LORELAI: Oh, hey, we need Q-Tips.
Q-Tips are a brand of what are known in the US as cotton swabs, and elsewhere as cotton buds, often used for make-up application and cleaning ears.
The first mass-produced cotton swab was developed in 1923 by Polish-American inventor Leo Gerstenzang, after watching his wife attach wads of cotton to a toothpick to clean their baby’s ears. The product was originally known as Baby Gays, then changed to Q-Tip Baby Gays, with the Q standing for “quality”, then just Q-Tips. In North America, the brand name is often used generically for any cotton swab (see Kleenex).
The Annotated Gilmore Girls 