US3005990A

US3005990A - Garment supporting device

Info

Publication number: US3005990A
Application number: US702837A
Authority: US
Inventors: Harold A Owen; Elizabeth C Clark
Original assignee: International Latex Corp
Current assignee: International Latex Corp
Priority date: 1957-12-16
Filing date: 1957-12-16
Publication date: 1961-10-31
Anticipated expiration: 1978-10-31

Description

Oct. 31, 1961 A. OWEN ET AL GARMENT SUPPORTING DEVICE Filed Dec. 16, 1957 m d w 2cm N n a mw 0.6 n 7.2 a l a in N. m

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,005,990 GARMENT SUPPORTING DEVICE Harold A. Owen and Elizabeth C. Clark, Dover, Del., assignors to International Latex Corporation, Playtex Park, Dover, Del., a corporation of Delaware Filed Dec. 16, 1957, Ser. No. 702,837 1 Claim. (Cl. 2306) This invention relates to a body-encircling undergarment for supporting stockings and the like. More particularly, this invention relates to a supporting undergarment having an adjustable pendent garter strap with a stocking grip or fastener at each end thereof, the garter strap being attached to the undergarment so that one stocking grip moves in an opposite direction from the other stocking grip in a reciprocative manner during motion of the lower limbs of the body of the wearer to equalize the stress and strain on the stocking and the garment.

Many types of body-encircling garments have been made with looped pendent garter straps, but these have had the disadvantage of being supported by an additional pendent strap which is attached at the top to the garment and at the bottom to the looped garter strap by various types of metal devices. Such a three-piece arrangement results in a cumbersome and ineflective method of supporting the stocking of the modern woman because reciprocation is below the. hip region, thereby resulting in loss of control and effectiveness of support. The metal devices at the bottom of the strap attached to the garment press uncomfortably against the skin of the wearer while the looped garter strap tends to chafe the skin during any reciprocative motion thereof.

The present invention is directed to an improved bodyencircling supporting undergarment, such as a garter belt and the like, in which a looped pendent garter strap having a stocking grip or attachment at each end thereof is slidably connected to each hip portion of the garment to allow for reciprocation of each section of the looped pendent strap so that as tension is applied to one end, it lengthens and the other end shortens in compensation thereto. Means for shortening or lengthening the total length of the strap is provided on the strap to effect the desired adjustment for the wearer. The pivoting and looping action of the pendent garter strap in the hip section of the garment, which section may be substantially triangular in shape, results in the hip hugging members in the belt-like construction being capable of holding the loop of the strap so that movement by the lower limbs of the body automatically effects adjustment as the garter strap slides through a grommet or pendent supporting bar arrangement to shorten one side thereof while the other side is lengthened. By this arrangement, a more comfortable attachment and support of the stocking can be made which utilizes the hugging of the hips to effectively hold the garment in place.

Additionally, the looped garter strap construction of the garment of this invention may be provided with a simply and easily adjusted means of arrangement for the garter strap by providing a shortening means, such as a clamp, within the garter strap so that the total length of the garter strap can be shortened or lengthened.

The looped garter strap of the garment of this invention may be attached easily to the stocking; for example, by lengthening one end of the strap, the garter may be fastened without pull or strain to the back of the stocking, and then the other end of the looped strap may be brought forward, the strap sliding through the grommet, to make the front garter attachment, which is more accessible than the back.

It will be appreciated that these and other desirable effects are achieved by the garment construction of the 3,005,990 Patented Oct. 31, 19.61

embodiments of the present invention, it being understood that such embodiments are shown by way of illustration only, in which drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a view in elevation of a garter belt showing hip hugging sections having positioned therein an adjustable looped pendent garter strap in the bottom marginal edge of each section;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary view of the hip section of the garter belt shown in FIGURE 1 showing the grom met attachment sewn to the bottom marginal edge of the hip section of the garment and the grommet bar arrangement over which the adjustable looped garter strap slides;

FIGURE 3 is a view in elevation of the grommet for holding the slidable looped pendent garter strap showing the framework thereof and the grommet bar over which the garter strap slides; and

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary view of the grommet attachment showing the sliding adjustable looped garter strap in position to slide over the grommet.

