HAIR EXTENSION WITH REDUCED DETECTABILITY
A hair extension includes a section of hair and a substrate. Hair strands of the section of hair are affixed together at a first end by a solidified liquid polymer such that ends of the hair strands are retained within the polymer across a width of the section of hair. The substrate is attached to the polymer on one side (e.g., a rear side) of the section of hair across at least part of a width of the hair section. According to one exemplary embodiment, the substrate is also a solidified polymer. The width of the substrate, as measured along a length of the extension's section of hair, is substantially greater than a width of the polymer, as similarly measured. The wider substrate facilitates reliable attachment of the extension to the user's hair, while the narrower polymer enables the installed extension to remain virtually undetectable.
Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to hair enhancement techniques and more particularly to a hair extension configured to be virtually undetectable when installed in a user's hair.
Description of Related Art
Hair extensions have been used in the hair styling industry for many years. Users and stylists have made use of products to enhance the length of a user's hair or to add body or bulk to thinning hair.
To facilitate attachment to users' hair, existing hair extension products typically use hair clips or adhesives. Clip-on extensions are available for the home or professional market. Such extensions are not semi-permanent, are typically re-applied daily, and are generally feasible if the user's hair is thick enough to cover the clip.
Other hair extension products on the market require the use of a liquid adhesive to secure the extensions to users' hair. Such a requirement generally prevents the average consumer from installing their own extensions and liquid adhesive applied directly onto a user's hair can damage the hair. Also, many glued-in hair extensions require solvents for removal, which can also damage the user's hair.
Some hair extension products on the market, including certain embodiments described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 20090120451 A1, permit the use of double-sided adhesive tape to secure extensions to a user's hair. In some cases, the tape may be first placed on the user's hair and then the hair extension may be attached to the tape. Alternatively, the tape may be pre-attached to the hair extension and covered by a removable liner until the hair extension is ready for installation.
Some hair extensions with which adhesive tape is used are fabricated by applying a liquid polymer across the top end of a section of hair and allowing the polymer to dry and solidify. Once solidified, the polymer holds strands of the section of hair together and may form a thin layer across and the front and back sides of the hair. The width of the polymer is generally chosen to accommodate the width of the adhesive tape and thereby allow the adhesive tape to be attached to the polymer. Because the polymer is applied evenly over the extension's hair, the width of the exposed polymer on both sides of the extension is large enough to accommodate the width of the double-sided tape. However, the exposed polymer on the side of the extension which does not receive the double-sided tape may be visually detectable when the extension is attached to a user's hair, especially when the user's hair is subjected to wind or other movement. The detectability of installed hair extensions is a concern for many hair extension users.
SUMMARYGenerally, the disclosed embodiments relate to a hair extension that includes a section of hair and a substrate attached to one side of the section of hair to facilitate attachment of the section of hair to natural hair of a user. According to one exemplary embodiment, the section of hair includes multiple hair strands affixed together at a first end (e.g., a top end) by a solidified liquid polymer, which may be exposed on one side or both sides of the section of hair. The ends of the hair strands are retained within the polymer across a width of the section of hair. The substrate is attached to the polymer on one side of the section of hair (e.g., on the side of the section of hair to be attached to the user's hair when the hair extension is installed) across at least part of the width of the section of hair. A width of the substrate is substantially greater than a width of the polymer. For example, according to one embodiment, the width of the polymer is less than one-half the width of the substrate and, more preferably, about one-third the width of the substrate. Therefore, when the hair extension is installed in a user's hair, the side of the section of hair with the wider substrate is used to provide a reliable and versatile attachment to the user's natural hair, while the side of the section of hair with the much thinner exposed polymer is virtually undetectable due to the thinness of the exposed polymer. Additionally, according to a more preferable embodiment, attaching the substrate to the polymer facilitates freer and more natural movement of the extension's section of hair after the extension has been installed in the user's hair. For example, attaching the substrate to the narrower polymer allows the substrate to pivot or rotate from the point or line of attachment and thereby exhibit more natural movement together with the user's natural hair.
The width of the polymer may be selected to be as small or narrow as possible, while still achieving a desired adhesion to and between the hair strands in the section of hair. The width of the polymer may also be selected to permit sufficient adhesion to the substrate, while reducing visibility of exposed polymer on the side of the extension opposite the substrate. According to one exemplary embodiment where the polymer applied to the extension's hair strands is a liquid polyurethane, the width of the polymer, once cured, dried, or otherwise solidified, is in the range of approximately one-sixteenth of an inch to approximately one-fourth of an inch. The width of the substrate may be selected to reliably withstand a desired level of tension or pull once secured to the user's hair (e.g., through use of an adhesive). According to one exemplary embodiment, the width of the substrate may be in the range of one-eighth of an inch to one-half of an inch.
