US20070113319A1

US20070113319A1 - Hat wig

Info

Publication number: US20070113319A1
Application number: US11/159,220
Authority: US
Inventors: Bernadette Brinn; Paul Brinn
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-06-23
Filing date: 2005-06-23
Publication date: 2007-05-24

Abstract

The hat wig is an article of headwear, such as a hat, cap or the like, with hair extending from the interior of the headwear so that the appearance of a hat placed on top of a full head of hair is created when the hat wig is worn. The top ends of the hair are secured in a soft fabric band that is peripherally disposed about at least a portion of the base of the interior of the headwear and permanently fastened thereto in a manner that conceals the band from outside viewing and allows the hair to freely depend downward from the band. The hat wig is highly customizable and can be adapted to several types of headwear, including a hat of the wearer's choosing. Moreover, real or synthetic hair of various styles, lengths, and types can be used to suit the taste of the wearer.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to headwear, and more specifically to a hat wig that includes a hat, cap, or like headwear having a band of hair permanently affixed to the interior of the hat that creates the appearance of a hat on top of a full head of hair when the hat wig is worn.
2. Description of the Related Art
The loss of hair due to illness, medical treatments, genetics, and the like can be very traumatizing, particularly for women. Hair loss often subjects affected persons to public curiosity or scorn, which may lead to low self-esteem, depression, etc. Wigs are useful in concealing hair loss or baldness and afford the user a measure of comfort in public or private settings. Moreover, wigs are useful to wearers with no hair issues who simply want to alter their appearance. There is often the occasion where a person wearing a wig wishes to wear a hat as well. Hence, a hat with hair incorporated therein would be ideal in those situations.
Although various hats with incorporated hair on the market are designed to conceal hair loss or baldness or simply allow a wearer to alter his or her appearance, such hats with incorporated hair are often limited in the level of customization, difficult to retrofit to existing hats, and prone to releasably-attached hair pieces inadvertently dislodging. Thus, a hat wig solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The hat wig is an article of headwear, such as a hat, cap or the like, with hair emanating from the interior of the headwear so that the appearance of a hat placed on top of a full head of hair is created when the hat wig is worn by the wearer. The top ends of the strands of hair are secured to a soft fabric band that is disposed about a portion of the periphery of the base on the interior of the hat and permanently fastened thereto in a manner that conceals the band from outside viewing and allows the hair to freely depend downward from the band.
In contrast to wearing a hat with a conventional wig, the hat wig provides greater comfort in warm ambient conditions, since the top of the head is not covered by hair. This facilitates cooling the head and reduces the possibility of scalp irritation, because the coverage area is limited basically to the sides of the head. The hat wig of the present invention offers an added sense of security, as the band of hair is permanently attached therein, thereby preventing the hair from being accidentally dislodged from the hat.
The hat wig is highly customizable and can be adapted to several types of headwear, including a hat of the wearer's choosing. Moreover, real or synthetic hair of various styles, lengths, and types can be used to suit the taste of the wearer. Customization affords a personal touch that exponentially increases the wearer's enjoyment of the hat wig.
These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an environmental perspective view of a hat wig according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the band that supports hair in the hat wig according to the present invention, a portion of the band being broken away to show the manner of attaching hair to the band.
FIG. 3 is a bottom perspective view of a hat wig according to the present invention showing the interior of the hat with the hair-supporting band permanently attached thereto.
FIG. 4 is an environmental perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a hat wig according to the present invention.
Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention is a hat wig, designated generally as 10 in the drawings, that a user wears to conceal hair loss or baldness, or simply as a means to alter his or her appearance. In contrast to wearing a hat on top of a conventional wig, the hat wig 10 provides greater comfort in warm ambient conditions without the discomfort of adhering a wig to the scalp and without covering the entire crown of the head.
Referring to FIG. 1, the hat wig 10 includes a hat 20 having hair 15 that extends from within the hat 20 down the sides and back of the wearer's head without obscuring the face of the wearer. The hat wig 10 simulates a hat placed on top of a full head of hair.
Referring to FIG. 2, the top ends of the strands of hair 15 are bonded with glue 29 or like adhesive to the inside of a folded strip of soft fabric that subsequently forms a band 25. The band 25 is further secured to the top of the hair 15 with conventional stitching 27 around the perimeter of the band 25, thereby greatly reducing the possibility of the hair 15 dislodging from the band 25 by accident or when pulled. In the preferred embodiment, the band 25 and thread for the stitching 27 are made from cotton material. Real or synthetic hair 15 of various styles, lengths, colors, and types can be used to suit the taste of the wearer.
Referring to FIG. 3, the band 25 is disposed peripherally about at least a portion of the base or bottom edge on the interior 22 of the hat 20 and permanently affixed to the hat 20 with conventional stitching 23. Peripheral disposition of the band 25 about the bottom edge of the interior 22 of the hat 20 permits greater air flow in the crown of the hat 20, which keeps the head of the wearer cooler, thereby enhancing the comfort of the wearer when the hat wig 10 is worn. The stitching 23 assures that the band 25 and attached hair 15 will not readily dislodge from the hat 20, thereby affording the wearer an added measure of security and comfort.
The band 25 may be disposed in a manner that assures the opposing ends of the band 25 will not come in contact with each other. The stitches 23 may be located at the front and the rear of the peripheral bottom edge of the hat 20. At the front, the opposing ends of band 25 may be secured to the sweatband 26 of the hat 20. At the rear, the band 25 may be secured to the rear internal seam cover 28 of the hat 20. In applicable embodiments, the rear securing stitch 23 may be made along the internal seam cover 28 in a manner that obscures the band 25 from outside viewing and will not interfere with the cooperating elements 31 that allow a wearer to adjust the size of the hat 20. The band 25 can also be secured to the interior 22 by other suitable fastening means, such as rivets. Instead of being tacked at discrete locations to the front and rear of the hat 20, the band 25 may be continuously secured to the bottom edge of the hat 20 by stitching.
The hat wig 10 is highly adaptable to numerous types and styles of headwear. It will be recognized that the hat 20 shown in FIGS. 1-3 is a cap. FIG. 4 shows an alternative embodiment of the hat wig 10 that features a different type of headwear 21 having hair 15 permanently attached to the interior of the hat 21 to give the appearance of a hat atop a full head of hair when the hat wig 10 is worn. The hat wig 10 is highly customizable to suit the taste of a wearer. A hat wig 10 can be made from the favorite hat, cap, etc. of the wearer to add a personal touch. Moreover, the hat wig 10 can be customized with real or synthetic hair 15 that is blended to match the hairstyle and hair type of the wearer. The hair 15 used can be layered, of uniform length, highlighted, wavy, curly, straight, etc., or customized to any length and style combination that suits the taste of the wearer.
It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A hat wig, comprising:

