Patent Grant
10206476
The present invention relates to an apparatus and a method for hair coloring and lightening, and, more particularly to such an apparatus and such a method by which a hair coloring, highlight, lowlight or lightening material is applied to selected portions of the hair, with water dissolvable and biodegradable paper covered with hair coloring and, or lightener and applied to the hair using an activator.
Traditional methods for hair coloring and lightening hair have been used for thousands of years, when materials such as henna, indigo, sage, and chamomile were used. In the Roman Empire, dark haired women who admired the blonde hair of female slaves lightened their own hair using saffron, red arsenic, nut shells, and plant ash. In the latter part of the Nineteenth Century synthetic dyes came into use for hair coloring, and hydrogen peroxide came into widespread use as a bleaching agent.
While it is relatively easy to change the color of a person's hair as a whole by dyeing or bleaching, the results of applying such a process uniformly to all of the hair are generally disappointing and difficult, with the hair acquiring an uninteresting non-uniform color. Conventional methods include measuring and mixing hair color or lightening with a developer in a mixing bowl or applicator bottle. The hair color or lightener is then applied to the hair with a tint brush or applidqto4 bottle. This method is messy when mixing and applying it to one's hair, resulting in unpredictable color results. It is also very difficult to store, transport and clean up hair coloring and lighteners. Therefore, such a process is generally followed by another step, in which selected portions of the hair are lightened, in a process known as streaking, or darkened, in a process known as reverse streaking.
The method most commonly used today for coloring selected portions of the hair is the foil method, in which the stylist isolates a strand of hair to lie along the upper surface of a sheet of foil having an edge held against the head near the roots of the strand of hair. The selected strand is then treated by the application of coloring material, being isolated from adjacent portions of the hair with the foil, and the foil is then folded around the strand to continue providing a barrier preventing migration of the coloring material to other parts of the hair during time necessary to provide the desired treatment.
One problem with the foil method arises from the cost of the large number of foil sheets that must be used to treat the hair of an individual and from the space required for their disposal or the costs of recycling the material. Foil makes up approximately fifty percent (50%) of color salon waste. The time required for the completion of the process is also disadvantageous in its effects on the cost of the process and on the discomfort of the individual whose hair is being treated. Furthermore, since the strands of hair being treated are covered by the foil, it is difficult for the stylist using this method to track the progress of the treatment, often resulting, for example, in the over bleaching of certain strands of hair being streaked.
Before the strands of hair can be pace d on individual foil panels and treated with coloring materials, the hair must be separated into strands. For example, this is done by weaving the hair using an ordinary rattail comb, having a comb section with ordinary teeth from which a pointed extension, or rattail, extends. The comb section is used to shape each strand, and the strands are individually placed to extend across alternating sides of the rattail, in a woven fashion.
Given the shortcomings with conventional methods for coloring and lightening hair, there exists a need for a device and method for coloring or lightening hair that provides predictable, uniform results, that does not require messy measuring and mixing bowls, eliminates the need for foil, is easy to clean up, dissolves with tap water, washes safely down the drain, and that is biodegradable and environmentally safe. It is, therefore, to the effective resolution of the aforementioned problems and shortcomings of the prior art that the present invention is directed. The instant invention addresses this unfulfilled need in the prior art by providing a device and method for coloring and lightening hair with dissolvable and biodegradable paper products as contemplated by the instant invention disclosed herein.
In light of the foregoing, it is an object of the present invention to provide a hair treatment paper device for coloring, highlighting, lowlighting or lightening hair with water dissolvable and biodegradable paper.
It is also an object of the instant invention to provide a water dissolvable paper device for coloring, highlighting, lowlighting or lightening hair that eliminates the need or use of foil.
It is another object of the instant invention to provide a method for coloring, highlighting, lowlighting or lightening hair with water dissolvable paper that may be used by professionals or nonprofessionals.
It is an additional object of the instant invention to provide a method for coloring, highlighting, lowlighting or lightening hair with biodegradable paper.
It is a further object of the instant invention to provide a hair treatment water dissolvable paper device and method for coloring highlighting, lowlighting or lightening hair that provides for uniform color in the hair.
It is yet another object of the instant invention to provide a hair treatment water dissolvable paper device and method for coloring highlighting, lowlighting or lightening that saves time.
