US2710486A - Combination abdomen-support and garter belt - Google Patents

Description

June 14, 1955 BLATT 2,710,486

' C OMBINATYION ABDOMEN-SUPPORT AND CARTER BELT v Filed Nov. 50, 1951 INVENTOR. I P404? 54/?- Hrwmvsys United ates Patent 2,710,486 Patented June'14, 1955 ice COMBINATION ABDOMEN-SUPPORT AND GARTER BELT Paula Blatt, Cleveland, Ohio Application November 30, 1951, Serial No. 259,214

' 6 Claims. '(Cl. 2-41) This invention relates to a combined abdomen-supporting means and garter belt and is an improvement upon-my prior Patent No. 2,569,953, October 2, 1951.

One object of my present invention is to devise a combined abdomen-supporting means and garter belt in which the unitary combination may be of such form and arrangement as to produce most satisfactory results from thestandpoints of efl'iciency and comfort,

--Another object is to so design my present combined form of device that it may be wornwith a feeling of extreme comfort in the support of the abdomen of an expectant mother and also with a more efiicient positioning of the garters along the legs of the wearer and hence with increased comfort in this respect also.

Another object is to devise a garter belt in which the garters extend along substantially straight lines at the front of the legs and in which the garters of each leg extend in a substantially parallel manner with respect to each other; and in which the entire deviceis effectively held in proper position.

Another object is to design such a-device in such manner that it maybe applied to and removed from the body of the wearer in a most convenient manner.

Another object is to provide such a combined device with an improved form of releasable means that is capable of ready adjustment and engagement and disengagement-of the same.

Another object is to so design such an improved form of combined device that it will be of decidedly simple construction and hence may be manufactured and sold at a popular price.

-.Other objects will appear from the following description and claims when considered together with the accompanying drawing.

.Fig. 1 is. a front elevation of my present improved device in position upon the body of the wearer;

. Fig 2 is a rear elevation thereof; '.Fig. 3 is a view of the in front elevation; and a Fig. 4 is a view illustrating the fastening means provided at the rear of the present device. 1

g It is to be understood that the present form of disclosure is merely for the purpose of illustration and that there might be devised various modifications thereof .without departing from the. spirit of my invention as herein set 'forthfand claimed.

vIn the present form of'device, as herein illustrated, the abdomen-supporting member 1 consists of a-downwardl'y, folded body Iof soft. material that -is of trapezoidal-shape, with its shorter length at the bottom thereof, and that. .possesses elasticity in only the horizontal present device itself, shown say, the upwardly and outwardly inclined ends of this member 1 may correspond approximately with such median lines.

Attached to, by sewing, and extending along the inclined ends of the member 1 are the duplicate elastic strips which have belts portions 2 and 3 extending upwardly, outwardly about the hip regions and rearwardly to the region of the back of the wearer where they may have their ends releasably connected together, and which have garter portions 4 and 5 that are adapted to extend downwardly approximately along the median lines of the thighs of the wearer and to have their lower ends attached to the tops of the stockings S for supporting the same. By virtue of the elastic character of the strips 2 and 3, they are adapted to conform to the contour of the hip region of the wearer in each instance so as to engage snugly thereabout as an efficient, dependable and comfortable means of support. The means for connecting the rear ends of the belt portions 2 and 3 will be described below.

At points corresponding to the front hip region of the wearer, in each instance, that is at points in front of the sides of hips of the wearer, there are attached the elastic garter members 6 and 7 which are adapted to extend downwardly and to assume position approximately parallel to the garter members 4 and 5. Thus, both of the garter members for each stocking are adapted to extend down along straight lines at the front part of the thigh, as clearly indicated in Fig. 1 of the present drawing, and they are adapted to be attached to the stockings at efliciently spaced points for supporting the stockings in a most dependable and comfortable manner and without any twisting of the garters or of the stockings. Also, being attached at points in front of the sides of the hips of the wearer, the garter mernbers 6 and 7 when in operative position will tend to hold the belt portions 2 and 3 in position upon the hips of the wearer and will keep them from sliding down over the hips.

The conventional form of clasp C may be provided at the lower ends of the garter members 4, 5, 6 and 7 for attachment of the stockings S; and each of the garter members 4, 5, 6 and 7 may be provided also with conventional means for varying the effective length thereof. I

Since the belt portions 2 and 3 serve as the means for supporting the present device about the body, of the wearer, the continuous strips 2, 4 and 3, 5 may be of somewhat greater width than the other members 6 and 7.

