One-piece Slipper

Abstract

A foot covering of the slipper or moccasin type formed from a single sheet of pliable material comprising the entire sole and upper, a forward fold of the sheet of material forming a sheath adapted to receive the forward portion of a foot including the instep and also forming a forward extension of the sheath resulting in a tapered cap equal in length to approximately one-half the length of the foot and terminating in a substantially pointed tip, the fold having complementary edges at the shoe tip end and outer aspect of the shoe united as a seam extending at sole level from around the shoe tip and of the shoe to a point adjacent to the portion of the shoe adapted to receive the ball of the foot and then diagonally upward to the mouth of the shoe on the outer side of the instep portion; a reinforcing tongue bridges the seam at the mouth of the shoe and a first eared portion of triangular shape extends rearwardly from the sheath and spanning the forward portion of the mouth of the shoe; the sheet is also provided with a rear fold which forms the heel receiving portion of the shoe and which is closed at the rear end thereof by a continuous right-angled seam having horizontal and vertical seam portions, the vertical seam portion having a reinforcing tongue bridging its upper end, the horizontal seam portion having a lower curved portion in extension of the plane of the sole of the shoe defining an enlargement in the lower rear portion of the shoe and constituting a heel-fitting pocket, the rear fold having a second eared portion of triangular shape extending above the heel at the rear of the shoe, the two triangular eared portions being adapted to assist in pulling the shoe onto the foot.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to shoes or footwear and more particularly to an improved foot covering of the moccasin or slipper type which may be readily slipped on and off the foot and, when not in use, may be folded for storage in a relatively small space.

THE PRIOR ART

One-piece slippers or moccasins are not new. U.S. Pat. No. 2,494,617 granted to Rose Hogan shows a one-piece foot covering of the slipper type which can be readily slipped on and off the foot and which can be collapsed or folded for packing in a small place. The blank of the Hogan patent is adapted to be folded twice, a first forward fold of the sheet of material forming a sheath adapted to receive the forward portion of a foot including the instep; the first fold provides complementary edges at the toe end and at the outer aspect of the shoe united as a seam extending at sole level from around the toe end of the shoe to a point adjacent the portion of the shoe adapted to receive the ball of the foot, then this same seam extends diagonally upward to the mouth of the shoe on the outer side of the instep portion. This first seam in the Hogan patent is provided with a reinforcing tongue bridging the seam at the mouth of the shoe and a rear fold of material forming the heel receiving portion of the shoe and being closed at the rear end by a vertical seam having another reinforcing tongue bridging its upper end. The seam for the rear fold is provided with a lower curved portion defining an enlargement in the lower rear portion of the shoe constituting a heel fitting pocket.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention defines several improvements over the prior art as typified by the above described Hogan patent. First of all, the shoe or slipper of the present invention has a tapered cap extending forwardly from the foot-enclosing sheath and terminating in a substantially pointed tip. The resulting shape may remind the observer of the type of slipper worn by the court jester in the middle ages and, as such, the slipper of the present invention presents a pleasing and attractive appearance. Secondly, the shoe or slipper of the present invention is provided with two triangularly shaped ears spanning the forward and rear portions, respectively, of the mouth of the shoe for the purpose of assisting the wearer in pulling the slipper onto the foot; these same ears can also be employed by the wearer to assist in removing the slipper from the foot. A third feature of the present invention involves the shape of the heel receiving portion. In the Hogan patent the rear seam is defined as a vertical seam having a curved portion at its lower end; the curved portion of the seam in Hogan, however, is formed by the uniting of two edges one of which is straight and located on the portion of the shoe constituting the sole, the other edge of which is curved and located on the vertical portion of the shoe which forms the heel enclosing portion. In the shoe of the present invention, the shapes of the last two mentioned edges are reversed; that is, the curved edge is on the portion of the shoe constituting the sole thereof and the straight edge is on the rear vertical portion of the shoe which forms the heel enclosing portion. The last-mentioned arrangement in the present invention results in the heel receiving portion of the shoe being closed at the rear end thereof by a continuous rightangled seam which has horizontal and vertical seam portions, the horizontal seam portion being defined as a lower curved portion in extension of the plane of the sole of the shoe.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of the shoe or slipper as it appears on the wearer's left foot;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the single unitary blank from which the entire shoe or slipper is formed and showing a superimposed and optional insole which can be used or not as desired;

FIG. 3 is a top view of the slipper as it appears when collapsed; and

FIG. 4 is a side view of the collapsed slipper.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

The foot covering, slipper, shoe or moccasin (however the wearer wishes to refer to it) of the present invention is preferably made of soft pliable leather such as kid or lamb skin with one suede surface and the other smooth or finished, natural or died, or of a similar synthetic material. The finished side of the material preferably forms the outer surface of the foot covering. If desired, an insole can be provided to give the foot covering increased thickness and/or rigidity in the sole area.

Referring now to FIG. 1, the shoe is characterized by a forward vamp portion 10 which forms a sheath over the transverse arch of a wearer's foot and which extends rearwardly in triangular form to provide an ear 12 which will assist the wearer in slipping on and off the slipper. The rear portion of the shoe, which will be described hereinafter in greater detail is provided with a heel-encircling rear portion 14 which also includes an upwardly and rearwardly extending triangular ear 16 which will also assist the wearer in slipping the foot covering on and off the foot. The vamp portion 10 is provided with a forward extension 18 which constitutes a tapered cap or toe portion terminating in a pointed tip 20. The vamp 10 is joined to the remaining or sole portion of the slipper by means of a main seam 22 which extends all the way from the tip 20 to a point 24 where the vamp 10 meets the mouth 25 of the shoe. More particularly, the main seam 22 extends at sole level from the tip 20 to a point 26 adjacent the portion of the slipper adapted to receive the ball of the foot and then diagonally upward to the point 24 at the mouth of the shoe on the outer side of the instep portion. A reinforcing tongue 28 bridges the main seam at the mouth of the shoe.

