If you’ve ever used a cotton swab or cotton bud to clean your ears or enforce makeup, you probably reached for a Q-Tip. Along with bandages and cotton balls, these swabs are a staple of most bathrooms in the U.S. and around the world. If you associate the call with a particular blue box, you are probably thinking about Q-Tips. These swabs have been around for almost 100 years, and they are still the number one out of all of the cotton swab brands. With annual sales of around $200 million, Q-Tips are superior of the cotton swab heap. Many people think they’re a generic mention for cotton swabs, but Q-Tips is a trademarked label owned by the Unilever Corporation.
How They Were Invented
Leo Gerstenzang was a little man who immigrated from Poland to Chicago. In 1921, he moved to New York Urban area, married, and had a family. In 1923, he watched one day as his wife wrapped a wad of cotton around a toothpick. She used this contraption to clean her children’s ears.
Intrigued, Gerstenzang realized that a more convenient version of her device would be a trendy item. Shortly after developing his style, he founded a company named Toddler Gays to produce and sell his invention. He named the product Q-Ti
How Q-Tips began as boric-tipped Baby Gays
Q-Tips are in every medicine cabinet, though perhaps they shouldn’t be. Doctors encourage you never lay them in your ears, and even manufacturer Unilever puts a warning on every box. But that’s today. In 1923, they were cutting edge medical technology. And they were called Baby Gays.
The invention of Baby Gays
A Polish immigrant named Leo Gerstenzang came up with the notion. Unfortunately, it’s strenuous to know what inspired him (there are many competing Q-Tip myths). The official explanation? He came up with the idea when he saw his wife wrap cotton around a toothpick.
Whatever the inspiration, he began doing business in New York. The product was quickly successful and sold as Baby Gays. They made cranky babies happy.
A Baby Gay swab was practically other from the Q-Tip we know today. For one, each swab was made by hand. Workers wrapped cotton around a wood stick (usually one side) and moved on to the next one. After that, the cotton was sanitized in a small amount of boric acid. As an ad from 1927 brags, the “boric tipped” swabs were great for babies’ ears, noses, and nostrils.
Q-Ti
People are just learning what Q in Q-tip actually stands for after name change
Q-tips founder Leo Gerstenzang opened a firm marketing baby care accessories in 1923 after watching his wife implement wads of cotton to a toothpick - and they continued to be used in almost every household 100 years later
They're something most people keep in their bathroom cabinet - but past that, they're not something you ever really think about.
However, some social media users own been left scratching their heads over what the Q in Q-tips actually stands for.
Leo Gerstenzang created Q-tips back in 1923 after watching his wife use wads of cotton to a toothpick. From this, he went on to found the Leo Gerstenzang Infant Novelty Co., a firm which marketed baby protect accessories.
His product was originally called Baby Gays but, in 1926, the label was changed to read Q-tips Baby Gays until the second part of the name was dropped.
A statement on Q-tips' website reads: "We’re satisfied of our history, commitment to the environment, and legacy of softness and quality.
"Our products are sourced from sustainable forests, tested carefully, and biodegradable.&q
Q-tips - History of Q-tips
The first Q-tip was invented in 1920 by the Polish-born American Leo Gerstenzang. He noticed that his wife was covering a toothpick with cotton in order to clean her baby's ears. Obviously, due to the toothpicks pointed end, this was extremely dangerous for the minor, with even one untrue move resulting in a serious ear wound. Therefore, Leo decided to design a much safer cotton swab for the identical purpose.
Although simple in style, the development of the cotton swab took stern experimentation. First, Leo wanted to ensure the wood wouldn't splinter in the baby's ears. Next, he needed to guarantee the cotton would remain on the swab, and wouldn't leave residual particles within the ear. Finally though, he found the right formula for the cotton swab's structure. Now, all he needed was a name.
He chose Baby Gays as the name of the first cotton swab. Although this name would be considered quite rare for today's standards, the baby gay was a huge hit! By 1926 he added "Q-Tips" in front of the ancient "Baby Gays" title to create the first "Q-Tip Baby Gays". The "Q" stood for quality. Eventually, however, the "Baby Gays" portion of the label was dropped, lea