Abstract:
A handbag comprising a plurality of pompon strips may be used to cheer for a competitive sports entity and to contribute to the atmosphere of fun and festivity surrounding a sporting event. The handbag comprises a plurality of sewing lines to which are affixed rows of pompon strips. The pompon strips are made of flexible material such as plastic, paper and cloth and are generally glittering and colorful and may include a fluorescent or phosphorescent dye material to provide an after-glow and a glow-in-the-dark effect. The method of making the handbag comprises marking the sewing lines on a handbag body material, producing front and back panels from the body material, and affixing rows of pompon strips along the sewing lines.

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention generally relates to handbags and a method of making thereof and in particular to handbags to which are affixed a plurality of pompon strips.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     In general, pompons are handheld devices used for cheering at or for competing entities in such as professional, collegial and high school sporting events, as well as numerous team spirit building endeavors of various companies and associations. Pompons are bundles of flexible strands, streamers and/or strips (hereinafter “strips”) made from various materials, such as vinyl, cellophane, and other plastic materials, as well as textile and paper. Pompon users shake or move the stick that holds a bundle of pompon strips to cheer for their teams and also to generate an atmosphere of fun and festivity. To contribute to an atmosphere of fun and festivity, pompon strips are in general colorful, glittering, glossy, and/or light reflective, and may also be dyed or injected with luminescence causing materials such as fluorescent or phosphorescent dies, pigments, elements and materials. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,079,045 discloses pompon strips formed of transparent plastic, preferably poly-ethylene terephthalate (PET), containing fluorescent dies such that the pompon strips provide a glowing effect in the presence of light.  
         [0003]     There are numerous novelty items that use pompon strips to enhance users&#39; enjoyment thereof and to facilitate an atmosphere of fun and festivity and attract public attention. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,575,808 discloses a puppet for cheering that has pompon strips attached to its controllable limbs; U.S. Pat. No. 5,234,725 discloses a wrist structure having pompon strips; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,369,215 discloses an advertisement device having pompon strips.  
         [0004]     There continues to be a need for new, useful items for facilitating and contributing to an atmosphere of fun and festivity. The present invention further fulfills this need.  
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION  
       [0005]     The present invention provides handbags comprising a plurality of pompon strips and a method of making such handbags. A handbag according to the present invention comprises a front and a back panels to which are attached, connected, glued, or affixed (hereinafter “affixed”) a plurality of pompon strips. Thus, the handbags may be used to cheer at or for competing entities in team sports and to contribute generally to the atmosphere of fun and festivity.  
         [0006]     In a first preferred embodiment, a handbag comprises a front and a back panels, each panel comprising a plurality of pompon strips. The bottom edge and two side edges of the front panel are sewed, affixed, attached or connected (hereinafter “connected”) to the bottom and two side edges of the back panel, respectively. An adaptively open-able and closable opening device interconnects the top edges of the front and back panels. A shoulder strap having two ends are attached to the handbag by affixing the ends of the strap near the opposite, longitudinal ends of the opening device.  
         [0007]     In a second preferred embodiment, a handbag comprises a front and a back panels, each panel comprising a plurality of pompon strips. The second embodiment further includes a first and a second side panels and a bottom panel. The first side panel is used to interconnect the first side edges of the front and back panels; the second side panel is used to interconnect the second side edges of the front and back panels; and the bottom panel is used to interconnect the bottom edges the front and back panels, as well as the bottom edges of the two side panels. This embodiment also includes an outer top panel and an inner top panel, which panels are designed so that they are adaptively open-able and closable. The handbag also includes a strap having two loops, each of the loops being connected to one of the two side panels.  
         [0008]     In a third preferred embodiment, a handbag comprises a front and a back panels, each panel comprising a plurality of pompon strips. In this embodiment, the top edge of the front panel is folded over and sewn along a line on the front panel below the top edge so as to form a front panel channel, which runs the width of the front panel. The front panel further defines a front panel hole below the front panel channel and about centrally located from the side edges of the front panel. Similarly, the top edge of the back panel is folded over and sewn along a line on the back panel below the top edge so as to form a back panel channel, which runs the width of the back panel. The back panel defines a back panel hole below the back panel channel and about centrally located from the side edges of the back panel. A stiff rod is preferably inserted into the channels to provide to the user a rigid handle structure for the handbag. In this embodiment, the handbag preferably also comprises a first and a second side panels and a bottom panel.  
