Decorative necktie knot

Abstract

A decorative necktie knot device that replaces the need for a necktie knot altogether. The decorative necktie knot consists of a one-piece continuous body having a pair of slots for receiving the bottom portions of a conventional necktie knot. The decorative necktie knot has a generally triangularly shaped front face (38) with side panels (39, 37). The right side panel and left side panel fold upon one another to form a cavity to receive the necktie. Attached to the side panels are fastening means (53, 54) to secure and define the shape and cavity. A single opening at the bottom of the front face permits the traditional necktie to emerge from the decorative necktie knot.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The present invention relates generally to a decorative necktie knot that does not involve tying a necktie into a traditional knot. More specifically, the present invention relates to forming a decorative necktie knot that has the size, shape, and function of a traditional knot, wherein the ends of the necktie are passed through the decorative knot.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] It is conventional for one to wrap a necktie about the neck of the wearer and to manually tie the same into a knot. This is generally accomplished through manipulation of the material of the necktie to form a loop, and inserting one of the end of the necktie through the loop to hand tie the knot. Under certain circumstances, particularly when no mirror is present, it can become difficult and time consuming to perform such the manual tying operation for a necktie. Moreover, many younger boys and handicapped persons have a difficult time tying the traditional necktie. Moreover, after a necktie is untied, wrinkles remain in the portions of the tie used to form the knot and that portion is apt to become soiled and dirty, requiring the cleaning of the entire necktie, which often is quite inconvenient.

[0003] To alleviate having to actually tie a necktie, many solutions have been presented. Many of these solutions provided for a pre-tied necktie wherein the knot was permanently formed therein. However, such solutions had their own disadvantages, including a very limited selection of neckties which were pre-tied. Moreover, once one purchased such a permanently knotted tie, it was not possible to hand tie the knot, even if one wanted to.

[0004] Many other solutions have been proposed that sought to simplify the matter of dressing with a four-in-hand tie by eliminating the tying and untying process. These solutions have invariably comprised what might be described as a “pre-tied” arrangement wherein the four-in-hand knot is formed around a device, which is inserted into, or surrounded the collar and the dressing and undressing comprises the step of attaching this pre tied combination to the collar of the wearer. Such solutions require the use of special necktie arrangements that in most cases do not permit the use of existing conventional ties. Additionally, where existing conventional ties can be used, often, after certain types of knots are formed, there is practically no necktie left. Previously proposed solutions often provided no flexibility insofar as tightening or loosening of the knot was concerned and also often there was no variety as to the size, shape or color of the necktie knot.

[0005] The present invention provides for a decorative necktie knot, which can be used with a conventional necktie and which serves to form the knot in the necktie without the necessity for manipulating the ends of the necktie to manually tie a sot. Decorative necktie knots of the present invention are interchangeable, so if one gets soiled, it can be easily replaced with another decorative necktie knot, having the same pattern or a different one.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] The present invention provides a completely portable and removable knot. Many of the disadvantages of previous inventions have been overcome and the present invention provides for necktie knots of various sizes, shapes and colors. The knot of the present invention may be described as being “pre-formed” rather than “pre-tied” as is the case with previous inventions. By utilizing the present invention, the length of neckties can be reduced by up to 8%. Moreover, the present invention eliminates the problems associated with tying and untying the traditional necktie knot and achieves an improved appearance, greater flexibility, and comfort.

[0007] The present invention provides for a decorative necktie knot device that replaces the need for a necktie knot altogether. The decorative necktie knot consists of a one-piece continuous body having a pair of slots for receiving the bottom portions of the necktie. The decorative necktie knot having a generally triangularly shaped front face with side panels on two of the three sides; the right side panel and left side panel, folds to form a cavity for receiving the necktie. Attached to the side panel are fastening means to secure and define the shape and cavity. An opening at the bottom of the front face permits the tie to emerge from the decorative necktie knot. The decorative necktie knot is secured around the necktie until removal is desired. The combination permits a conventional necktie to be placed inside the decorative necktie knot. The ends of the necktie are inserted into the respective decorative necktie knot slots and then the side panels are folded so as to overlap such that the fasteners mate. The decorative necktie knot is then adjusted against the collar, thereby eliminating the tying and untying of the necktie. The decorative necktie knot of the present invention provides for the use of a conventional tie and a novel knot, which may or may not correspond with the color scheme or fabric of the tie itself.

