Women who are smokers who visit the USA, provided they can take a break from their loyalty to whatever brand they smoke, will truly be impressed with the rich variety of cigarette brands and styles which are made specifically for women. At the moment, there are a total of five brands (Virginia Slims, Misty, Eve, Capri, and More), with anywhere from four to ten styles within each brand. Although feminine brands have declined somewhat in recent years, they remain alive and well.

early Virginia Slims ad

The idea of feminine brands was born in 1968, when women were fighting for their emancipation. Hence, the first Virginia Slims were known as "torches of freedom." Once, it was considered to be a taboo for women to smoke. Today, smoking women are far more prevalent than they were 50 years ago. In the 38 industrialized nations of North America and Europe, 20% of the women are smokers, compared to 32% of the men, a margin of 12%. But in 12 of those countries, the margin is less than 5%, and in three of those countries, women have actually overtaken the men as smokers. If the trend continues, more and more women as smokers will overtake their male counterparts in the not so distant future. Click for a list of smoking rates in the 38 industrialized countries of North American and Europe.

later Virginia Slims ad

Traditional research hasn't had much to say about women and smoking, so no one knows for sure what's behind this female lure to smoke. But several important theories have emerged. For many women, cigarettes are perceived as a way to look glamorous and sophisticated, which is why many women choose to smoke a feminine brand. Many women even consider it as a method of weight control. Other women smoke because it relieves the intense stress of their careers, trying to balance a job with a healthy relationship, which often involves a family with children, and being a homemaker when she's not working or tending to children. Researchers believe that cigarettes may help women not only to relax, but to organize their thoughts-and that for some reason, it may be more addictive for women than for men. Most women become smokers in their teens; by the time they are young adults, cigarettes have become a very permanent part of their lives.

early Mistys ad

And for many smoking women, smoking a feminine brand contributes to their self-perceived identity as women. Further, since the 1960's, the tobacco industry has aggressively marketed cigarettes to women, taking advantage of alluring images of vitality, elegance, modernity, slimness, and emancipation. Such feminine brands are typically long, slim, and marketed as lights (even though some are not so light). In our combined families, eight adult women and two teenaged girls are smokers. Two of us smoke feminine 120's brands, three of us smoke feminine 100's brands, and five of us smoke unisex 100's brands.

Women smoke for many different reasons in addition to being physically addicted to cigarettes. Because of biological and social differences, women tend to be more dependent on cigarettes than men. The following are some of the reasons that many women are smokers, a few of which are more specific to women:

to cope with stress or anger;
to avoid eating or to control weight;
to cope with poverty or unemployment;
smoking can seem like an old friend;
smoking can be a reward after completing a task;
to take a break from caring for others, such as children or elderly parents;
to take a break from work responsibilities;
to cope with relationship problems;
to cope with feelings of powerlessness;
to cope with the loneliness or boredom of social isolation;
to maintain social connections;
to create distance from uncomfortable or dangerous social situations;
to cope with addiction to other substances such as alcohol or drugs;
to help with managing working, homemaking, and raising children simultaneously,

a challenge many women face today;

to give themselves a sense of control and emancipation.

later More ad

The increasing acceptance of homosexuality has also played a role in the increased prevalence of female smokers. According to The National Library of Medicine, smoking prevalence with lesbians, bi-sexuals, and gay men is higher than with their heterosexual counterparts. This study concluded that gay men had a smoking prevalence of 33.2%, was about 56% higher than that of heterosexual men, at 21.3%. Lesbians' smoking rate, at 25.3%, was about 70% higher than that of heterosexual women, at 14.9%; the increased rate for lesbian smokers was 14% higher than the increased rate for smoking gay men. And as with heterosexual couples, where one partner is a non-smoker and the other is a smoker, it is a bit more likely that the smoker will influence the non-smoker to start smoking than it is for the non-smoker to influence the smoker to quit smoking.

Strong recommendation for female smokers visiting the USA. Upon arrival, go to a convenience store or a gas station, and buy a single pack of Virginia Slims gold 120's and a single pack of Misty blue 120's. It is very likely that not only will you choose one of the two to be your brand for the rest of your visit, but also, you'll take home with you as many cartons as your country's  customs allows you.

Cigarette advertising on television was banned on January 1, 1971. With the exception of Capri, all of the brands below have amateur videos of what such advertisements would look like today.

I will discuss my take on the feminine cigarette brands available here in the USA.

Virginia Slims (VS 23mm circumference, Superslims 17mm circumference)

mature woman, preparing to
smoke a VS Silver 120

(More information available at Virginia Slims Cigarettes.)

