FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a method for conveying a message to an intended recipient. More specifically, the present invention is a method for conveying a message through a simulated flower.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Flowers have traditionally been given as a sign of love, comfort, congratulations, and general well-wishes. Flowers are often accompanied by a card or note on which the sender's thoughts are expressed. Received flowers may be placed into a vase or similar container for display. While flowers are widely given for a variety of purposes, flowers are subject to wilting and dying after a short period of time. Additionally, it may be inappropriate to bestow flowers in certain circumstances, for example, if the recipient is allergic to or otherwise sensitive to fresh flowers. The present invention is a method for conveying a message through a simulated flower. A simulated flower is formed from a foldable sheet of paper or similar surface onto which a message may be imprinted. When the message has been imprinted, the simulated flower is folded in a manner such that the message is either completely or partially hidden from view. The simulated flower is attachable to a simulated flower stem as well. Upon receipt, the simulated flower may be removed from the simulated stem and unfolded by the recipient in order to reveal the message. After the message has been viewed, the foldable sheet of paper or similar surface may again be folded into the simulated flower and reattached to the simulated stem. The present invention is particularly useful as an alternative to fresh flowers if the intended recipient is allergic or otherwise sensitive to fresh flowers.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1A is a flowchart illustrating the overall process that is followed by the present invention.
FIG. 1B is a continuation of the flowchart illustrated in FIG. 1A.
FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting the overall process that is followed by the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating the secondary process that is followed by the present invention when utilizing floral tape to adhere the at least one artificial flower leaf to the folded simulated flower.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a heat gun being utilized to thermally bond the at least one artificial flower leaf to the folded simulated flower.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating the secondary process that is followed by the present invention when utilizing floral tape to adhere the at least one artificial flower leaf to the simulated flower stem.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a heat gun being utilized to thermally bond the at least one artificial flower leaf to the simulated flower stem.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating the secondary process that is followed by the present invention when situating the folded simulated flower upon the simulated flower stem through the natural stem-receiving cavity.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the folded simulated flower being mounted onto the simulated flower stem through the natural stem-receiving cavity.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating the secondary process that is followed by the present invention when fastening the folded simulated flower to the simulated flower stem utilizing floral wire.
FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the folded simulated flower being fastened to the simulated flower stem utilizing floral wire.
FIG. 11 is a flowchart depicting the secondary process that is followed by the present invention when creating a folded simulated flower that is symmetrical about the central axis.
FIG. 12 is a flowchart depicting the secondary process that is followed by the present invention when creating a folded simulated flower that is asymmetrical about the central axis.
FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the completely assembled folded simulated flower, the simulated flower stem, and the at least one artificial flower leaf.
FIG. 14 is a flowchart depicting the secondary process that is followed by the present invention when displaying the folded simulated flower in a vase-style container.
FIG. 15 is a perspective view of the folded simulated flower on display in a vase-style container.
DETAIL DESCRIPTIONS OF THE INVENTION
All illustrations of the drawings are for the purpose of describing selected versions of the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.
The present invention is a method for conveying a message through a simulated flower. The overall process followed by the present invention is shown in FIG. 1a and FIG. 1b as well as in FIG. 2. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a writing sheet 1, a simulated flower stem 2, and an at least one artificial flower leaf 3 are utilized in order to convey a message to a recipient. The writing sheet 1 provides a surface onto which a message to be conveyed is presented. The simulated flower stem 2 and the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 serve to increase the aesthetic appearance of the simulated flower and enhance the resemblance of the simulated flower to a fresh flower. As such, the simulated flower stem 2 and the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 correspond to the type of flower that the simulated flower resembles. Any type of simulated flower stem 2 may be utilized such as, but not limited to, a plant stake.
A printed message 4 that is to be conveyed to the simulated flower recipient is imprinted onto a first surface of the writing sheet 1. The first surface is preferably blank, white, or similarly designed in order to enhance readability of the printed message 4. The printed message 4 may be imprinted by various means including, but not limited to, hand writing and printing. The opposing surface to the first surface may be colored, patterned, or otherwise aesthetically decorated.
After the printed message 4 has been imprinted onto the writing sheet 1, the printed message 4 is completely or partially concealed by transforming the writing sheet 1 into a folded simulated flower 11. The writing sheet 1 is transformed into the folded simulated flower 11 in a manner such that the printed message 4 is completely or partially concealed within the folded simulated flower 11 or otherwise completely or partially concealed from view when observing the folded simulated flower 11. The folded simulated flower 11 is configured about a central axis 5 with the simulated flower stem 2 coaxially positioned with the central axis 5. This in turn allows various features of the folded simulated flower 11 to be situated about the central axis 5 in order to closely resemble the anatomy of a fresh flower. The folded simulated flower 11 may resemble any desired type of fresh flower including, but not limited to, a rose, a lily, and an iris. The at least one artificial flower leaf 3 is positioned about the central axis 5 as well, similar to a fresh flower.
Following the creation of the folded simulated flower 11 from the writing sheet 1, the folded simulated flower 11 is removably fastened to a proximal end of the simulated flower stem 2. The at least one artificial flower leaf 3 is then fixed onto either the folded simulated flower 11 or the simulated flower stem 2. The fixing point of the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 is contingent upon the anatomy of the fresh flower counterpart of the folded simulated flower 11 and the positioning of the flower leaves. The folded simulated flower 11 is separated from the simulated flower stem 2 prior to the recipient reading the printed message 4. The printed message 4 is displayed by unraveling the folded simulated flower 11 back into the writing sheet 1. Unraveling the folded simulated flower 11 back into the writing sheet 1 allows the first surface to be viewed as well as the printed message 4 imprinted onto the first surface. After the printed message 4 has been viewed, the writing sheet 1 may be refolded in order to reform the folded simulated flower 11 if desired. The folded simulated flower 11 may then be refastened to the simulated flower stem 2.
