1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to garment organizers. Particularly, the present invention is directed to devices for, and methods of organization of undergarments, but may be applied to other garments or items as well.
2. Description of Related Art
A variety of devices, such as hangers and the like, are known in the art for display or storage of garments, including undergarments. Of such devices, many are constructed of plastic and are intended only for use in display and storage of garments in retail establishments. Upon purchase, such hangers are removed from the purchased garment and reused to display other garments for sale. In other instances, disposable sheets of paperboard are used to stiffen items for display, which are then discarded by the consumer.
Such conventional methods and systems generally have been considered satisfactory for their intended purpose. However, such devices are not suitable for organization of multiple garments in one's home, or for display of multiple garments of a set, for example.
Typically, particularly in the case of ladies' undergarments, a variety of shapes and configurations of undergarments are often purchased by any one person. Such a variety of undergarments does not allow for easy and consistent storage of all undergarments. If folded, undergarments that are different in shape cannot necessarily be folded in the same way as other undergarments and neatly stored. Further, when folded the undergarments may have different sizes, making organization even more difficult. Moreover, when one desires to wear a particular undergarment, one must sort through a variety of other undergarments, which often results in unfolding thereof, and subsequent disorganization.
Accordingly, there remains a need in the art for a device to facilitate organization of undergarments that addresses the foregoing issues. There also remains a need in the art for a storage and organization device that is suitable for use within the home, and that is easy to use. The present invention provides a solution to these problems.
The purpose and advantages of the present invention are set forth in and are apparent from the description that follows. Additional advantages of the invention will be realized through practice of the invention, including use of the devices and methods particularly pointed out in the written description, claims and in the appended drawings.
To achieve these and other advantages, and in accordance with the purpose of the invention, as embodied, the invention includes a garment organizer including a plurality of garment holders configured and adapted to hold a garment and a connection element for connecting the plurality of garment holders, facilitating viewing of individual garments. The garment can be an undergarment, such as underwear or a brassiere, or alternatively can be hosiery or another garment, for example.
The plurality of garment holders can take on any of a variety of shapes, as desired or required by the particular garment to be held. For example, the garment holders can be substantially T-shaped, substantially heart-shaped, can include arcuate surfaces, or can have concave or convex portions, for example. The precise shape of the garment holders can be selected based on the garment to be held, and other considerations, such as a particular shape to enhance a marketing plan. Additionally, garment holders can be manufactured in a complete range of sizes in order to accommodate garments of different sizes, such as extra-small, small, medium, large and extra-large sizes, for example. Similarly, the materials and colors used to construct garment holders in accordance with the invention can be selected as desired or required. Garment holders can include a contour to follow the overall shape of the undergarment to be held. Alternatively or additionally, the garment holders can include a contour to mimic a portion of the silhouette of a wearer. Garment organizers in accordance with the invention can further include an outer cover to conceal the undergarments. The outer cover can be a box and lid, for example, or can simply be one or more planar covers that sandwich the garment holders and garments therebetween.
Garment holders for garment organizers constructed in accordance with the present invention can be formed of plastic, metal, wood, a combination thereof or other materials. Such material can constitute the entire garment holder or alternatively can form a frame or skeleton to be covered by another material, such as fabric. If covered in fabric, any suitable material, such as silk, cotton or wool can be used. Different knits or weaves of such material can be used, such as a terry-cloth, for example. Moreover, padding such as a foam, foam rubber, cork or cotton and/or polyester batting can be used underneath the fabric covering and over the frame.
The plurality of garment holders can be mutually connected by a connector such as a ring-shaped connector, passing through apertures defined in each garment holder. Alternatively, the connection elements can include mating protrusions and recesses, such that a protrusion of one garment holder engages a recess on an adjacent garment holder.
The garment organizer can be embodied such that the garment holders are mutually connected to enable a fanning separation of the garment holders. In some embodiments, this is accomplished by providing a pivot at one end of each garment holder. Such pivot can be formed, for example, by providing a ring passing through apertures defined in each garment holder. Garment organizers designed and constructed in accordance with the invention can alternatively be arranged so as to open as a book along one edge, as an accordion, can be arranged to interlock and stack together, or a combination thereof.
In accordance with the invention, garments can be secured to the garment holders by any suitable means, including but not limited to one or more clips, straps, hooks, protrusions, teeth, angled surfaces, concave surfaces, adhesives or high friction materials, such as rubber. Such features can be integrally molded or insert molded with the remainder of the garment holder, if the material used allows such forming process. Hooks, straps, clips and other elements can be embodied as softer elements than the remainder of the garment holder. This can be accomplished, for example, by insert molding, with the garment holder, such elements, which can be previously formed of a softer material. Alternatively, such elements can be integrally formed with the garment holder, such as by forming them to be thinner than the remainder of the garment holder, thus making them relatively more flexible. Naturally, such elements can alternatively be separately attached to the garment holder during the manufacturing process.
Further, a garment can be pinned to the garment holder, provided the material used for the garment holder enables such attachment. For example, a padded garment holder would allow a pin, such as a straight pin, to attach the garment to the garment holder.
