Abstract:
An attachment for shoe laces and the like that, singularly or when combined with a plurality of the same, is capable of displaying a decorative design or personalized message on a shoe.

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     In the tennis shoe industry, there have been many attempts over the years to make shoes more appealable to the comsumer. For this reason, various designs and shoes colors, with flamboyantly colored shoe laces and stitching, have been employed. However, none of these marketing strategies has provided a means for giving the consumer the flexibility in personalizing and/or creating his own decorative design on the shoe. The present invention provides a means to accomplish this end. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     The objective of the present invention is to provide a decorative member adapted to be attached to shoe laces or the like. The member has a transverse opening extending therethrough to receive the lace and may, as an option, have a horizontal slit therein, cooperating with the opening, to permit insertion and/or removal of the attachment while the shoe is laced. Each attachment may have a graphic design, alphabet, and/or numeral character on a frontal surface thereof to singularly, or with an array of others, display a graphical design or personalized message. 
     A shoe lace that has been threaded through the shoe eyelets in a known manner to produce a series of horizontal lace lines provides the best mode for displaying a plurality of the attached members. 
     A further objective of the present invention is to provide a decorative attachment member that is economical and easy to produce. 
    
    
     THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the instant invention. 
     FIG. 2 is cross-sectional view of the instant invention shown in FIG. 1. 
     FIG. 3 is a rear perspective view of the instant invention. 
     FIG. 4 shows an array of members comprising the instant invention in use on the threaded shoe lace of a conventional tennis shoe. 
     FIG. 5 is frontal view of an alternate embodiment of the instant invention. 
     FIG. 6 is a rear view of the invention shown in FIG. 5. 
     FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the alternative embodiment of the instant invention shown in FIG. 5. 
     FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of an array of the alternative embodiment of FIG. 5 on a conventional shoe. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to the drawings, FIGS. 1-3 show a first preferred embodiment of the instant invention. The member (10) is comprised of an elongated tubular body member (12) having a longitudinal opening (14) therethrough. Member (12) is made of, although not limited to, a plastic meterial or the like. 
     On the frontal surface of member (12), an alpha and/or numeric character (16) is provided. The character (16) may be adhered to, embossed in, or otherwise applied to said frontal surface. 
     On the rear surface of the body member (12), a longitudinal slit (18) is optionally provided. As shown in FIG. 3 the slit (18) divides the rear surface of body member (12) into upper and lower segments (17) and (19), as it cooperates with the longitudinal opening (14). As a result, the slit (18) allows the body member (12) to be inserted onto a shoe lace (23) that has been already threaded into the eyelets of a shoe (FIG. 4). The slit (18) may be optinally located in either the side or the frontal surface of the body member (12). 
     In use, as shown in FIG. 4, an array of body members (12) may be inserted, via slit (18), onto a threaded shoe lace (23) using a series of letters numbers to convey the personalized message desired by the user. Since slit (18) allows for the ease of insertion and removal of the body member (12) onto and from a threaded shoe lace, a user is afforded complete flexibility in changing the displayed message as desired. 
     Also as shown in FIG. 4, various ones of the body members (12) carrying no alpha or numeric characters thereon may be employed to represent blank spaces when needed. 
     Turning now of FIG. 5-8, an alternative embodiment of the instant invention is shown, wherein similar components to those shown in FIG. 1-4 are likewise labeled. The invention of the alternative embodiment comprises an elongated tubular body member (20) having a frontal surface (22) that extends laterally beyond both of the adjacent transverse side portions of the tubular body member. The results of these extensions provide for the opposite projections (23) and (24), which create an enlarged frontal surface area (22) for carrying a portion of a graphic design or message thereon. 
     As shown in FIG. 8, when an array of members (20) are placed on a convention shoe lace, the graphic design or message portion carried by each is combined in a puzzle-like fashion to display a complete disign, picture, message, or the like. 
     While the drawings show at least two preferred embodiments of the instant invention, body members having various other shapes or types of material may be alternatively selected.