Hair treatment device and method

Abstract

 A masking device for use by hairdressers during hair treatment comprises an elongate single sheet of substantially transparent flexible material (1), having apertures (3) therethrough spaced along a line transverse to the longitudinal axis of the sheet and disposed at a median portion thereof. On said sheet there is provided at least one adhesive zone extending transversely to said longitudinal axis and disposed over or substantially adjacent to said plurality of apertures to hold the treated hair in position between the two portions of the sheet which are held together by the adhesive.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a device to facilitate treatment of hair when it is being dyed, bleached or coloured, and to a method of treating hair using such a device. More particularly, it relates to a masking device through which selected strands of hair may be pulled for treatment, as described above, without the remainder of the hair in the area being so treated, and to methods of using the device for treatment of hair.

[0002] It is fashionable to highlight and streak hair but it is not always easy to colour only selected strands, without colouring the remainder of the hair, and it is even more difficult to colour the selected strands right down to their roots where they meet the scalp.

[0003] One method which has been suggested for dealing with this problem is to apply a cap to the head, which cap is provided with holes through which the strands of hair may be drawn. This method is satisfactory in as much as only selected strands are coloured, but it is difficult to colour such strands close to the roots since usually, the whole head of hair has been brushed in one direction beneath the cap and it is not possible to pull out the strands to the required depth.

[0004] Other attempts to solve this problem have been made, such as are known from EP 0 122 145. The masking device as disclosed in this application provides a pair of pivotable portions adapted to enclose selected strands of hair and the portions may be provided with a layer of adhesive material, on at least one side, adapted to hold the hair which is passed between the portions. This adhesive zone is disposed around an edge of the portion remote from the pivoting point. This enables the two portions to be adhered together once hair is passed between them, having been treated.

[0005] However, neither of the above solutions are entirely satisfactory.

[0006] It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a masking device for use by hairdressers which enables selected strands of hair to be treated without treating the remainder of the hair and which enables the treatment to extend as far as possible toward the root of the hair.

[0007] According to the present invention, there is provided a masking device for use by hairdressers comprising an elongate single sheet of substantially transparent flexible material, said sheet having a plurality of apertures therethrough spaced along a line transverse to the longitudinal axis of the sheet and disposed at a median portion thereof, and on said sheet, at least one adhesive zone extending transversely to said longitudinal axis and disposed over or substantially adjacent to said plurality of apertures.

[0008] Preferably, one or more additional adhesive zones may be provided on said sheet, optionally spaced closely from said first mentioned adhesive zone.

[0009] The or each adhesive zone may comprise a layer of contact adhesive.

[0010] A layer of release material may normally be disposed on the or each adhesive zone, said layer being removable when adhesive functions are required.

[0011] Clip means may be adhered to one or more of said adhesive zones to hold together opposed halves or portions of the single sheet.

[0012] The clip means may be of plastic or metal material.

[0013] There may be provided additional apertures spaced along one or more lines, each substantially parallel to the first mentioned line and spaced therefrom, optionally arranged in eight or less lines.

[0014] In this case, the apertures of each line may be aligned from one line to the next. Alternatively the location of apertures in each line may be staggered in relationship to the location of the apertures in an adjacent line.

[0015] The transparent flexible material may be a plastics or paper foil.

[0016] According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of treating hair to colour, bleach or dye selected strands of hair, characterised in that the method comprises providing a masking device as described above, applying the device to a head of hair, drawing selected strands of hair through the apertures of the device, arranging said strands along said sheet, treating the strands as desired, and folding the device to adhere to itself and to enclose the treated strands of hair.

[0017] An embodiment of the present invention will now be more particularly described by way of example and with reference to the single figure of the accompanying drawing which shows schematically a masking device embodying the invention.

[0018] Referring now to the drawing, there is shown a sheet of flexible, transparent plastics foil 1 adapted, in use, to be folded schematically about transverse line 2. This line 2 may be indicated on the foil 1, although the provision of a fold line is not strictly necessary since, in use, the foil will fold naturally near this line. Adjacent to the fold line 2 (whether notional or not) are disposed a row of apertures 3 each adapted to receive therethrough a strand of hair. Adjacent to the apertures 3 on the side remote from the fold line 2 is a strip of adhesive material 4 and additional strips of adhesive material 5 and 6 may also be provided. The purpose of these will be explained further below.

[0019] The strip of adhesive material 4 may partially cover the apertures 3 to impart additional stiffness to that zone.

[0020] For storage purposes, a strip of release material (not shown) may extend across the foil in the region of the adhesive zones 4, 5 and 6 to preserve their tackyness.

[0021] In another embodiment (not shown) further lines of apertures may be provided along one half of the foil. These may be mutually aligned or in staggered configuration with respect from one row to the next. This will enable more hair to be treated using a single device.

[0022] In order to use the device, it is placed on a head of hair and selected strands of hair are drawn through the apertures 3. The device is then forced downwards, the strands of hair being held so that the fold line 2 contacts the scalp of the person being treated. The selected strands of hair may then be laid along the length of the device 1 so that they contact at least one of the adhesive zones 4, 5, and 6 and are held loosely thereby.

[0023] The strands of hair are then available for treatment by colouration or bleaching and the remainder of the hair is protected by the foil 1. The length of this can be varied depending on the length of the hair to be treated.

[0024] Once the treatment is completed for that set of strands, the other half of the foil may be folded over about the fold line 2 and it will adhere partially to one or more of the adhesive zones 4, 5 and 6, where they are not obstructed by hair.

[0025] One part of a clip (not shown) may be attached to the adhesive strip or strips and may be used to connect the two halves of the foil when folded together.

[0026] Further treatment of the head of hair may then be continued by using a second device, and so on.

Claims

1. A masking device for use during treatment of hair, characterised in that it comprises an elongate single sheet of substantially transparent flexible material (1), said sheet having a plurality of apertures (3) therethrough spaced along a line transverse to the longitudinal axis of the sheet and disposed at a median portion thereof, and on said sheet, at least one adhesive zone (4) extending transversely to said longitudinal axis and disposed over or substantially adjacent to said plurality of apertures (3).

2. A masking device as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that one or more additional adhesive zones (5 and 6) are provided on said sheet (1), optionally spaced closely from said first mentioned adhesive zone (4).

3. A masking device as claimed in either claim 1 or claim 2, characterised in that the or each adhesive zone (4, 5 and 6) comprises a layer of contact adhesive.

4. A masking device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that a layer of release material is normally disposed on the or each adhesive zone, said layer being removable when adhesive functions are required.

5. A masking device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that clip means are adhered to one or more of said adhesive zones to hold together opposed halves or portions of the single sheet.

6. A masking device as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that the clip means are of plastics or metal material.

7. A masking device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that it comprises additional apertures spaced along one or more lines, each line being substantially parallel to the first mentioned line and spaced therefrom.

8. A masking device as claimed in claim 7, characterised in that the apertures of each line are aligned from one line to the next or alternatively, the location of apertures in each line are staggered in relationship to the location of the apertures in an adjacent line.

9. A masking device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, characterised in that the transparent flexible material is a plastics or paper foil.

10. A method of treating hair to colour, bleach or dye selected strands of hair, characterised in that the method comprises providing a masking device as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, applying the device to a head of hair, drawing selected strands of hair through the apertures of the device, arranging said strands along said sheet, treating the strands as desired, and folding the device to adhere to itself and to enclose the treated strands of hair.

Drawing