Blouse front closer
A blouse front closer includes a strip connected by adhesive to the overlapping facing surfaces of the panels of the blouse preferably at and between the buttons of the blouse to hold the blouse closed. The intermediate segment of the strip may have no adhesive applied thereto for surrounding the button connector, and the blouse front closer may be formed of hook and loop patches for connecting the blouse panels together.
Applicant claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/710,711 filed Aug. 23, 2005.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThis invention concerns an attachment to a blouse for holding closed the openings of a blouse at and between the buttons of the blouse to avoid the occurrence of inadvertent opening of the blouse.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONA typical woman's blouse is formed with a pair of opposed front panels with overlapping edges, with one of the front panels having a series of buttons, snaps or other connectors attached thereto by threads or other type connectors, and the second front panel having a series of buttonholes or other receivers for receiving the buttons, etc. of the first front panel. In some circumstances, the blouse panels tend to separate between the buttons or the buttons release from the button holes, forming an undesirable opening in the front of the garment. For example, the separation might be due to the blouse properly fitting across the shoulders but not across the bosom, or due to the movement of the wearer of the blouse, or due to the particular fabric and the spacing of the buttons of the blouse. It is to this problem that this invention is directed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONBriefly described, the present invention concerns a blouse front closer for use on a blouse or similar garment that opens at the front and which includes opposed first and second front panels with overlapping edges. The first front panel of the blouse has a series of buttons or other types of connectors, referred to herein as “buttons.” The buttons may be attached to the blouse by button connectors, usually threads. A second front panel has a series of buttonholes or other type receivers referred to herein as “button holes” for receiving the buttons of the first front panel. When the blouse is first donned, the buttonholes are aligned over the buttons and the buttons pass through the holes. This invention includes a blouse front closer having an elongated connector strip that is positioned between the overlapping edges of the first and second panels of the blouse.
In one embodiment of the invention the connector strip adhesively connects together the overlying edges of the blouse, thus avoiding the formation of gaps between the buttons. The connector strip may have a releasable adhesive material applied to its opposite surfaces. Peel-away strips are applied to the releasable adhesive material for protecting the adhesive before use, and for selectively exposing the adhesive when the connector strip is to be applied to the overlying surfaces of the front panels of the blouse.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, a recess is formed in one of the edges of the elongated connector strip, intermediate the ends of the connector strip. The recess is for placement on the blouse about the connector of a button of the first front panel of the blouse. This permits the remaining length of the connector strip to be aligned with and extend between adjacent buttons, so as to avoid exposure beyond the outer edge of the outer front panel of the blouse, and to strengthen the blouse front panels at the most necessary location.
Preferably, the elongated connector strip is translucent and without a discernable color so that it is clear and becomes substantially invisible when properly placed in a blouse as described above. Also, the connector strip may be made of colors, if desired, to match with the color of the blouse.
The connector strip may be of any desirable length and width and can be provided in end-to-end connected supply. For example, the supply of connector strips may be packaged in the form of an elongated reel of the connector strips, or in a fan folded supply, so that the wearer can retrieve the desired length of the blouse front closers for a particular blouse.
In another embodiment of the invention, the elongated strip has an intermediate space where there is no adhesive applied to its surfaces, with the recess formed in the non-adhesive intermediate section. This permits the wearer to more easily place the connector strip in its desired position, with the recess surrounding the connector threads of the button before the peel-away protective strips are removed from the connector strip. This allows accurate alignment, added strength and placement of the connector strip before it is adhered to the blouse.
In yet another embodiment of the invention, the intermediate portion of the connector strip can be made of reinforced material so that it is less flexible and tends to retain its shape behind the button of the blouse, tending to avoid the unsightly collapse of the portion of the blouse adjacent the button.
The elongated connector strip is made of flexible material that can be trimmed by conventional scissors to be formed in any desired shape, to be compatible with blouses that have buttons that are closely spaced.