As above explained, the members 2 and 3 maybe 7 releasably connected together at the middle of the back orvlateral direction...This member 1 is relatively wide, 7

although its height may vary, and is adapted to be positioned, beneath the abdomen of the expectant mother for upward supporting engagement .therewith. The member 1 is of such length that its ends will be position'ed; at. points corresponding approximately to the median lines'of the thighs"of"the wearer; that is to of the wearer and I have provided a highly efficient and dependable means of connection for this purpose so that this device may be applied to and removed from the body of the wearer in a most convenient manner.

As part of my improved form of connecting means for the belt strips 2 and 3, I have adopted an old fastener member P which willnow be referred to. This member F is of substantially fiat form and has a closed eye portion with the parallel parts 8 and 9 and has the parallel hook part 10 which is connected integrally at one end to the eye portion and is open or free at its other end.

With this old member F and with the belt strips 2 and 3 of suitable width therefor, the rear end of the strip 3. is extended about the outer part 8 of the eye portion and is sewed in the form of a closed end, as indicated by reference numeral 11. The strip 3 is then doubled upon itself so as to provide a substantial loop 12, is then threaded through the eye portion and is thence extended about the part 9 and back upon itself so as to effect bind.- ing 'engagement about the part 9 when placed in actual use. As may be readily understood, the strip 3 is applied to the member F, in the manner just described, prior to attachment of the strip 3 to the member 1 and even prior to the attachment of the garter clasp C to the end of the strip 3.

The belt strip 2 has formed at its rear end a loop 13 that is sufiiciently large to permit insertion of the index finger of the wearers one hand as a matter of convenience in applying the loop 13 to the free hook part it Likewise, the loop 12 may also accommodate the index finger of the other hand of the user, if so desired, while applying the device to the body and while engaging the loop 13 about the hook part 10. The loop 12 may serve also as a means to permit adjustment of the effective length of the strip 3 according to the size desired for the individual wearer at any given time, thereby ensuring maximum efiiciency and comfort. The loops 12 and 13 may of course be made of suitable size to accommodate more than one finger in each instance, if desired, so as to facilitate manipulation of the connecting means between the strips 2 and 3.

It is to be understood that the loop 12 will be upon the inside of the main part of the strip 3 so as to be engaged between the same and the body of the wearer and thereby ensure against danger of the strip 3 slipping J through the fastener member after the device has been properly applied to the body of the wearer. This manner of engagement increases also the holding eifect of the strip 3 about the part 9 of the fastener member. It is to be observed also that the tapes or strips 2 and 3 are between the fastener member F and the body of the wearer so as to contribute still further to the comfort.

Upon adjusting the loop 12 to the proper size according to the necessity or comfort of the particular wearer and upon applying the device to the wearers body so as to occupy position as indicated in Fig. l of the present drawing, the member 1 will bear up beneath the abdomen of the expectant mother while the belt strips or tapes 2 and 3 will have effective engagement with her back and hip regions, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing.

Then, upon fastening the garters to the stockings S (Fig. 1), not only will the stockings be supported in a most efficient manner but such engagement with the stockings will serve also as a means of further holding the belt strips or tapes 2 and 3 in snug and effective engagement about the back and hip regions of the wearers body. In this connection it is to be noted that the abdomen supporting member 1 will be affected by the downward pull of only the strips or tapes 4 and 5. Thus there Will be obtained a. well calculated balance of anchoring engagement of the device both upwardly and downwardly, while at the same time there will be exerted the proper upward force to hold the member 1 in effective and comfortable supporting engagement beneath the abdomen.

As a result, the entire device which is of elastic nature throughout, will automatically accommodate itself to the body of the wearer and will preclude any strain or discomfort after having been once applied in proper position; and the effect of any bending or other similar movements of the wearers body will be automatically distributed and absorbed in a most effective manner so as to always ensure a feeling of relief and comfort.

To recapitulate, I have devised a light-Weight combined abdomen-support and garter belt that is of elastic nature throughout so as to be self-accommodating and to preclude any possibility of strain or discomfort upon the part of the wearer. This combined device may be readily applied to the body of the wearer, it is capable of convenient adjustment, and it is so designed in the relative arrangement of its several parts that it will maintain proper operative position upon and about the body of the wearer. Also, the particular arrangement of the garter members not only contributes to the self-accommodation of the entire device and the maintenance of the same in its proper position, but the particular arrangement of the garters serves in a most efiective .and dependable manner to support the stockings and to ensure a most attractive appearance of the stockings in straight condition at all times.