It is yet a further object of the instant invention to provide a hair treatment water dissolvable paper device and method for coloring highlighting, lowlighting or lightening that does not require messy measuring and mixing bowls and provides for a much cleaner process than conventional methods.
It is yet an additional object of the instant invention to a provide hair treatment water dissolvable paper device and method for coloring highlighting, lowlighting or lightening that dissolves with tap water, washes safely down the drain and is environmentally safe and ecological.
In accordance with one aspect, the present invention provides a paper device for coloring, highlighting, lowlighting and lightening hair that includes at least one sheet of water dissolvable and biodegradable paper having first surface and a second surface, at least one color or lightener on the first surface, an inhibitor on the first surface, a coating of silicone on the second surface to prevent the bleeding of color through the sheet, and an adhesive strip on the second surface for securing the sheet on a client's hair. The present invention may also include an activator.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a paper device for coloring, highlighting, lowlighting and lightening hair that includes a pad having a plurality of sheets of water dissolvable and biodegradable paper wherein each sheet of paper has a first surface and a second surface; a plurality of colors, a lightener, highlighting agent or lowlighting agent on the first surface; an inhibitor on the first surface; a coating of silicone on the second surface to prevent the bleeding of color through the sheet; and a water soluble adhesive strip on the second surface for securing the sheet on a client's hair. Each sheet may also have a heat seal coating applied to either surface to make it more firm so that the sheet may be made into a dissolvable pouch, cone, corkscrew or other desirable shape. The colors may be used in organic or inorganic dyes, hennas, colors, stains or lighteners and may be infused, coated, imbibed or applied to the sheet using a tint brush.
In an additional aspect, the present invention provides a method for coloring, highlighting, lowlighting and lightening hair selecting at least one sheet of water dissolvable and biodegradable paper having first surface and a second surface, at least one desired color or lightener on the first surface, an inhibitor on the first surface, a coating of silicone on the second surface to prevent the bleeding of color through the sheet, and an adhesive strip on the second surface for securing the sheet on hair, applying at least one sheet of paper to a client's hair with the adhesive strip down so it adheres to the hair and first surface up, placing and laying at least one strand of a client's hair of the first surface, applying an activator to the sheet and, after processing, rinsing the client's hair until the at least one sheet dissolves.
In accordance with these and other objects, which will become apparent hereinafter, the instant invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings.
A more complete understanding of the present invention, and the attendant advantages and features thereof, will be more readily understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:
With reference to the drawings in which like reference designators refer to like elements,
With reference to
The hair treatment sheets 12 preferably comprise a water dissolvable or soluble paper made or marketed by Daymark Technologies or comparable substitute. The water soluble paper is made of a combination of sodium carboxy methyl cellulose and wood pulp or comparable substitutes. The paper sheets 12 dissolve in water in seconds making it instantly biodegradable. This dissolving material can be made in a variety of thicknesses and coatings, which makes it useful with the instant invention 10. The paper sheets 12 can be coated with a water soluble adhesive, such as to make the adhesive strip 20, which dissolves in water or steam and leaves behind no adhesive residue. The paper sheet can also have heat seal coating applied that allows the material to be made into a dissolvable pouch, corkscrew, cone or other desired shape as shown in
With reference to
To use the instant invention 10, the first step is to select the sheet 12 with the desired shade, color or lightener and oriented into proper position, paying close attention to the hair lines and parts. The hair treatment sheet 12 is applied to a client's hair with the adhesive strip 20 down and against the head or scalp and the color or lightener side 14 facing up and out. Once a hair treatment sheet 12 is in place, a segment of hair or hair strand is placed and laid on top of the color side 14 of the sheet 12. An activator is then applied, such as by a tint brush or a spray, so as to completely cover and wet the sheet 12. This is repeated with as many sheets as required wherein additional sheets 12 may be applied as desired in selected spatial orientation and colors to achieve the desired look. Once the hair coloring or lightening process is completed, the client's hair is rinsed and the hair treatment sheets 12 dissolve and wash down the drain.
It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to what has been particularly shown and described herein above. In addition, unless mention was made above to the contrary, it should be noted that all of the accompanying drawings are not to scale. A variety of modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention, which is limited only by the following claims.
This application claims the benefit of provisional parent application Ser. No. 62/099,244 filed Jan. 2, 2015 N/A
| Number | Name | Date | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5816268 | Awaijane | Oct 1998 | A |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62099244 | Jan 2015 | US |
