FLORAL STEM SUPPORTS FORMED OF HOLLOW WIRE AND METHODS OF USE THEREOF
A hollow wire and method of using the hollow wire to wrap or support a flower stem or floral grouping, and/or use in construction, crafts, hobbies, or other uses in need of wire products, is disclosed.
Latest Trust U/T/A Patents:
- Catwalk Pipe Restraint System
- Systems and methods for distributing audio/video feed of a live event via satellite
- Systems and methods for positioning a satellite uplink device
- Systems and methods for communicating events to users
- Systems and methods for communicating a live event to users using the internet
This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 13/424,573, filed Mar. 20, 2012, now abandoned; which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 11/881,164, filed Jul. 26, 2007, now abandoned; which is a divisional of U.S. Ser. No. 11/823,429, filed Jun. 27, 2007, now abandoned; which claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) of U.S. Ser. No. 60/816,745, filed Jun. 27, 2006. The entire contents of each of the above-referenced patents and patent applications are hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference.
BACKGROUNDWire is a commonly used mechanical aid in floral arranging and numerous other fields. In the floral industry, the most important uses for wire include supporting flower stems, such as in straightening a curved stem, curving a straight stem, or gathering and holding multiple stems together. While floral arrangers generally want to avoid any visible wires and other aids, for many florists the wiring of stems is considered a requirement for increasing customer satisfaction. Support wires can help prevent breakage of the flower heads during delivery and also assist flowers in receiving adequate water. Other important uses of support wires include their use in flower stem replacement, creating accessory stems in corsage and carried bouquet construction, joining stems into clusters for a single insertion, plus a wide array of other miscellaneous attachment and joining functions.
Florist wire is often treated (annealed) for improved flexibility and is often coated with an enamel (often green) to resist rusting and to blend with the floral stems and foliage. Florist wire is available from floral crafts stores in small quantities of 6″ or 12″ lengths, but florists usually obtain the 18″ length in 12 pound boxes, from which they can cut the other needed sizes. The important distinction among the wire strands is their size or gauge. Wire size is related by the gauge number: the smaller the wire diameter, the larger the gauge number. The general applications of the different wire sizes used by florists include, but are not limited to: heavy wire of #16-#18 gauge is used to support large stems or heavy flowers such as lilies, gladiolus, and snapdragons; medium weight wire of #20-#22 gauge is used to support stems of such flowers as roses, carnations, and chrysanthemums; light weight wire of #24-#26 gauge is used for replacing stems in corsages and bridal bouquets with flowers of average size, or to support smaller or lighter flower stems; very fine wire of #28-#30 gauge is used for delicate corsage flowers and for binding together stems with a heavier support wire; ultra fine wire of #32-#36 gauge is used for very delicate flowers and fine work in bridal arrangements, dainty corsages, and for glamellias.
The several methods of wiring replacement stems can be used in corsage construction. For general arranging work the emphasis is on stem support, with the selected method based on the character of the flower stem. In the majority of situations, the straight-wire (or wrapped wire) method will be used. Roses, carnations, and many other flowers with solid stems are usually wired in this way. One end of the wire is inserted into the base of the calyx (the stem enlargement just below the flower). The insertion needs to be only deep enough to keep the wire end from slipping out, as the rest of the wire is loosely wrapped in a spiral down the stem. With the wire of the appropriate gauge, it should be easy to flex the wire around the leaves, but one should avoid making too many turns around the stem with the wire. When completed, the wire should be reasonably straight for best wire strength and support. Some flowers, such as chrysanthemums, have a small, flat calyx which may not hold the wire end as desired. For these flowers, the hook-wire method can be more effective. In this method, the wire end is pushed from the calyx base through the flower face. A small hook is made in the wire end, and the wire is then pulled back to embed (and conceal) the wire in the flower face. The remaining wire is loosely wrapped about the stem as for the straight-wire method. A third technique, insertion wiring, works best with those flowers having fleshy or hollow stems, such as but not limited to, many of the spring bulb flowers. An outside wire wrap would only crush these stems. Instead, the wire is passed up through the hollow stem until it is imbedded in the calyx from the inside.
