I have not covered pipes before, but sources of bamboo can be garden shops, Pier1 sometimes, and The American Bamboo society's links to bamboo sellers including "poles" http://www.americanbamboo.org/CommercialMessages.html. Good luck with it.

That first link from hanhan17 goes to shoes???

@Jan: It's spam. They'll catch it in a bit.

Regarding the bamboo...I assume you have to hollow out the middle pieces. You probably need to cut the entire thing in half and carve them out. Then glue the bamboo back together around your pipe, making sure to secure it by tying something like cable ties around until it's dry.

I know is a thing of personal taste... but I find it tacky and unnecessary to cover the exposed pipe.

People will be wondering why is there a huge lonely chunk of bamboo in the bathroom.

you can go to rosensweig in the bronx. it has every type of wood, thick pieces of bamboo with different lengths and different kinds of bamboo. the place is a dream if you are into wood.

Is is a hot water pipe or -- more likely - a heating pipe. You may want to live with it for a while first, or you may find yourself with a really cold bathroom. We put some insulation around our bathroom heating pipe this winter, becasue my partner doesn't like it too warm (I have always tolerated it) -- BUT, last night I took it off before we went to bed and this morning he thanked me for doing so. With sub-zero temperatures, a toasty bathroom is a good thing!

If you do opt for bamboo, you will need to find a piece with a diameter large enough to accommodate the width of the pipe. And YOU will need to measure you pipe to determine the length you need (you may need 2 pieces). And yes, of course you will need it split -- how else would you get it around the pipe?

My guess is that you like "the idea" of the bamboo, and I must admit I like the aesthetic, too. But you need to do some planning and research before taking the plunge. Good luck.

I think Maxwell once covered an exposed bathroom pipe with twine in the first tiny apartment years ago.

Maybe look for that post.

I have done this. The bamboo can be purchased split. Sizing the length is problematic as the bamboom expands and contacts as the temps and moisture wax and wane during the course of seasons. This also makes gluing the pieces together and maintaining the joint next to impossible. If some one else has done this w/total success I would really like to hear about their experience. If you have patience and do not mind the sometime frequent adjustments, it is a good solution to the ugly heat pipe.

I think I might opt for securing it with twine (a bit of Maxwell's idea) on the top and bottom and inserting some dowels inside along the length of it (if needed). Just make sure to get a piece of bamboo with enough thickness to hold the dowels. A good Dremel for drilling the holes would help too. You may need to glue one end of the dowel into the bamboo, but the piece would still be easy to take apart if necessary. And aesthetically, I might lean a few smaller pieces of bamboo on/around it so (as manu_pty mentioned) it's more of an arrangement. Of course, this is all dependent on the location of the pipe.

Bamboo is a hollow grass, so no carving out should be necessary, although you might need to cut or break out the "dividers" that are at the nodes -- I never messed with bamboo of a diameter big enough for a pipe, so I don't know if they remain at that size.

I think a bamboo pole is a very Japanese aesthetic, so I'd try to make the rest of the room fit that look for the bamboo to seem appropriate.

I'd try to find a source that has the appropriate diameter (remember you need to measure the hollow inside not the exterior dimension) and pre-split from one piece of bamboo. Try to arrange it so the seams are not in front, but are as hidden as possible, and don't worry as much about the seam that is hardest to see. I'd wrap the top and bottom with twine or raffia as others mentioned, which is also a very Japanese look.