Earring with selectable decorative element

An earring which comprises a retainer (14) and a securing pin (20) linked together by a chain (12) is disclosed. The securing pin mates with a closure (24) which may be secured to it. When it is desired to wear the inventive earring, the wearer passes the pin (20) through a bead (28) or other decorative object, bringing the bead (28) into abutting relationship with the retainer (14). The pin (20) is then passed through a hole in the user's ear lobe (32) and attached to the closure (24). The chain (12) may then be pulled through the ear any desired amount in either direction to achieve the desired visual effect.

TECHNICAL FIELD 
The invention relates to earrings of the type which includes means for 
accommodating and wearing a selected decorative object or objects. 
BACKGROUND ART 
Recent years have witnessed an increasing awareness of the importance of 
proper dress and attire. The result is that people are now dressing better 
than they have in the past, and making the proper impression requires and 
even more critical selection of clothes and accessories with sensitivity 
to the subtle effect of such things as color, the formality of the apparel 
and so forth. 
In the case of clothing, this presents a relatively minor problem, inasmuch 
as garments have a relatively short lifespan and are relatively 
inexpensive to purchase. Thus, a person may own a wardrobe including 
casual clothes, formal clothes, working clothes, and sports outfits. 
In contrast, accessories in general, and jewelry in particular are very 
expensive but have a long lifespan. Jewelry is thus particularly sensitive 
to changes in style or any need for a diverse collection of pieces. Being 
properly dressed requires that the jewelry a person wears be as tailored 
and diverse as the other parts of one's wardrobe. Oftentimes, the expense 
associated with such a diverse collection of jewelry is prohibitive to the 
individual. 
One part of the solution to this problem which appears in the prior art is 
an item of jewelry which has removable and selectable decorative elements. 
For example, earrings have been designed which comprise a conventional 
clip and a base which is adapted to receive a decorative plastic object 
which has structure which engages the earring. This earring is 
advantageous inasmuch as it allows the wearer to select an earring design 
whose color goes along with the color of the outfit that one is wearing. 
It is also advantageous because an earring with a plurality of 
substitutable elements is far less expensive than a plurality of 
individual earrings. 
Nevertheless, this sort of multi-element earring does suffer from a number 
of disadvantages. These disadvantages include a number of problems 
associated with the structure of conventional earrings as well as 
limitations in the adaptability of such multi-element earrings. For 
example, conventional earrings for unpierced ears must apply a relatively 
high level of pressure to the earlobe in order to be secured to the ear. 
This causes the wearer a degree of discomfort and necessitates that the 
earrings cannot be worn for extended periods of time. Nevertheless, such 
earrings still have a tendency to fall off the ear of a wearer, oftentimes 
without notice. 
Conventional earrings which are made for use by individuals who have 
pierced ears suffer from similar problems. The elements securing the 
earrings to the earlobe are likely to apply pressure during use, and to 
slip or snap off after extended periods of use. Still yet another 
disadvantage is the fact that if, for some reason, excess pressure is 
applied to the earring, the earring is likely to cause injury to the ear 
of the user. 
In addition, earrings for use on pierced ears add the complication of a 
possibility of infection. For example, after an ear has been freshly 
pierced, the individual must wear an earring, in order to stop the ear 
hole from healing closed. Unfortunately, the presence of the earring pin 
prevents an applied antiseptic from going into the newly pierced ear. It 
is also believed that even after the ear has been successfully pierced and 
properly healed, the fact that no air is allowed into the hole by the pin 
encourages infection within the ear hole. 
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION 
The invention as claimed is intended to provide a remedy. It solves the 
problem of how to provide an earring which is comfortable, secure, less 
likely to infect or injure a user and easy to use. The inventive earring 
also allows a wearer to select the color, size, and shape of the earring 
from a wide selection of possibilities. At the same time, the construction 
of the earring is simple, economical and dependable. 
The advantages offered by the invention subsist mainly in the securing 
means. In particular, the securing means comprises a quality engagement 
structure which also doubles as means for holding one or a number of the 
composite elements which make up the earring. At the same time the device 
may be made in such a manner that it will provide a positive engagement 
with the ear while it may also be adapted to break away in the event that 
an unusual stress or strain is applied to the earring.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION 
Referring first to FIG. 1, an earring constructed in accordance with the 
invention is illustrated in exploded perspective. The earring 10 comprises 
a double-woven chain 12 which is secured at one end to a retainer 14. 
