INTERCHANGEABLE FASHION FOOTWEAR COMPONENT

Abstract

An interchangeable fashion footwear component has a decorative cuff which fits around the perimeter of the opening of the shaft of a boot. The decorative cuff may be held in place by an adjustable strap which extends downwardly into the heel portion of the boot engaging the user's heel or any part of the underside of the foot when the boot is worn. The decorative cuff may include an elastic component to accommodate various boot opening circumferences. The decorative cuff may include an adjustable fastener to accommodate various boot opening circumferences. The adjustable strap may be shortened or lengthened to match the shaft length of the boot. The strap may be removable for washing separately from the decorative cuff.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of co-pending application Ser. No. 61/376,123, filed on Aug. 23, 2010, entitled INTERCHANGEABLE FASHION FOOTWEAR COMPONENT.

FIELD

The present invention generally relates to a footwear accessory and, more particularly, to an interchangeable fashion footwear component for adorning footwear.

BACKGROUND

Dress boots and fashion boots come in a variety of styles, sizes, and lengths of the shaft. Fashion boots have become quite popular but may also be fairly expensive thereby limiting the number of pairs of boots a person can own. Additionally, boots take up more space than a typical pair of shoes imposing a physical limit on the number of pairs of boots a person can practically own.

Another fashion consideration with shoes in general is a person, particularly women, prefer to coordinate outfits with matching tops, bottoms, hair accessories, jewelry and shoes. If a person only owns one pair of boots, she is limited to a single style or must limit the frequency with which she wears her boots.

Various attempts have been made to change the look or style of a pair of dress or fashion boots. One device includes a boot cover that covers the entire shaft of the boot to change the appearance of the boot. Although this changes the look of the boot, a shaft cover is often expensive and cannot accommodate the various shaft lengths limiting the wearer to certain shaft covers matched to a pair of boots with a certain shaft length. Other devices include attaching a cuff around the opening of the shaft with snaps or clips so that different cuffs may be interchanged to provide a different look to the boots. This often requires a physical modification to each pair of boots such that the boot cannot or would not be worn without the cuff in place. Still other devices have been proposed which combine a sock with an inwardly turned decorative cuff that may be folded over the top of the boot opening to provide a decorative look. These combination sock-decorative cuff devices require that the boot be sized to accommodate a user wearing socks, and typically must be washed after each wearing limiting the materials and design of the decorative cuff.

SUMMARY

The present invention includes interchangeable fashion footwear component which has a decorative cuff which fits around the perimeter of the opening of the shaft of a boot. The decorative cuff may be held in place by an adjustable strap which extends downwardly into the heel portion of the boot engaging the user's heel when the boot is worn. The decorative cuff may include an elastic component to accommodate various boot opening circumferences. The decorative cuff may include an adjustable fastener to accommodate various boot opening circumferences.

The adjustable strap may be shortened or lengthened to match the shaft length of the boot. The strap may be removable for washing separately from the decorative cuff.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an interchangeable fashion footwear component of the present invention on an ankle boot.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the interchangeable fashion footwear component of FIG. 1 with the vamp and shaft of the boot removed to show placement of a strap in relation to a user's foot.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the interchangeable fashion footwear component of FIG. 1, removed from the boot.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein. However, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention that may be embodied in various and alternative forms. The figures are not necessarily to scale, some features may be exaggerated or minimized to show details of particular components. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for the claims and/or as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the present invention.

Moreover, except where otherwise expressly indicated, all numerical quantities in this description and in the claims are to be understood as modified by the word “about” in describing the broader scope of this invention. Practice within the numerical limits stated is generally preferred. Also, unless expressly stated to the contrary, the description of a group or class of materials as suitable or preferred for a given purpose in connection with the invention implies that mixtures or combinations of any two or more members of the group or class may be equally suitable or preferred.

