A cigarette is a tobacco product manufactured out of cured and finely cut tobacco leaves, which are rolled into a paper wrapped cylinder. It is usually considered as a masculine habit; however the advent of cigarettes was specifically marketed towards ladies, who see smoking as a way to appear more attractive. It came into existence in the 18th century, when beggars in Seville began to pick up the cigars thrown on the ground by the rich young men and wrapped the tobacco remains in paper and smoked them.

Many men and women who smoke use cigarette holders, which is a slender tube that holds up to four cigarettes. These holders are generally made of silver, jade or bakelite, however they now being replaced by modern plastics. They were considered as an essential part of ladies' fashion from the 1900s to the mid-1960s, and are still widely popular in many aspects of Japanese fashion. It was also used as an accessory, before the invention of filtered cigarettes; these holders would encase a filter. Though modern cigarettes are generally manufactured with filters, filtered cigarette holders are still used sometimes for a secondary filtration system.

The size of the cigarette holder generally varies from three inches to over a foot. They are available in simple to elaborate with complex inlays of metal and gemstones. Some of cigarette holders also make use of costlier material such as enamel, horn, tortoise shell, or more precious materials such as amber, and ivory.