         [0009]     In the preferred method of making handbags according to the present invention, a plurality of affixation lines are marked on a basic handbag material, such as leather, plastic, textile and paper. Thereafter, desired shapes for the front and back panels are cut from the basic handbag material, and on or along (hereinafter “along”) each of the affixation lines is sewn, connected, glued or hot-melted (hereinafter “affixed”) a plurality of pompon strips, which are held together or interconnected by a common affixation band, thereby forming a row of pompon strips that can be affix to the panels using the common affixation band. For example, a row of pompon strips can be affixed to a panel by sewing the affixation band along the affixation line, and thereby resulting in each pompon strip having one end affixed to the panel and the rest of it being unattached and able to float or move according to the movement of the handbag.  
         [0010]     The pompon strips are made from flexible materials, including vinyl, cellophane and other plastic materials, as well as textile and paper. The pompon strips may be colorful, glossy, glittering, and light reflective and may also include luminescent causing materials such as fluorescent and phosphorescent dies, pigments, elements, and materials. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
       [0011]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0012]      FIG. 2A  illustrates the front panel  120  of the body unit  110  shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0013]      FIG. 2B  illustrates the back panel  122  of the body unit  110  shown in  FIG. 1 .  
         [0014]      FIG. 3A  is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0015]      FIG. 3B  is another perspective view of the embodiment shown in  FIG. 3A .  
         [0016]      FIG. 4A  illustrates the front panel  320  of the body unit  310  in shown  FIG. 3 .  
         [0017]      FIG. 4B  illustrates the back panel  322  of the body unit  310  in shown  FIG. 3 .  
         [0018]      FIG. 5  is a perspective view of a third embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0019]      FIG. 6A  illustrates the front panel  520  of the body unit  510  shown in  FIG. 5 .  
         [0020]      FIG. 6B  illustrates the front panel  522  of the body unit  510  shown in  FIG. 5 .  
         [0021]      FIG. 7A  illustrates a basic handbag material having a plurality of affixation lines.  
         [0022]      FIG. 7B  illustrates a row of pompon strips having a common affixation band.  
         [0023]      FIG. 7C  illustrates two rows of pompon strips having a common affixation band. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS  
       [0024]     Referring to  FIG. 1 , handbag  100  according to the present invention comprises a body unit  110 , an adaptively open-able and closable opening device  112 , an adjustable shoulder strap  114 , shoulder strap attachment points  118   a  and  118   b , and a plurality of pompon strips  130 , each strip having one end affixed to the body unit  110  and the other end being unattached end generally pointing toward the bottom of the handbag.  
         [0025]     Referring to  FIGS. 2A and 2B , the front panel  126  has a top edge  120   a , a bottom edge  120   b , and a first and a second side edges,  120   c  and  120   d . Similarly, the back panel  122  has a top edge  122   a , a bottom edge  122   b , and a first and a second side edges,  122   c  and  122   d . A plurality of pompon strips, collectively referred to as  130 , are affixed to the front and back panels. In particular, one end of each pompon strip is attached to its corresponding panel and the rest of the pompon strip is unattached to the panel and pointing generally toward the bottom edges of the front and back panels  120  and  122 . The unattached ends of the pompon strips are individually referred to as  130   a ,  130   b , through  130   n  in  FIG. 1 . Accordingly, the pompon strips are generally free to move as handbag  100  moves, and thus handbag  100  may function as a cheering device and a novelty handbag contributing to an atmosphere of fun and festivity.  
         [0026]     In handbag  100 , the bottom edge and the first and second side edges of the front panel  120  are connected to the corresponding bottom, first and second side edges of the back panel  122 . For example, the corresponding edges are sewn together while the pompon strips are bunched together and pushed inside of the edges so that the pompon strips do not get sewn or protrude beyond the resulting hem lines. The adaptively open-able or closable opening device  112  interconnects the top edges,  120   a  and  122   a , of the front and back panels and may comprise a zipper as shown in  FIG. 1 , as well as magnetic buttons well known in the art. The shoulder strap  114  comprises two straps  114   a  and  114   b , each having an end affixed to a strap attachment point,  118   a  or  118   b . As shown in  FIG. 1 , strap attachment points  118   a  and  118   b  are located near the opposite, longitudinal ends of the opening device  112 . As well known in the art, the shoulder strap  114  may be adjustable and can be made to be removable. The body unit  110  and shoulder strap  114  may be made from various materials, such as leather, plastic, textile, and paper (also referred to as “basic handbag materials”).  
