Braid Sleeve

Abstract

A sleeve made to fit over braided or chemically-treated hair to encircle and retain selected segments of hair while allowing the hair style to remain relatively unaffected. The sleeve is typically made of a tubular body with an open top end and an open bottom end adapted to allow passage of the hair segments therethrough. The top end has a hem bordered by a circumferential inseam, and the hem is elasticized to retain the bundle of hair segments within the sleeve. The sleeve can be used by grasping a plurality of braids or hair segments, inserting the segments into the open top end of the sleeve, pulling the plurality of hair segments through the open bottom end of the sleeve, and then pulling the hem of the sleeve up to the scalp. This is typically repeated for each braid until all of the individual's braids are retained within a protective sleeve. The sleeve can also be part of a kit which includes a plurality of protective sleeves and directions for properly placing the sleeves over the braided hair.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The invention relates in general to hairstyling, and more specifically to a device and method to encircle and retain selected segments of hair while allowing the hair style to remain relatively unaffected.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Hair stylists typically are called upon to fashion hair into a trendy style. For example, hair weaves, hair extensions, French braids, dreadlocks, microbraids, pixie braids, bobs, corn rows, silk braids, African twists, straight hair, goddess braids, individual braids, flat twists and straight locks are just a few examples of complex hair styles known in the art. After manipulation of the hair in this manner, especially when braids are created, “prickles” (i.e. sharp, bent pieces of hair) can stick like small thorns into the scalp of the individual and become very uncomfortable, causing skin irritation and itchiness.[0003]During various chemical hair treatment procedures it is important to protect, shield, or isolate cert...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]The present invention is a device and method for a braid sleeve made to fit over segments of hair, such as braids. The sleeve is intended to encircle and retain selected segments of hair and relieve irritation and itchiness of the scalp while allowing the hair style to remain relatively unaffected.

[0006]A first aspect of the invention relates to a sleeve for encircling and retaining segments of an individual's hair, the sleeve comprising: (a) a tubular body adapted for encircling a plurality of an individual's hair segments as a bundle; (b) an open top end adapted to receive the hair segments into the tubular body, the top end including a hem bordered by a circumferential inseam, the hem being elasticized to retain the bundle of hair segments within the sleeve; and (c) an open bottom end adapted to allow passage of the hair segments therethrough, wherein the sleeve protects the individual's scalp from irritation and itchiness caused by braided or treated hair.

[0009]A third aspect of the invention relates to a kit for encircling and retaining segments of an individual's hair the kit comprising: (a) a plurality of protective sleeves, each protective sleeve comprising an open top end adapted to receive the hair segments into the tubular body, the top end including a hem bordered by a circumferential inseam, the hem being elasticized to retain the bundle of hair segments within the sleeve, an open bottom end adapted to allow passage of the hair segments therethrough, and a tubular body adapted to encircle a plurality of an individual's hair segments as a bundle; and (b) directions for using the plurality of sleeves to encircle and retain segments of the individual's hair, wherein the sleeves protect the scalp from irritation and itchiness caused by the individual's hair

Problems solved by technology

After manipulation of the hair in this manner, especially when braids are created, “prickles” (i.e. sharp, bent pieces of hair) can stick like small thorns into the scalp of the individual and become very uncomfortable, causing skin irritation and itchiness.

These solutions typically include chemical straighteners, relaxers, colorants, etc. that can be irritating to the scalp, and repeated applications of such solutions can cause the hair to become brittle and frizzy.

Although the hairdresser protects her hands by means of gloves, contact of such a chemical agent with the scalp of the customer cannot be completely avoided.

While such devices are useful for their intended purposes, no device or method currently exists to adequately protect the scalp from irritation and itchiness after braiding or chemical hair treatment, yet allow the final hair style to remain relatively unaffected.

For example, while petroleum jelly or other gels or oils are beneficial to scalp protection during a chemical treatment or straightening process, it is not practical to continually apply these products to the scalp for relief from prickle irritation or washout chemical irritation long after the initial braiding or treatment session.

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