Referring to the figures, an interchangeable fashion footwear component of the present invention is generally indicated by reference numeral 20. The footwear component 20 includes a cuff 22 and an adjustable strap 24. The cuff 22 extends around the upper opening 26 of the shaft 28 of a boot 30, and may include a lip curving around to an inner cuff 32 which covers or is just below the rim of the shaft 28. The cuff 22 may have a cylindrical or tubular shape sewn or knitted into a tube. The cuff 22 may include elastic along the upper 34 and/or lower 36 edges and/or the lip 32 to permit the cuff 22 to expand to accommodate different sized boot openings 26.

Alternatively, the cuff 22 may be made of a strip of material and may wrap around the perimeter of the opening 26 of the shaft 28 and close at the front 38, side or back. The right free end 40 may include one or more hook fasteners 42 which engage a loop 44 on the left free end 46 and allow the cuff 22 to be adjusted to fit different sized boot openings 26. Other fasteners such as buttons, ties, snaps or Velcro®, for example, may be used to adjustably secure the free ends 40 and 46 around the boot opening 26.

The cuff 22 may be made of leather, cloth or other material adorned with rhinestones or other embellishments. The material may be cloth of various colors and/or patterns selected to complement the wearer's outfit or other worn accessories. The free ends 40 and 46 of the cuff 22 may include tails 48 and 50, respectively, which may extend down over the vamp 52 of the boot 30 or may be tied into a bow, for example. The free ends 40 and 46 may be sewn together to meet at the upper 34 and lower 36 with adjustable material like elastic. Other accessories 54 may be attached to any place on the cuff 22 for further embellishments. The cuff 22 may be made of just embellishments or embellishment hook hanging from the lip of the inner cuff 32.

The strap 24 may be constructed of an elastic or other band of material and secured to the inside of the cuff 22 by stitching or hooks, for example. Alternatively, the strap 24 may be removably attached to the inside of the cuff 22 by Velcro® or hooks, for example. The strap 24 may include a left 56 and right 58 portions which are adjustably joined together by a strip of Velcro® 60 or other releasable-adjustable fastening material to form a stirrup 62. The strap 24 may be a single piece of elastic 56 secured to the inner cuff 32 by hooks and have an adjustable slider, or other releasable-adjustable fastening components to form a stirrup 62. The length of the stirrup 62 may be adjusted to accommodate different height boots from ankle boots to mid-calf boots to knee boots. The stirrup 62 is placed inside the heel 64 of the boot 30. The wearer's foot 66 slips through the stirrup 62, which is then held in place by the wearer's heel 68, and consequently holds the cuff 22 in place around the opening 26 of the boot 30, along with the wearer's leg 70. If the footwear component 20 is worn with a high sandal or toga sandal, for example, the strap may be made of a clear plastic material or a nude or skin colored material to help hide the strap. The placement of the sandal strap 24 may be placed forward from the heel to the underside of the foot to accommodate different sandal styles.

To use the footwear component 20, the wearer places the strap 22 inside the boot 30 and wraps the cuff 22 around the upper periphery of the opening 26 of the shaft 28 of the boot 30. The cuff 22 is adjusted to fit around the shaft 28 and is secured in place by the fasteners 42 and 44. The wearer may adjust the length of the strap 24 so that the stirrup 62 rests at the bottom of the heel 64 of the boot 30. When the wearer places her foot 66 into the boot 38, the wearer's heel 68 holds the stirrup 62 in place, consequently holding the cuff 22 in place.

If the wearer wants to use the footwear component 20 with another pair of boots it is simply a matter of adjusting the cuff 22 and strap 24 as necessary to fit the shaft height of the particular pair of boots. And may adjust the circumference of the cuff 22 upper 34 or lower 36 to accommodate the new size. After one or more wearings the strap 24 may be removed from the cuff 22 and washed.

It is to be understood that while certain now preferred forms of this invention have been illustrated and described, it is not limited thereto except insofar as such limitations are included in the following claims.

Claims

1. A removable accessory for placement around the open top of a boot which has an opening defined by a peripheral top edge, said accessory comprising:

a decorative cuff adapted to fit around the peripheral top edge of the boot opening and having an outside portion and an inside portion, adjustable strap releasably and secured to said inside portion of said cuff and extending downwardly to form a stirrup;

whereas said inside portion of said decorative cuff fits over the top periphery edge of the boot opening to extend into the boot opening;

whereas said strap fits around the heel of a wearer of the boot to hold said cuff in place around the peripheral top edge of the boot opening.

