Abstract:
A garment having an interior closeable pocket designed to conceal the backing of post-production embroidery on the garment. Standard embroidering equipment may be inserted into said pocket to produce a garment having a closeable pocket designed to conceal the backing of post-production embroidery on the garment. The pocket includes a closeable opening which conceals post-production embroidery and which is large enough to accommodate standard embroidering equipment.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     This invention relates to a garment having a closeable pocket, and more particularly, to a garment having an interior closeable pocket which is designed to conceal the backing of post-production embroidery on the garment. This invention also relates to methods of producing the pocket. The garments can be pre-made and custom embroidered after production. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     There presently is a large demand for custom embroidered garments which bear a name, logo, design or other designation desirable to a particular, small segment of the population, such as schools, businesses, colleges, recreational sports teams, resorts and the like. These entities desire garments bearing their special names, logos, designs or designations. Typically, there is only a small market for such branded items, namely the members of the particular entity, and a relatively small number of garments are required. It is necessary for a garment manufacturer to produce small numbers of garments, such as jackets, bearing the logos, designs, names or designs of various customers. Typically, the most cost-effective means to meet the demand for custom-branded goods is to produce a large number of standard garments, such as jackets, in a variety of standard sizes and colors, which have no embroidery and which can later be embroidered with the names, logos, designs and designations as requested. 
     Names, logos, designs and other designations typically are applied to a garment by direct embroidery on the garment. While such designations can be produced as separate appliques and heat-sealed to the garment, this process is time consuming and is not cost effective. Moreover, not all designations, particularly those comprising only letters and words, are suitable to be produced as appliques. Further, such appliques do not provide the professional, finished quality produced by embroidery, and can become unfastened from the garment through normal wear and tear. 
     The standard embroidery process employed in the decoration of garments produces the desired design on the exterior of a garment, but a visible embroidery backing on the interior of the garment. In garments which are embroidered before completion, the unsightly embroidery backing can be concealed by a lining or by the design of the garment itself. However, where garments are pre-made before embroidery, the embroidery backing cannot be concealed, as the garment already is constructed. This is particularly true where the pre-made garment is a shirt, jacket or other garment where the reverse embroidery is visible when the garment is worn open. Typically, garments such as jackets are embroidered on the left breast. When the jacket is worn open, as opposed to buttoned or zippered, the embroidery backing is visible. 
     There is a need for a garment which can be pre-made and embroidered after construction in which the backing of embroidery placed thereon after the garment is constructed (“post-construction”) is concealed. The present invention answers this need by providing a garment with a closeable interior pocket which allows the garment to be embroidered with standard embroidery equipment post-production. The pocket is then fastened to completely conceal the embroidery backing. 
     Various types of pockets appear on the insides of jackets and other types of apparel. These pockets have an opening which is typically placed on the inside left panel of the garment and which runs in the horizontal direction. The size of the known pockets is usually 5-6 inches in width and 6-7 inches in length, due to standard construction equipment. Vertically disposed pockets also are known and also normally have an opening of about 5-6 inches in width and 6-7 inches in length, again due to standard garment construction equipment. 
     In the embroidered apparel industry embroiderers have difficulty stitching logos to garments having the usual pockets. Because the most popular embroidery zone is the left chest area, to embroider this area on those garments, such as jackets, with an inside pocket requires the pocket to be sewn shut and rendered useless. As lined jackets typically have full front zippers, the backing of the embroidery is apparent on the inside of the jacket when the jacket is open and not zippered, thereby lowering the value of the garment to a consumer. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a garment having an interior pocket which conceals the backing of post-production embroidery on said garment. 
     It is a further object of the patent invention to provide a garment having a closeable pocket which is made to accommodate standard embroidery equipment which embroiders the garment without stitching the pocket closed. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a method for producing a garment having a closeable pocket which conceals the backing of post-production embroidery on said garment. 
     It is a further object of the present invention to provide a method for producing a garment having a closeable pocket that allows the use of standard embroidery equipment to embroider the garment without stitching the pocket closed. 
     The foregoing objects are achieved and the disadvantages of the known pocket designs are overcome by providing a garment in accordance with the present invention. The pocket includes an opening running in the vertical direction relative to a wearer of the garment. The opening is adjacent to the front vertical opening of the garment. 
     The pocket is oversized to accommodate insertion of standard embroidery equipment and is approximately 8-9 inches in width and 10-11 inches in length. The pocket opens in the vertical (length) direction and the opening measures approximately 9 inches. 
