Interactive Gift Bag
A gift bag and topper which, in one embodiment, includes a substantially planar die cut piece of material such as cardboard or paperboard, which is attached to one or more handles of a conventional gift bag such that the topper adds an additional entertainment element to the gift bag and may complete artwork or a picture printed on the outer surface of the gift bag. In another embodiment, one or more die cut components are inserted via narrow slots or openings contained thereon onto the top edge of the open end of two or more greeting card panels. The die cut components sit atop the gift bag and may serve to conceal the contents of the gift bag from the recipient.
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This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/197,343, filed on Aug. 3, 2011, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/370,135, filed on Aug. 3, 2010. Each of the above-referenced patent applications are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention is in the field of social expression products, and more particularly to gift products including gift wrapping and bags.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONGift bags are widely used packaging and wrapping medium for gifts of small sizes. The popularity of gift bags stems from ease of use and a wide range of styles, colors and sizes available. The typical construction of gift bags has been very conventional, largely due to low cost and ease of manufacture. Conventional gift bags are made of different types of printed paper, folded in a standard manner to form a reinforced square bottom, pleated sides and a crease in one of the main side walls to enable the bottom of the bag to be folded flat with the walls. Paper construction affords a wide variety of print media and finishes which are the primary aesthetic sales-triggering attributes of gift bags. For the basic cubic folding bag, the necessity of a handle has been dealt with in the minimalist manner of a string or rope through opposed sides of the bag. This provides a means for carrying and closure, but does not add appreciably to the aesthetic of the bag other than through color coordination. Gift bags are a difficult product to bring variety to in a manner which makes efficient use of retail space. A greater variety of designs and styles would increase sales, but is not practical given that each group of bags of a particular design occupy a significant amount of retail space. The retail display of gift bags preferably accentuates the primary feature of the printed occasion theme, pattern and color, but such displays are static in the sense that a consumer may decide very quickly based upon this primary appearance of the bags. In other words, the choices are strictly limited to what is displayed.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn accordance with the present disclosure and related inventions, interactive gift bags are provided, in one embodiment, in the form of a gift bag having a front panel, a back panel parallel to and opposite the front panel, two side panels positioned therebetween, and a bottom panel which closes off one end of the gift bag. The bag contains two handles, one handle attached to the front panel and one handle attached to the back panel. The handles are strands of rope or cord that are inserted into two holes or apertures located proximate to the top open edge of the front and back gift bag panels. The handles are also inserted into two holes or apertures contained on a die cut topper which is shaped and designed to correspond or compliment the artwork printed on the gift bag. When the handles are pulled taut, the gift bag topper sits proximate to the top open edge of the front and/or back panel of the gift bag, or “tops off” the gift bag.
In another embodiment, a gift bag includes a four sided gift bag construction and a three-dimensional die cut topper that is removably inserted over the open end of the gift bag. The topper contains one or more slots or openings along the bottom side of the topper so that the topper sits atop or straddles at least one top edge of the gift bag panels. The topper conceals the contents of the gift bag from the recipients and also adds a more decorative effect to the package.
The gift bag topper of the present disclosure and related inventions is a die cut piece of material such as cardboard, paperboard or other suitably strong, substantive but lightweight material that is attached to a traditional gift bag. The die cut shapes of the gift bag topper may complement the artwork printed on the gift bag.
The bag portion of the gift bag with topper is of a conventional design, having a front panel A and a back panel B opposite the front panel A with two side panels C, D extending therebetween. The length of the side panels C, D, controls the width of the gift bag 50. A bottom panel (not shown) connects each of the front A, back B and side panels C, D to create a closed end. Opposite the closed end is an open end for insertion of a gift or other items into the gift bag 50. The side panels C, D may contain a vertical bisecting crease or fold line 10, which enables the bag to be neatly folded and packaged for retail sale. The gift bag 50 also contains two handles 12, one handle 12 attached to the front panel A and one handle (not shown) attached to the back panel B. The handles 12 may be similar to a cord or rope-like structure, which extend between two holes or openings positioned proximate to the upper edges of the front A and back B panels along the open end of the gift bag 50. For each handle 12, a single piece of cord or rope-like structure is used. The two free ends of a first cord are inserted into the two holes in the front panel A of the gift bag 50 and two free ends of a second cord are inserted into the two holes in the back panel B of the gift bag 50. The cords may be inserted into each hole from the outside of the bag to the inside of the bag where each free end of the cord is tied or knotted for secure attachment to the gift bag or alternatively, the cords may be inserted form the inside of the bag to the outside of the bag, where ach free end is then tied or knotted.
