The latest thing among women is the C-string, which basically eliminates the visible panty line.
Looking more like a headband, the briefest of fronts tapers to a wire that tucks between your cheeks and holds everything together.
Men are buying them in droves for their wives and girlfriends as an alternative to sensible granny pants, the Mirror reported.
However, women are not so smitten by the underwear.
One wrote on a forum that it is very uncomfortable, and the fabric is almost like swimsuit material, adding that it doesn't stay in place.
Her views have been echoed by women columnists around the world, some of whom road-tested the garment and came away more than a little miffed.
One labelled it 'the worst thing ever to happen to women's undergarments and possibly "humanity.