Some additional wire forms are also used in commercial and home floral arranging. When making wreaths or floral sprays, a continuous length of smaller gauge wire is needed for binding together the components as they are added. Paddle wire, either green-enameled or unpainted in #20-#26 gauges, is readily available for this purpose. Some arrangers will also use products referred to as twist-ems or twist-ties, which comprises wire enclosed in a narrow paper cover. This product is available in continuous rolls to cut to the length needed. Another common support material is referred to as the chenille stem or pipe cleaner. This support material is actually composed of two wire strands that are twisted to hold threads, such as fuzzy colored threads, that make up the stem body. Most chenille stems are used in corsage work or in making accessories, but some other applications are possible when a colored joining wire may be desired.
An alternative joining material is floral tape or paraffin tape. This is a thin paper tape impregnated with paraffin. Such tape may be used instead of wire to secure a stem to a wood pick or to bind together a cluster of stems. It is also used as a wire wrap for extra rust resistance when the wire is in direct contact with water. It may also give a cushion along the wire to reduce possible damage to a delicate flower or stem. The tape typically comes in rolls of ½″ or 1″ width in a variety of colors. The main use of floral tape is in the construction of corsages, but there are opportunities for its benefit as a general floral arranging mechanical aid.
Floral ribbon wire may be used in corsage and carried flower arrangements, commercial designs and some home designs. Such arrangements and designs may include bows or various ribbon accessories as an important visible component or for other appropriate uses.
Wired ribbon (also referred to herein as “ribbon wire”) can be constructed by sandwiching wire between webs of satin (acetate) ribbon. The wired ribbon may have a solid color, or the wired ribbon may have printed patterns, lace or eyelet edges, or other decorative treatments. The finish on the two sides of the wired ribbon may the same or different; for example, one side of the wired ribbon may be satin or shiny finish, while the other side may reveal a fabric weave and have a duller finish.
Flocked or velvet wired ribbon may be satin ribbons with a velvety texture on one side. This added thickness makes them stiffer to aid in the production of bows, and the image of this added thickness is also especially popular for adding texture to holiday wreaths and other arrangements, as well as for use simply as bows or streamers alone. Cloth wired ribbon offers a wide variety of colors and patterns. These are usually one-sided colors or prints only, and the cloth does not offer the same crispness as satin ribbon for bow loops. Paper is also used as a wired ribbon material. These are made in a variety of solid colors and widths. The paper wired ribbon is loosely folded and twisted into a narrow coil, and it is unfolded as desired for use in a bow, wrap, or other decorative effect. This wrinkling in the paper adds to the informal image of the arrangement where this type of wired ribbon is appropriate. Wired ribbon allows dramatic images to be created, e.g., ribbon streamers can be softly bent to suggest that they are moving due to wind. While this does add to the ribbon cost, it also allows for a design impact that is not possible from the other types of wired ribbons. Other options that may fit the ribbon class of accessories include but are not limited to, curling ribbons, metallic cord, and solid or multi-colored yarn.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,293,713 discloses a hollow tubular device having a longitudinal opening. The hollow device can be used to enclose and surround a plant stem for supporting the stem in a floral arrangement. However, this tubular device cannot be used to wrap a floral stem, or inserted into a floral stem, or used in other aspects of floral construction or decoration in the same way floral wire can be used.
The presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is directed to a novel type of hollow wire which retains the size, strength and usefulness of a solid wire while reducing the weight of the wire. Such hollow wire may be utilized in any desired floral packaging, including, but not limited to, floral stem support, and paddle and spool wire.
Before explaining at least one embodiment of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) in detail, it is to be understood that the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of the components or steps or methodologies set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is capable of other embodiments or of being practiced or carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.
Unless otherwise defined herein, technical terms used in connection with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) shall have the meanings that are commonly understood by those of ordinary skill in the art. Further, unless otherwise required by context, singular terms shall include pluralities and plural terms shall include the singular.
All patents, published patent applications, and non-patent publications mentioned in the specification are indicative of the level of skill of those skilled in the art to which this presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) pertains. All patents, published patent applications, and non-patent publications referenced in any portion of this application are herein expressly incorporated by reference in their entirety to the same extent as if each individual patent or publication was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference.
All of the articles and/or methods disclosed and claimed herein can be made and executed without undue experimentation in light of the present disclosure. While the articles and methods of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) have been described in terms of preferred embodiments, it will be apparent to those of skill in the art that variations may be applied to the articles and/or methods and in the steps or in the sequence of steps of the method described herein without departing from the concept, spirit and scope of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s). All such similar substitutes and modifications apparent to those skilled in the art are deemed to be within the spirit, scope and concept of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) as defined by the appended claims.