According to an alternative exemplary embodiment, the hair extension may further include an adhesive, such as a brush-on adhesive, double-sided adhesive tape, or any other type of adhesive or combination of adhesives, attached to an outward-facing side or surface of the substrate (i.e., the side or surface of the substrate that will be attached to the user's hair). Where the adhesive is double-sided adhesive tape, a first side of the tape is attached to the outward-facing side of the substrate, and a second side of the tape remains outward-facing and is used to attach the extension's section of hair to natural hair of the user. The outward-facing side of the adhesive may be covered with a removable liner to prevent the adhesive from sticking to other objects and potentially losing some or all of its tackiness prior to installation of the hair extension in a user's hair. The liner may be removed at the time the hair extension is installed.
According to another alternative exemplary embodiment, one or more hair clips may be secured to the substrate before or after the substrate is attached to the solidified polymer. The hair clip or clips may be attached to the substrate using any conventional or future-developed means, including sewing, gluing, strapping, or a combination thereof. Where multiple hair clips are used, the clips may be spaced apart and secured to the substrate substantially in a row across all or part of the width of the substrate. The hair clip embodiment may be beneficial for a user who desires to install her own hair extensions on a temporary basis and has thick enough hair to generally hide the clips. The hair clip embodiment allows the user to move or remove the hair extensions at the user's convenience without necessarily requiring stylist involvement or potentially damaging a pre-attached adhesive.
The accompanying figures, where like reference numerals refer to identical or functionally similar elements throughout the separate views and which together with the detailed description below are incorporated in and form part of the specification, serve to illustrate various embodiments and to explain various principles and advantages of the disclosed hair extension.
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures have been exaggerated alone or relative to other elements to help improve an understanding of the various disclosed embodiments.
DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTSIn this document and the appended claims, relational terms, such as “first” and “second,” “top” and “bottom,” “front” and “rear” or “back,” and the like are used solely to distinguish one entity or element from another entity or element without necessarily requiring or implying any physical, logical, or directional relationship or order between such entities or elements. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “includes,” “including,” “contains,” “containing,” “has,” “having,” and/or any other variations thereof are intended to cover a non-exclusive and non-exhaustive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, apparatus, device, or anything else that comprises, includes, contains, or has a list of elements, characteristics, or features does not include only those elements, characteristics, or features but may include other elements, characteristics, or features not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, apparatus, device, or thing. The term “plurality of” as used in connection with any object or action means two or more of such object or action. The term “liquid” is intended to refer to any form of matter that is not in its final, generally cured, dried, or otherwise solidified form. A claim element proceeded by the article “a” or “an” does not, without more constraints, preclude the existence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article, apparatus, device, or thing that includes the element.
Various embodiments of the disclosed hair extension may be best understood with reference to
The polymer may be a liquid polyurethane or any other appropriate liquid polymer-based adhesive, and may be clear (when applied or solidified) or colored to generally match the color of the hair strands 108. The liquid polymer may be applied to the hair strands 108 of the extension 100 by brushing the polymer onto the hair strands 108 along top end 104 of the section of hair 102, such as described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 20090120451 A1, which publication is incorporated herein by this reference as if fully set forth herein. With this approach, layers of polymer and layers of hair strands 108 are interleaved and intermingled so that the hair strands 108 are embedded in the solidified polymer 106. Alternatively, the polymer may be in a gel or paste form and applied with an appropriate tool or applique, or from a tube or pouch. During application of the liquid polymer, a form, mold, or other device may be used to limit the width of the polymer as measured along the length of the section of hair 102. According to another alternative embodiment, the liquid polymer may be applied to the front side of the section of hair 102 while the back side of the section of hair 102 rests upon the substrate 201. In such a manner, the solidified polymer 106 may not only bond to the hair strands 108, but may also bond or adhere directly to the substrate 201, as generally illustrated in the edge view of
