Patent Application
20220295928
Various embodiments relate generally to hair extensions.
Many people consider hair to be a significant aesthetic feature. Luxurious human hair may, for example, improve a person's perceived appearance and self-esteem. The properties of hair between persons may vary and may vary during the life of a particular person. For example, quantity, strand thickness, length, color, straightness, and/or other attributes of interest may vary due to age, disease, and/or genetics.
Numerous methods and devices have been developed to create the appearance of, for example, thicker and/or longer hair. When adding supplemental natural or synthetic hair (e.g., a weft hair extension) to that of an individual, a typical method involves applying the supplemental hair directly to the individual's natural hair, either by gluing the strands of hair to the natural hair or by bonding strands of the supplemental hair to the natural hair using a durable bonding material. An alternate method of providing hair extensions for a user involves adding to an individual's natural hair by using hair clips to attach strands of supplemental hair to the user's natural hair.
A hair weft is a collection, or bundle, of strands of hair that are fixed onto a seam which has a proximal end and a distal end. The weft is then sewn, clipped, or otherwise attached onto a person's natural hair. Hair wefts are used by hair salon professionals to enhance a person's natural hair that may be thin, short, or have an undesired shape or texture. Hair wefts may generally be used by experienced stylists and other salon professionals to add volume and length to a person's existing hair.
Apparatus and associated methods relate to two or more hair wefts defined by respective filamentous cortices to which hair is secured, which cortices are secured together along their length by at least one binding filament, and to which cortices are coupled an elastic filament to form a hair extension configured such that the cortices and elastic filament are configured to circumscribe a wearer's head. In an illustrative example, a plurality of deformable beads may be disposed between the hair wefts and configured to releasably secure the hair extension to a wearer's natural hair. Each hair weft may, for example, have a plurality of individual hair bundles. Hair bundles may, for example, be separated by a predetermined cut point in the filamentous cortex. Various implementations may advantageously provide a visually undetectable, comfortable, and durable hair extension for a wearer.
Various embodiments may achieve one or more advantages. For example, some embodiments may advantageously provide desirable augmentation of a wearer's natural hair to provide a desired property (e.g., thickness, bulk, color, shape) to a wearer's natural hair. Various embodiments may advantageously be quickly and easily installed on a wearer's head. Various embodiments may advantageously provide visually sleek support for hair wefts such that the hair wefts appear to merge seamlessly with the wearer's natural hair. Various embodiments may allow a wearer to advantageously install and remove the hair extension from their head in preparation for various activities. Various embodiments may advantageously optimize comfort for a wearer of the hair extension. Various embodiments may advantageously allow an increased number of wefts to be incorporated into a hair extension while remaining visually seamless in a wearer's hair.
Various embodiments may advantageously be adjusted to fit a wearer's head in a desired position and configuration. Various embodiments may advantageously prevent unraveling or degradation of hair wefts when cutting a weft to a desired length. Various embodiments may advantageously provide increased durability, decreased cost, increased user satisfaction, or some combination thereof. Various embodiments may advantageously provide for adjustment of an effective length of the elastic filament. Various embodiments may be configured and/or styled to provide a desired appearance to the wearer's hair.
The details of various embodiments are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features and advantages will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims.
Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.
To aid understanding, this document is organized as follows. First, to help introduce discussion of various embodiments, an exemplary hair halo is introduced with reference to
As depicted, the hair halo 105 is deployed on a wearer's head 135 by lifting an upper portion 140B of the wearer's natural hair 140, such as by a hand 145. The hair halo 105 may then be positioned on the wearer's head 135. As depicted, the elastic filament 125 is positioned over the forehead of the wearer's head 135. The hair wefts 110 are disposed over the lower portion 140A of the wearer's natural hair. Accordingly, the hair halo 105 may advantageously provide desirable augmentation of the wearer's natural hair 140. The hair halo 105 may advantageously be quickly and easily installed on a wearer's head 135. The filamentous cortices 115 may advantageously provide a low-profile support for the hair wefts 105 such that the hair halo 105 appears to merge seamlessly with the wearer's natural hair 140. For example, a wearer may advantageously install and remove the hair halo 105 from their head as desired (e.g., install before a meeting and remove before sleeping).