Additionally, one or more areas can be provided on the garment organizer or on each garment holder individually, to allow display of indicia. Such indicia can include a logo of a manufacturer or vendor, a trademark or the like. Additionally or alternatively, indicia can include labels, which can be customized by the user. Such labels can take on a variety of embodiments, but can include, for example, a paper label held in a clear pocket provided on the garment organizer and/or on individual garment holders.
In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a garment organizer is provided having a plurality of garment holders and one or more connecting elements adapted and configured to mutually connect the plurality of garment holders. The plurality of garment holders are configured and adapted to hold an undergarment, and include an upper portion and a lower portion. The upper portion is adapted and configured to engage a waistband of an undergarment, and the lower portion extends from the upper portion and is adapted and configured to engage a lower portion of the undergarment.
The invention also includes a method of organizing garments. The method includes the steps of providing a garment organizer in accordance with the invention, placing a garment on at least one garment holder, and storing the garment organizer and garments.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention. It is also to be understood that features described in connection with one embodiment can be applied to other embodiments set forth herein, and that such embodiments are conceived by the Applicant, although such embodiments may not be specifically identified in this paper.
The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herewith and constitute part of this specification, are included to illustrate and provide a further understanding of the devices and methods of the invention. Together with the description, the drawings serve to explain the principles of the invention, wherein:
Reference will now be made in detail to the presently preferred embodiments of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The method and corresponding steps of the invention will be described in conjunction with the detailed description of the related devices.
The devices and methods presented herein may be used for organization and storage of garments. The present invention is particularly suited for organization and storage of undergarments, such as underwear or brassieres.
In accordance with the invention, a garment organizer includes one or more garment holders, each configured and adapted to hold a garment. Further, one or more connection elements for connecting the plurality of garment holders are provided, which arrangement facilitates viewing of individual garments.
For the purposes of explanation and illustration, and not limitation, an exemplary embodiment of a garment organizer in accordance with the invention is shown in
An undergarment—in this embodiment, underwear—is placed on the garment holder 110, so that the waist band is held on the upper portion 112 of the garment holder 110, while the portion of the undergarment between leg openings abuts or is held by the lower edge 114 of the garment holder 110.
Depending on the particular shape of the undergarment, the pivot might interfere with the undergarments or vice versa. Accordingly, the pivot can be placed near the upper edge of the garment holder 110, or may be provided on a protrusion extending from the garment holder 110, away from the region in which the undergarment is held.
As depicted in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Similarly, the garment organizer 1000 of
The connecting elements 1270 can be formed so as to have a recess 1271 on one side and a protrusion on the other, such that the protruding portion of one garment holder 1210 is received by the recess 1271 of an adjacent garment holder 1270. In use, the embodiment of
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
a illustrates an attachment feature 2080 in accordance with the invention, wherein a slot having rounded teeth is formed in the garment holder. A portion of the garment, such as the waistband, is inserted into the slot 2080, which deflects the end portion 2085 of the garment holder slightly, exerting pressure on the portion of the undergarment. If so embodied, the rounded teeth are arranged such that the path the garment would take to slip from the slot 2080 is tortuous to such an extent that it would not easily occur without intentionally being removed by a user.
b includes a resilient attachment element 2095 secured to or integrally formed with the garment holder. The resilient attachment element 2095 can be formed of any suitable material, such as rubber or the like. If desired, the resilient attachment element 2095 can be overmolded over a relatively stiff frame, such as one made from metal or plastic. Naturally, the resilient attachment element 2095 can be integrally formed, molded onto or otherwise attached to the garment holder, as desired or required.
As can be seen in
Finally, it is to be understood that aspects of the present invention can be applied to garment holders for garments other than underwear.
In the case of the garment holder 2600, the apertures 120 are provided near one lateral edge of the garment holder 2600. In the case of the garment holder 2700, the apertures 120 are provided near one longitudinal end thereof. Either arrangement allows for mutual attachment of garment holders and for perusal of the garments held thereby. Also, as can be seen, convex or concave longitudinal ends can be provided. Advantageously, concave longitudinal ends inhibit lateral movement of the garment 2690 held thereby.
In accordance with the invention, the materials and colors used can be selected as desired or required. Garment holders for garment organizers constructed in accordance with the present invention can be formed of plastic, metal, wood, paperboard, composite materials, other materials, or a combination thereof. Such material may be the only material used for construction, but alternatively can form a frame to be covered in another material, such as a fabric. If covered in fabric, any suitable material, such as silk, cotton or wool can be used. Different knits or weaves of such fabric can be used, such as a terry-cloth, for example. Padding, such as a foam, foam rubber, cork or cotton and/or polyester batting can be used underneath a fabric covering. This can provide for a desirable appearance and feel of the garment holder, and can also allow for attachment of garments to the garment holder through use of pins, such as safety pins or straight pins.
Additionally, one or more areas can be provided on the garment organizer or on each garment holder individually, to allow display of indicia, as shown in
The invention further provides a method of organizing garments. The method includes the steps of providing garment organizer in accordance with the invention, placing a garment on at least one garment holder, and storing the garment organizer and garments.
The methods and devices of the present invention, as described above and shown in the drawings, provide for a garment organizer that facilitates organization and perusal through undergarments. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the devices and methods of the present invention without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present invention include such modifications and variations.
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