The main seam 22 is preferably a side-to-side junction or lap joint of the leather forming the upper and bottom portions of the slipper. The adjacent portions of leather at the seam are joined together by suitable stitching (not shown) and further stitching (not shown) is provided on the reinforcing tongue 28.

Returning now to a consideration of the heel portion 14, it should be mentioned that this heel portion extends on the sides towards and to the vamp portion 10 where on one side of the shoe, as best shown in FIG. 1, it mates with the vamp 10 along the diagonal portion of the seam 22. The heel portion 14 is connected to the remainder of the shoe by means of a continuous right angled seam which is formed by a horizontal curved seam 30 and a vertical seam portion 32. Bridging the upper end of the vertical seam portion 32 adjacent the mouth 25 is a reinforcing tongue or tab 34.

The foot of the wearer is shown in dotted lines in FIG. 1. When the shoe is removed from the foot it can be folded flat as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4.

Turning now to a consideration of FIG. 2, this figure shows a flat blank of leather or other suitable material with reference numerals thereon corresponding to the reference numerals in FIG. 1. The point 24 which was referred to as the upper portion of the seam 22 appears on the left hand portion of the blank as 24a and at the right hand portion of the blank 24b. Thus, the seam 22 is formed by folding over the portion 10 towards and against the left hand portion of the blank and providing continuous stitching from the point 20 to points 24a and 24b which are now together forming single point 24. Point 26 on FIG. 1 where the seam 22 begins to take its diagonal direction appears on FIG. 2 as 26a on the left hand portion of the blank and 26b on the right hand portion of the blank.

The horizontal seam portion 30 in FIG. 1 is formed by stitching together the edges 30a and 30b shown in FIG. 2. 30a is curved to correspond with the curvature of the heel of the foot and 30b is essentially straight so that, when these two complementary edges are stitched together there will be a resulting horizontal seam which will be curved and which will lie essentially in the plane of the sole of the slipper. The vertical seam 32 is formed by stitching together portions 32a and 32b shown in FIG. 2. The reinforcing tab 34 will bridge the top of the vertical seam portion 32 on the outside of the slipper. The seam portions 30 and 32 can be stitched as a single continuous seam if desired.

If it is desired to provide additional thickness and/or rigidity to the sole of the shoe an insole member 36 may be secured to the inside of the blank; however, the insole member 36 preferably is provided with a pointed toe portion 38 to give additional thickness and rigidity to the tapered cap portion 18.

In light of the above it will appear that the blank shown in FIG. 2 consists of a single elongated sheet of leather or other light material (not considering the insole member 36) with irregular opposed edges designed to be complementary when the material is folded to bring them into proper juxtaposition to form both the sole and the upper of the shoe. When this blank is of leather, it should be cut so that the grain of the leather extends longitudinally of the blank. Of course, where the optional insole member 36 is employed, such a modification will involve another piece of leather, but, the basic feature of the invention nevertheless involves the formation of a pliable slipper from a single piece of material and using only two seams to complete the slipper. Not only is the foot covering self-conforming and self-retaining by reason of the high vamp 10 in conjunction with the heel-hugging rear end of the shoe, but also, the ears 12 and 16 will assist the wearer in pulling the slipper on and off the foot. The slipper of the present invention also provides a unique tapered cap extending forwardly from the vamp and terminating in a pointed tip.

The present invention provides a light and comfortable slipper which is at the same time simple and efficient and which will be relatively inexpensive to reproduce. Whereas mention has been made herein of stitching, it should be obvious that the seams can be provided in other manners well known in the art. Furthermore, other suitable materials could be employed in place of pliable leather.

Whereas the present invention has been described in particular relation to the embodiments shown in the drawings, it should be obvious that other and further modifications, apart from those shown or suggested herein, can be made within the spirit and scope of this invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A slipper formed from a single sheet of pliable material comprising the entire sole and upper, a forward fold of said sheet of material forming a sheath adapted to receive the forward portion of a foot including the instep, and also forming a forward extension of said sheet resulting in a tapered cap equal in length to approximately one-half the length of the foot and terminating in a substantially pointed tip, said fold having complementary edges at the tip end and outer aspect of the slipper united as a seam extending at sole level from the tip to a point adjacent to the portion of the slipper adapted to receive the ball of the foot and then diagonally upward to the mouth of the slipper on the outer side of the instep portion, a reinforcing tongue bridging the seam at the mouth of the slipper, a first eared portion of triangular shape extending rearwardly from said sheath and spanning the forward portion of the mouth of the slipper, a rear fold of said sheet forming the heel receiving portion of the slipper and being closed at the rear end thereof by a continuous right-angled seam having horizontal and vertical seam portions, the vertical seam portion having a reinforcing tongue bridging its upper end, said horizontal seam portion being a curved portion in extension of the plane of the sole of the slipper and defining an enlargement in the lower rear portion of the slipper constituting a heel fitting pocket, said rear fold having an enlargement second eared portion of triangular shape extending above the heel at the rear of said slipper, said eared portions assisting the wearer in pulling said slipper on and off the foot of the wearer.

2. A slipper as set forth in claim 1 including an insole member having a pointed toe portion extending into said tapered cap.