In the past, cigarette accessories were not really considered to be an integral part of the smoking experience. In some places, they were actually looked down upon as being effeminate and created solely with women in mind. Today, cigarette accessories are a vital part of keeping the lure of smoking alive, and if it were not for some strategically placed frills, the thrills would have soon died out.

Granted, many cigarette accessories are functional and as such actually do fulfill a useful purpose. Yet more often than not these accoutrements are not essential to the experience. Take for example the cigarette holder. When smoking became widely popular in the early 1920s it would have been unthinkable for a woman to not have a long cigarette holder to round out her evening attire. It was considered chic, the height of fashion, and the materials that were used to make these holders accentuated the user’s wealth, habits, and fashion sense. Men used cigarette holders as well, although they were a good bit shorter.

With smoking bans on the rise, old fashioned cigarette accessories bring back a bit of nostalgia and also create a certain allure of a carefree time when smoking was not the modern equivalent of a four letter word but instead a social activity that many participated in. Thus, the resurgence of cigarette holders as wardrobe pieces is not a surprising step.

Other cigarette accessories that are experiencing a new interest are the ash trays as well as the lighters. While in the past both of these accessories were advertising tool par excellence, today they are considered to be out of style. Ash trays used to be part and parcel of a place setting, together with water glass, wine glass and butter dish. Yet the popularity of lighters even in today’s market can hardly be denied. Even many non-smokers carry lighters for their practical applications, and smoke shops know to stack a large assortment.

While many of the currently available cigarette accessories may remind of a time gone by when smoking was socially acceptable and perhaps even glamorous and cool, other accessories point toward smoking as an exotic undertaking. These might be accessories used in foreign countries and they may serve to interest the hesitant to taste tobacco perhaps for the first time with the help of a water pipe of other conversation piece. As such, these little gadgets are almost indispensable in the smoking sub culture which is now springing up everywhere since smoking bans are creating havoc with the public enjoyment of the rather odorous habit.