Attachable/detachable swimwear garment
The present invention is directed to an attachable/detachable swimwear garment having a garment piece that is both attachable and detachable to at least one other garment piece. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment includes a top garment piece and a bottom garment piece, both of which have garment attachment means. It is contemplated that the top attachment means of the top garment piece is attachably engageable to the bottom garment attachment means of the bottom garment piece to provide an attached garment having a desired style and function. It is further contemplated that the top attachment means is detachable from the bottom garment attachment means, to allow the top garment piece to be worn separately from the bottom garment piece. The invention allows the wearer of the garment to readily convert between garment configurations appropriate for swimming/bathing versus other activities, as well as easily transform the garment for modesty reasons.
Not Applicable
STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENTNot Applicable
BACKGROUND1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to an article of clothing and more particularly, to a two-piece swimwear garment wherein one piece of the garment is attachable or detachable to a second piece of garment, the second piece of garment encompassing a variety of different clothing styles.
2. Related Art
A swimsuit, bathing suit or swimming costume is an item of clothing designed to be worn for swimming or sunbathing. Swimsuits can be skin-tight or loosely fitting and range from garments designed to preserve as much modesty as possible to garments designed to reveal as much of the body as possible without actual nudity. They are often lined with a fabric that prevents them from becoming transparent when wet. Female swimwear is well known and commonly comprises a one-piece bathing suit, bikini top and bottom, thong bikini bottoms, bodysuits, and/or a variety of other styles ranging in aesthetic appeal and functional characteristics. Swimwear is an important item of clothing that can serve a variety of functions such as protecting the skin from epidermis damaging ultra-violet radiation from the sun, added buoyancy in water, and warmth to name a few. Additionally, swimwear has aesthetic appeal as well as function such as swimwear that is form-fitting, slenderizing female swimwear, or padding for accentuating a particular area of the body.
Despite all the current swimwear that exists, there is absent in the marketplace swimwear for women that is attachable and detachable to form a variety of different clothing styles. Additionally, female swimwear should be highly adaptable to allow for easy switching between the fairly revealing swim wear that is typically desirable for swimming and bathing activities, to more modest or conservative clothing suitable for running errands and other everyday activities. Further, it is desirable to have women's swimwear accommodate both those women who may be self-conscious about their body image, insecure, or modest as well as those who prefer to wear swimwear that is more revealing. It is also desirable to provide swimwear that is readily adjustable to form different swim and bathing wear types, to allow for a variety of swim/bathing wear options from the same clothing article.
Accordingly, there exists a substantial need in the art for swimwear that is attachable or detachable to the top bikini portion of a swimwear garment that enables a person to choose between a variety of clothing styles that can be attached to or detached from the top bikini portion using a variety of different devices. There is likewise a need in the art for swimwear capable of being adapted into everyday wear and further capable of accommodating the spectrum of women seeking modest swimwear to women seeking a more revealing style of swimwear.
BRIEF SUMMARYThe present invention specifically addresses and alleviates the above-identified deficiencies in the art. In this regard, the present invention is directed to a swimwear garment having a garment piece that is both attachable and detachable to at least one other garment piece. The swimwear garment includes a top garment piece. The top garment piece also includes a top garment attachment means. The attachable and detachable swimwear garment further includes a bottom garment piece. Similar to the top garment piece, the bottom garment piece includes a bottom garment attachment means. It is contemplated that the top attachment means of the top garment piece is attachable to the bottom garment attachment means of the bottom garment piece. Additionally, it is further contemplated that the top attachment means of the top garment piece is detachable from the bottom garment attachment means of the bottom garment piece. An aspect of the present invention also contemplates the bottom attachment means of the bottom garment piece is attachable or detachable from the top garment attachment means of the top garment piece.
In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the attachable and detachable swimwear garment includes a variety of clothing styles. The following include some of the clothing styles contemplated: a shirt, tube top, dress, body suit, leotard and blouses to name a few. Furthermore, both the top garment piece and the bottom garment piece may comprise fabric of the woven or non-woven type.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the attachable and detachable swimwear garment includes a variety of different attachment means suitable to allow the top garment piece and bottom garment piece to be attached or detached from one another. An example of a few attachment means contemplated by the invention include but are not limited to zippers, a plurality of loops, a plurality of fasteners, and VELCRO®.
These as well as other features of the present invention will become more apparent upon reference to the drawings.
The detailed description set forth below is intended as a description of the presently preferred embodiment of the invention, and is not intended to represent the only form in which the present invention may be constructed or utilized. The description sets forth the functions and sequences of steps for constructing and operating the invention. It is to be understood, however, that the same or equivalent functions and sequences may be accomplished by different embodiments and that they are also intended to be encompassed within the scope of the invention.
