Patent Publication Number: US-7210487-B2

Title: Three dimensional nail stencils and method of use

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   The present invention is related to three dimensional nail stencils and their use. 
   2. Description of the Related Art 
     FIG. 1  (Prior Art) shows a conventional nail stencil  100  used for decorating fingernails and toenails. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,873,375 to Johnson, et al. Stencil 100 has one or more cut-outs 102. Stencils are often made of paper or a thin, flexible plastic (on the order of 0.1 mm thickness or less). In use, stencil 100 is placed on a fingernail 104 with a selected cut-out 102 positioned at a chosen spot on nail 1–4. Stencil 100 is held in place as fingernail polish is painted over a cutout 102. When stencil 100 is removed, a design in the shape of the chosen cut-out 102 is left on fingernail 104. 
   Acrylic for use in decorating nails is also known in the art. Colored acrylic has recently become available. It is known to apply three dimensional decorations, such as rhinestones, to fingernails. 
   A need remains in the art for three dimensional stencils for use in applying acrylic to nails to form three dimensional designs. 
   SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The present invention is a three dimensional stencil for use in applying white or colored acrylic to nails to form three dimensional designs and comprises a generally flat, flexible portion adapted for contact with a portion of a fingernail or toenail, and a cut-out portion formed within the confines of the flexible portion. The cut-out portion includes walls having a thickness of at least about 1 mm. Up to 3 mm thickness or more may be used for deeper patterns. The flexible portion forms an opening adjacent to the cut-out portion. 
   In one embodiment, the flexible portion is itself of a thickness of at least about 1 mm, and the cut-out portion forms an opening in the flexible portion. In another embodiment, the cut-out portion comprises walls attached to and extending up from the flexible portion. In the second embodiment, tabs connecting the cut-out portion walls to the flexible portion may be used. 
   As a feature, the flexible portion may be generally nail-shaped, and may further include a sticky layer for sticking the flexible portion to the nail. The flexible portion may include more than one cut-out portion, and the flexible portion may comprise a sheet larger than a nail. 
   A method of applying a three dimensional acrylic design to a fingernail or toenail with-the three dimensional stencil of the present invention includes the steps of applying the flexible stencil having a cut-out with walls of at least about 1 mm thickness to a nail, applying acrylic into the cutout to form a 3-d acrylic design, and removing the stencil. To improve bonding, the method may also include the steps of roughening the nail and/or applying primer prior to applying the stencil. The design may be painted if desired. The process may be repeated to create multilevel designs. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       FIG. 1(   a ) (Prior Art) shows a conventional two dimensional stencil for use in applying fingernail polish designs to nails.  FIG. 1(   b ) shows a side view of the stencil of  FIG. 1(   a ). 
       FIG. 2(   a ) is a top view of a first embodiment of a three dimensional stencil according to the present invention.  FIG. 2(   b ) is a front view of the stencil of  FIG. 2(   a ).  FIG. 2(   c ) is a front view of the stencil of  FIG. 2(   a ) with its backing removed.  FIG. 2(   d ) shows the three dimensional stencil of  FIG. 1(   a ) in use on a nail. 
       FIG. 3(   a ) is a top view of a second embodiment of a three dimensional stencil according to the present invention.  FIG. 3(   b ) is a front view of the stencil of  FIG. 3(   a ).  FIG. 3   c ) is an isometric view of the three dimensional portion of the stencil of  FIG. 3(   a ). 
       FIGS. 4(   a ),  4 ( b ) and  4 ( c ) are a top views illustrating a third embodiment of a three dimensional stencil according to the present invention.  FIG. 4(   d ) shows a top view of a design applied using the stencils of  FIGS. 4(   a ),  4 ( b ) and  4 ( c ).  FIG. 4(   e ) is a front view of the design of  FIG. 4(   d ). 
       FIG. 5(   a ) is a top view of a fourth embodiment of a three dimensional stencil according to the present invention.  FIG. 5(   b ) is a side view of the stencil of  FIG. 5(   a ). 
       FIG. 6  is a flow diagram illustrating the steps used in applying a three dimensional design with a three dimensional stencil according to the present invention. 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     FIGS. 2(   a ) through  5 ( b ) illustrate several preferred embodiments of the present invention, comprising three dimensional (3-d) stencils used to apply three dimensional acrylic design to fingernails and toenails.  FIG. 6  illustrates the steps followed using these stencil to create 3-d designs. 
     FIG. 2(   a ) is a top view of a first embodiment of a three dimensional stencil  200 . Stencil  200  is formed of a thick, flexible material, such a neoprene, and has one or more cut-outs  202  which provide a template for the acrylic design to be applied. In the embodiment of  FIG. 2 , Stencil  200  is generally nail-shaped and preferably has a sticky surface  208  for adhesion to a nail. Note that stencil  200  may be formed of a number of different materials, including paper, plastic, metal such as aluminum, or fabric. 