Retainer 14 comprises a short pin portion 16 and a head 18. In accordance 
with the preferred embodiment, retainer 14 is made of metal. Because of 
the intended use, it may be desirable to make the retainer of gold or 
other similar material. Likewise, chain 12 should be made of gold or 
similar non-reactive material in order to lessen the possibility of 
infection. It may also be desirable to make the chain weaker than the 
flesh of the earlobe which surrounds it so that it will break before it 
injures the ear when stress is applied. Chain 12 may be secured to 
retainer 14 by soldering with a precious metal. A typical chain for use 
with the present invention is illustrated schematically in FIG. 2. It 
comprises a plurality of interlocking links 19 which may be made of gold 
or other precious metals. The other end of chain 12 is soldered to a pin 
20 which is long enough to pass through a pierced ear. The end of pin 20 
opposite the point where it is secured to chain 12 is provided with 
threads 22. 
The inventive earring is provided with a closure element 24, which may be 
in the form of a ball or any other desired shape. Closure 24 is provided 
with a tapped hole 26 which has threads which mate with threads 22. When 
it is desired to close the inventive earring, the closure 24 is positioned 
over pin 20 with threads 22 in engagement with the threads in tapped hole 
26. Closure 24 is then rotated until pin 20 is securely screwed into the 
closure. 
When it is desired to use the inventive earring, a decorative bead or other 
object 28 is taken and the pin 20 is passed through the object. Naturally, 
pin 20 must be long enough to allow it to be passed through passage 30 in 
object 28. This allows passage 30 to be made very narrow and only wide 
enough for it to pass pin 20 and chain 12. 
In accordance with the preferred embodiment, pin 20 and chain 12 have 
substantially the same thickness. It is also desirable that chain 12 be of 
the double-woven type, inasmuch as such a chain provides surfaces which 
extend in more directions than a simple link chain in which the links lie 
in only two planes. Thus, suitable chains may include conventional chains 
which are substantially solid i.e. chains whose outside surfaces define a 
volume which is mostly filled with the metal of which the chain is made. 
Naturally, the more "solid" a chain is the less freedom and flexibility of 
movement it has. However, because of the use to which the chain is put, 
acceptable results can be obtained with relatively inflexible chains. 
When a desired object 28 of suitable size, shape, and color has been 
selected and a pin passed through its passage 30, the object is pushed 
along chain 12 until pin portion of retainer 14 passes through passage 30 
and head 18 is in abutting relationship with the object 28. 
Pin 20 is then passed through an ear hole in the earlobe 32 of a user, as 
illustrated in FIG. 3. Pin 20 is then screwed into closure 24. The earring 
then may be worn as is illustrated in FIG. 3. 
As discussed above, the size, shape, and color of the object 28 selected is 
chosen by the wearer. Such choice may be dictated by such factors as the 
clothing, makeup, hairdo, or the facial features of the wearer. If desired 
the wearer may also vary the number of objects supported by retainer 14. 
For example, a decorated bead 34 may be added, as is illustrated in FIG. 
4, or a metallic bead 36 and a dark stone bead 38 as is illustrated in 
FIG. 5. It is also contemplated that the chain may be adjusted to achieve 
a desired visual effect. For example, the chain may be adjusted in such a 
manner that closure 24 is in abutting relationship with the ear 32 of the 
user, as is illustrated in FIG. 5. 
It is also contemplated that retainer 14 may be replaced by a gold ball 40, 
a cut jewel 42 in a bezel 44, or an object such as a gold nugget 46, as is 
illustrated in FIGS. 6, 7, and 8, respectively. 
The inventive earring has a number of advantages over prior art earrings. 
As discussed above the wearer may select the color of the bead or other 
object to be suspended by the earring. He may also select the material 
from a wide range of materials such as precious or semi-precious stones 
and various metals or even synthetic materials such as lucite and other 
plastics. Likewise, the wearer may select the shape of the object to be 
suspended. Also, as discussed above, the chain may be slid to any desired 
position to create different visual effects. 
The inventive earring is far more comfortable than conventional earrings 
for a number of reasons. These include its low weight, the flexibility of 
the chain and the fact that no pressure is being applied to the ear. The 
threaded connection between the pin 20 and closure 24 also makes for a 
more secure and more positive closure than conventional earrings. The 
overall expense of manufacturing is also lower because of a more efficient 
use of materials and a simplicity of design. 
The use of a double-woven chain has a number of advantages. It is stronger 
than simple chains and the ear will not tend to close up around it. In the 
case of newly pierced ears, antiseptic may be applied to the earhole and 
will pass easily therethrough. This is not possible with a conventional 
post. Unlike a single-woven chain, which defines a passage which is 
substantially not filled with the metal of which the chain is made, a 
newly pierced ear will not heal closed around the individual wires of a 
double-woven chain. 
While a number of illustrative embodiments of the invention have been 
described, it is, of course, understood that various modifications of the 
disclosed invention which do not depart from the spirit and scope of the 
invention will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art. Such 
modifications are within the scope of the invention which is limited and 
defined only by the appended claims.