I smoked Virginia Slims gold 120's from 1990 to 2010. And I truly loved them! They are a very premium cigarette. Which means paying a very premium price. For economic reasons, I switched to a less expensive brand in 2010. I intended to come back to VS one day, but I eventually got used to what I had switched to. Even though they have always been marketed as lights, they pack the same tar and nicotine as their Virginia Slims full-flavor 100's sisters, which I have tried and found to be delightful, but just a bit short for me. I once tried a pack of Virginia Slims silver 120's. Just once. I did not like them. They have an extremely difficult drag, which is probably why they're ultras. I got through the pack by cutting half the filter off of the cigarette before smoking it.

From their 1968 introduction, Virginia Slims were the first cigarette designed and marketed as a female-oriented fashion brand, targeting a younger demographic of female smokers. While various themes emerged in the marketing campaigns over the years, the basic threads have been independence, liberation, slimness, attractiveness, glamour, style, taste and a contrast to men's cigarettes. Thus, Virginia Slims functioned as a pioneer brand, which successfully implemented an empowering female-centered marketing strategy, also known as "femvertising".

Click for a modern version of a Virginia Slims 120's advertisement.

And another modern version of a Virginia Slims 120's advertisement..

Virginia Slims 120's

Virginia Slims are available in the following styles:
Virginia Slims (full flavor) 100's
Virginia Slims golds (lights) 100's
Virginia Slims silvers (ultras) 100's
Virginia Slims menthol (full flavor) 100's
Virginia Slims menthol golds (lights) 100's
Virginia Slims menthol silvers (ultras) 100's
Virginia Slims golds (lights) 120's
Virginia Slims silvers (ultras) 120's
Virginia Slims menthol golds (lights) 120's
Virginia Slims menthol silvers (ultras) 120's
Virginia Slims Superslims (ultras) 100's
Virginia Slims Superslims menthol (ultras) 100's

Misty (23mm circumference)

(More information available at Misty Cigarettes.)

My partner and I both smoke Misty blue 120's, and I've been smoking them since 2010. And I love them, pretty much as much as I loved Virginia Slims gold 120's. One thing I find superior about them is that they have an exceptionally easy drag, even for a 120. A very high quality cigarette, despite being a bargain brand. And being a bargain bran, a little bit more price friendly. We'll occasionally get a single pack of something different, normally a full-flavor 100, but Misty blue 120's will continue to be our go-to cigarette. Like Virginia Slims gold 120's, the Misty blue 120's have always been marketed as lights, but pack more tar and nicotine as their Misty blue 100's sisters (Misty full-flavor 100's were discontinued years ago).

young woman, proud of her Misty green 120's

Misty was first introduced in 1990 as a value-priced brand in the feminine brands segment, and grew rapidly to become America's leading value-priced slims brand, and this continues to be true today. Sales would eventually rival the highly successful rate of Virginia Slims, and far surpass other Slims brands. Misty 120's would also be the only value-priced brand available in the 120's market. They always maintained popularity over Capri, Eve, More, Saratoga (discontinued), Max (discontinued), and Style (discontinued). Misty cigarettes were produced originally in full flavor, lights, and ultra lights varieties, and are packaged only in hard packs. The full flavor varieties were eventually discontinued. Misty cigarettes were introduced with an attractive packaging, as a slim all-white, to attract price-conscious women, who would otherwise be attracted to other feminine brands. Feminine graphics were used on its packs to attract younger women to their brand, adorned with rainbows. In 1999, the slogan "find your rainbow" postured Mistys as an opportunity for women to find their freedom and individuality.

Click for a modern version of a Misty 120's advertisement.

Misty Blue 120's

Mistys are available in the following styles:

Misty Slims Blue 100's (lights)
Misty Slims Rose 100's (ultras) 
Misty Slims Menthol Green 100's (lights)
Misty Slims Menthol Silver 100's (ultras)
Misty Slims Blue 120's (lights)
Misty Slims Menthol Green 120's (lights)

Eve (21mm circumference)

Note: Eves marketed in the USA are a totally different cigarette from European Eves, made by a totally different manufacturer. 

One of the other ladies at the smoke shop where I work smokes Eve Amethyst 120's. On occasion, I'll smoke one of hers (and she'll smoke one of mine). They're actually not bad! They're lights, lighter than I prefer, but they taste quite bold for lights. 120's are not meant to be smoked in a hurry; this is especially true for Eve's; being slimmer than Virginia Slims or Misty, if smoked too quickly, the cherry gets out of control, spoiling the taste. One extremely delightful thing about Eves, which I wish was true of all cigarettes; the vent holes are located in the center of the filter around the circumference, not where the filter and the tobacco rod meet. This makes it very easy to cover the vent holes with my lips. And if I'm wearing a thicker coat of lipstick, the lipstick does a great job at covering those vent holes. If I were in a live-in relationship with a non-smoker, I would consider trying to switch to Eves, since they produce less stray smoke than more full-bodied cigarettes.

