OK, so in a newsroom that’s largely populated by men, I had to pitch a story on a woman who helped popularize thong panties. Yeah, awkward!

Actually, I handled it a lot better than one of my bosses who could not bring himself to say, “panties” during the editorial budget meeting. This, of course, still fills me with glee. As a professional woman, I spend of time wondering if I should challenge something said in reference to a woman that sounds a wee bit sexist or a wee bit off or a wee bit ignorant, but most of the time I try to joke it away.

This is a cool story about an innovative entrepreneur who by the inch probably makes more money on her garments than most designers, so that’s something to celebrate. And it’s just icing on the cake that it sparked an interesting design debate among the boys about using the colorful array of women’s undergarments.

Read the full story here: Hanky Panky lingerie celebrates 40 years of cheeky style.