Abstract:
A holiday ornament is attachable to a relatively soft candle in such a fashion that it is firmly held to the candle until the candle burns down far enough to permit the ornament to fall off. A metal strip is welded to the back of the ornament. The two opposite ends of the strip are bent upwardly, away from the soldered portion and disposed at an angle of approximately 10-15° so that, when pushed into the candle, the soft wax exerts a force on the two pins in order to keep it in place during normal use. The structure of the pins keeps the ornament in the vertical position until the candle has burned down at least half way, at which point the ornament falls off for lack of support. Thereafter, the ornament can be removed and placed on a holiday item, such as a Christmas Tree, wreath, etc.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is related to and claims the priority of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/355,487, filed Feb. 7, 2002 and entitled “Holiday Ornament/Candle Apparatus”. The entire content and subject matter thereof is hereby incorporated in total by reference. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The invention relates to a holiday ornament which is attachable to a holiday candle in such a way that it is securely held in place when not in use but easily falls away from the candle after the candle has melted at least half way down. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     The use of ornaments in the context of holiday candles, and the like, is known. 
     For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,300,226 entitled “Candle Holder” describes an ornamental structure for attachment to a candle for the purpose of splicing two sections of the candle together in axial alignment by means of a clamping type structure. 
     Likewise, U.S. Pat. No. 2,508,933 describes candle ornaments comprising annular reinforcing/ornamental structures. 
     U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,419,527 and 5,601,272 describe ornamental structures which appear to surround and support a candle which, in turn, can be applied to a flat surface by a suction cup. 
     The following prior art references all appear to describe candles which incorporate various items, decoration and otherwise, as part of their exterior surface: U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,511,104; 1,576,205; 1,709,889; 4,039,937; 4,225,552; 4,304,547; and, 4,696,640. 
     With regard to U.S. Pat. No. 4,225,552, noted above, the decorative elements each include a stem portion by which they are mounted to the surface of the candle core before being enveloped by an outer shell of wax. 
     The following prior art references appear to describe pushpin structures typical of the prior art: 100,194; 165,206; 676,273; and 4,040,149. 
     With regard to U.S. Pat. No. 165,206 cited above, in particular, the structure includes a multi-prong pushpin which supports an ornament on an exposed surface. The opposite surface has a contacting structure with projecting prongs also. 
     Lastly, U.S. Design Pat. No. 166,802 describes a decorative candle having items apparently pinned thereon. 
     While the concept of applying ornamentation to almost any surface, including holiday candles, it is generally known, there does not appear to be taught or suggested by the prior art a satisfactory way of securely attaching a holiday ornament to a soft candle, such that it stays in place when the candle is not being used, and such that, when the candle has burned at least half way down, the ornament safely falls away from the candle structure and thereafter can be used in the conventional fashion hanging from a holiday plant or large decoration. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Briefly described, the invention comprises a holiday ornament, such as a Christmas Tree figurine, that is securely attachable to a holiday candle made of a moderately soft wax. The ornament, preferably formed from a metal or tin-like sheet, has a thin metal strip soldered to the back thereof with the opposite ends of the strip turned up away from the plane of the back of the ornament. The two turned up ends of the metal strip form a pair of pins. A flat tip is formed on the first and second pins, respectively, by means of a bevel of approximately 45°. Each of the two pins is angled at approximately 10-15° away from a plane perpendicular to the back of the ornament. This feature, in combination with the width of the pin and the bevel on the tips thereof, provides for a superior attachment to the soft wax of the candle when the candle is shipped or otherwise not being used. When the candle is lit, however, the wax burns down until it gets to a point near the second pin at which point the holiday ornament falls safely away from the candle. Thereafter, the ornament can be hung from a Christmas Tree, Christmas Wreath, fireplace, etc. in the conventional fashion, preferably by means of a small string attached to the top of the ornament. 
     These and other features of the invention will be more fully understood by reference to the following drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1A is a front elevational view of the preferred embodiment of the invention showing a Holiday ornament pined to a Holiday candle. 
     FIG. 1B shows the preferred embodiment of FIG. 1A as the candle melts down and the ornament separates therefore at the right moment. 
     FIG. 1C shows how the ornament hanging from a Holiday object such as a Christmas Tree after it has separated from the candle. 
     FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view of the ornament showing the two pins properly embedded in the Holiday candle, preferably made from a soft wax. 
     FIG. 3A is a top plan, close up view of the pins attached to the back of the ornament. 
     FIG. 3B is a side elevational view showing the beveled tips of the two pins. 
     FIG. 3C is a side view of the metal strip which forms the two pins before it has be bent and soldered to the back of the ornament. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     During the course of this description, like numbers will be used to identify like elements according to the different figures that illustrate the invention. 
     As shown in FIG. 1A, the invention  10  primarily includes a holiday candle  12  and a thin metal painted ornament  14  attached to a face or surface  38  of the candle  12 . Ornament  14  includes a front face  16  and a back face  18  as shown in FIG.  2 . When the candle  12  is shipped, or otherwise not being used, the ornament  14  is securely held to the back of the candle by means of a metal clip  20  shown in better detail in FIGS. 3A-3C. 
     FIG. 1B illustrates the preferred embodiment  10  of FIG. 1A as the candle  12  melts down and the ornament  14  naturally separates from the candle. It is important that the ornament  14  not separate from the candle  12  until the candle  12  has burned down at least half way at which point it can fall off safely. 
     Once the ornament  14  has fallen away from the melted candle  12 , it can be placed on a holiday item, such as a Christmas Tree, Christmas Wreath, fireplace, etc. by means of attachment string  34  or any other suitable well known means of attachment such as safety pins, rubber bands, etc. as shown in FIG.  1 C. 
     FIG. 2 is a cross sectional detail of the ornament  14  attached to the face or sidewall  38  of candle  12 , similar to that shown in FIG.  1 A and illustrating in a manner in which the first and second pins  22  and  26 , respectively, hold the ornament  14  securely in place until the melting of the candle releases the ornament  14  at the proper time. Clip  20  is especially suitable for modern candles  12  made of soft wax which includes significant amounts of coconut oil and the like. It is hard to get a good purchase on soft wax, such as that just described, with conventional pushpins and the like. Another problem is that the natural heat conductive capacity of the ornament  14  is such that an attachment with either a single pin or a small pin would heat up to too quickly and fall off prematurely, well before the desired time due to the conductive heating of the entire structure by the candle flame itself. 
     FIGS. 3A and 3B illustrate the attachment clip  20  in better detail. Attachment clip  20  is formed from a single strip of metal  32  having a defined thickness T, a width W, and a length L as shown. Prior to attaching the clip  20  to the back  18  of the ornament  14 , the two ends thereof are bent upwardly to form the bodies of first pin  22  and second pin  26  which are connected together by the median section  36 . First pin  22  includes a beveled tip  24  and, likewise, the second pin  26  includes a beveled tip  28 . The tips  24  and  28  are beveled at an angle of approximately B=45° with respect to the long axis of pins  24  and  28 . In addition, the first pin  22  and second pin  26  are bent away at an angle of approximately A=10-15° from an axis perpendicular to the back  18  of ornament  14  and the long axis of the median section  36 . A soldered joint  30  connects the median section  36 , shown in profile in FIG. 2, to the mid portion of the back  18  of ornament  14  in a conventional fashion. 
     The ornament  14  serves two primary purposes. First, it acts as added decoration to the candle, which could be used to define the character of the candle relative to a specific holiday or season. For example, a Christmas Santa might be appropriate for Christmas; an Easter Bunny might be appropriate for Easter; a pair of lovers might be appropriate for Valentine&#39;s Day, etc. Second, once the candle  12  is used by the consumer and burns to the appropriate level, the ornament  14  will simply fall off, i.e., will not be burned or destroyed, and then could be used on another candle or as a decorative ornament on an item such as a Christmas Tree or the like as previously described. 