The plurality of hair wefts may advantageously provide a desired property (e.g., thickness, bulk, color, shape) to a wearer's natural hair. The filamentous cortices may, for example, advantageously support the plurality of wefts on a hearer's head while remaining visually seamless. The filamentous cortices may, for example, advantageously allow a greater number of wefts to be incorporated into the hair halo while remaining visually seamless in the wearer's hair than would be possible by other weft supports such as, for example, bands and adhesive strips.
In the depicted example, the filamentous cortices 115A-C are each provided with a plurality of predetermined cut points 155. One or more of the hair wefts 110 may, by way of example and not limitation, be adjusted to a desired length by cutting the corresponding filamentous cortex 115 at a predetermined cut point 155. The hair weft may, for example, be trimmed to a desired length before assembly (e.g., during first step 205A), after the wefts 105A-C are bound together (e.g., after second step 205B), after the hair halo 105 is assembled (e.g., during the third step 205C), before installment on a wearer's head 135, after installment on a wearer's head 135, or some combination thereof. The predetermined cut points 155 may advantageously prevent unraveling or degradation of the respective filamentous cortex 115 and weft 110 when cutting the weft 110 to a desired length. Accordingly, the predetermined cut points 155 may advantageously provide increased durability, decreased cost, increased user satisfaction, or some combination thereof.
In a second step 205B, at least one binding filament 120 binds the filamentous cortices 115A, 115B, and 115C together into a single bundle 160 of filamentous cortices. The hair wefts 110A-C are, accordingly, secured together by the filamentous cortices 115A-C. The binding filament may, for example, be a single filament, may be a plurality of thread-like filaments, or some combination thereof. The binding filament 120 may be stitched, knotted, or otherwise configured to secure the filamentous cortices 115 together. In various embodiments, by way of example and not limitation, the binding filament 120 may be a continuous filament that binds the filamentous cortices 160 together in, for example, a continuous interlocking pattern such as a running stitch, mattress stitch, closed hitch stitch (also known as a basket stitch), or some combination thereof. In various embodiments, for example, the filamentous cortices 115 may be secured together by a plurality of interrupted binding filaments 120 such as, by way of example and not limitation, knots, loops, wraps, or other appropriate configurations to secure a plurality of filamentous cortices together at one or more points. Accordingly, the binding filament(s) 120 may advantageously couple the wefts 110 together such that the wefts 110 may advantageously be handled and worn as a substantially single unit.
In a third step 205C, an elastic filament 125 is connected to the filamentous cortices 115. As depicted, a first end and a second end of the elastic filament 125 is connected to respective first and second ends of the bundle 160 of filamentous cortices 115. As depicted, the elastic filament is coupled to the bundle 160 by couplers 162. In various embodiments a coupler 162 may be provided, by way of example and not limitation, at one end, at both ends (as depicted), or omitted. A coupler 162 may include, for example, a slip knot. The slip knot may, for example, be coupled to and/or formed from the elastic filament 125, at least one of the filamentous cortices 115, the bundle 160, or some combination thereof. The elastic filament 125 and the filamentous cortices 115 cooperate to form an annular structure configured to encircle the human head 135. The elastic filament 125 may, for example, advantageously provide support for the wefts 110 while optimizing comfort for a wearer. For example, the elastic filament may advantageously flex (e.g., stretch and retract) to accommodate minor movements of the wearer (e.g., flexing of the skin, wrinkling eyebrows, movement of the hair, or some combination thereof).
In various embodiments the elastic filament 125 may, for example, be configured to completely encircle the human head 135. For example, the elastic filament may be a continuous filament. The elastic filament 125 may, for example, be coupled to one or more filamentous cortices 115 by the binding filament 120. In various embodiments the elastic filament 125 may be releasably coupled to the filamentous cortices 115. For example, the couplers 162 (e.g., deformable fastener, spring-loaded fastener, slip knot formed in at least one filamentous cortex and/or elastic filament) may fasten to the elastic filament 125. The couplers 162 may fasten to the first and second ends of the elastic filament 125 or may fasten to a continuous portion of the elastic filament 125. Accordingly, an effective length of the elastic filament 125 may advantageously be adjusted to fit the wearer's head 135 in a desired position and configuration. Elastic filament 125 may also be decoupled from the filamentous cortices 115 (e.g., by releasing at least one coupler 162) to advantageously allow for adjustment in length of one or more wefts 110.
