Patent Publication Number: US-2003234028-A1

Title: Eyebrow stencil

Description:
[0001] This invention relates to an improved eyebrow stencil sheet which is rounded on the inside corners where the sheet abuts the bridge of the nose. This innovation is an improvement on the stencils of the prior art in that the stencil sheet conforms more neatly to the face by avoiding the corner lift that can be caused by contact with the bridge of the nose.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002] Some people in this world have light, spare, or uneven eyebrows and wish to change the look of their eyebrows to appear darker or fuller or more shapely. To do this, a person will often utilize a stencil to help create pencilled eyebrow shapes. These sheets are typically adhesive backed plastic sheets from which eyebrow shapes are cut. The cut out portion of the sheet is placed over the brow area where it is held in place by hand and/or by the adhesive on the sheet around the brow area. An eyebrow pencil or some other coloring method is then applied to create an eyebrow shape on the brow.  
       [0003] One of the problems with the use of prior art eyebrow stencils is that, in many cases, the stencil sheet does not fit neatly to the face because the sheets are die-cut into a rectangular shape, see, e.g., the stencils shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,336,462 to Santelli et al, 5,860,433 to Halpern, and 2,917,058 to Ferrar. While rectangular stencil sheets can be mass produced in an economical manner, with that economy come other costs to the consumer. Many faces do not have room for a rectangular stencil sheet to fit flat against the face because the bridge of the nose presents itself as an obstacle. Prior art stencil sheets can then be used to proper effect only with increased effort and skill to force the sheet to lie flush on the eyebrow area.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0004] The present invention obviates this problem of the prior art stencils by providing a rounded edge on that part of the stencil sheet that lies in proximity of the bridge of the nose. This innovative shape provides a more useful stencil sheet which fits neatly on a wider variety of face shapes than traditional stencil sheets. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS  
     [0005]FIG. 1 is a front view of a series of stencil sheets adhesively attached to a backing sheet after the die-cutting process has been completed.  
     [0006]FIG. 2 is a front view of a series of stencil sheets adhesively attached to a backing sheet after the stripping process has been completed.  
     [0007]FIG. 3 is a front view of a stencil sheet after it has been removed from the backing sheet and before it is applied to the face.  
     [0008]FIG. 4 shows a stencil sheet of the present invention in place on the face of a user. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
     [0009] This invention can best be appreciated with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a plastic sheet  10  adhesively attached to a backing sheet  11 . Plastic sheet  10  has been run through a die-cutter which resulted in cuts  12  and  13 . Cut  12  defines the outer shape of the stencil sheet  15 , with rounded corners  16  and  17 . Cut  13  defines eyebrow shape  18 . After plastic sheet  10  comes out of the die-cutter, the excess plastic  14 , which is that plastic of plastic sheet  10  not within the shape of stencil sheet  15  as defined by cut  12 , is stripped from backing sheet  11 , leaving a series of individual stencil sheets  15 , as shown most clearly on FIG. 2.  
     [0010]FIG. 3 shows stencil sheet  15  after it has been removed from backing sheet  11  and after eyebrow shape  18  is detached therefrom. Stencil sheet  15  is then positioned on the face, as shown in FIG. 4, aligning stencil sheet  15  to the position of the brow line. Because of the rounded inside corners  16  and  17  created by cut  12 , the user has more flexibility in positioning stencil sheet  15 . Stencil sheet  15  can be moved closer to the nose without the need to crease the edge of stencil sheet  15  so that it lies flat against the eyebrow area and is not lifted off the face by the protruding bridge of the nose. Moreover, rounded edges  16  and  17  increase the comfort of the user by eliminating sharp edges that may cause discomfort or pain when impinging on the soft skin near the eye.  
     [0011] Once stencil sheet  15  is fully and comfortably fitted onto the brow area as shown in FIG. 4, eyebrow shape  18 , defined by cut  13 , can be filled in with an eyebrow pencil or some other suitable coloring agent. Because stencil sheet  15  is adhered flush against the face, it is not necessary for the user to hold any portion of stencil sheet  15  against the face. Both hands are thus free to attend to the color application process, allowing for more dexterity and providing greater convenience to the user.  
     [0012] Numerous variations of this invention are possible. For example, plastic sheet  10  may be tinted so as to enable the user to position the cut out portion more precisely over the area to be colored. In addition, backing sheet  11  may be perforated to allow for easy and neat portability of one or more sets of eyebrow shapes.