After the polymer has solidified (e.g., cured, dried, hardened, etc.) to its final state, a very thin layer of the polymer 106 (e.g., less than about one-twentieth of inch thick and more preferably less than about one-thirty second of an inch thick) may be exposed on the front side of the section of hair 102 across a width 109 of the section of hair 102. According to one embodiment, the width 110 of the polymer 106, once solidified, may be limited to a range of approximately one-sixteenth of an inch to approximately one-quarter of an inch, although even smaller widths may be used so long as the hair strands 108 are properly bound and sealed. For the remainder of this disclosure, the front side of the section of hair 102 or any hair extension embodiment described herein will be the side illustrated in
As illustrated in exemplary form in
To further reduce the detectability of the hair extension, at least some of the hair strands 108 of the section of hair 102 (e.g., the lastly-applied layer of hair strands 108 during fabrication of the hair extension) may cover the polymer 106 on the front side of the extension and be sealed only to the back side of the extension as illustrated by the extension 700 of
Irrespective of how the substrate is secured to the polymer 106 and/or the section of hair 102, the width 203 of the substrate 201 is much larger than the width 110 of the solidified polymer 106 to facilitate reliable attachment of the substrate 201, and accordingly the hair extension 100, to natural hair of a user. According to one embodiment, the width 203 of the substrate may be at least twice the width 110 of the polymer 106 or, equivalently, the width of the polymer 106 may be less than one-half the width 203 of the substrate 201. By way of example and not limitation, the width 110 of the polymer 106 may be approximately one-third the width 203 of the substrate 201. While the width 110 of the polymer 106 is substantially less than the width 203 of the substrate 201, the width 110 of the polymer 106 may still be sufficient to permit attachment to an adhesive on the front side of the section of hair 102, such as to enable the extension 100, 300, 500, 600 to be attached to a user's natural hair which is placed against the front side of the extension 100 and the polymer 106 during installation of the extension 100 in the user's hair.
In an alternative embodiment, the substrate 201 may be formed or constructed at or about the time that the liquid polymer is applied to the hair strands 108 of the section of hair 102. In such a case, a blocking agent or device may be applied to or positioned on the back side of the section of hair 102 just below a desired width 110 of the hair strand-securing polymer 106 to prevent the applied polymer intended to form the substrate 201 from adhering to and between the strands of hair 108. In other words, the hair strand-securing polymer and the substrate-forming polymer may be contemporaneously applied using the same liquid polymer, while insuring that the width 110 of the solidified hair strand-securing polymer 106 is much narrower than the width 203 of the substrate 201.
In a further alternative embodiment as illustrated in
The substrate 201 may be attached across an entire width 109 of the section of hair 102, as illustrated in
Referring now to
The adhesive 801 attached to the outward-facing surface of the substrate 201 may be any type of adhesive used in the hair styling industry, but more preferably is a double-sided adhesive tape. Thus, the adhesive 801 may be brushed on, stuck on, or otherwise applied as is conventional in the art. Where an adhesive 501 is used to attach the inward-facing surface of the substrate 201 to the polymer 106 (e.g., as in the embodiment of
A removable liner 803 may be optionally attached to the exposed side of the adhesive 801 to protect the adhesive 801 from contacting any objects and potentially losing some or all of its tackiness prior to installation of the hair extension 800 into a user's hair. The liner 803 may be removed (e.g., peeled off) and discarded prior to attaching the adhesive 801 and its associated hair extension 800 to a user's hair.
According to yet another alternative exemplary embodiment as illustrated in
The hair clips 1003-1005 may be secured to the substrate 1001 using any conventional or future-developed means, including sewing, gluing, strapping, or any combination thereof. For example, as illustrated with respect to hair clip 1003, the clip 1003 may include a frame 1007 and a set of prongs 1009 connected to the frame 1007. The frame 1007 may include a pair of side members 1011, 1012 and a transverse member 1014 interconnecting the side members 1011, 1012. The side members 1011, 1012 may include one or more holes 1016. The hair clip 1003 may be attached to the substrate 1001 by sewing or stitching the clip 1003 to the substrate 1001 through one or more of the clip's holes 1016 and around the clip's side members 1011, 1012 and/or around the clip's transverse member 1014. Alternatively or additionally, as illustrated with respect to hair clip 1004, the hair clip's frame 1007 may be attached to the substrate 1001 using an adhesive 1018, which may be a solidified liquid adhesive, double-sided adhesive tape, or any other acceptably strong adhesive. Still further, as illustrated with respect to hair clip 1005, the hair clip's frame 1007 may be attached to the substrate 1001 by sewing or stitching the clip 1005 to the substrate 1001 using vertical stitching through and between the holes 1016 in the clip's side members 1011, 1012. The use of such vertical stitching enables the clips 1005 to maintain a lower profile than when the clip's frame 1007 is sewn onto the substrate 1001 as illustrated with respect to hair clip 1003.
