Lace Earring Holder

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH

Not Applicable

SEQUENCE LISTING OR PROGRAM

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

This invention relates to pierced jewelry holders, specifically to an improved method for holding and storing a large number of earrings or other pierced style body jewelry.

2. Prior Art Discussion

Earring holders exist in abundance for young girls, in very bright colors and cute shapes, like flowers or monkeys, that hold 5-20 pair of earrings on a rigid structure, but there is a large need that exists, and is unfulfilled in the marketplace, for grown women who have collected 50 or more pair of pierced earrings, and want a simple, mature solution that is inexpensive and highly functional in a small space.

One method of storing earrings is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,474,466 granted to Ms. Constance Barahona (2002), which is a machined panel with a peripheral edge. This complicated structure requires detailed machining, it must hang on a closet rod instead of the wall, and since it is rigid, it is subject to breaking or cracking. Clint Stanley, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,408,396 (1995) shows a lighted earring holder, whereby the lamp shade contains a plurality of holes, into which earrings can be hung. This design requires significant horizontal dresser or counter-top space, and is complicated to manufacture, with much assembly required. Also, the user would burn his or her hand while trying to fasten the earring in the back due to the heat of the light bulb.

Edwin Leith, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,077,987 (1992) shows a half-spherical earring holder. Machining anything with a spherical surface is expensive; this also a requires threaded insert and a spring-mounted pivoting part, which is subject to wear-out after much use. U.S. Pat. No. 4,869,078, by Marijana and Edwin Leith, utilizes complex dangling balls and springs, which are subject to wear-out. Patricia Sanders, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,745 and Donna Hoppe, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,333,727, use a mesh adhesively secured to a rigid rectangular frame. While these haves the advantage of hanging on the wall and holding multiple earrings, they require a constructed frame, in the case of the Sanders patent, mitered corners for the frame are required. Also, adhesive is used to hold the mesh to the frame. The adhesive in both the mitered corners and the mesh is subject to failing over time due to humidity or aging of the glue, this would result in mesh falling off or at least sagging, making earrings difficult to put on and take off. Additionally, by it's woven nature, mesh holes have a tendency to spread apart after multiple uses, resulting in non-uniform squares in which to hang earrings. Lisa LaBate, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,606,458, uses a similar mesh, this time installed between two round frames of slightly difference size, relying on the interference between the frames to keep the mesh taut. This has the same disadvantage of the woven mesh spreading apart over time, and it relies on very accurate tolerances between the two slightly different sized rings.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,687,103 by Corbett, consumes space on a dresser or chest, requires a precisely formed metal ring to hold a mesh taut; has many small parts such as dowels that have to be machined, and has moving parts that are subject to wear-out. U.S. Pat. No. 4,811,996 by Maria Hanssen uses four upstanding walls with a hinged lid and drawers. It is clearly seen that this requires significant horizontal dresser space, precisely machined hinge pieces, and glue or other fasteners to hold the structure together, and has the disadvantage of mesh outlined above. Additionally, earrings stored in drawers are not able to be simultaneously viewed all at the same time, for choosing which best accompanies the day's outfit. Design (not Utility) Patent D394,769 depicts a mesh earring holder sewn around a wooden dowel, and suspended by a lightweight string or thread. Only the ornamental design is patented in Flint's patent, hers being mesh, which has the disadvantage described above, and using a lightweight string for wall mounting which is subject to abrasion and eventual breakage. Additionally, the dowel must be fabricated and sewn into the mesh at the top.

SUMMARY

The invention described here, an improved pierced jewelry holder, comprises a narrow length of embroidered eyelet lace trim, the top of which is folded and sewn over the flat edge of a D-shaped metal ring, so as to suspend the lace to a length of 30 inches. The nature of eyelet lace is that it has a multitude of holes into which the earrings can be stored and held tight by passing the post of the earring through the hole from the front, and fastening the earring back behind the lace. French wire and lever back earrings can also be stored just as easily by passing the wire through one of the holes.

OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES

The objects and advantages of my earring holder are:

• • It holds up to 50 or more pair of pierced earrings, or 100 nose/eyebrow/belly/lip rings.
  • It takes up no horizontal dresser or chest space since it hangs on the wall.
  • It is very inexpensive to manufacture, and is thus affordable to almost anyone.
  • It not only holds but also simultaneously displays all the earrings at one time to simplify choosing which to wear.
  • It is soft and flexible, and not subject to breaking, cracking, or other wear-out mechanisms such as weld/braze failure, adhesive failure, or plexi-glass breakage.
  • It has no moving parts and is therefore not subject to malfunction in any meaningful way.
  • It can easily be made in a multitude of colors and styles to suit any taste.
  • It is strong and durable, because each and every hole in the lace is embroidered around with thread, this being the nature of eyelet lace, which strengthens every hole.

DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a Front perspective view of the lace earring holder. No other views of the earring holder are required or presented since lace is well understood to be essentially two-dimensional.

FIG. 2 is a photo clip of representative earrings being stored on the earring holder, for clarity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Preferred Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a Front perspective view of the lace earring holder. The preferred embodiment is a pre-determined length of flat, narrow, embroidered eyelet lace 4, with a shiny brass D-shaped metal ring 3. The upper portion of lace 4 is folded over the flat edge of D-ring 3, and sewn along seam 7, so as to capture the D-ring within the lace. The D-ring provides a mount to hang the holder on a nail on the wall, just as one would hang a picture. The preferred length of lace is 30 inches, the jagged line in the figure indicates the entire length is not shown. The eyelet lace has functional holes 5 along the left and right edges, and grouped as flowers in the middle. It is in these holes that all the earrings can be securely attached for storage. Non-functional ornamentation 6, shown in the drawing, is purely ornamental embroidery and has no functional purpose, but is shown because it is representative of eyelet lace. This preferred embodiment is only one sample of eyelet lace, shown for descriptive purposes. Any lace or cloth trim with suitable holes can be used.

FIG. 2 is a photo clip of a segment of the earring holder showing representative earrings being stored.

OPERATION OF INVENTION

To manufacture the earring holder, simply fold the lace trim over the D-ring and turn a small hem to enclose the frayed edge, and sew across the lace just below the flat edge of the D-ring. The bottom end can be cut with scissors at a 45 degree angle to discourage fraying, and simply left as is, or it can be hemmed.

To use, one simply hangs the earring holder on a nail or hook in the wall. All types of pierced earrings and body-rings can then be stored in the holes in the lace simply by passing the earring through the hole from the front towards the back, and clamping the earring back onto the earring post in the back, behind the lace. French wire (dangly type) earrings can be stored by passing the wire through the hole and letting it hang. The collective weight of all the earrings stored in the holder provides stability, which makes it easy for the user to remove and replace earrings with little effort or fuss. The thickness of the D-ring, combined with the doubled fabric at the seam, provides just enough thickness to hold the earring holder slightly out away from the wall; this provides ample space for the tiny earring backs.

DESCRIPTION AND OPERATION OF ALTERNATIVE EMBODIMENTS

Although I have described here embroidered eyelet lace and a shiny brass D-shaped ring, there are many embodiments that can be combined to suit any style or taste. For example:

• • Any color of lace can be used.
  • Any style of fabric trim that has suitable holes can be used, such as satin, grosgain, or beaded ribbon, this might satisfy a more “contemporary” decor as opposed to a “traditional” or “country” style decor.
  • Any color D-ring can be used, it could be powder coated in bright colors such as pink, blue, neon, or black.
  • Any shape of ring can be used besides a D-shaped ring; it could be square, triangular, or circular, or could utilize a flower or other decoration with a slot for passing the lace through.
  • Any length of lace can be used, depending on how many earrings are desired to be stored.
  • Any material composition of lace can be used, such as cotton, polyester, nylon or other.
  • Any means of joining the lace to the D-ring can be used, such as sewing, gluing, or riveting.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS, AND SCOPE OF INVENTION

Accordingly, the reader will see that the pierced earring holder invention provides a simple, highly effective, durable, and economical way to store a large quantity of earrings without using any horizontal bureau or chest storage space, and which is not subject to breaking, cracking, or other mechanical malfunction.

While my above description contains the preferred embodiment, many other variations are possible, and practical. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should be determined not by the embodiments illustrated, but by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.