During the overall process of creating the folded simulated flower 11, the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 is attachable to the folded simulated flower 11 or the simulated flower stem 2 through various means. One such means is via floral tape, which is used in a secondary process outlined in FIG. 3. The at least one artificial flower leaf 3 may be positioned about a structural base 6 for the folded simulated flower 11 as shown in FIG. 4. The at least one artificial flower leaf 3 may be positioned in a manner that resembles the corresponding fresh flower of the folded simulated flower 11. The at least one artificial flower leaf 3 is adhered to the structural base 6 by applying the floral tape that is able to hold the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 against the structural base 6. After the floral tape is in place, heat is applied to the floral tape in order to thermally bond the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 to the structural base 6 with the floral tape. The heat is able to melt the floral tape, allowing the floral tape to more securely hold the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 against the structural base 6 upon solidifying.
In the process outlined in FIG. 5, floral tape may be utilized to attach the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 to the simulated flower stem 2 as well. As shown in FIG. 6, the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 is laterally positioned about the simulated flower stem 2 in a manner that resembles the fresh flower counterpart of the folded simulated flower 11. Much like the structural base 6, the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 is adhered to the simulated flower stem 2 by applying the floral tape, holding the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 in place against the simulated flower stem 2. Heat is then applied to the floral tape (e.g. via a heat gun or hair dryer) in order to thermally bond the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 to the simulated flower stem 2 with the floral tape. The floral tape is able to melt against the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 and the simulated flower stem 2 and, upon solidifying, is able to more securely hold the at least one artificial flower leaf 3 in place against the simulated flower stem 2.
The folded simulated flower 11 may be removably fastened to the simulated flower stem 2 through various means as well. When removably fastening the folded simulated flower 11 to the simulated flower stem 2, a natural stem-receiving crevice 7 may be formed into the folded simulated flower 11 in the process outlined in FIG. 7. As shown in FIG. 8, the natural stem-receiving crevice 7 is able to accept and accommodate the simulated flower stem 2 while allowing for the separation of the folded simulated flower 11 from the simulated flower stem 2. The natural stem-receiving crevice 7 is positioned along the central axis 5 in order to allow the simulated flower stem 2 to be positioned along the central axis 5 as well, much like the fresh flower counterpart of the folded simulated flower 11. The proximal end of the simulated flower stem 2 is inserted into the natural stem-receiving crevice 7 in order to situate the folded simulated flower 11 upon the simulated flower stem 2. In this example, the simulated flower stem 2 is snugly held in place within the natural stem-receiving crevice 7 without any additional assistance. It is important to ensure that the folded simulated flower 11 is not damaged when inserting the simulated flower stem 2 into the natural stem-receiving cavity.
In the process outlined in FIG. 9, floral wire 8 may be utilized in order to more securely fasten a base protrusion 9 of the folded simulated flower 11 to the simulated flower stem 2 in lieu of simply inserting the simulated flower stem 2 into the natural stem-receiving crevice 7. The base protrusion 9 is a portion of the folded simulated flower 11 that may be wrapped by the floral wire 8 as shown in FIG. 10. The base protrusion 9 is positioned along the simulated flower stem 2, adjacent to the proximal end of the simulated flower stem 2. This ensures that the base protrusion 9 and by extension, the folded simulated flower 11, is able to be secured to the proximal end. In this example, the folded simulated flower 11 is fastened to the simulated flower stem 2 by tightly wrapping the floral wire 8 around the base protrusion 9 and the simulated flower stem 2. The floral wire 8 is wrapped in a manner such that the floral wire 8 may be easily unwrapped at a later time when separating the folded simulated flower 11 from the simulated flower stem 2.
With reference to FIG. 11, during the process of transforming the writing sheet 1 into the folded simulated flower 11, certain types of flowers that are symmetrical about the central axis 5 may be created. In order to increase the realistic appearance of the folded simulated flower 11, a plurality of folded flower features is configured from the writing sheet 1. The plurality of folded flower features may include, but is not limited to, petals and sepals. The plurality of folded flower features is configured from the writing sheet 1 by folding the first surface against itself, ensuring that the printed message 4 is completely or partially concealed. In order to further conceal the printed message 4 within the folded simulated flower 11, selected features from the plurality of folded flower features are contorted as well. When creating a flower such as an iris or a lily, the folded simulated flower 11 is formed by symmetrically positioning the plurality of folded flower features about the central axis 5.
Flowers that are asymmetrical about the central axis 5 may be created from the writing sheet 1 as well as shown in FIG. 12. Again, a plurality of folded flower features is configured from the writing sheet 1 by folding itself against itself in order to completely or partially conceal the printed message 4. Selected features from the plurality of folded flower features are contorted as well in order to further conceal the printed message 4 within the folded simulated flower 11 as well as to increase the aesthetic resemblance of the folded simulated flower 11 to the fresh flower counterpart. When creating a flower such as a rose, the folded simulated flower 11 is formed by asymmetrically positioning the plurality of folded flower features about the central axis 5.
The completely assembled folded simulated flower 11, the simulated flower stem 2, and the plurality of artificial leaves is shown in FIG. 13. Much like a fresh flower, one or more of the folded simulated flower 11 may be presented or placed on display, for example, in a vase-style container 10. With reference to FIG. 14 and FIG. 15, a distal end of the simulated flower stem 2 may be positioned into an opening of the vase-style container 10. This positions the folded simulated flower 11 adjacent to the opening. Alternatively, the folded simulated flower 11 or multiple of the folded simulated flower 11 may be presented or placed on display in a long stem rose box or similar container.
Although the present invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as hereinafter claimed.
Patent Application
20150342277