Yet another embodiment of the invention includes a hook and loop fastener that is connected to the edges of the blouse front. The loop patches may be applied to both the facing surfaces of the overlying blouse panels and hook patches may be positioned between the loop patches, such that the intermediate hook patches cling to the loop patches and hold the blouse panels closed. Or only a mating pair of hook and loop patches may be used.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Referring now in more detail to the drawings, in which like numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views,
As illustrated in
The blouse front closer 10 of
Adhesive is applied to both the opposed first and second surfaces 22 and 24, as represented by the “X” marks applied to the first surface 22. It is desirable that the elongated connector strip 20 be sufficiently flexible in order to bend with the blouse, maintaining the shape of the blouse in a natural configuration. Mylar tape can form the material of the connector tape. The elongated connector strip usually will be between ½ to ¾ inches wide, and of a length that is sufficient to span the spaces between the adjacent buttons of a blouse, usually up to six inches in length, to extend about 3 inches on opposite sides of a button. The connector strip is easily cut by conventional scissors so that it can be reduced in length and width so as to be compatible with the spacing of the buttons of the blouse.
The elongated connector strip 20 can be formed of 0.007 Clear Polyester G/G PT2. This material is generally known as tear-resistant plastic.
Another tape material that is suitable for use in the blouse front closer is Shurtape 205190, described as DF 642 NAT-24MM X 23M - 36ris/cs-C.
While the foregoing described tapes are suitable for this intended purpose, other types of tapes can be utilized as may be desired. The tape that is to be applied to the blouse surfaces should be a double-faced tape so as to adhere to both of the overlying edges of the panels of the blouse and leave no residue.
Peel-away strips of conventional design 34 and 36 are applied to the adhesive layers on both sides of the connector strip 20 for the purpose of protecting the adhesive prior to using the connector strip. The peel away strips 44, 46 may be formed of a length that extends beyond the adhesive, such as at end portions 37 to facilitate removal of the peel away strips. This is illustrated in
The recess 38 also places the adhesive and the portion of the connector strip adjacent the recess in a U-shaped arrangement about the button and button hole so as to support the material immediately adjacent the button and button hole.
As illustrated in
With the arrangement of
The blouse front closer can be applied with its side recess, such as side recess 38 of
The elongated connector strip can be manufactured in a continuous form as illustrated in
When the blouse front closer 60 of
The intermediate connector 86 has patches 92 with J-shaped connectors, the patches being adhesively mounted to a substrate 96 on one surface of the substrate, and similar patches 94 with J-shaped connectors mounted to the other side of the substrate 96. With this arrangement, the loops of the hook and loop fastener 80 face in opposite directions from intermediate connector 86. A recess 98 is formed in the intermediate edge portion of the inside patch 82 for straddling the threads 17 of the button 16 and a similar recess 99 is formed in the intermediate edge portion of the connector 86 for the same purpose. A recess 100 is formed in the intermediate edge portion of the outside patch 84 for partially surrounding the button hole 18.
Before use, protective strips like those shown in
When the hook and loop fastener 80 of
Once the blouse has been donned by the wearer, the intermediate connector 86 is inserted between the inside patch 82 and outside patch 84 of the hook and loop fastener of
With this arrangement, the inside patch 82 and outside patch 84 of the hook and loop fastener 80 of
Before use, protective strips like those shown in
Like the connector of
Although preferred embodiments of the invention has been disclosed in detail herein, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that variations and modifications of the disclosed embodiments can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.
Claims
1. A blouse front closer for use on a blouse having a front opening defined by opposed first and second front panels with overlapping edges, with the first front panel having a series of buttons attached thereto by button connectors and the second front panel having a series of button holes for receiving the buttons of the first front panel, said blouse front closer comprising:
- an elongated connector strip having first and second opposed surfaces, opposed longitudinal edges and end edges,
- releasable adhesive material applied to both said first and second opposed surfaces of said elongated connector strip,
- a peel away strip applied to said releasable adhesive material of each said first and second opposed surfaces of the elongated connector strip for protecting the adhesive and for selectively exposing the adhesive, and
- a recess formed in at least one of said opposed longitudinal edges of said elongated strip for placement on the blouse about the connector of a button of the first front panel of the blouse,
- such that the peel away strip is removed from the adhesive of the first opposed surface of the elongated connector strip and the first surface of the opposed elongated connector strip is applied to the first front panel of the blouse with the button connector received in the recess of the elongated connector strip, the peel away strip of the second opposed surface is removed from the elongated connector strip and the button of the first panel is moved through a button hole of the second panel of the blouse and the second panel of the blouse is applied to the second opposed surface of the elongated connector strip.