[0008] Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a decorative necktie knot that can manually be attached to a necktie to form a necktie knot at the juncture of the wearer's collar wherein the tails or ends of the necktie are not actually inter-knotted with each other.

[0009] Another object of the present invention is to provide a tie knot that can be quickly and easily attached to any existing conventional necktie and when so attached, presents the appearance of a knot having a contrasting decorative appearance or the same appearance with respect to the remainder of the necktie.

[0010] Another object of the present invention is to provide an inexpensive unit, which can operate satisfactorily for the purpose of attaching a necktie and providing a knotted appearance thereto.

[0011] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a necktie knot which is simple in construction, easy to assemble and remove, attractive in appearance and relatively inexpensive to manufacture.

[0012] Still other objects of the invention are to eliminate the need to tie the traditional necktie knot and to provide for a simulated knot having a relatively rigid body.

[0013] The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become more fully understood from the following description of the preferred embodiment of the invention as illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which reference characters refer to the same parts throughout different views. The drawings are not necessary to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of the decorative necktie knot together with the necktie hanging around a wearer's neck;

[0015] FIG. 2 is a rear perspective view of the decorative necktie knot;

[0016] 5 FIGS. 3(a) and 3(b) are the front perspective view and the rear perspective view, respectively, of the template of the decorative necktie knot opened to show it as a one-piece template;

[0017] FIG. 4(a) is a flexible material band that provides the slots through which the ends of a traditional tie pass and FIG. 4(b) is a rear perspective view of the template of the decorative necktie knot to which the flexible material band has been attached;

[0018] FIG. 5(a) is a front perspective view and FIG. 5(b) is a rear perspective view of the decorative necktie knot showing snaps as the closing means,

[0019] FIG. 6(a) is a front perspective view and FIG. 6(b) is a rear perspective view of the decorative necktie knot showing a VELCRO® closing means.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0020] The invention will now be described in detail with regard for the best mode and the preferred embodiment. In general the invention comprises a decorative necktie knot, in which a necktie passes through a necktie knot shell that provides the size and shape of a traditional necktie knot. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the present invention approximates the size and shape of a traditional necktie knot.

[0021] The decorative necktie knot is formed using a template of a flexible, or at least bendable material. Preferably the bendable template material is fabric stiffening, a flexible plastic or some other flexible material. To maintain the appearance of the decorative necktie knot, the template material should be no more than 2 mm in thickness. Turning now to FIG. 3(a), the front of the template for the decorative necktie knot 31 consists a rectangle wherein the short sides of the rectangle have been rounded to approximate a hexagon. The template is further divided into three sections 32, 33 and 34. FIG. 3(b) shows the back side of the template 36 and the corresponding sections, 37, 38 and 39. The interface between the sections may be scored in someway to facilitate bending the template at those interfaces.

[0022] Slots through which both the wide end and the narrow end of the necktie pass through the decorative necktie knot is formed by affixing a flexible material to sections 37 and 38 of the backside 36 of the template. A preferred flexible material is a fabric band material such as gross grain ribbon. In FIG. 4(a), the shape of the elastic material 40 approximates the shape of sections 37 and 38, except that when affixed to the template as shown in FIG. 4(b), a small portion of the top and bottom of the template is not be covered. However, as shown in some of the later figures, the shape of the flexible material is not important, so long as it provides for the formation of slots on the inside of the decorative necktie knot.

[0023] As shown in FIG. 4(b), the flexible material 40 must be affixed to the template along the interface between sections 38 and 39 and along the curved edge 41 of section 37. In preferable embodiments, the flexible material is also affixed to the template along the interface between sections 37 and 38. Alternatively, two separate pieces of flexible material can be used, one piece affixed to section 37 and the other affixed to section 38. The flexible material can be affixed to the template in any of several ways well known to those skilled in the art. In preferred embodiments, the flexible material and the template are sewn together.

