Nail Template

Abstract

Provided is a template which contains the nail coverings for both the fingers and toes in the one template. Such a template provides a very important advantage. Only one template needs to be stocked as compared to one for fingers and one for toes. Only one template needs to be accounted for in inventory. Customers can get two uses out of a single template.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/363,350, filed Jul. 12, 2010, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a template which holds the nail coverings to be applied to the fingers and toes of a person. More specifically, the template contains the nail coverings for both the fingers and toes.

2. Description of the Related Art

Templates are used in the nail industry to hold the nail coverings to be applied to the fingers and toes of a person. Generally, one template is used to provide the nail coverings for the fingers, and another for the toes of a person. Thus, two different nail templates need to be stocked and accounted for in inventory.

For example, U.S. 2005/0061342 describes a plastic element having an area and shape approximating the area and shape of a nail. The element has an adhesive backing A plurality of the elements can be in contact with one release backing sheet. The elements can be of different sizes, but the elements are each individually designed for fingers or toes.

U.S. 2005/0150508 describes nail-art systems for fingernail or toenail decoration. The nail-art nail system described comprises flexible, computer-printed nail-art appliqués used to decorate fingernails or toenails. Separate templates for fingernails and toenails would still need to be stocked.

Providing a template which contains the nail coverings for both the fingers and toes, however, would be of great benefit to the industry. The benefits would be realized both in the inventory of the product, but also in the overall ease of application of the product.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Provided is a template which contains the nail coverings for both the fingers and toes in the one template. Such a template provides a very important advantage. Only one template needs to be stocked as compared to one for fingers and one for toes. Only one template needs to be accounted for in inventory. Customers can get two uses out of a single template. Ease of application to the fingers and toes of a person would be greatly enhanced.

Among other factors, it has been discovered that great benefits are achieved by combining the nail coverings for both the toes and fingers on a single template. In particular, such benefits are enhanced when each nail covering on the template is structured to be useful for both a finger and a toe. Application to the fingers and toes can be accomplished by using a single template of nail coverings. Moreover, by having a single item or section of the template designed to cover both a fingernail and toenail, application to both the fingers and toes can be accomplished more easily, and the nail coverings can be accounted for and maintained more easily. From a business perspective, having a single template cover both the fingers and toes, eliminates by half the number of templates that are needed to stock and account for in inventory.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

The FIGURE of the Drawing depicts a template with ten sections or nail coverings, with each nail covering being appropriate for both a finger and a toe.

DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS

The template contains the materials to be applied to the nails, but each section in the template can be used for a finger nail and a toe nail. The section is sufficiently long that when cut in two, at the desired location, one side is used for a finger nail and the other for a toe nail. One side of the material in the template is designed or shaped for the finger, generally the more rounded side, and the other is designed or shaped for toes. The template will generally have ten sections or nail coverings, with the material for application in each section being applicable for a finger nail and a toe nail. The section or nail covering is sufficient in length to allow such dual application when cut at the appropriate location, with one side designed for application to a finger, and the other to a toe.

In reference to the FIGURE of the Drawing, a template 1 is shown with ten sections. However, a template may accommodate as many sections for nail coverings as desired. Each section has one side 2 useful for application to fingers, and a second side 3 designed for application to toes. In one embodiment, the side of the template sections designed for finger nail application 2 is more rounded than the sides of the section designed for application to the toe nails. When a section of material is removed from the template in preparation for application, the section can be cut at an appropriate location, which can be indicated on the section, to create nail material for application to a finger nail and a toenail. The appropriate location can be indicated, for example, by a line 4 on the nail covering material. Shown 4 is a dotted line, but the line need not be dotted.

Each section of material or item on the template is of a shape and area approximating the shape and area of a particular finger nail on one side of the item, and of a shape and area approximating the shape and area of a particular toe nail on the other side. The length of the section or item is designed to be of sufficient length to accommodate both the fingernail covering and the toe nail covering. The covering, once removed from the template, can be cut to accommodate and provide both a fingernail covering and a toe nail covering.

The nail coverings can be made of any suitable material. The nail covering can be made of a single layer of material, or can be a laminate of several layers of material. The materials can contain graphics or can be clear. In one embodiment, the nail covering is comprised of a laminate of cast vinyl films. The films can have graphics within the film or on the film. Graphics can be added after application of the nail coverings to the nail, if desired. The top layer of the laminate can be a clear protective layer for the graphics. A single cast vinyl film or a combination of cast vinyl films are preferred. Films such as graphic films, self-adhesive films, polyester, latex and rubber films are examples of other suitable films that can be used. The nail covering material can be any suitable, conventional nail covering material, of any desired thickness or complexity.

The sections or items on the template have an adhesive backing for easy application to the finger and toe nail. The adhesive is dry and adheres to a nail upon contact, firmly securing the nail covering to the nail. The application of the nail, and its detailed shaping, can be accomplished in any method known to the industry. For example, one method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,861,730, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. The adhesive used, however, generally releases easily and completely, so that the nail covering can be peeled away from the nail, leaving no adhesive behind. The adhesive is also non-damaging to the nail, and is resistant to most oils, solvents, acids, alkalines, soaps and salts. Any suitable conventional adhesive can be so used. For example, a clear, solvent based acrylic adhesive would be suitable.

The template from which the various nail coverings with adhesive backing are removed can be any suitable backing from which the coverings are easily peeled. One example of a suitable backing is a silicon coated release paper.

The various nail coverings can be of different colors or designs, and can vary in size to accommodate many different people. Only one template is needed, however, to beautifully attire the fingernails and toenails of a particular person.

The template can be packaged and sold individually, or can be part of a kit containing other components. Such components can include an emery board, alcohol wipes, or a system for heating and applying the nail coverings. The nail template can be one component of the kit.

The present templates offer many benefits. By having a single item or section of the template designed to cover both a fingernail and a toe nail, application to both the fingers and toes can be accomplished more easily, and the appropriate nail coverings can be accounted for and maintained more easily. The single template also greatly reduces inventory and accounting issues.

The previous description of the embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the invention. The various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without the use of inventive faculty. Thus, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A template containing nail coverings for application to both fingernails and toenails, with each nail covering having one end shaped to accommodate a fingernail and the other end shaped to accommodate a toenail.

2. The template of claim 1, containing ten sections of material for application to both fingernails and toenails, with each section having one end shaped for application to fingernails and the other end shaped for application to toenails.

3. The template of claim 1, wherein the end shaped for application to fingernails is more rounded than the other end shaped for application to toenails.

4. The template of claim 2, wherein the end shaped for application to fingernails is more rounded than the other end shaped for application to toenails.

5. The template of claim 1, wherein the nail coverings on the template have an adhesive backing.

6. The template of claim 5, wherein the adhesive backing is comprised of an acrylic adhesive.

7. The template of claim 1, wherein the template containing the nail coverings is comprised of silicon treated release paper.

8. The template of claim 1, wherein the nail coverings are comprised of at least one layer of a cast vinyl material.

9. The template of claim 8, wherein the nail coverings are comprised of multiple cast vinyl layers.

10. The template of claim 1, wherein the nail coverings have a line on them indicating the place the covering should be cut to provide a fingernail covering and a toenail covering.

11. The template of claim 10, wherein the line is a dotted line.

12. A kit comprising the template of claim 1.

13. The kit of claim 12 comprising components for heating and applying the nail covering to the nail.

14. The template of claim 1, containing greater than ten sections of nail coverings for application to both fingernails and toenails.