2. The blouse front closer of claim 1, wherein the connector strip is translucent.
3. The blouse front closer of claim 1, wherein said connector strip is formed with a center section and opposed end sections on opposite sides of said center section,
- said center section having no adhesive applied thereto.
4. The blouse front closer of claim 3, wherein said recess is formed in said center section.
5. In combination,
- a blouse having a front opening defined by opposed first and second front panels with overlapping edges, with the first front panel having a series of buttons attached thereto by button connectors and the second front panel having a series of button holes for receiving the buttons of the first front panel,
- a blouse front closer applied to said blouse comprising:
- an elongated connector strip having first and second opposed surfaces, opposed longitudinal edges and end edges,
- releasable adhesive material applied to both said first and second opposed surfaces of said elongated connector strip,
- a peel away strip applied to said releasable adhesive material of each said first and second opposed surfaces of the elongated connector strip for protecting the adhesive and for selectively exposing the adhesive, and
- a recess formed in at least one of said opposed longitudinal edges of said elongated strip for placement on the blouse about the connector of a button of the first front panel of the blouse,
- such that the peel away strip is removed from the adhesive of the first opposed surface of the elongated connector strip and the first surface of the opposed elongated connector strip is applied to the first front panel of the blouse with the button connector received in the recess of the elongated connector strip, the peel away strip of the second opposed surface is removed from the elongated connector strip and the button of the first panel is moved through a button hole of the second panel of the blouse and the second panel of the blouse is applied to the second opposed surface of the elongated connector strip.
6. A blouse front closer for use on a blouse having a front opening defined by opposed first and second front panels with overlapping edges, with the first front panel having a series of buttons attached thereto by button connectors and the second front panel having a series of button holes for receiving the buttons of the first front panel, said blouse front closer comprising:
- a connector for positioning between the panels of the blouse, the connector including a pair of patches for attaching to the facing surfaces of the first and second front panels of the blouse and an intermediate connector for adhering to said pair of patches.
7. The blouse front connector of claim 6, wherein the patches are both formed with a looped surface and the intermediate connector is formed with opposed hooked surfaces for connection to the loop surfaces.
8. The blouse front closer of claim 6, wherein a recess is formed in pairs of patches for placement on the blouse about the connector of a button of the first front panel of the blouse.
9. The blouse front closer of claim 6, wherein the blouse front connector is translucent.
10. A blouse front closer for use on a blouse having a front opening defined by opposed first and second front panels with overlapping edge portions, with the overlapping edge portion of the first front panel having at least one button attached thereto by button connectors and the overlapping edge of the second front panel having at least one button hole for receiving the button of the first front panel, said blouse front closer comprising:
- a connector for positioning between the overlapping portions of the panels of the blouse, the connector including a pair of patches for attaching to the facing surfaces of the first and second front panels of the blouse, both connectors having opposed side edges and opposed surfaces with one surface of both patches bearing an adhesive and the other surface of one patch bearing hook fasteners and the other surface of the other patch bearing loop fasteners,
- a recess formed in an edge of each patch, such that one patch is adhesively attached to one panel of the blouse and its recess receives the threads of the blouse button and the other patch is adhesively attached to the other panel of the blouse and its recess surrounds the button hole that receives the button.
11. The blouse front closer of claim 10, wherein the recesses of both patches face the edges of the panels of the blouse.
Type: Application
Filed: Aug 18, 2006
Publication Date: Mar 1, 2007
Inventor: Rebecca Whicker (Woodstock, GA)
Application Number: 11/506,984
International Classification: A41D 13/00 (20060101);