         [0027]     The pompon strips  130  are made of flexible materials, including and not limited to, vinyl, cellophane, and other plastic materials, as well as textile and paper materials. To contribute to an atmosphere of fun and festivity, pompon strips  130  are in general made from colorful, glossy, glittering and/or light reflecting materials. In addition, they may include fluorescent, phosphorescent or dayglow dies, pigments, elements, or materials so that the pompon strips  130  may have an after-glow or luminescent effects, including a glow-in-the-dark property. The width of each pompon strip ranges about three-eighth (⅜) to one-half (½) of an inch. The unattached ends of the pompon strips  130  are about three (3) or more inches from the bottom edges of the front and back panels  120  and  122 .  
         [0028]     Referring to  FIGS. 3A, 3B ,  4 A and  4 B, handbag  300  according to the present invention comprises a body unit  310 , which in turn comprises a front and a back panels,  320  and  322 , a first and a second side panels  370   a  and  370   b , and a bottom panel  360 , as well as a plurality of pompon strips  330  affixed to the body unit  310 . Each of the pompon strips  330  has one end affixed to the front or back panels,  320  and  322 , and the rest of the pompon strip is unattached to the panels. Accordingly, the pompon strips move generally in accordance with the movement of the handbag  300 .  
         [0029]     As shown in  FIGS. 3A and 3B , the first side panel  370   a  interconnects the first side edges,  320   c  and  322   c , of the front and back panels; the second side panel  370   b  interconnects the second side edges,  320   d  and  322   d , of the front and back panels. The bottom panel  360  interconnects the bottom edges,  320   b  and  322   b , of the front and back panels and the bottom edges of the side panels  370   a  and  370   b.    
         [0030]     As shown in  FIGS. 3A through 4B , the front panel  320  includes a top part which is folded along a front panel folding line  320   a  ( FIG. 4A ) so as to form an inner top panel  380 . Similarly, the back panel  322  includes a top part which is folded along a back panel folding line  322   b  ( FIG. 4B ) so as to form an outer top panel  350 . The outer top panel  350  is adaptively attachable or detachable from the inner top panel  380  by using a plurality of magnetic devices  312   a ,  312   b ,  312   c , and  312   d . In addition, a zipper  312   e  adaptively interconnects the outer and inner top panels,  350  and  380 . Handbag  300  also includes a strap  314  having two end loops, loop  315   a  being attached to the first side panel  370   a  and loop  315   b  being attached to the second side panel  370   b.    
         [0031]     The pompon strips  330  are made of flexible materials, such as plastics, textile and paper, and are preferably made colorful, glossy, glittering and/or light reflective. The pompon strips  330  may also include luminescent causing materials, such as fluorescent or phosphorescent dies, pigments, elements or materials so that the pompon strips may have after-glow or glow-in-the-dark properties. The unattached ends of the pompon strips  330  are about three (3) or more inches from the bottom panel  360 . Additional pompon strips may also be attached to the side panels  370   a  and  370   b.    
         [0032]     Referring to  FIGS. 5, 6A , and  6 B, handbag  500  comprises a body unit  510 , which in turn comprises a front and a back panels  520  and  522 , two side panels interconnecting the side edges of the front and back panels (one of which side panels is referred to as  570   a  in  FIG. 5 ), and a bottom panel  580  interconnecting the bottom edges of the front, back, and two side panels. Handbag  500  further comprises an adaptively open-able and closable opening device  512  and a plurality of pompon strips  530 ,  
         [0033]     The front panel  520  has a top and a bottom edges and a first and a second side edges, referred to as  520   a ,  520   b ,  520   c  and  520   d , respectively, in  FIG. 6A . The back panel  522  has a top and a bottom edges and a first and a second side edges, referred to as  522   a ,  522   b ,  522   c  and  522   d , respectively, in  FIG. 6B . The top edge  520   a  of the front panel  520  is folded over and sewn along a line on the front panel below the top edge  520   a  so as to create a front panel channel  514   a  into which a relative thin, stiff rod  516   a  may be inserted. In addition, the front panel  520  defines a front panel hole,  550   a , below the front panel channel  514   a  and about centrally located from the side edges  520   c  and  520   d . Similarly, the top edge  522   a  of the back panel  522  is folded over and sewn along a line on the back panel below the top edge  522   a  so as create a back panel channel  514   b  into which a relative thin, stiff rod  516   b  may be inserted. Furthermore, the back panel  522  defines a back panel hole,  550   b , below the back panel channel  514   b  and about centrally located from the side edges  522   c  and  522   d . The stiff rods  516   a  and  516   b  and the holes  550   a  and  550   b  provide a handle structure for the users of handbag  500 . Rods  516   a  and  516   b  may be made of any material that is light and rigid, such as wood, plastic, paper, and metal.  
