[0001] This invention relates generally to a hair extension, a method for forming a hair extension, and a method for attaching a hair extension to a subject.

Background of the invention

[0002] Hair extension techniques can be used to extend the length or thickness of a person's hair, by attaching a hair extension composed of foreign hair (either artificial or natural) to the subject's own natural hair. Various techniques can be used for attaching the hair extension.

[0003] One attachment technique involves the use of 'micro rings'. In this technique, a hair extension is formed by gluing a plurality of foreign hair strands together at one end, using specially formulated glue. The glued end of the hair extension is the inserted into a metal 'micro ring', along with a section of the person's natural hair. The micro ring is then deformed using pliers or a similar clamping tool, to hold the hair extension to the section of the person's natural hair.

[0004] Other techniques for attaching the hair extension include gluing, taping or weaving the hair extension onto the subject's natural hair. However, each of these techniques has its own disadvantages.

[0005] One particular disadvantage common to several existing attachment techniques is that often, the hair extension will not sit naturally (or as naturally as desired) on the person's head. Another disadvantage is a lack of flexibility in the appearance of the hair extension when attached.

[0006] It would be desirable to provide a hair extension, and/or attachment technique for a hair extension, which addressed one or more of the above disadvantages, or at least provided an alternative to existing hair extensions and attachment techniques.

Summary of the invention

[0007] Accordingly, in a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a hair extension comprising: (a) a plurality of aligned hair strands attached together at an attachment end; and

(b) a narrowed tip section formed from the hair strands at the attachment end, the tip section for fastening to a person's natural hair, wherein the hair strands are attached in a substantially flat configuration, such that a pair of opposed sides of the hair extension are defined.

[0008] The tip section may, in different embodiments, have different cross sections. However, preferably the tip section also has a substantially fiat configuration.

[0009] The hair extensions may comprise hair strands of different colours, which may be attached such that each of the opposed sides has a different colour composition. This means that a different effect can be achieved, by attaching the hair extension with a different side facing outwards.

[0010] Preferably, the hair strands are adhered together at the attachment end using glue.

[0011] Preferably, the hair extension further comprises a shoulder defined between the tip section and a body of the hair extension. The shoulder can be formed by compressing or clamping the hair strands together to form the narrowed tip.

[0012] In a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of extending a person's hair using a hair extension as described above, comprising fastening the tip section of the hair extension to a section of the person's natural hair.

[0013] The hair extension may be fastened with one of the opposed faces laying substantially flat against the person's scalp. This helps to put the hair extension close to the scalp to provide a more natural appearance.

[0014] The hair extension may be fastened to the person's hair by inserting the section of the person's natural hair, and the tip section of the hair extension, into a deformable member, and deforming the deformable member to clamp the tip section of the hair extension to the section of the person's natural hair.

[0015] In a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of forming a hair extension, comprising: attaching a plurality of hair strands together at an attachment end; and (b) compressing the hair strands at the attachment end, to form a narrowed tip section for fastening to a person's natural hair.

[0016] The hair strands may be attached by adhering the hair strands together with glue. Depending on the type of glue used, there may be a delay between the step of adhering the hair strands together, and the step of compressing the hair strands at the attachment end, to allow the glue to dry to a desired state.

[0017] In a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a kit for use in extending a person's hair, comprising:

(a) at least one hair extension as described above; and

(b) at least one deformable member for fastening the hair extension to the person's hair.

[0018] In a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a micro ring for use in fastening a hair extension to a person's natural hair, wherein the micro ring has a substantially flat cross section such that when in use, the micro ring lays substantially flat against the person's scalp.

[0019] The hair strands may be attached by gluing the hair strands together. Depending on the type of glue used, which is preferably a soft glue, there may be a delay of around 1 day to allow the glue to substantially dry, or dry to a desired state.

[0020] The hair strands may be attached in a substantially flat configuration, such that a width of the hair extension is greater than a thickness of the hair extension, and such that a pair of opposed sides of the hair extension are defined. The opposed sides may have different colour compositions.

[0021] A detailed description of one or more embodiments of the invention is provided below, along with accompanying figures that illustrate by way of example the principles of the invention. While the invention is described in connection with such embodiments, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to any embodiment. On the contrary, the scope of the invention is limited only by the appended claims and the invention encompasses numerous alternatives, modifications and equivalents. [0022] For the purpose of example, numerous specific details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. The present invention may be practiced according to the claims without some or all of these specific details. For the purpose of clarity, technical material that is known in the technical fields related to the invention has not been described in detail so that the present invention is not unnecessarily obscured.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0023] Various embodiments/aspects of the invention will now be described with reference to the following drawings in which,

[0024] Figure 1 depicts a kit comprising three hair extensions and three micro rings according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 2 depicts a plurality of hair extensions according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 3 depicts the hair extensions of Figure 2, viewed from the opposite side;

[0027] Figure 4 depicts hair extensions according to an embodiment of the present invention, attached to a person's hair;

[0028] Figure 5 is a flow chart depicting a method of forming a hair extension according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 6 is a flow chart depicting a method of attaching the hair extension produced in Figure 6, according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 7 is a schematic view of the attachment end of a hair extension according to an alternative embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 8 is a schematic view of the attachment end of a hair extension according to yet another embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 9 is a schematic view of the attachment end of a hair extension according to yet another embodiment of the present invention; and [0033] Figure 10 is a schematic view of the attachment end of a hair extension according to yet another embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

[0034] Figure 1 depicts hair extensions 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Each hair extension 100 comprises a plurality of hair strands. The hair strands are aligned, extending along a body 1 10 of the hair extension 100, and attached together at one end. At that end, a narrowed, elongate tip section 120 can be seen in Figure 1, with a shoulder 130 between the body 110 and the tip section 120.

