FULL TORSO MATERNITY GARMENT

• US 20120302133A1
• Filed: 08/06/2012
• Published: 11/29/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 04/29/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Blanqi, LLC
• Original Assignee: Sabina Melarti, Valerie Caron
• Inventors: Melarti, Sabina, Caron, Valerie
• Granted Patent: US 8,864,551 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 450/11
• CPC Class Codes: A41C 1/06 with brassieres
• CPC Class Codes: A41C 1/10 Maternity corsets
• CPC Class Codes: A41C 1/12 Component parts
• CPC Class Codes: A41C 3/00 Brassieres
• CPC Class Codes: A41C 3/08 combined with other garments with corsets A41C1/06
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 1/21 Maternity clothing; Clothing specially adapted for persons caring for infants
• CPC Class Codes: A41F 17/00 Means for holding-down garments

Abstract

A maternity garment, which provides mild support to shape a woman'"'"'s body and to act as a suspender for bottoms such as pants, shorts, or skirts that may be ill fitting due to body changes as a result of pregnancy, wherein the preferred garment has at least one shoulder strap, a belly panel, a hip band, two side panels, and a back panel, and is made of high performance fabric with varying degrees of compression.

Claims

1. A garment, comprising:

a front portion defining at least a section of an upper peripheral edge, the upper peripheral edge section being configured to be positioned beneath and adjacent to the bust of a wearer, the front portion being positionable over so as to cover the belly of the wearer;

a back portion opposite the front portion; and

first and second side portions extending between the front portion and the back portion so as to be positionable on respective sides of the wearer;

wherein at least one of the front portion, the back portion, or the first and second side portion is of a resiliently stretchable material configured to provide compression to a portion of the body of the wearer.

2. The garment of claim 1, wherein the garment is made from a single piece of material that includes the front portion, the back portion, and the first and second side portions.

3. The garment of claim 1, wherein the resiliently stretchable material defines a first region configured to provide a first degree of compression and a second region configured to provide a second degree of compression that is greater than the first degree of compression.

4. The garment of claim 3, wherein the single piece of material is a knitted fabric including an elastic element therein, and wherein the first region and second region are defined by varying amounts of the elastic element included in the knitted fabric.

5. The garment of claim 3, wherein the first region and second region are defined within the front portion of the garment, and wherein the first region is positionable over the belly of the wearer above the second region.

6. The garment of claim 5, wherein the second region is generally crescent-shaped.

7. The garment of claim 3, wherein the first region and second region are defined within the back portion of the garment.

8. The garment of claim 7, wherein the second region located within the back portion so as to be positionable over the lumbar region of the user'"'"'s back.

9. The garment of claim 7, wherein the second region defines an X-shaped area within the first region, the second region positionable so as to extend from first locations adjacent respective hips of the wearer to second locations adjacent respective underarms of the wearer.

10. The garment of claim 1, further including a hip portion extending from the front portion, the back portion, and the first and second side portions so as to be positionable around the body of the wearer over the hips.

11. The garment of claim 1, further including a shoulder strap extending between the front portion and the back portion adjacent one of the first or second side portions.

12. The garment of claim 11, wherein the shoulder strap is removably attached with the front portion and the back portion.

13. The garment of claim 11, wherein the shoulder strap is positionable along a side of and adjacent to the bust of the wearer.

14. A garment, comprising:

a front portion positionable over so as to cover the belly of the wearer, the front portion defining a first region of a resiliently stretchable material configured to provide a first degree of compression and a second region of a resiliently stretchable material configured to provide a second degree of compression that is greater than the first degree of compression wherein the first region is positionable over the belly of the wearer above the second region;

a back portion opposite the front portion; and

first and second side portions extending between the front portion and the back portion so as to be positionable on respective sides of the wearer.

15. The garment of claim 14, wherein the first region and the second region are defined within a single piece of material.

16. The garment of claim 15, wherein the single piece of material that includes the first region and the second region further defines the front portion, the back portion, and the first and second side portions of the garment.

17. The garment of claim 14, wherein the front portion further defines at least a section of an upper peripheral edge, the upper peripheral edge section being configured to be positioned beneath and adjacent to the bust of a wearer.

18. The garment of claim 14, wherein the front portion is further configured to cover the bust of the wearer.

19. A garment, comprising:

a body portion including a front section configured to extend over and cover the belly of the wearer, a back portion opposite the front portion, and first and second side portions extending between the front portion and the back portion so as to be positionable over respective sides of the wearer; and

at least one shoulder strap connected with the body portion and being positionable so as to extend over the shoulder of the wearer;

wherein at least the body portion defines a seamless and continuous tubular piece of resiliently stretchable material having first and second regions within the front section, the material being configured to provide a first degree of compression within the first region and a second degree of compression within the second region, the second degree of compression being greater than the first degree of compression.

20. The garment of claim 19, wherein the at least one shoulder strap is removably affixed with the body portion.