Lingerie and Adult Gift Shops Locations Locator Map and Directory

Background

Lingerie is a term for women's fashion undergarments. It derives from the French word 'lin' for linen.[1] While the term in the French language applies to all undergarments for either sex, in English it is applied only to those women's undergarments designed to be visually appealing or erotic, typically incorporating materials such as lace and silk, and not applied to functional cotton undergarments.

The concept of lingerie being visually appealing is relatively recent. Up through the first half of the 20th century women selected underwear for three major purposes: to alter their shape (first with corsets and later with girdles or bras), for reasons of hygiene, or for modesty. Women's underwear was often very large and bulky. As the 20th century progressed underwear became smaller and more form fitting. In the 1960s 'controversial' lingerie manufacturers such as Frederick's of Hollywood begin to glamourize lingerie and the idea of lingerie having a sexual appeal slowly developed.

A sex toy is any object or device that is primarily used in facilitating human sexual pleasure. This term can also include BDSM apparatuses, sex furniture, sex swings, fisting sling, Bonkum, or angled cushions and shaped pilows. The most popular Sex Toys are designed to resemble human genitals and can be classified as vibrating or non-vibrating. Sex toys usually do not include contraceptives, pornography, or condoms.

A related "softer" term is adult toy. Another related term is marital aid, often used as a euphemism for sex toys, although marital aid is broader as it can also be applied to drugs and herbs marketed as supposedly enhancing or prolonging sex.