[0035] Micro rings 200 can be used, as deformable members, to attach the hair extensions 100 to a person's natural hair, by inserting both the tip section 120 of the hair extension 100 and a section of the person's natural hair into a micro ring 200. The micro ring 200 can then be deformed, for instance using a pair of pliers or other clamping tool, to clamp the tip section 120 and the person's natural hair together.

[0036] The exact shape of the hair extension 100 may vary in different embodiments.

However, in the embodiment shown in Figure 1, the body 1 10 of the hair extension 100 is substantially flat, with a width greater than its thickness, and defining a pair of opposed sides - a top side that can be seen in Figure 1, and a bottom side that is hidden from view. Of course, it will be understood that, if turned over, the opposite side of the hair extension 100 would be visible.

[0037] The use of a substantially flat hair extension allows for various advantages over conventional hair extensions. Firstly, a substantially flat hair extension can sit closer and flatter against the person's scalp, which will generally provide a more natural appearance compared to conventional hair extensions.

[0038] Secondly, since the hair extension of Figure 1 is flatter and wider than conventional hair extensions, it allows fewer hair extensions to be used to provide a more even coverage across an area of a person's head.

[0039] Thirdly, the hair extension of Figure 1 enables a wider range of effects, depending on the wishes of the subject. For instance, in the embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 3, the opposed sides of the hair extension may have different colour compositions. This allows each hair extension to be attached with a different side facing outwards, and so with a different colour displayed.

[0040] More specifically, Figure 2 depicts a number of hair extensions 100, arranged in line. The hair extensions 100 are arranged with an alternating sequence of lighter and darker colours, to give a highlighted effect.

[0041] However, as shown in Figure 3, the lighter coloured extensions may be turned over. These hair extensions 100 are darker coloured on the side that is shown facing upwards in Figure 3. This provides a darker and more even colour effect, across the width of the adjacent hair extensions 100.

[0042] Figure 4 depicts several hair extensions, according to an embodiment of the present invention, attached to a person's natural hair by micro rings 200. It will be noted, as best seen in Figure 1, that these micro rings 200 have a flat, elongate or oval-shaped cross section, rather than having the circular cross section that is typical of conventional micro rings.

[0043] This means that the micro rings 200 themselves, according to the present invention, are also able to lay flatter against the person's scalp, which may help to make them less easily noticed and more comfortable for the subject.

[0044] In the embodiment depicted in the figures, the tip section 120 of each hair extension 100 is similarly flat, to generally match the shape of these micro rings 200 and assist the micro rings 200 to be placed close to the scalp, and the body 110 of the hair extension 100 to also lay fiat.

[0045] Of course, it will be appreciated that micro rings of different shapes may be used to fasten hair extensions according to the present invention - including conventional micro rings with a substantially circular cross section.

[0046] Referring now to Figure 5, a method of forming these hair extensions will be described according to an embodiment of the invention.

[0047] First, a plurality of hair strands are arranged in a substantially planar (i.e. flat) configuration, and attached together 300 at an attachment end. Typically, this will be performed using glue. Various different types of glue may be used, but preferably it is a soft glue that is applied to the ends of the hair strands as a gel, and is then allowed to dry to a suitable state for the next stage of the process. Depending on the particular glue used, this may take some time - 24 hours or more in some cases.

[0048] Once the glue is in a suitable state, the attachment end of the extension is compressed to create the tip section 120 of the hair extension 100. This also creates a shoulder 130 on either side of the base of the tip section 120. This is created by bending of the hair strands during the compressing process 400. Preferably, the tip section 120 and shoulder 130 are formed by bending of the hair strands during the compression step 400, rather than shearing of the hair strands, as this would weaken the attachment between the hair strands in the hair extension 100.

[0049] Referring to Figure 6, once formed, the hair extension 100 may be fastened 500 to a person's natural hair as described above. Of course, this fastening step 500 may be performed a significant time after the hair extension itself is formed by steps 300, 400, and the fastening step 500 is also likely to be performed by a different entity (e.g. a hair dresser or an end consumer) to those preceding steps 300, 400.

[0050] Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described above, various other embodiments that would be apparent to a skilled person are encompassed within the scope of the present invention. In particular, Figures 7 to 10 show examples of some modifications to the embodiment of Figures 1 to 4.

[0051] In particular, as will be apparent from Figures 7 to 10, the gradient of the step 130 from the base of the tip section 120 to the body 1 10 may vary significantly. The step 130 may be sharp, as depicted in Figures 1 to 4, or curved and more gradual as shown in Figures 8 to 10.

[0052] Other variations will also be apparent. For instance, the size of the micro rings 200 may be varied as shown in Figure 1. The width of the tip section 120 may vary similarly. This allows smaller micro rings 200 to be used, making them less obtrusive, although of course smaller micro rings 200 may require more skill when using them to fasten hair extensions to a subject's hair.

[0053] The word 'comprising' and forms of the word 'comprising' as used in this description and in the claims does not limit the invention claimed to exclude any variants or additions.

[0054] Modifications and improvements to the invention will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Such modifications and improvements are intended to be within the scope of this invention. [0055] In this specification where a document, act or item of knowledge is referred to or discussed, this reference or discussion is not an admission that the document, act or item of knowledge or any combination thereof was at the priority date, publicly available, known to the public, part of the common general knowledge, or known to be relevant to an attempt to solve any problem with which this specification is concerned.