Fisher’s hobby. “The rose pipe,” stated Fisher, “was validation that yes, I could do this,” she shared.

As the hobby came to consume more and more time, Fisher discovered a small yet professional group of pipe-makers in the United States. Making those connections resulted in a road trip to Columbia, Tenn. There the pipe-making company Briarworks shared much of their processes and skills. 

“Just like at Briarworks, all the people I have met through this hobby have been just great people. I am so happy at the relationships that have been established,” Fisher stated.   

Perhaps one of the most telling relationships that have influenced Fisher’s custom pipe making was that of her late husband. Dale Ray Fisher passed away in 2015, having been plagued with a long case of cancer. 

One recent August, upon the occasion of her birthday, Fisher found herself sitting outside in a brilliant Texas day. A single dragonfly just seemed intent on harassing her; she couldn’t shoo it away. Finally, it did depart, and as it did a swarm of dragonflies came out of nowhere and spiraled around her. “It was one of the most amazing things I have ever experienced,” she said.      

“I just think of it as a little message, that maybe I was being checked on,” she reflected. “I decided that it was a good testimony and a nod that what I was doing was OK.”

With that singular episode in mind, Fisher has adopted a logo of a dragonfly for her works. Two “c’s” are on either side, representing the phrase “child of a carpenter.”

Now, assisted by her fiancé, Monty Nations, Fisher is busily producing unique pipes and pipe accessories of all types. She expressed her thankfulness that she has found an outlet and a hobby which she can excel at.  

Her custom pipes are available for viewing and purchase at the RNA Tavern on Johnson St. in downtown Mineola.

The exceptionally well-appointed cigar and whisky tavern is a great backdrop for the one-of-a-kind pipes of the dragonfly logo.