As utilized in accordance with the present disclosure, the following terms, unless otherwise indicated, shall be understood to have the following meanings:
The use of the word “a” or “an” when used in conjunction with the term “comprising” in the claims and/or the specification may mean “one,” but it is also consistent with the meaning of “one or more,” “at least one,” and “one or more than one.” The use of the term “or” in the claims is used to mean “and/or” unless explicitly indicated to refer to alternatives only or the alternatives are mutually exclusive, although the disclosure supports a definition that refers to only alternatives and “and/or.” Throughout this application, the term “about” is used to indicate that a value includes the inherent variation of error for the device, the method being employed to determine the value, or the variation that exists among the study subjects. For example but not by way of limitation, when the term “about” is utilized, the designated value may vary by plus or minus twelve percent, or eleven percent, or ten percent, or nine percent, or eight percent, or seven percent, or six percent, or five percent, or four percent, or three percent, or two percent, or one percent. The use of the term “at least one” will be understood to include one as well as any quantity more than one, including but not limited to, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30, 40, 50, 100, etc. The term “at least one” may extend up to 100 or 1000 or more, depending on the term to which it is attached; in addition, the quantities of 100/1000 are not to be considered limiting, as higher limits may also produce satisfactory results. In addition, the use of the term “at least one of X, Y and Z” will be understood to include X alone, Y alone, and Z alone, as well as any combination of X, Y and Z. The use of ordinal number terminology (i.e., “first”, “second”, “third”, “fourth”, etc.) is solely for the purpose of differentiating between two or more items and is not meant to imply any sequence or order or importance to one item over another or any order of addition, for example.
As used in this specification and claim(s), the words “comprising” (and any form of comprising, such as “comprise” and “comprises”), “having” (and any form of having, such as “have” and “has”), “including” (and any form of including, such as “includes” and “include”) or “containing” (and any form of containing, such as “contains” and “contain”) are inclusive or open-ended and do not exclude additional, unrecited elements or method steps.
The term “or combinations thereof” as used herein refers to all permutations and combinations of the listed items preceding the term. For example, “A, B, C, or combinations thereof” is intended to include at least one of: A, B, C, AB, AC, BC, or ABC, and if order is important in a particular context, also BA, CA, CB, CBA, BCA, ACB, BAC, or CAB. Continuing with this example, expressly included are combinations that contain repeats of one or more item or term, such as BB, AAA, MB, BBC, AAABCCCC, CBBAAA, CABABB, and so forth. The skilled artisan will understand that typically there is no limit on the number of items or terms in any combination, unless otherwise apparent from the context.
As used herein, the term “substantially” means that the subsequently described event or circumstance completely occurs or that the subsequently described event or circumstance occurs to a great extent or degree. For example, the term “substantially” means that the subsequently described event or circumstance occurs at least 90% of the time, or at least 95% of the time, or at least 98% of the time.
The terms “flower”, “floral bouquet”, “floral arrangement”, “floral grouping”, “corsage,” and other floral terms used herein will be understood to include at least one fresh, dried, or artificial floral material, or any combination thereof. Such terms are not limited to floral materials having both a bloom and stem end, but may include plant materials without a bloom end.
Turning now to the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s), floral wire is an important tool in the modern floral industry and is used for constructing floral bouquets, floral arrangements, corsages and the like. The presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) contemplates a novel hollow floral wire, and methods of use thereof in constructing items such as but not limited to, floral bouquets, floral arrangements, corsages, and the like. The hollow wire contemplated herein may also be used in the hobby and craft industries as well as in the fields of detonation and construction, for example, for tying together materials such as steel or iron mesh or reinforcing rods and bars, or similar structures made of polymeric materials or wood materials.
Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to
The hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) may be formed of any material that can function in accordance with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) as disclosed and required herein. For example but not by way of limitation, the hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) may be constructed of steel, aluminum, other metals, metal alloys, polymers, paper, carbon fibers, carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotube impregnated polymers, carbon nanotubes, combinations and derivatives thereof, and the like.
