Patent Publication Number: US-7222372-B1

Title: Method and apparatus for securing a tee shirt to a bra

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   Not Applicable. 
   STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
   Not Applicable. 
   MICROFICHE APPENDIX 
   Not Applicable 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   This invention relates to the field of clothing. More specifically, the invention comprises a method for securing a tee shirt to a bra so that the tee shirt remains in a desired position. 
   2. Description of the Related Art 
     FIG. 4  shows a wearer  22  wearing a prior art tee shirt  20 . Tee shirt  20  has neck opening  24  (which may take many shapes) and lower portion  26 . It may display printed matter, embroidered patterns, or other decorations known in the field. 
   Women often wear a bra  28  beneath tee shirt  20 . Bra  28  has center web  30 , among other features. In warmer climates, women sometimes prefer to wrap a portion of the tee shirt around the bra.  FIG. 5  shows this arrangement. The wearer has tucked lower portion  26  back up under center web  30  and wrapped it around center web  30 . This arrangement exposes the midriff and radically alters the appearance of the tee shirt. Unfortunately, however, the tee shirt does not tend to remain in this position. Some wearer&#39;s may knot the looped portion of the tee shirt in place, but this produces a thick and uncomfortable cross section near the wearer&#39;s sternum. Thus, the prior art solution has undesirable limitations. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention comprises a method and device for securing a tee shirt to a bra. The device is an elongated fabric strip with a first fastener on one end and a second fastener on the other end. The fasteners are preferably of the hook and loop type. They are positioned so that when the elongated fabric strip is curled into a loop, the first and second fasteners can be attached to maintain the fabric strip in the loop. 
   The method for applying the device is as follows, with reference to  FIGS. 4 ,  5 , and  6 . The lower portion  26  of tee shirt  20  is passed under the center web  30  of bra  28 , then back out through neck opening  24 . Lower portion  26  is thereby looped around bra  28 , as shown in  FIG. 5 . Tee wrap  10  is then looped around the looped portion of the tee shirt. The hook and loop fasteners are pressed together to secure tee wrap  10  in the position shown in  FIG. 6 . In that state it securely attaches the tee shirt to the bra. 

   
     DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1  is a perspective view, showing the present invention. 
       FIG. 2  is a perspective view, showing both sides of the present invention. 
       FIG. 3  is a perspective view, showing the tee wrap in a curled state. 
       FIG. 4  is a perspective view, showing a prior art tee shirt. 
       FIG. 5  is a perspective view, showing a prior art tee shirt wrapped around the wearer&#39;s bra. 
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view, showing the tee wrap wrapped around the wearer&#39;s tee shirt and bra. 
   

   REFERENCE NUMERALS IN THE DRAWINGS 
   
       
       
         
             10  tee wrap  12  fabric strap 
             14  first fastener  16  second fastener 
             18  adjustment break  20  tee shirt 
             22  wearer  24  neck opening 
             26  lower portion  28  bra 
             30  center web 
         
       
     
  
   DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     FIG. 1  shows tee wrap  10 . An elongated fabric strip  12  is its primary component. Fabric strip  12  has a first side facing the viewer and a second side facing away from the viewer. It also has a first end and a second end. First fastener  14  is located on the first side proximate the first end. A corresponding second fastener  16  is located on the second side proximate the second end.  FIG. 2  shows tee wrap  10  in a curled state, so that the user can see both first fastener  14  and second fastener  16  at the same time. 
   In use, tee wrap  10  is curled to form a loop.  FIG. 3  shows tee wrap  10  curled into a loop. First fastener  14  and second fastener  16  are preferably of the hook and loop type, so that they stick to each other when pressed together (One hook and loop type of fastener is sold under the trade name VELCRO). The two fasteners have been pressed together in  FIG. 3 . The surface area of the two fasteners is large enough to allow the user to adjust the diameter of the loop formed by adjusting the overlap between the first and second ends of fabric strip  12 . This adjustment is designated as adjustment overlap  18  in  FIG. 3 . Those skilled in the art will realize that if the overlap is increased, the diameter of the loop formed will be reduced. 
     FIGS. 4 and 5 , as explained previously, depict the process of looping lower portion  26  of tee shirt  20  behind center web  30  to form a first loop as shown in  FIG. 5 . In order to affix the tee shirt to the bra, the user slips fabric strip  12  behind both the center web and the tee shirt, then loops it around both the center web and the tee shirt to form a second loop. The user then adjusts the size of the second loop to preferably compress the looped portion of the tee shirt against the center web. The user then secures tee wrap  10  in position by pressing first fastener  14  against second fastener  16 , resulting in the configuration shown in  FIG. 6 . By adjusting adjustment overlap  18 , the user can create a smaller or larger loop. 
   The width of fabric strip  12  can be varied considerably. When tee wrap  10  is installed, a wider fabric strip will expose more of the bust line, while a narrower fabric strip will expose less of the bust line. It is therefore advantageous to provide fabric strips of varying widths, so that the user can select one providing the desired effect. 
   The term “fabric strip” is intended to include any flexible and relatively thin material. Examples include NYLON, cotton cloth, thin plastic, and even thin metal foils. Similarly, the term “fastener” is intended to encompass any type of known fastener. Although the hook and loop type has been illustrated, snaps, buttons, or other similar devices could be used. 
   The reader will observe, with reference to  FIG. 6 , that a substantial portion of fabric strip  12  is exposed for viewing when tee wrap  10  is in place. It may therefore be desirable to decorate fabric strip  12  with printing, beads, or any other known stylistic device. As an example, it is possible to customize the device by printing the wearer&#39;s name or initials on the exposed portion of the loop. The wearer can also color-coordinate her apparel by selecting colors for the fabric strip which coordinate with the color of her tee shirt. 
   The preceding description contains significant detail regarding the novel aspects of the present invention. It is should not be construed, however, as limiting the scope of the invention but rather as providing illustrations of the preferred embodiments of the invention. Thus, the scope of the invention should be fixed by the following claims, rather than by the examples given.