     FIG. 2(   b ) is a front view of stencil  200 . As shown, stencil  200  has considerable thickness, on the order of 1 mm or more. Stencils will generally be from about 1 mm to 3 mm thick. It may include a removable backing  204  covering its sticky surface  208 . The dotted lines indicate cut-out  202 .  FIG. 2(   c ) is a front view of stencil  200  with its backing  204  removed. Once backing  204  is removed, stencil  200  can be applied to a fingernail. Sticky surface  208  holds stencil  200  in place with the design is applied. Cut-out  202  is now open to the nail. 
     FIG. 2(   d ) shows three dimensional stencil  200  in use on a nail. Sticky surface  208  adheres to fingernail  104 . Acrylic  206  is poured or otherwise applied into cut-out  202 . Once acrylic  206  has partially or fully dried, stencil  200  is removed, leaving the 3-d design on the nail. 
   Acrylic comes in liquid and powdered form. The liquid form may be poured into  20  the stencil. Another method of application is, to dip a brush or other implement into liquid acrylic, and then into powder to form a wet ball. This ball may be applied to the stencil cut-out. 
     FIG. 3(   a ) is a top view of a second embodiment  300  of a three dimensional stencil, illustrating the raised cut-out type of 3-d stencil. Stencil  300  is also generally nail shaped, and may include a sticky surface  208 . However, stencil  300  includes a flexible flat portion  304  and a 3-d cut-out portion  302  attached to flat portion  304 , preferably with tabs  310 . Tabs  310  may be spaced apart, as shown in  FIG. 3(   a ), or may extend around the entire periphery of cut-out  302 . Tabs  310  are not absolutely required, as cut-out portion  302  may be attached to stencil  300  along its edge, but tabs  310  improve the stability of the design. Note that flat portion  304  is open within the periphery of 3-d cut-out portion  302 . 
     FIG. 3(   b ) is a front view of stencil  300 , showing raised cut-out  302  attached to flat portion  300  with tabs  310 .  FIG. 3(   c ) is an isometric view of the three dimensional raised cut-out  302  of stencil  300 . In use, acrylic  206  is poured into 3-d raised cut-out  302 , which is open at the bottom to nail  104 . Once acrylic  206  hardens to the extent desired, stencil  300  is removed. 
     FIGS. 4(   a ),  4 ( b ) and  4 ( c ) are a top views illustrating a third embodiment of a three dimensional stencil according to the present invention.  FIGS. 4(   a ) through  4 ( e ) illustrate how successive layers of 3-d acrylic may be applied to form a multilevel design. 3-d stencil  400   a  includes cut-out  402   a , 3-d stencil  400   b  includes cut-out  402   b , and stencil  400   c  includes cutouts  402   c . Stencils  400   a–c are applied in sequence, and acrylic  206  is poured or otherwise applied into cutouts  402   a–c  in turn. Acrylic  206  may be painted after each step, or different colors of acrylic (including white) may be used. The 3-d stencil may be of the thick-layer type shown in  FIG. 2   a–d , or the raised cut-out type shown in  FIG. 3   a–c , or a combination of the two. 
     FIG. 4(   d ) shows a top view of a design applied using stencils  400   a–c . Nail  104  now includes a bottom-most design  404   a , a middle design  404   b , and a top-most design  404   c .  FIG. 4(   e ) is a front view of the design of  FIG. 4(   d ), showing the depths of the design layers. Generally, each design  404  will be of a different color for contrast. Note that while raised designs  404  are shown with sharp edges, in fact the acrylic beads slightly, so the edges Will be somewhat rounded, especially if each stencil is removed before the acrylic fully dries. 
     FIG. 5(   a ) is a top view of a fourth embodiment of a three dimensional stencil  500  according to the present invention. Stencil  500  may be of the thick-layer form shown in  FIGS. 2(   a )–( d ) or in the raised cut-out form shown in  FIGS. 3(   a )–( c ). Stencil  500  may be stuck to nail  104  with a sticky bottom layer, or may simply be held in place. 
   In use, stencil  500  is applied to nail  104  three times, locating designs  502   a–c  as desired on nail  104 , and applying layers of acrylic as described with respect to  FIGS. 4(   a )–( e ). The resulting design will be similar to that shown in  FIGS. 4(   d ) and  4 ( e ). 
     FIG. 5(   b ) is a side view of one embodiment of stencil  500 , based upon the thick-layer form also shown in  FIGS. 2(   a )– d . As an alternative, the raised cut-out form of  FIGS. 3(   a )–( c ) may be used. 
     FIG. 6  is a flow diagram illustrating the steps used in applying a three dimensional stencil according to the present invention. In step  602 , the nail is roughened to improve bonding of the acrylic design. In step  604 , a primer is applied to the nail, also to improve bonding. Steps  602  and/or  604  may be skipped if the nail design will be removed after a day or two. 
   In step  606  a stencil ( 200 ,  300 ,  400  or  500 ) is applied to nail  104 . Acrylic  206  is poured or otherwise applied into the cut-out ( 202 ,  302 ,  402 , or  502 ) in step  608 . After the acrylic dries sufficiently, the stencil is removed in step  610 . The acrylic may be painted if desired in step  612 . 
   Arrow  614  indicates that steps  606 – 612  may be repeated with a new stencil or portion of a stencil, if a multilayer design is desired. See  FIGS. 4(   a ) through  5 ( b ).