In one embodiment, indicated generally at reference numeral 100 and shown in
The gift bag topper T may move along the length of the cord or rope-like handle 12 between the gift bag and the ends of the handle or handles 12. When the topper T is in a first position, as shown in
The gift bag topper T may be formed into any shape or size and in a preferred embodiment will correspond with or be complimentary to the artwork or printed indicia on the front A and/or back B panels of the gift bag 50. The topper T may complete the picture or artwork contained on the gift bag 50. For example, as shown in
An alternate embodiment of the gift bag topper of the present invention, indicated generally at reference numeral 200 and shown in
It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Other features and aspects of this invention will be appreciated by those skilled in the art upon reading and comprehending this disclosure. Such features, aspects, and expected variations and modifications of the reported results and examples are clearly within the scope of the invention where the invention is limited solely by the scope of the following claims.
Claims
1. A gift bag and topper comprising:
- a gift bag having a front panel, back panel, right side panel, left side panel, bottom panel and one open end;
- a handle attached to the front panel;
- a handle attached to the back panel;
- a topper attached to the handle attached to the front panel.
2. The gift bag and topper of claim 1, wherein the topper extends above a top edge of the open end of the gift bag.
3. The gift bag and topper of claim 1, wherein the handles are rope handles.
4. The gift bag and topper of claim 1, wherein the topper is a die cut shape.
5. The gift bag and topper of claim 1, wherein the topper is located between the gift bag and the handle attached to the front panel.
6. The gift bag and topper of claim 1, wherein the shape of the topper corresponds to a picture printed on the front panel of the gift bag.
7. A gift bag and topper comprising:
- a gift bag having a closed end and an open end;
- a first rope handle secured to an upper portion of a front panel of the gift bag;
- a second rope handle secured to an upper portion of a back panel of the gift bag which is opposite the front panel of the gift bag;
- a planar die cut shape having at least two apertures thereon through which the first or second rope handle is inserted such that the planar die cut shape is secured between the first or second rope handle and the gift bag.
8. The gift bag and topper of claim 7, wherein the planar die cut shape extends above the top edge of the open end of the gift bag.
9. The gift bag and topper of claim 7, wherein the planar die cut shape is shaped and decorated to match or complement the artwork contained on an outer surface of the front or back panel if the gift bag.
10. The gift bag and topper of claim 7, wherein the front panel and the back panel each contain two spaced apart apertures which facilitate attachment of the first and second rope handles thereto.
11. The gift bag and topper of claim 10, wherein each of the opposing ends of the first and second rope handles are inserted into one of the two spaced apart apertures on the front and back panels of the gift bag and knotted to secure the first and second rope handles to the front and back panels of the gift bag.
12. The gift bag and topper of claim 7, wherein a portion of the first and second rope handles is contained outside the gift bag and a portion of the first and second rope handles is contained inside the gift bag.
13. The gift bag and topper of claim 7, wherein the planar die cut shape can move freely along the length of the rope handle.
14. The gift bag and topper of claim 7, wherein the planar die cut shape completes a picture printed on the front or back surface of the gift bag.
15. The gift bag and topper of claim 7, wherein the opposing ends of the first and second rope handles are located on the inside of the gift bag.
16. A gift bag and topper comprising:
- a gift bag having a first main panel opposite and spaced apart from a second main panel, a first side panel opposite and spaced apart from a second side panel, a bottom panel which forms a closed end of the gift back, the opposite end of the gift bag being open to receive items placed therein;
- a first handle connected to the first main panel of the gift bag;
- a second handle connected to the second main panel of the gift bag;
- a shaped topper which is connected to the first handle, the shaped topper free to move along the length of the first handle;
- wherein the shaped topper completes a picture printed on the first main panel when the shaped topper is positioned along the first handle to be adjacent to and in contact with the first main panel of the gift bag.
17. The gift bag and topper of claim 16, wherein the shaped topper sits above the first main panel of the gift bag.
18. The gift bag and topper of claim 16, wherein the first and second handles are rope handles.
19. The gift bag and topper of claim 16, wherein the shaped topper contains two apertures thereon through which opposing ends of the first handle are inserted.
20. The gift bag and topper of claim 16, wherein the first main panel of the gift bag contains two apertures thereon through which opposing ends of the first handle are inserted.
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 18, 2013
Publication Date: Feb 6, 2014
Applicant: American Greetings Corporation (Cleveland, OH)
Inventor: Suzanne Yoder (Columbia Stations, OH)
Application Number: 14/030,430
International Classification: B65D 85/00 (20060101);