BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention pertains to a drapery hanger for supporting pinch pleat drapery on a drapery rod.
There is currently in widespread use a type of drapery known as pinch pleat drapery, which is characterized by a series of folds or pleats at the upper edge, there typically being groups of three folds or pleats at spaced points along the upper edge of the drapery. The drapery material itself is measured to the length of the window, with which it will be used, and has at the upper edge thereof a strip of relatively stiff buckram fabric. In making the drapery, the buckram is attached at the upper edge of the drapery fabric, and then the fabric is measured to provide for the group of three pleats at each pleating point, each group of pleats being uniformly spaced from each other group of pleats. The two outer portions of the two outer pleats are sewn together by a vertical line of stitching, that is, the drapery with the buckram attached is folded to provide the groups of pleats, and then each group is sewn so as to join the two outermost portions of the two outer pleats to each other along a vertical line.
Drapery hangers or hooks have heretofor been provided which have a clamp or grip construction for gripping the drapery, and a downwardly facing hook which is received on a drapery rod, or on a ring supported by a drapery rod. Typically, such drapery hangers have provided a gripping construction comprising a pair of spaced legs joined at their upper ends by an integral bight, with that leg which is ultimately disposed to the rear of the drapery being integral with or attached to the above-noted support hook. With this construction, the second of the gripping legs was inserted into a compartment or pocket provided by the pinch pleats, being passed down over the upper edge of the drapery fabric and into that compartment or pocket at the sewn seam. With the use of this typical and conventional drapery hanger, due to the stiffness of the buckram, the pinch pleats tended to remain, within a group, generally parallel to each other, and perpendicular to the plane of the drapery fabric panel when hung. As a consequence, the appearance of the drapery included a plurality of pleats in a tight and close grouping. This resulted in an unsatisfactory and undesirable appearance from the esthetic point of view. Further, previously known drapery hangers have often been complex and expensive.
Accordingly, among the objects of the present invention are to provide a drapery hanger for use with pinch pleat drapery which is of simple and economical construction. Another object of the present invention is the provision of a drapery hanger for use with pinch pleat draperies which will hold the pinch pleats in open, pleasing configuration.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention drapery hanger is provided with a pair of horizontally spaced pleat gripping clamps, each comprising a pair of generally vertically extending legs joined at their upper ends by an integral bight; corresponding front legs of these two clamps are passed downwardly over the upper edge of the drape, and grip both the drapery panel and a portion of a pinch pleat, to thereby hold at least a portion of the noted pinch pleat generally against the front of the drapery panel. The other two legs of the two clamps are at the back of the drapery panel, and these two legs are connected to a support element which is, in turn, joined to or integral with a leg of a downwardly facing support hook. By this construction, the sewn pinch pleat, comprising three pleats, is held in an open, esthetically pleasing position by the present invention drapery hanger device.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of pinch pleat drapery supported by a drapery hanger in accordance with the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 2--2 of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a drapery hanger in accordance with the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to the drawings, wherein like or corresponding reference numerals are used to designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, there is shown in FIG. 1 a drapery panel generally designated 10 and comprising a group 12 of pinch pleats, the pinch pleats being designated 14, 16 and 18. It will be understood that the pinch pleats are formed as integral, continuous parts of the drapery material, the pleats having been made in the fabric of the drapery panel 10, and then sewn together along a vertical line, in normal manner. This stitched seam joins the outer portions of the outer pleats 14 and 18 together, where they intersect with the main body of the drapery panel 10. Each of the outer pleats 14 and 18 extends at an acute angle to the plane of the drapery fabric panel 10, and the center pinch pleat 16 extends generally at a right angle to the plane of the drapery panel 10.
The outer pinch pleats 14 and 18 are held, as shown, in an opened or "rosebud" position, to thereby give a pleasing, esthetic appearance to the group 12 of pinch pleats: in this connection, it will be noted that the portions of the fabrics making up the outer pinch pleats 14 and 18 which are remote from the center pinch pleat 16 are held, at least in part, against the main body of the drapery panel 10.
Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown the drapery panel generally designated 10, and it will be observed that at the rear of the upper edge of the drapery panel 10 there is a strip 11 of relatively stiff material such as buckram, which has been sewn to the upper edge of the fabric from which the drapery panel 10 is made, in conventional manner. There may also be seen the center pleat 16 and the outer pleat 18, as well as a line of stitching 19, to which reference was previously made. The line of stitching 19 is visible only at a portion of the drapery panel 10 which is somewhat removed from the upper edge thereof, although it will be understood that in fact the line of stitching 19 extends upwardly to the upper edge of the panel; the upper portion of the stitching is concealed by a portion of the outer pleat 18, where it is held pressed against the main body of the panel 10.
That portion of the outer pleat 18, (and a corresponding portion of the outer pleat 14) is held against the front of the drapery panel by a pleat-gripping clamp of drapery hanger 20, this pleat-gripping clamp comprising an outer leg 22 and an inner leg 24 joined at their upper ends by an integral bight 26.
Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown in perspective the drapery hanger 20 of the present invention, which may be seen to include the before-mentioned outer leg 22 and inner leg 24 joined by the integral bight portion 26. A second pleat-gripping clamp is provided by a similar pair of legs 28 and 30 joined by a bight portion 32. As shown, the legs 22 and 24 are horizontally spaced from the legs 28 and 30, and each pair of legs extends generally vertically. At the lower end of the leg 22 is a point 22a directed towards the leg 24, and a corresponding point 28a is provided at the lower end of the leg 28 and is similarly directed towards the leg 30. The drapery hanger 20 further includes a downwardly facing support hook 34 comprising a pair of generally vertical legs 36 and 38 joined by an integral bight portion 40. At its lower end, the leg 36 of support hook 34 has an integral bight 42, which has an integral, generally vertically extending leg 44 that is bifurcated at its upper end to provide branches 46 and 48. The branches 46 and 48 are preferably integral with the legs 30 and 24 respectively, so that there is thereby provided by the leg 44 and branches 46 and 48 a support for the two pleat-gripping clamps provided by the legs 22 and 24 on the one hand and the legs 28 and 30 on the other hand. The branches 46 and 48 are shown to be upwardly divergent from the leg 44.
The outer legs 22 and 28 may be seen to extend to about the level of the bight 40 of the support hook 34, to thereby provide for stability and firm gripping of the drapery, so as to hold it in a desired upright position.
In use, the drapery hanger 20 of the present invention is applied to a pinch pleat drapery 10 characterized by having a stiff buckram strip 11 at the upper edge thereof, and by groups of sewn pinch pleats. The pleat-gripping clamps of the drapery hanger 20 are positioned above the upper edge of the drapery panel 10, and the outermost portions of the outer pleats 14 and 18 are held adjacent to and in substantially contacting relationship with the outer face of the drapery panel 10. Then, the inwardly directed point portions 22a and 28a are forced downwardly over the upper edge of the drapery panel and of the outermost portions of the outer pleats 14 and 18, the downward movement continuing until the bight portions 26 and 32 engage the upper edges of the fabric. Thereafter, this procedure is repeated for each of the groups of pleats of the drapery panel, and then the drapery panel is supported on a drapery rod by passing the support hook 34 through a ring carried by a drapery rod or onto a drapery rod, as the case may be.
With the present invention drapery hanger, the pinch pleats are held, against the normal tendency thereof caused by the stiff buckram backing, in an opened configuration, to thereby give the pinch pleats an appearance which is of a generally opened, rosebud nature, and which is novel and pleasing.
It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and therefore the invention is not limited to what is shown in the drawings and described in the specification but only as indicated in the appended claims.