The hair wefts 105 may, for example, be hand-tied hair wefts. The hair bundles may, for example, be constructed of synthetic filaments, natural hair, or some combination thereof. In various implementations, the hair wefts 105 may, for example, be hair wefts described in one or more of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/968,571, entitled “Hand-Tied Hair Weft,” and filed Jan. 31, 2020 by Dafina Smith; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/888,670, entitled “Hand-Tied Hair Weft,” and filed May 30, 2020 by Dafina Smith; PCT patent application serial no. PCT/US20/49543, entitled “Hand-Tied Hair Weft,” and filed Sep. 4, 2020 by Dafina Smith; the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Hand-tied hair wefts according to the foregoing disclosures may, for example, advantageously provide hair wefts with slimmer cortices and cut-points, lighter-weight, higher quality, or some combination thereof. In various embodiments a resulting hair halo 105 may be lighter weight (e.g., at least by using hand-tied hair wefts with filamentous cortices). Accordingly, the hair halo 105 may advantageously apply less weight to a wearer's head. Such embodiments may, for example, increase wearer comfort, decrease potential for hair loss, decrease headaches induced by weight applied to the head, or some combination thereof.
In the depicted example, a number (i) of hair wefts 110 is three (i=3). In various implementations, by way of example and not limitation, a different number i of hair wefts and corresponding filamentous cortices and hair bundles may be provided. Various implementations may, by way of example and not limitation, implement a number i=2, 3, 4, 5, or more hair wefts. Accordingly, a variety of thicknesses of hair extension created by the number of wefts 110 may be advantageously created.
In various embodiments, for example, the hair wefts may not be of equal length. By way of example and not limitation, various lengths of hair wefts 110 (e.g., defined by a length of the corresponding filamentous cortex) may be incorporated into a single hair halo 105. For example, one or more of the plurality of layers depicted in the illustrated example as single wefts 115A, 115B, and 115C may be constructed as a plurality of wefts 115, may be constructed of different widths of wefts 115, or some combination thereof. Accordingly, various hairstyles, shapes, lengths, variations in thickness, other desired attributes, or some combination thereof may advantageously be implemented.
In various embodiments the deformable beads 165 may be positioned such that they are invisible when the hair halo 105 is installed on a wearer's head 135. Accordingly, the deformable beads 165 may, by way of example and not limitation, be optionally used during installation of the hair halo 105. Use of the deformable beads 165 to anchor the hair halo 105 to the wearer's head 135 may, for example, advantageously retain the hair halo 105 in a desired position during activities such as sleeping, exercising, and/or other activities that may induce undesired movement of the hair halo 105 relative to the user's head 135. In various embodiments, the deformable beads 165 and the elastic filament 125 may, for example, may advantageously cooperate together in a synergistic manner to support the wefts 110 of the hair halo 105 in a desired configuration. For example, the elastic filament 125 may provide lateral positioning support and overall support of the wefts 110, and the deformable beads 165 may, for example, provide resistance to dislocation induced by vibration, jarring, altered gravitational pull (e.g., when a wearer bends forward or looks up), or some combination thereof.
In various embodiments a combination of the elastic filament 125 and/or securing elements (e.g., beads 165) may enable a wearer to retain a hair halo 105 in a desired configuration on their head for an extended period of time. For example, various embodiments, by way of example and not limitation, may advantageously enable a wearer to wear a hair halo 105 for approximately 2-3 weeks or even longer without removing the hair halo 105 or having the hair halo 105 shifted out of position. Various embodiments may advantageously resist movement even, for example, during strenuous exercise (e.g., running, jogging, swimming), adverse environmental conditions (e.g., strong winds), showering, sleeping, or some combination thereof.
In various embodiments the deformable beads 165 may be positioned between every N wefts, where N=1, 2, 3, or other desired number of wefts. For example, the beads 165 may be positioned only between a first weft and a second weft, between every two wefts (N=2), or other desired configuration. In the depicted example, the beads 165 are distributed alternately between weft 110A, weft 110B, and weft 110C, and substantially along the length of the filamentous cortices 115. In various embodiments the beads maybe distributed substantially equally spaced along an entire length of a filamentous cortex, or one or more portions thereof.