Shown in
Shown in
The abutting portion 68 may be attached or connected together by a bonding material, or other methods known in the art; optionally, the abutting portion 68 may not be connected, and the shape of the hollow wire 50 may be maintained via the structural characteristics of the material from which the hollow wire 50 is formed. In addition, the abutting portion 68 is illustrated as extending longitudinally, completely or substantially completely, along the length of the hollow wire 50. However, it is to be understood that the abutting portion 68 may only extend longitudinally along only a portion of the length of the hollow wire 50, with the remainder of the length of the hollow wire 50 being open and/or the first and second longitudinal edges 64 and 66 being overlapped.
Shown in
The overlapping portion 88 may be attached or connected together by a bonding material, or other methods known in the art; optionally, the overlapping portion 88 may not be connected, and the shape of the hollow wire 70 may be maintained via the structural characteristics of the material from which the hollow wire 70 is formed. In addition, the overlapping portion 88 is illustrated as extending longitudinally, completely or substantially completely, along the length of the hollow wire 70. However, it is to be understood that the overlapping portion 88 may only extend longitudinally along only a portion of the length of the hollow wire 70, with the remainder of the length of the hollow wire 70 being open and/or the first and second longitudinal edges 84 and 86 abutting one another.
Shown in
While the gap 108 is illustrated as extending longitudinally, completely or substantially completely, along the length of the hollow wire 90, it is to be understood that the gap 108 may only extend longitudinally along only a portion of the length of the hollow wire 90, with the remainder of the length of the hollow wire 90 being open and/or the first and second longitudinal edges 104 and 106 being overlapped and/or abutted against one another.
While
While
While specific cross-sectional configurations are shown herein for various embodiments of the hollow wire described herein, it is to be understood that the hollow wire may have any desired cross-sectional configuration known in the art, including but not limited to, circular, oval, elliptical, parabolic, open curve, closed curve, square, rectangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, octagonal, trapezoidal, or any other polygonal cross-sections known in the art.
While the embodiments of hollow wire described herein above are provided with a substantially tubular structure, it is to be understood that the hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is not limited to substantially closed, tubular structures. Instead, the hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) also includes open cross-sectional structures that function in accordance with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s).
While the troughs of the hollow wires of
For
The term “bonding material” as used herein, means any type of material or thing which can be used to effect the bonding or connecting of two materials or portions of the same material. Examples of bonding materials used in accordance with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) include, but are not limited to, adhesives, pressure sensitive adhesives, cohesives, heat sealable materials such as heat sealable lacquers and hot melt materials, sonic sealable and vibratory sealable materials, ties, labels, bands, ribbons, strings, tapes (including single or double-sided adhesive tapes), staples and combinations thereof.
In yet another embodiment of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s), any of the hollow wires described herein previously may be provided with an outer coating disposed on at least a portion thereof.
It should be noted that any of the hollow wires described herein may be completely, or partially covered with an outer coating, such as the outer coating 192, along at least a portion of a length thereof. For example, shown in
It is to be understood that any of the hollow wires described herein previously may be provided with an outer coating on at least a portion thereof, as described in relation to
Another embodiment of hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is shown in
It is to be understood that while the hollow wire 210 is illustrated as having a pair of oppositely disposed wings 214 and 216, the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is not limited to the hollow wire 210 having two wings. For example, the hollow wire 210 may be constructed with a single wing. This embodiment of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) would result in the hollow core 211 being disposed on an outer edge of the hollow wire 210, rather than being disposed in the center 210 of the hollow wire 210, as shown in
Any of the hollow wires described herein may be used in the manner of the hollow wire 210 as shown in
Shown in
In addition, any of the hollow wires described herein may be provided with at least one interlocking portion that functions to maintain the hollow wire in a bent position. The interlocking portions may be utilized with the corrugated or scored portions 232 as known in the art. In one embodiment, the interlocking portion may be a hook-like extension that engages a groove or triangular crease on another portion of the hollow wire. However, other examples of interlocking portions are known in the art, and therefore the above-described example of an interlocking portion is not to be considered limiting.
Any of the embodiments of hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) can be used in a variety of manners, including but not limited to, any uses for which floral wire is acceptable, including but not limited to, floral arranging, craft or hobby uses, home decor uses, and other various decorative uses. For example,
In
In another method, the hollow wire 240 may be inserted as described for
In
Any of the techniques described herein with reference to
Once the hollow wire 240 is disposed about or through the plant stem 242 by any of the methods shown in
Optionally, rather than disposing hollow wire about one or more individual flowers and/or plants that are then utilized in producing a floral grouping, a plurality of flowers and/or plants may be first combined to form the floral grouping, and then at least one piece of hollow wire disposed about the floral grouping. For example,
Any of the methods described herein may include the step of taping at least a portion of wired flower(s) and/or plant(s) with floral tape. Taping serves several purposes, including but not limited to, holding moisture into the stem of a flower or plant, concealing the hollow wire, and ensuring that the flower/plant does not slip out of a wired mount.
The hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) may also be used to construct various wire forms that are utilized in various floral and craft embodiments.
Referring now to
In addition, at least a portion of the floral easel 282 of
Referring now to
At least a portion of the floral easel or plaque 290 is constructed utilizing hollow wires of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s). For example, at least a portion of the floral easel or plaque 290 can be fabricated of the hollow wire 10 or any other hollow wire hereinbefore described, and if desired, at least a portion of the hollow wire can be provided with a coating, such as but not limited to the outer coatings 192, 202 or 212 of the hollow wires 190, 200 or 210, respectively.
The construction of the floral easel or plaque 290 is well known, as is the use of same to support a floral grouping on a casket and/or a stone in a cemetery. Thus, no further comments concerning the construction of the floral easel or plaque 290 or the attachment of the floral grouping 292 thereto is believed necessary for one skilled in the art to construct and employ a stone and/or casket floral easel utilizing the hollow wires of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s).
In addition, while one specific embodiment of a floral easel or plaque for use with caskets and/or monuments is described in illustrated herein, it is to be understood that any variations in floral easels or plaques known in the art and utilized for this same purpose also fall within the scope of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) when formed of hollow wire in accordance with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s).
Further, it is to be understood that the floral easels, plaques and/or saddles formed of hollow wire in accordance with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) may be utilized for any desired purpose, for example but not by way of limitation, with caskets, tombstones, headstones, stone monuments, and any other type of memorial.
Other uses of the hollow wire of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) will become apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art of the floral industry or other industries in which wires may be used, including, but not limited to bag-closing wires, bale ties, pail handles, spiral bindings, (such as spiral bound notebooks), staples, craft and hobby wire, greening pins, staple wire, nails and the like may apply.
Changes may be made in the construction and the operation of the various components, elements and assemblies described herein or in the steps or the sequence of steps of the methods described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) as defined in the following claims.
From the above description, it is clear that the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is well adapted to carry out the objects and to attain the advantages mentioned herein as well as those inherent in the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s). While certain embodiments of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) have been described for purposes of this disclosure, it will be understood that numerous changes may be made which will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and which are accomplished within the spirit of the inventive concept(s) disclosed and claimed.
Claims
1. A method of supporting a flower, comprising:
- wrapping a floral stem support about at least a portion of a stem of at least one flower, the floral stem support comprising a hollow wire having a sidewall having an outer surface and an inner surface, and wherein the floral stem support is wrapped about the stem a plurality of times.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one of:
- (a) the hollow wire is further defined as having an inner diameter and an outer diameter;
- (b) a gauge of the hollow wire is in a range of from about 8 to about 40;
- (c) the hollow wire has a circular, oval, elliptical, and/or parabolic cross-section;
- (d) the hollow wire has a polygonal cross-section selected from the group consisting of square, rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, octagonal, and trapezoidal cross-sections;
- (e) the hollow wire has at least one corrugated and/or scored portion;
- (f) the hollow wire has at least one interlocking portion; and
- (g) the hollow wire is covered with a coating selected from the group consisting of paper, plastic, fabric, ribbon, rubber, polymeric material, metal, enamel, paint, metallized fabric, metallized polymeric film, ceramic material, flocking, bonding material, and combinations thereof.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein the hollow wire is further defined as having a first longitudinal edge and a second longitudinal edge.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein at least one of:
- (a) at least a portion of the first and second longitudinal edges of the hollow wire overlap;
- (b) at least a portion of the first and second longitudinal edges of the hollow wire abut one another;
- (c) the hollow wire has a gap between the first and second longitudinal edges;
- (d) the hollow wire has a longitudinal groove which extends along a length of the hollow wire.
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the hollow wire is constructed of a material selected from the group consisting of steel, aluminum, other metals, metal alloys, polymers, paper, carbon fibers, carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotube impregnated polymers, carbon nanotubes, combinations and derivatives thereof.