a hat having a front, a back, opposing sides, a crown, and a peripheral bottom edge defining an open interior, and having a sweatband permanently secured about the bottom edge in the interior of the hat;

a plurality of strands of hair, each of the strands having a top end; and

a double layer of cloth forming a band, the top ends of the strands of hair being adhesively bonded between the double layer, the double layer being secured together by stitching, the band being secured about at least a portion of the bottom edge of the hat by stitching with the strands of hair extending downward from the back and opposing sides of the hat.

2. The hat wig according to claim 1, wherein said band is made from soft cotton fabric.

3. The hat wig according to claim 1, wherein said hair comprises natural human hair.

4. The hat wig according to claim 1, said wherein said hair comprises synthetic hair.

5. The hat wig according to claim 1, wherein said band is secured to said sweatband.

6. The hat wig according to claim 1, wherein said hat comprises a cap.

7. The hat wig according to claim 1, wherein said double layer is formed from a single elongated strip of cloth folded in half axially.

8. A method of making a customized hat wig, comprising the steps of:

selecting a plurality of strands of hair, the strands having a top end;

securing the top ends of the strands of hair to a cloth band with adhesive;

folding a portion of the cloth band axially over the top ends of the strands of hair so that the top ends are disposed between two layers of cloth;

stitching the two layers together throughout the length of the band;

selecting a hat; and

stitching the cloth band about at least a portion of a bottom edge of the hat so that the strand of hair extend downward along sides and rear of the hat, simulating a full head of hair when the hat is worn.