Further examples of garments 1 formed by the attachment of the top and bottom garment pieces 2,4 to one another are also shown in
The attachable/detachable swimwear garment 1 comprises top and bottom garment pieces 2,4 having fabric formed from one or more of a woven and non-woven material. Examples of suitable woven and non-woven fabrics include those formed from natural fibers such as cotton, silk, hemp and the like, and those formed from synthetic fibers, such as polyamide, polyester and polypropylene synthetic fibers and the like, as well as fabric formed from mixtures of both natural and synthetic fibers. Popular swim/bathing wear fabrics include, for example, nylon, SPANDEX® and LYCRA® fabrics. Such swim/bathing wear fabrics may be particularly suitable for construction of the top garment piece 2, although the top garment piece may also contain other materials not typically used for swim/bathing wear according to desired aesthetic and functional characteristics. The bottom garment piece 4 can be constructed of the same or different fabric as the top garment piece 2, such as for example a fabric that is suitable for swimming/bathing, and may also and/or alternatively be constructed of fabric that is more suitable for everyday activities. For example, the bottom garment piece may be constructed of either more durable materials and/or decorative materials that are typical of those used in everyday wear, such as denim, satin, silk and other fabrics.
As described above, the top and bottom garment pieces 2,4 are attached together and/or detached from one another via engagement and/or disengagement of the top and bottom garment attachment means 3,5. The top and bottom attachment means 3,5 together form a combined attachment means 10 that provides a mechanism to connect at least a portion of the top garment piece 2, such as a lower hem or lower edge 11 of the top garment piece 2, to a portion of the bottom garment piece 2, such as an upper hem or upper edge 12 of the bottom garment piece 14, to provide the resulting attached garment 1. The attachment means 3,5 preferably operate together to reliably and dependably hold the top and bottom garment pieces 2,4 together during normal wear, while also allowing for easy detachment and/or re-attachment of the top and bottom garment pieces 2,4 when desired. Examples of suitable combined attachment means 10 may incorporate various arrangements of loops, straps, zippers, VELCRO® and other fasteners to achieve the engagement of the pieces 2,4.
In one version, the top and bottom garment attachment means 3,5 combine together to form a combined attachment means 10 comprising a plurality of loops 7 that operate to attach the top and bottom garment pieces 2,4 to one another. The plurality of loops 7 can be configured to extend from each of the top and bottom garment pieces 2,4, and one or more straps 6 of material are threaded through the loops 7 to attachably engage the top and bottom garment pieces 2,4 together, as shown for example in
While the embodiment shown in
In yet another version, as show in
In still another version, as shown in
The attachable/detachable swimwear garments 1 can be fabricated in a wide variety of different cuts, styles and fashions, according to the consumers preferred fashion style and desired use of the garment, as shown in
Accordingly, the above described invention allows for easy switching between garment embodiments suitable for swim and sun bathing activities and embodiments that may be more suitable every day activities such as running errands, etc. The wearer also benefits from the ability to readily convert between less and more modest garment embodiments, simply by attaching and or detaching the bottom garment piece. Thus, the contemplated garment gives the wearer enhanced flexibility in terms of clothing options, allowing the wearer to adjust the garment to an appropriate configuration for a variety of different situations.
Additional modifications and improvements of the present invention may also be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Thus, the particular combination of components and steps described and illustrated herein is intended to represent only certain embodiments of the present invention, and is not intended to serve as limitations of alternative devices and methods within the spirit and scope of the invention. Along these lines, it should be understood that the detachable/attachable swimwear garment 1 may take any of a variety of swimwear garment forms that are known or later developed in the art, and further contemplates that existing or newly formed detachable/attachable swimwear garments should fall within the scope of the present invention. Also, it should be understood that a plurality of top and/or bottom garment pieces 2,4 could be provided to form garments 1 having a variety of different wear options, and a variety of different combined attachment means 10 can be used together and with other attachment means other than those specifically mentioned, such as buttons, snaps, and the like.
Claims
1. An attachable/detachable swimwear garment comprising:
- a top garment piece, the top garment piece having a top garment attachment means; and
- a bottom garment piece, the bottom garment piece having a bottom garment attachment means;
- wherein the top attachment means of the top garment piece is attachably engageable to the bottom garment attachment means of the bottom garment piece.
2. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 wherein the garment is attachably engageable to form a shirt.
3. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 wherein the garment is attachably engageable to form a tube top.
4. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 wherein the garment is attachably engageable to form a dress.
5. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 wherein the garment is attachably engageable to form a body suit.
6. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 comprising a woven fabric.
7. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 comprising a non-woven fabric.
8. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 wherein the top and the bottom garment attachment means comprise a zipper.
9. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 wherein the top and the bottom garment attachment means comprise a plurality of loops.
10. The attachable/detachable swimwear garment of claim 1 wherein the top and the bottom garment attachment means include a plurality of straps having a hook-and-loop grabbing material thereon.
Type: Application
Filed: Nov 16, 2007
Publication Date: May 21, 2009
Inventor: Natalie Allen (Oceanside, CA)
Application Number: 11/985,699