6. The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one flower is further defined as a plurality of flowers, each having a stem, and wherein the hollow wire is wrapped about at least a portion of the plurality of stems of the plurality of flowers.
7. A method of supporting a flower, comprising:
- disposing at least a portion of a floral stem support substantially parallel to and substantially adjacent at least a portion of a stem of at least one flower, the floral stem support comprising a hollow wire having a sidewall having an outer surface and an inner surface;
- securing at least a portion of the floral stem support about at least a portion of the stem, thereby providing support to the at least one flower.
8. The method of claim 7, wherein the securing step is further defined as wrapping a portion of the floral stem support about an upper portion of the stem.
9. The method of claim 7, wherein the securing step is further defined as wrapping a tape about at least a portion of the adjacent portions of the floral stem support and the stem.
10. The method of claim 7, wherein at least one of:
- (a) the hollow wire is further defined as having an inner diameter and an outer diameter;
- (b) a gauge of the hollow wire is in a range of from about 8 to about 40;
- (c) the hollow wire has a circular, oval, elliptical, and/or parabolic cross-section;
- (d) the hollow wire has a polygonal cross-section selected from the group consisting of square, rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, octagonal, and trapezoidal cross-sections;
- (e) the hollow wire has at least one corrugated and/or scored portion;
- (f) the hollow wire has at least one interlocking portion; and
- (g) the hollow wire is covered with a coating selected from the group consisting of paper, plastic, fabric, ribbon, rubber, polymeric material, metal, enamel, paint, metallized fabric, metallized polymeric film, ceramic material, flocking, bonding material, and combinations thereof.
11. The method of claim 7, wherein the hollow wire is further defined as having a first longitudinal edge and a second longitudinal edge.
12. The method of claim 11, wherein at least one of:
- (a) at least a portion of the first and second longitudinal edges of the hollow wire overlap;
- (b) at least a portion of the first and second longitudinal edges of the hollow wire abut one another;
- (c) the hollow wire has a gap between the first and second longitudinal edges;
- (d) the hollow wire has a longitudinal groove which extends along a length of the hollow wire.
13. The method of claim 7, wherein the hollow wire is constructed of a material selected from the group consisting of steel, aluminum, other metals, metal alloys, polymers, paper, carbon fibers, carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotube impregnated polymers, carbon nanotubes, combinations and derivatives thereof.
14. A method of supporting a flower, comprising:
- inserting at least a portion of a stem of at least one flower into a floral stem support, the floral stem support comprising a hollow wire having a sidewall having an outer surface and an inner surface, and wherein the portion of the stem is disposed within a space surrounded by the inner surface of the hollow wire.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein at least one of:
- (a) the hollow wire is further defined as having an inner diameter and an outer diameter;
- (b) a gauge of the hollow wire is in a range of from about 8 to about 40;
- (c) the hollow wire has a circular, oval, elliptical, and/or parabolic cross-section;
- (d) the hollow wire has a polygonal cross-section selected from the group consisting of square, rectangular, triangular, pentagonal, hexagonal, octagonal, and trapezoidal cross-sections;
- (e) the hollow wire has at least one corrugated and/or scored portion;
- (f) the hollow wire has at least one interlocking portion; and
- (g) the hollow wire is covered with a coating selected from the group consisting of paper, plastic, fabric, ribbon, rubber, polymeric material, metal, enamel, paint, metallized fabric, metallized polymeric film, ceramic material, flocking, bonding material, and combinations thereof.
16. The method of claim 14, wherein the hollow wire is further defined as having a first longitudinal edge and a second longitudinal edge.
17. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of:
- (a) at least a portion of the first and second longitudinal edges of the hollow wire overlap;
- (b) at least a portion of the first and second longitudinal edges of the hollow wire abut one another;
- (c) the hollow wire has a gap between the first and second longitudinal edges;
- (d) the hollow wire has a longitudinal groove which extends along a length of the hollow wire.
18. The method of claim 14, wherein the hollow wire is constructed of a material selected from the group consisting of steel, aluminum, other metals, metal alloys, polymers, paper, carbon fibers, carbon nanoparticles, carbon nanotube impregnated polymers, carbon nanotubes, combinations and derivatives thereof.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 28, 2013
Publication Date: Feb 20, 2014
Applicants: Trust U/T/A (Highland, IL),
Inventor: Donald E. Weder (Highland, IL)
Application Number: 14/064,977
International Classification: A47G 7/02 (20060101);