Good article. With any luck it might be the first shot in the battle for some gender equality. Just as pipe-smoking men have the "distinguished older gentleman" image to deal with, women have it worse.
It does beg the question: what effect (if any) does the style of pipe have on the femininity of the image of the young, pipe-smoking woman? Are there styles that work and those that don't? Something longer and with a smooth finish like Chelsea's meer? I know that my wife presents two completely different images with a workmanlike rusticated 1/4 bent in her mouth versus a long, elegant chuchwarden.
Simon