What I claim is:

1. A combined abdomen-supporting means and garter belt comprising a relatively wide longitudinally elastic abdomemsupporting strip member of sufiicient vertical extent to be positioned exclusively beneath the abdomen of the wearer in effective upward supporting engagement therewith, a strip of elastic material extending upwardly, outwardly and rearwardly from each end of said abdomen-supporting strip member so as to be adapted to engage above the corresponding hip of the wearer and to terminate at the middle of the back of the wearer, the rear ends of said strips of elastic material having companion releasable interengageable fastening means at the middle of the back of the wearer, an elastic garter member for each stocking attached to and depending from each of the ends of said abdomen-supporting strip member, and an elastic garter member for each stocking attached to and depending from each of said elastic strips at points corresponding to the region immediately in front of the hip of the wearer and to the rear of the corresponding end of said abdomen-supporting strip member.

2. The same structure as recited in claim 1 hereof and in which the ends of said abdomen-supporting strip member, when in use, occupy positions corresponding substantially to the front median lines of the wearers thighs, respectively, and in which said first-named garter members are adapted to extend substantially along the front median lines of the wearers thighs, respectively, when in use.

3. In a device of the class described, a releasable fastening means for the straps of wearing apparel, comprising an element having a closed eye portion with parallel inner and outer side members and a hook portion connected integrally with one end of the inner side of said eye portion and extending in spaced parallel relation to said side members and having its other end free, a first strap having its one end provided with a closed loop extending about the outer'side member of said closed eye portion so as to be anchored thereto and folded outwardly upon itself and threaded through said closed eye portion and about the inner side member of said closed eye portion and outwardly through the space between the inner side of said eye portion and said hook portion so as to extend thence back upon and to over-lie said folded portion of said first-named strap, and a second strap having its end portion formed as a closed loop removably engageable about said hook portion,

4. The same structure as recited in claim 3 hereof and in which said folded and over-lying threaded portions of said first-named strap will permit and maintain adjustment of the effective length of said first-named strap and in which said closed loops of said first-named and second-named straps are each of sufficient length to permit insertion of the users fingers therethrough so as to facilitate engagement and disengagement of the fastening means.

5. A combined abdomen-supporting means and garter belt, comprising a relatively wide longitudinally elastic abdomen-supporting strip member adapted to be positioned exclusively beneath the abdomen of the wearer in effective upward supporting engagement therewith and terminating at points in substantially the forward median lines of the wearers thighs, a strip of longitudinally elastic material extending upwardly, outwardly and rearwardly from each end of said abdomen-supporting memher so as to engage above the corresponding hip of the wearers body and about the wearers waist region and to terminate at the middle of the wearers back, the said strip being secured along the ends of said strip member the rear ends of said strips of elastic material having companion releasable interengageable fastening means at the middle of the back of the wearer, an elastic garter member for each stocking attached directly to and depending from each of the ends of said abdomensupporting member so as to extend along substantially the forward median line of the wearers thigh, and an elastic garter member for each stocking attached directly to and depending from the hip-engaging region of each of said elastic strips, said garter members for each leg of the wearer extending in substantially parallel vertical relation to each other when in use upon the body of the wearer so as to preclude danger of twisting of the stocking to which attached.

6. A combined abdomen-supporting means and garter belt, comprising a relatively wide longitudinally elastic abdomen-supporting strip member adapted to be positioned exclusively beneath the abdomen of the wearer in effective upward supporting engagement therewith and terminating at points in substantially the forward median lines of the wearers thighs, longitudinally elastic strip 1 material extending upwardly, outwardly and rearwardly from and connecting the two ends of said abdomensupporting strip member so as to engage above the hips of the Wearers body and about the wearers waist region, an elastic garter member for each stocking attached 6 directly to and depending from each of the ends of said abdomen-supporting strip member so as to extend along substantially the forward median line of the wearers thigh, and an elastic garter member for each stocking attached directly to and depending from the hip-engaging region of said elastic strip material, said garter members for each leg of the wearer being adapted to extend in substantially parallel vertical relation to each other when in use upon the body of the wearer so as to preclude danger of twisting of the stocking to which attached.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 772,021 Bowen Oct. 11, 1904 1,324,802 Dix Dec. 16, 1919 1,497,840 Clement June 17, 1924 1,525,957 Schneider Feb. 10, 1925 1,826,368 Schneider Oct. 6, 1931 2,472,764 Shulman June 7, 1949 2,522,375 Jones Sept. 12, 1950 2,555,892 Lazare June 5, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS 447,784 Great Britain May 26, 1936

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