     The primary unique feature of the invention  10  is the attachment clip  20  and its construction. The ornament  14  is preferably made of a thin metal, such as tin, of the appropriate weight and density, that will allow the ornament  14  to be properly set into the outer skin  38  of the relatively soft candle  12  while not falling off the candle  12  in order to serve as decoration. Attachment clip or bracket  20  is fashioned in a such a manner that the beveled edges  24  and  28  are angled to optimally pierce the outer skin of the candle  12  establishing a firm attachment while not causing any damage to the face  38  or appearance of the candle  12  thereby causing the candle surface to flake off and loose its holding capacity. This structure permits the ornament  14  to be removed prior to the burning of the candle  12 , if desired, without causing any damage to the skin  38  of the candle  12 . Attachment bracket or clip  20  needs to be constructed to a specific length L that will allow a balance of the weight of the ornament  14  to be properly distributed on the side wall or face  38  of the candle  12  and not fall off the candle  12  until the end of the burning cycle of the candle  12  is almost complete. The first and second pin faces  24  and  28  are formed and cut to a precise angle B=45° in order to establish a deep enough penetration into the candle  12  without compromising the strength or outer appearance of the candle  12 . Similarly, the tin ornament  14  is constructed of other quality tin that will not conduct any significant amount of heat while the candle  12  is burning. The size and weight of the ornament  14  must be proportionate to the size of each candle  12  because candles  12  are often made in numerous sizes and shapes in a typical product line. The constructive angle A of the first and second pin  22  and  26  is precisely developed in order to allow the first and second pin  22  and  26  to fit properly while creating an allusion of the ornament  14  having a Three-D rather than a flat characteristic when lying against the side wall  38  of the candle  12 . Accordingly, it is critical that each pin  22  and  26  be bent to the correct angle, preferably A=10-15° from perpendicular, which allows this unusual effect for each candle  12 . 
     According to the preferred embodiment of the invention  10 , the attachment clip or bracket  20  comprises a piece of tin having a thickness T of approximately {fraction (1/64)} th  of an inch and a width W of approximately ⅛ th  of an inch. Initially, the metal strip of tin  32  has a length L of approximately 2¼th inches. The strip  32  is then bent so as to form the first and second pins or tabs  22  and  26  which are each respectively, approximately one-half of an inch long. The free ends  24  and  28  of the first and second pins  22  and  26 , respectively, are beveled at an angle of approximately 45° so as to form a sharp leading edge that can cut into the surface  38  of the candle wax without causing the supporting surface to flake off. The connecting or median section  36 , between the two pins  22  and  26 , is welded by means of a conventional soldered joint  30  to the back  18  of the ornament  14  such that the long axis, that is to say the axis of the connecting portion  36 , of the clip or attachment means  20  is roughly horizontal to and parallel to the long axis of the ornament  14 . 
     The invention or apparatus  10  is assembled by placing the long axis of the ornament  14  in roughly the same direction as the long axis of the candle  12  and then gently pressing the pins  22  and  26  in at the same time until the ornament back  18  is flush with the face or side wall  38  of the candle  12 . The ornament  14  should stay in that position indefinitely or until the candle  12  burns down to a point where the ornament  14  looses its support and naturally falls off. This unique arrangement permits the ornament  14  to be attached to the back  38  of the candle  12  securely without falling off, but will fall off at the right time so it can be used as a tree ornament or, perhaps, placed on another candle  12 . The invention  10  has a number of advantages over the prior art: 
     First, it is relatively easy to manufacture. 
     Second, the ornament  14  serves the dual purpose of decorating a candle  12  and, then subsequently decorating a holiday object, such as a Christmas Tree, Wreath, Fireplace, etc. Alternatively, when the ornament  14  falls off of its candle support  12 , it could then be placed on another candle  12  where it serves the same function. 
     Third, the shape and inclination of the pins  22  and  26  is such that they pierce the outer skin  38  of a candle  12  establishing a firm attachment thereto while not causing any damage to the face  38  or appearance of the candle  12  thereby causing the candle surface  38  to flake off and loose its holding capacity. 
     Fourth, the structure of the ornament  14  is such that it is especially good with modern candles  12  which have a relatively soft surface, such as those made with coconut oil. 
     Fifth, depending upon the location of the attachment clip or bracket  20  on the back  18  of the ornament  14 , the ornament  14  may not separate from the candle  12  until the candle  12  is at least 50% depleted or more. The use of two pins keeps the ornament  14  from cocking or tilting with respect to the long axis of the candle  12  and the broad beveled inclined tips  24  and  28  provide firm attachment without serious damage thereto. 
     While the invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment thereof, it will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art that various modifications can be made to the structure of the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.