[0024] To form the decorative necktie knot, section 37 is folded behind section 38 such that sections 37 and 38 are adjacent. Then section 39 is folded such that it becomes adjacent to section 34, i.e., the reverse side of section 37. Finally, sections 34 and 39 are secured by some type of closing mechanism.

[0025] FIGS. 5(a) and 5(b) depict the decorative necktie knot showing snaps as the closing mechanism. A small snap 51 and a larger snap 52 are placed on section 34 and their mates 53 and 54, respectively, are placed on section 37. When the decorative necktie knot is formed according to the invention, 51 and 53 and 52 and 54 mate to close the knot. While the snap arrangement depicted in FIGS. 5(a) and (b) is preferred, the invention is operable with just one snap arrangement, particularly if the snap members are located near the center of sections 34 and 37. Similarly, FIG. 6(a) and 6(b) depict the decorative necktie knot showing VELCRO® as the closing mechanism. As with the snaps, VELCRO® is applied to sections 34 and 37 to close the decorative necktie knot.

[0026] In preferred embodiments, the template is covered with fabric using methods well known to those skilled in the art. The fabric covering the decorative necktie knot may be identical complementary or contrasting to the tie for which the decorative necktie knot is to be worn, in color and/or fabric and/or direction of the pattern. The production of the decorative necktie knot with different fabrics or materials allows the wearer to coordinate the knot with ties already owned or to be purchased in the future.

[0027] Instead of tying a tie into a traditional knot by manipulating the tie itself into a knot, the decorative necktie knot can be easily placed over the tie at the base of the wearer's neck, while the tie is hanging around the wearer's neck. Consequently, shorter ties can be manufactured and fabric that is saved by manufacturing shorter ties can be used to manufacture the matching knot. Moreover, the changing of fabric is an inexpensive manufacturing change for the manufacturers.

[0028] The design, shape and/or size of the template can be easily modified to make decorative necktie knots of various styles. Moreover, depending on how the template is folded, it may be possible to use the same template to male both traditional and Windsor knots. The distinctiveness of the decorative necktie knot can be enhanced by including ornamentation, such as decorative snaps or simulated gemstones, on section 22.

[0029] It is contemplated that the equivalents and substitutions for certain components may be obvious to those skilled in the art, however, the described invention is novel and non-obvious and the scope and definition of the invention is set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1. A decorative necktie knot comprising a bendable template, generally having the shape of a rectangle wherein the short sides have been gently rounded to approximate a hexagon, said template having a front and a rear side and said template further having a first face, a second face, and a third face, and a bendable member permanently affixed to said first and second faces of the rear side of said template such that slots are formed on the rear sides of said first and second faces, wherein said necktie knot is formed by

(a) folding said second face behind said first face, such that the rear sides of said first and second faces are adjacent;

(b) folding said third face, such that the rear side of said third face is adjacent to the front side of said second face; and

(c) securing the rear side of said third face to the front side of the second by means of a closing mechanism

such that the slot on the rear side of said first face can receive the large end of a necktie and the slot on the rear side of the second face can receive the small end of a necktie.

2. The necktie knot of claim 1, wherein the bendable template is a bendable material covered by fabric on its front side.

3. The necktie knot of claim 1, wherein the bendable template is fabric stiffing.

4. The necktie knot of claim 1, wherein the bendable template is a plastic.

5. The necktie knot of claim 1, wherein the bendable member is an elastic material.

6. The necktie knot of claim 5, wherein the elastic material is gross grain ribbon.

7. The necktie knot of claim 1, wherein the closing mechanism consists of VELCRO® attached to the rear side of the second face and the front side of the third face.

8. The necktie knot of claim 1, wherein the closing mechanism consists of at least one snap on the rear side of the second face and at least one mating snap on the front side of the third face.

9. The necktie knot of claim 1, wherein a decorative element is affixed to the front side of the third face.

10. The necktie knot of claim 8, wherein the decorative element is a snap that mate with a snap on the rear side of the second face.