2. The accessory of claim 1 whereas said cuff is a tubular material.

3. The accessory of claim 1 whereas said cuff includes an elastic material integrated into said cuff along an upper and/or lower edge of said cuff to expand and contract to accommodate different sized boot openings.

4. The accessory of claim 1 whereas said cuff is a strip of material wrapped around the peripheral top edge of the boot opening.

5. The accessory of claim 4 whereas said strip of material includes a first end and a second end, a loop secured to said first end and one or more hook fasteners secured to said second end to adjustably secure said strip of material to the peripheral top edge of the boot opening.

6. The accessory of claim 4 whereas said strip of material includes a first end and a second end, a button hole through said strip of material near said first end and a button secured to said strip of material near said second end whereas said button hole is adapted to receive said button therethrough to adjustably secure said strip of material around the peripheral top edge of the boot opening.

7. The accessory of claim 4 whereas said strip of material includes a first end and a second end, said first end and said second end adjustably secured together by a strip of Velcro® to adjustably secure said strip of material around the peripheral top edge of the boot opening.

8. The accessory of claim 4 whereas said strip of material includes a first end and a second end whereas said strip of material is wrapped around the peripheral top edge of the boot opening and said first and second ends are tied together to form a bow or knot and short strip of elastic is used to adjustably secure said strip material to the peripheral top edge of the boot opening.

9. The accessory of claim 1 whereas said adjustable strap includes a first piece having a fixed end attached to a first inside portion of said cuff and a free end, and a second piece having a fixed end attached to a second inside portion of said cuff opposite said first inside portion of said cuff and a free end, said free end of said first piece adjustably secured to said free end of said second piece.

10. An accessory for placement around the rim of the opening of a boot, said accessory comprising:

a decorative cuff having an outside portion with an upper lip curving inwardly to an inside portion, and

a strap having a first fixed end secured to a first side of said inside portion of said decorative cuff and a second fixed end secured to a second side of said inside portion of said decorative cuff opposite said first side of said inside portion of said decorative cuff,

whereas said upper lip of said decorative cuff is adapted to fit over the rim of the opening of the boot, and

whereas said strap is adapted to form a stirrup to fit under the heel of a wearer of the boot to secure said decorative cuff in place around the rim of the opening of the boot.

11. The accessory of claim 10 whereas said decorative cuff is tubularly shaped.

12. The accessory of claim 11 whereas said lip of said decorative cuff includes an elastic material to accommodate different sized boot openings.

13. The accessory of claim 10 whereas said cuff is formed from a strip of material having a first tail and a second tail, whereas said strip of material is wrapped around the rim of the opening of the boot and said first and second tails are secured together to secure said decorative cuff to the rim of the opening of the boot.

14. The accessory of claim 13 whereas said strip of material includes a loop secured to said first tail and one or more hook fasteners secured to said second tail, whereas said loop is adapted to receive one of said one or more hook fasteners to secure said second tail to said first tail and thereby secure said cuff to the rim of the opening of the boot.

15. The accessory of claim 13 whereas said first tail includes a button hole therethrough and said second tail includes one or more buttons or ties secured thereto, whereas said button hole is adapted to receive one of said one or more buttons to secure said second tail to said first tail and thereby adjustably secure said cuff to the rim of the opening of the boot.

16. The accessory of claim 13 whereas said first tail is secured to said second tail with a strip of Velcro® thereby adjustably securing said cuff to the rim of the opening of the boot.

17. The accessory of claim 13 whereas said first tail and said second tail are wrapped around said rim of said boot and tied together in a bow to secure said cuff to the rim of the opening of the boot.

18. The accessory of claim 13 whereas said first tail includes a male snap member secured thereto and said second tail includes one or more female snap members secured thereto, whereas said male snap member is adapted to engage one of said one or more female snap members to securely fasten said cuff to the rim of the opening of the boot.