The hair clip or clips 1003-1005 may be attached to the substrate 1001 before or after the substrate 1001 is attached to the extension's solidified polymer 106. For example, according to one exemplary embodiment in which the hair clips 1003-1005 are attached to the substrate 1001 before the substrate 1001 is attached to the extension's solidified polymer 106, the substrate 1001 containing the hair clips 1003-1005 may be attached to the polymer 106 using an adhesive 501, such as described above with respect to
Referring now to
According to one exemplary embodiment where the substrate 201 is intended to be attached to the user's hair 1101 using only an adhesive 801, the substrate 201 may be preferably attached to the back side of the section of hair 102 using the process as described above with respect to
The foregoing disclosure describes various hair extension embodiments that are virtually undetectable when installed in a user's natural hair. Certain embodiments of the disclosed extensions also enable the extensions to feel very comfortable to their users, especially where the extensions do not include any hair clips. Further, various embodiments of the disclosed hair extensions facilitate flexibility and movement, such that when they are installed in a user's hair, the extensions substantially emulate the motion and feel of the user's own hair.
In the foregoing disclosure, a hair extension has been described with reference to specific embodiments. However, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as set forth in the appended claims. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the present invention.
Benefits, advantages, and solutions to problems have been described above with regard to specific hair extension embodiments. However, the benefits, advantages, solutions to problems, and any element(s) that may cause or result in such benefits, advantages, or solutions to become more pronounced are not to be construed as a critical, required, or essential features or elements of any or all the claims. The present invention is defined solely by the appended claims and all legally-permissible equivalents of those claims and/or their constituent elements as issued.
Claims
1. A hair extension, comprising:
- a section of hair including a plurality of hair strands affixed together at a first end by a solidified liquid polymer, ends of the plurality of hair strands being retained within the polymer across a width of the section of hair; and
- a substrate attached to the polymer on one side of the section of hair across at least part of the width of the section of hair, wherein a width of the substrate is substantially greater than a width of the polymer.
2. The hair extension of claim 1, further comprising:
- an adhesive attached to an outward-facing surface of the substrate to facilitate attachment of the substrate to natural hair of a user.
3. The hair extension of claim 2, wherein the adhesive is double-sided adhesive tape, wherein a first side of the adhesive tape is attached to the outward-facing surface of the substrate and wherein a second side of the adhesive tape is attachable to natural hair of the user.
4. The hair extension of claim 3, further comprising:
- a removable liner attached to the second side of the adhesive tape, the removable liner protecting the second side of the adhesive tape until removal of the liner from the adhesive tape.
5. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the substrate is attached to the polymer across an entire width of the section of hair.
6. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the substrate is attached to the polymer across a substantial portion of the width of the section of hair, but less than an entire width of the section of hair.
7. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the width of the polymer is less than one-half the width of the substrate.
8. The hair extension of claim 7, wherein the width of the polymer is approximately one-third the width of the substrate.
9. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the substrate is of a sufficient width to support attachment thereto of one or more hair clips across the width of the substrate.
10. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the polymer is solidified liquid polyurethane.
11. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the section of hair has a width in a range of approximately one inch to approximately four inches.
12. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the width of the polymer is in a range of approximately one-sixteenth of an inch to approximately one-quarter of an inch.
13. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the polymer is attachable to an adhesive on a side of the section of hair that is not attached to the substrate.
14. The hair extension of claim 1, further comprising:
- one or more hair clips secured to the substrate.
15. The hair extension of claim 14, wherein the one or more hair clips comprises a plurality of spaced-apart hair clips secured to the substrate substantially in a row across at least part of the width of the substrate.
16. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the substrate and the polymer are thin and pliable.
17. The hair extension of claim 1, further comprising:
- an adhesive attaching the substrate to the polymer.
18. The hair extension of claim 1, wherein the substrate is solidified liquid polyurethane.
19. A hair extension, comprising:
- a section of hair including a plurality of hair strands affixed together at a first end by a solidified liquid polymer, ends of the plurality of hair strands being retained within the polymer across a width of the section of hair;
- a substrate attached to the polymer on one side of the section of hair across at least part of the width of the section of hair, wherein a width of the substrate is substantially greater than a width of the polymer;
- an adhesive attached to a surface of the substrate to facilitate attachment of the substrate to natural hair of a user; and
- a removable liner attached to the adhesive, the removable liner protecting the adhesive until removal of the liner from the adhesive.
20. The hair extension of claim 19, wherein the width of the polymer is less than one-half the width of the substrate.
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 4, 2015
Publication Date: Mar 9, 2017
Inventor: Lisa Kenna (Boca Raton, FL)
Application Number: 14/846,728