The deformable beads 165 may, for example, be subsequently deformed and/or reformed to release the hair bundles 175. Accordingly, the hair Halo 105 may, for example, be advantageously released from the wearer's natural hair 140. In various implementations only some of the available deformable beads 165 may be secured to the wearer's natural hair 140. For example, a stylist may select a portion of the available beads 165 to secure to corresponding hair bundles 175 to releasably secure the hair Halo 105 in a desired position. In various embodiments, the deformable beads 165 may, for example, be operated (e.g., deformed, un-deformed/reformed) by a deforming tool (e.g., opposing-jaw mechanism).
If no deformable beads are determined 525 to be provided, then the i filamentous cortices or secured together 535 along their length with one or more binding filaments. Once the i filamentous cortices are secured together with binding filament, the bundled cortices are coupled 540 to an elastic filament such that the elastic filament and filamentous cortices together are configured to encircle a human head. Accordingly, a releasably installable and repositionable hair halo may be constructed for advantageous use on a human head.
Although various embodiments have been described with reference to the figures, other embodiments are possible. For example, the elastic filament may be only partially elastic. The elastic filament may, by way of example and not limitation, include at least one elastic portion and one or more substantially inelastic portions. The elastic filament may, for example, be configured to support the hair wefts on a wearer's head in a desired configuration. In various embodiments at least some portion of at least one filamentous cortex (e.g., 115) may be elastic. The filamentous cortex (e.g., 115) of each weft (e.g., 110) may be made of multiple thread-like filaments, around which the hair is tied. Unlike many wefts that rely on a ‘band’ of material to which the hair (singly or in bundles) is glued, stitched, or otherwise fastened; the filamentous cortex may provide a slender, generally circular cross-section. Accordingly, the filamentous cortex may advantageously enable the weft to be slimmer and less visible in a wearer's natural hair than a ‘band’ or ‘strip’ of material.
In various embodiments, deformable beads (e.g., 165) may be coupled to an elastic filament (e.g., 125), such as, for example, by a binding filament (e.g., 120). In various embodiments, the deformable beads (e.g., 165) may, by way of example and not limitation, be augmented or replaced with other releasable hair coupling elements configured to releasably couple at least one of the filamentous cortices (e.g., 115) of a hair halo (e.g., 105) to a wearer's natural hair. The releasable hair coupling elements may, by way of example and not limitation, be clamps, tubes, spring-loaded (e.g., separate springs, integrated urging material) mechanisms, heat activated material (e.g., thermoplastic), filaments (e.g., binding filament), elastic filament (e.g., a discrete length, a continuous piece such as an elastic loop), micro rings, microbeads, braids, ties, or some combination thereof. In various embodiments, hair coupling elements (e.g., deformable beads 165) may be strung (as depicted in
In various embodiments a hair halo (e.g., 105) may be customized to a wearer's head before and/or during installation thereon. For example, a salon may customize a hair halo 105 for a specific wearer. Customization may include, by way of example and not limitation, adjustment of a weft length (e.g., of at least one filamentous cortex 115 and/or bundle 160), adjustment of a hair bundle(s) length (e.g., by trimming one or more wefts into a particular hair style, such as at a predefined cut-point), adjustment of the elastic filament(s) (e.g., 125), or some combination thereof. In various embodiments, by way of example and not limitation, a salon professional may purchase a hair halo 105 in a partially assembled configuration (e.g., having an elastic filament 125 coupled to a bundle 160 on one side and uncoupled on the other side). The salon professional may then trim one or more cortices 115 to a desired length and/or trim the elastic filament 125 to a desired length. The salon professional may then couple the elastic filament 125 to the bundle 160 (e.g., by coupler 162, such as a pre-formed slip knot and/or user-formed slip knot). In some embodiments, a coupler 162 may be releasable (e.g., a loosely formed but not ‘set’ knot), an adjustable position knot, a separate and/or integrated releasable mechanism, or some combination thereof. Accordingly, a hair halo 105 may advantageously be customized to a particular wearer.