In the drawings, FIGURE 1 illustrates a garter belt 10 having a decorative front panel 11. Attached to each vertical marginal edge of front panel 11 (such as by sewing) is a hip hugging section 12 having downwardly depending section 13 which terminates in a point to form a triangularly shaped section for covering the hip region of the body. Sewn to the back vertical marginal edge 14 of one of the side panels 12 is an elastic band 15, stretchable in the girth-wise direction, having attached thereto a small band 16 with vertically disposed rows of eyes 17. Attached to the back vertical marginal edge of the other side panel 12 is a vertically disposed group of hooks 18 adapted to fit in locking engagement with eyes 17 to form a girth-wise eXtendable body-encircling band with sections 12 hugging the hips when the garment is positioned on the body of the wearer.

The lower portion of the bottom marginal edge of each section 13 has attached thereto a grommet indicated generally as 19, such as by sewing the top bar of the grommet to the margin of the garment. The grommet 19 has a substantially horizontal bar 20 which, with the grommet frame, defines an opening 21. Through the opening 21 in sliding arrangement with bar 20 is positioned an elastic garter strap 22 indicated generally as 22 and having

sections

23 and 24 depending from grommet 19, each section having secured at the end thereof a stocking grip, fastener or attachment 25, which may be of the type standardly used to firmly grip and hold, without tensing, an upper portion of a stocking. The strap 22 has a length adjusting clamp 26 for controlling the total length of the strap to make each length of the looped garter strap accommodate the particular needs of the wearer. Attached to the body-encircling garment on the inside of the top and bottom marginal edges of the front and side sections is an inelastic binding strip 27 which provides an edging and finish to the top and bottom of the garment.

The adjustable looped pendent garter strap 22 is so positioned that, when the garter belt is arranged on the body of the wearer, the grommets lie substantially vertically in line with the hips of the wearer. In this position, each downwardly extending

section

23 or 24 of the looped garter strap is free to be positioned around the leg of the wearer and fastened to the stocking by the attachment at the end thereof. The strap then is in a position to adjust by sliding through the grommet to lengthen one end of the strap with compensating shortening of the other end. To make the desired attachment to the stocking, one of the strap is attached to the back of the stocking and the other end of the strap pulled into position and attached to the front of the stocking or vice versa.

This strap arrangement provides a criss-cross garter attachment angularly pivoting from the hip section of the garment to allow for the shortening of one section of the. strap with the simultaneous lengthening of the other section thereof in a compensating manner as movement of the limbs require. This stocking support arrangement also places the points of stress and movement thereof on the garment at the hip section where the motion of the point of pivoting relative to motion of the body is minimized. Such positioning provides a relative 1y fixed fulcrum point even when the adjustable looped garter strap see-saws back and forth during motions of the body. Also, because of scissor-like action of the strap, attachment of the garter may be made at various points on the stockings as desired by the wearer.

Although the present invention has been described with particularity with reference to a preferred embodiment, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art, after understanding the invention, that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and the appended claim should therefore be interpreted to cover such changes and modifications.

What we claim is:

A stocking-supporting garment comprising a body encircling band having a waistline and an edge spaced therebelow and including a front body panel, a rear elastic band and a pair of hip-hugging sections, the front portion of the edge being concave and terminating in flattened end portions and adapted to extend completely across the front of the garment from one hip to the other; a grommet in the lower edge of each said hiphugging section substantially at the lowest point, each grommet having a slidable surface fixed in substantially horizontal position; and a pendent looped garter strap slidably mounted in said grommet having a front stocking attaching means secured to the one free end and a back stocking attaching means secured to the other free end thereof, whereby movement of the body of the wearer permits the garter strap to slide over said slidable surface of the grommet to maintain continuous adjustment tensioning between the front and back attaching means for control of the stocking and to maintain the hip-hugging sections firmly in place against the body.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 772,021 Bowen Oct. 11, 1904 1,814,511 Hebner s July 14, 1931 1,816,656 Schweizer July 28, 1931 2,245,556 Ellison June 17, 1941 2,424,251 Morton July 22, 1947 2,529,074 Cooley Nov. 7, 1950 2,530,850 Atchley Nov. 21, 1950 2,619,645 Blatt Dec. 2, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS 131,731 Austria Feb. 10, 1933 63,681 Denmark July 9, 1945 535,991 Canada Ian. 22, 1957