     The method for producing the garment with the closeable pocket on the inside lining of the garment comprises the steps of cutting a vertical slit into the garment&#39;s lining or facing to form the opening of the pocket; sewing the facing of the pocket to the pocket&#39;s top lining; sewing the front edge of the top lining to the back side of a closure means, preferably a zipper, Velcro tape or other hook and loop fastening tape; opening the top and bottom lining of the pocket and framing the front of the closure means to the vertical slit by turning a raw edge of the vertical slit under a finished edgestitch so as to catch the garment lining and the bottom and top lining of the pocket; reinforcing the top and bottom of the closure mechanism with extra tacking in the horizontal direction; sewing the bottom and top lining of the pocket closed; sewing through the bottom and top lining of the pocket so as to catch a top of the pocket to keep it flat; and catching, while setting the sleeve lining of the garment, a back edge of the pocket to reinforce the pocket&#39;s stitch construction and further secure the pocket. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     The features and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon review of the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment, taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which: 
     FIG. 1 is a front view of a jacket having a closeable pocket located adjacent the front opening of the jacket and extending to the inside left breast of the jacket according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention; 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the closeable pocket of FIG. 1 showing inside and outside portions of the closeable pocket, the pocket being shown in its open condition. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the closeable pocket of FIG. 1 showing the back of an embroidered logo. 
     FIG. 4 is a front view of a jacket having a logo embroidered on the outside jacket shell. 
     FIG. 5 is a front view of the closeable pocket of FIG. 1 having an embroidered logo visible on the interior of the pocket. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention relates to a garment having an interior closeable pocket which is designed to conceal the backing of post-production embroidery on the exterior of the garment. The oversized closeable pocket permits insertion of standard embroidery equipment. A preferred embodiment is a garment with a zippered pocket that appears on the left inside breast of a lined jacket. 
     As shown in FIG. 1, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a jacket  10  includes a zippered pocket  20  located adjacent the front zipper  11  and extending to the inside of the left breast  12  of the jacket  10 . As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the zippered pocket  20  includes a zipper  21 , a vertical opening  22 , a pocket facing  23 , a top pocket lining  24  and a bottom pocket lining  25 . The zipper  21  is formed of a metal or plastic material. The pocket facing  23  is formed of the shell material of the jacket, such as a nylon material. The top pocket lining  24  and the bottom pocket lining  25  also are formed of the lining material of the jacket, such as a nylon material. 
     The vertical opening  22  of the zippered pocket  20  is approximately 9-10 inches long so as to allow for entry of a standard embroidery equipment therein. The zippered pocket  20  is approximately 8-9 inches wide. 
     The preferred method of producing a garment having a closeable pocket designed to conceal the backing of postproduction embroidery on the garment and designed to allow insertion of standard embroidery equipment in the pocket comprises the steps of cutting a vertical slit into the jacket lining  14  or the jacket facing  13  to form the vertical opening  22  of the zippered pocket  20 ; sewing the pocket facing  23  to the top pocket lining  24 ; sewing a front edge of the top pocket lining  24  to the back side of the zipper  21 , opening the top pocket lining  24  and the bottom pocket lining  25  and framing a front of the zipper  21  to the vertical opening  22  by turning a raw edge of the vertical opening  22  under a finished edge stitch in order to catch the jacket lining  14 , the top pocket lining  24  and the bottom pocket lining  25 ; reinforcing a top and a bottom of the zipper  21  with extra tacking in the horizontal direction; sewing the top pocket lining  24  and the bottom pocket lining  25  closed; sewing through the bottom pocket lining  25  and the top pocket lining  24  in order to catch a top of the zippered pocket  20  and keep it flat; and catching, while setting a sleeve lining of the jacket  10 , a back edge of the zippered pocket  20  so as to reinforce and further secure the zippered pocket  20 . 
     A preferred method of embroidering a garment with a zippered pocket that allows for insertion of embroidery equipment therein comprises the steps of opening the zippered pocket  20 ; inserting standard embroidering equipment into the zippered pocket  20 ; operating the embroidering equipment; and pulling the zippered pocket  20  inside out to trim the embroidered logo. As seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, the resulting embroidered logo  30  is visible on outside jacket shell  32 . Embroidery backing  34  is visible on bottom pocket lining  25 , and is concealed when zipper  21  is closed. 
     In another embodiment of the invention, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, a garment such as jacket  10  can be embroidered to create a design or logo  35  such as a monogram or name that is visible on the interior pocket facing  23 . Such embroidery is desirable to personalize garments where a different logo is embroidered on the outside jacket shell  32 , or where embroidery on outside jacket shell  32  is not desired. In such an embodiment, the zippered pocket  20  is opened, embroidery equipment is inserted into the zippered pocket  20  and oriented such that the desired logo  35  will be visible on the interior pocket facing  23 ; the embroidery equipment is operated and the zippered pocket  20  is pulled inside out to trim the embroidered logo. The resulting embroidered logo  35  is visible on interior pocket facing  23 . The corresponding embroidery backing is visible on the reverse side of pocket facing  23 , inside pocket  20 , and is concealed when zipper  21  is closed. 
     The preferred embodiments and methods described above are illustrative of the invention, which is not limited to the embodiment and methods described. Various changes and modifications may be made in the invention by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.