Eve 120's ad, capitalizing on the
tried and proven penis size joke

When I lived in Germany for six years, my beloved Virginia Slims that I smoked at the time were not available, so the European Eve 120's was my go-to cigarette. They had the length that I had become accustomed to five years previous, but they were much lighter than I was accustomed to. I would up supplementing my Eves with Marlboro red 100's until I came home, and went back to my Virginia Slims.

Eve Amethyst 120's
and Eve Emerald 120's

Eve was launched in 1971 as competition for the Virginia Slims brand, as a cigarette targeted at the growing women's market. Virginia Slims, marketed specifically to women, were aimed at women who identified themselves as liberated, independent, and modern. Eves were aimed at women content to be feminine. Both the cigarettes themselves and the packaging featured a floral design, prompting some ads to describe the cigarette as having "Flowers on the outside, flavor on the inside". As of 2002, the floral pattern has been replaced by a butterflies watermark, an updated graphic that appears less old fashioned and would appeal to younger audiences. Advertising urged women to embrace their femininity. Eve was also intended to attract women by harnessing the power of fashion. Many print advertisements across the decades portrayed women in fashionable, ladylike outfits, notably more conservative than their Virginia Slims counterparts. Both slogans told women that they would be beautiful if they smoked a beautiful cigarette. Like Virginia Slims, Eve cigarettes themselves are longer and narrower than average cigarettes, a clear reference to a woman’s figure. A slim, slender figure is often presented as more desirable in women’s fashion magazines and by models in the fashion industry. Thus Eve joined Virginia Slims in providing a subliminal, indirect message that their brand would result in its smokers obtaining or maintaining a slim figure. Eve also took advantage of its extra length (commonly 120mm as opposed to the 80mm of an average cigarette); this drove home the connection between longer cigarettes and sophisticated, ladylike women.

Click for a modern version of an Eve 120's advertisement..

Eves are available in the following styles:
Eve Amethyst 120s (lights)
Eve Sapphire 120s (ultras)
Eve Emerald 120s (menthol lights)
Eve Turquoise 120s (menthol ultras)

Capri (17mm circumference)

Woman smoking a Capri 120

I tried one pack of these; just one! They're just too slim for me! But I still found the flavor to be quite rich.

The Capri brand that we know today was launched in 1987 as the world's first superslim cigarette, and to compete with other slim cigarettes which were marketed towards women at the time, such as Virginia Slims. Susan Cameron, a committed smoker, who was Brown & Williamson's sales manager prior to becoming Reynolds-American CEO, personally oversaw oversaw the launch of Capri. Because Capris have a rather low share of the niche market, they are at risk for being the next feminine cigarette brand to be discontinued.

Capri Indigo 120's

Capris are available in the following styles:

Capri Magenta 100's (lights) 
Capri Magenta 120's (lights) 
Capri Indigo 100's (menthol lights)
Capri Indigo 120's (menthol lights)
Capri Violet 100's (ultras) 
Capri Jade 100's (menthol ultras) 

More (21mm circumference)

Woman smoking a More 120

More is another brand that I have tried one pack of; just one! The tar and nicotine content of the More 120's (red pack) that I tried was rather high, providing for a very satisfying experience. Except for the taste! I couldn't stand it!

The More brand that we know today was launched in 1975. More was originally marketed to both men and women, but later changed its primary focus to female smokers. It typically has a dark brown cigarette paper, instead of white. More closed the gap between cigars and cigarettes, and would be was the first successful 120mm cigarette. It has a strong flavor, and when introduced, was higher in tar and nicotine than most filter cigarettes on the market. It is sold in both the full flavor and lights, as well as menthols. It would eventually compete with Max 120's and Dawn 120's, both of which were high tar and nicotine cigarettes marketed towards women, and both of which would be discontinued. Another attempt at a woman's high tar and nicotine cigarette, Virginia Slims 120's, was unsuccessfully marketed in 1975, but would be successfully remarketed in 1985. Because Mores have a rather low share of the niche market, they are at risk for being the next feminine cigarette brand to be discontinued.

Click for a modern version of a More 120's advertisement.

1986 More 120's ad

Mores are available in the following styles:
More Slim 120's (full flavor)
More Menthol Slim 120's (full flavor)
More Gold Slim 120's (lights)
More Silver Menthol Slim 120's (lights)