         [0034]     The pompon strips  530  are attached to the front or back panels  520  and  522 . Each pompon strip has one end affixed to its corresponding panel, and the rest of it is unattached, thereby allowing it to move generally in accordance with the movement of handbag  500 . The pompon strips  530  may be made from any flexible material, such as plastic, textile and paper, and are preferably made colorful, glossy, glittering, and/or light reflecting. The pompon strips may also include luminescence causing material, such as fluorescent or phosphorescent dies, pigments, elements or materials. The unattached ends of the pompon strips  530  are about three (3) inches from the bottom panel  580 .  
         [0035]     Referring to  FIGS. 7A, 7B  and  7 C, an exemplary step in the making of a pompon handbag according to the present invention is described. A desirably shaped panel  720  is cut or produced from a basic handbag body material such as leather, plastic, and textile. A plurality of affixation lines (individually referred to as  740   a  through  740   n , and collectively referred to as  740  in  FIG. 7A ) is marked on panel  720 . The affixation lines  740  may be marked before or after the panels are cut from the basic handbag material. The side of panel  720  on which the affixation lines  740  are marked is the side that will form the outer surface of the resulting handbag.  
         [0036]      FIG. 7B  shows a sheet of pompon material  750  comprising a plurality of pompon strips  730 . In particular, one end of each pompon strip is connected to or is an integral part of the affixation band  752 , which is located near a top edge  750   a  of the pompon material  750 . The plurality of pompon strips  730  is formed by slitting or cutting the pompon material  750  from the bottom edge  750   b  to the lower edge of the affixation band  752 . Accordingly, a row of pompon strips held together or interconnected to a common affixation band is produced. Subsequently, a row of pompon strips is affixed along each of the affixation lines  740  using its affixation band. Since only the affixation band is used to affix the pompon strips  730  to panel  720 , except for the end of the pompon strips forming the affixation band and being attached to the panel  720 , the rest of each of the pompon strips is unattached.  
         [0037]      FIG. 7C  illustrates another sheet of pompon material  760 . Two rows of pompon strips,  763   a  and  763   b , are joined to a single common affixation band  762 . In this case the pompon strips  763   a  and  763   b  are made by slitting or cutting the pompon material  760  from the edges  764   a  and  763   b , respectively, to the outer edges of the affixation band  762 . The pompon strips,  763   a  and  763   b , are then affixed along two affixation lines, for example,  740   a  and  740   b , using the affixation band  762 . After affixing the two rows of pompon strips onto panel  720 , the pompon strips comprising the top row, that is the pompon strips affixed along line  740   a  are folded over so that the unattached pompon strip ends,  764   a  and  764   b  point generally toward the bottom edge  720   b  of panel  720 .  
         [0038]     In a preferred embodiment, the affixation band  752  is sewn along each of the affixation lines  740 . However, depending on the material used, the affixation band may be glued or hot melted onto to corresponding affixation line. After panels affixed with a plurality of pompon strips are prepared, appropriate panels are put together to make a handbag, as well known in the art.  
         [0039]     As an example, to make handbag  100  shown in  FIG. 1 , the front and back panels  120  and  122  are prepared according to the method described in connection with  FIGS. 7A  through C. Thereafter, an adaptively open-able and closable device  112  becomes attached to or interconnects the top edges of the panels  120  and  122 . Subsequently, the corresponding bottom edge and the first and second side edges of the panels  120  and  122  are sewn together form the body unit  110 . While the bottom and side edges are being sewn, the pompon strips  130 , which are already affixed to the panels  120  and  122 , are bunched together and placed so that they do not get sewn or protrude beyond the resulting hem lines. As well known in the art, an appropriate lining becomes attached to the inside of the body unit  110  to hide the sewing marks created while forming the body unit  110 .  
         [0040]     Numerous modifications to and alternative embodiments of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of the foregoing description. Accordingly, this description is to be construed as illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled in the art the best mode of carrying out the invention. Details of the embodiment may be varied without departing from the spirit of the invention, and the exclusive use of all modifications which come within the scope of the appended claims is reserved.