In one exemplary aspect, a hair extension apparatus may include at least two hair wefts defined by respective filamentous cortices to which at least two hair bundles are secured. At least one binding filament secures the filamentous cortices together along their length. An elastic filament is coupled to the cortices such that the cortices and elastic filament together are configured to circumscribe a human head.
The apparatus may further include at least two deformable beads disposed between the hair wefts. The deformable beads are connected by the binding filament to the filamentous cortices and configured to releasably couple the hair wefts to natural hair of the human head. The deformable beads may be distributed along the length of the filamentous cortices. A deformable bead may have at least one inner wall defining a lumen traversing the bead. The bead may be configured to releasably couple the hair wefts to the natural hair when the bead is urged into a deformed state such that the inner wall clasps a bundle of the natural hair that is passed through the lumen. The binding filament may pass through the lumen to connect the bead to the filamentous cortices.
The elastic filament of the hair extension apparatus may be configured to completely encircle the human head. A first end of the elastic filament may be joined to a first end of at least one of the filamentous cortices, and a second end of the elastic filament may be joined to a second end of the at least one of the filamentous cortices. The elastic filament may be releasably coupled to the filamentous cortices such that, in an uncoupled state, at least one of the elastic filament and the filamentous cortices may be shortened, and the elastic filament and filamentous cortices may subsequently be recoupled such that they are configured to encircle the human head. Each of the hair wefts may include the corresponding filamentous cortex, wherein the filamentous cortex includes at least two thread-like filaments; and, at least two bundles of hair fixed to the at least two thread-like filaments. Each hair bundle of the at least two hair bundles may include at least two strands of hair. Each two adjacent bundles of hair may be separated by at least one predetermined cut point formed by the at least two thread-like filaments. When the filamentous cortices are severed at predetermined cut points to shorten the corresponding hair wefts to a desired length, the remaining cortices and elastic filament may be configured to encircle the human head.
In another exemplary aspect, a method of making a hair extension may include providing at least two hair wefts, the hair wefts being defined by respective filamentous cortices to which at least two hair bundles are secured; securing the filamentous cortices together along their length by at least one binding filament; and, coupling an elastic filament to the cortices such that the cortices and elastic filament together are configured to circumscribe a human head.
The method may further include securing at least two deformable beads to the filamentous cortices by the at least one binding filament. The method may include distributing the deformable beads along the length of the filamentous cortices. Each hair weft may include the corresponding filamentous cortex, wherein the filamentous cortex includes at least two thread-like filaments. At least two bundles of hair are fixed to the at least two thread-like filaments. Each two adjacent bundles of hair may be separated by at least one predetermined cut point formed by the at least two thread-like filaments. The method may include dynamically determining a length of at least one of the at least two filamentous cortices by severing the filamentous cortex at one of the predetermined cut points.
In another exemplary aspect, a hair extension apparatus may include at least two hair wefts defined by respective filamentous cortices to which two or more hair bundles are secured. At least one binding filament secures the filamentous cortices together along their length. The apparatus further includes an elastic filament, and one or more structures for coupling the elastic filament to the cortices such that the cortices and elastic filament together are configured to circumscribe a human head. By way of example and not limitation, exemplary structures are disclosed at least with reference to
The apparatus may further include structures for releasably coupling to natural hair of the human head the at least one binding filament, at least one of the filamentous cortices, or some combination thereof. By way of example and not limitation, exemplary structures for releasably coupling to natural hair are described at least with reference to
A number of implementations have been described. Nevertheless, it will be understood that various modifications may be made. For example, advantageous results may be achieved if the steps of the disclosed techniques were performed in a different sequence, or if components of the disclosed apparatus were combined in a different manner, or if the components were supplemented with other components. Accordingly, other implementations are contemplated within the scope of the following claims.
This application relates to the subject matter of the following: U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/968,571, entitled “Hand-Tied Hair Weft,” and filed Jan. 30, 2020 by Dafina Smith;U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/888,670, entitled “Hand-Tied Hair Weft,” and filed May 30, 2020 by Dafina Smith; and,PCT patent application serial no. PCT/US20/49543, entitled “Hand-Tied Hair Weft,” and filed Sept. 4, 2020 by Dafina Smith. This application incorporates herein by reference the entire contents of each of the foregoing applications.
