The present invention relates to a headband. More particularly, but not exclusively, it relates to a headband of foamed plastics material. The headband is particularly useful during hairdressing procedures, but other uses can be foreseen. However it will be described by way of its use in hairdressing.

It is known that, in some hairdressing procedures it is necessary to apply to the head a liquid, such as a perm solution, a bleach solution or a dye solution, which is unpleasant to the customer should it stray beyond the hair. It is particularly important to keep such unpleasant solutions out of the eyes of the customer. Hitherto, this has been accomplished by using lengths of cotton wool held in place over the eyes.

However, it has been found that this material is not capable always of absorbing the quantities of excess liquid which may be involved. This material is not always capable of maintaining its integrity when damp and it may slip down. It may become unabsorbent or it may break in which case a replacement strip of cotton wool may need to be applied. One further disadvantage involved in using cotton wool as an absorbent material is that, after the treatment has been completed, and when it is attempted to remove the cotton wool protective material, it has been found that removal is not always easy, and very rarely complete. Since it is a fibrous material, some particles of the cotton wool will usually be found adhering to the hair of the wearer. Furthermore this material cannot be reused and must be discarded immediately after use.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a headband, preferably for use in hairdressing, which obviates the above disadvantages and provides a product which is comparatively easy to use.

The headband is intended primarily for use by hairdressers to apply to the head of a customer. It could of course be used during self treatment by a user. For both cases, the term wearer will be used herein.

According to the present invention there is provided a headband of absorbent material comprising an elongate strip of said absorbent material and having an aperture adjacent one end thereof, the material being so resiliently deformable that the aperture may be resiliently expanded to accommodate a remote end of the strip which may be passed through said aperture and be held there by frictional forces when the headband has been drawn sufficiently tightly around the head of the wearer.

Preferably the material of the headband is a polyether or polyurethane foam .

The density of the foam may be 1 1 to 15kg/m ³ .

In this case the density of the material may be of the order of 55-95 Newtons.

Alternatively, the material may have density in the region of 20-24kg/m ³ .

In this case, the material may have a hardness of 105-155 Newtons.

The aperture adjacent one end is preferably a slit of such a length that when the material has been resiliently expanded, an aperture is created of sufficient size to accommodate the remote end of the headband, when that has been if necessary, resiliently compressed.

The slit advantageously extends between two transverse holes, one at each end of the slit to prevent tearing of the material.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be more particularly described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, the single figure of which is a side view of a headband embodying the present invention.

The headband of the present invention comprises a single elongate strip 1 , of substantially rectangular cross section, of foamed plastics material, such as polyether or polyurethane.

It is intended that one of the major faces of the rectangle is applied to the forehead (or elsewhere) of the wearer. This tends to prevent any tendancy for the headband to roll down in use.

At one end of the strip, its width is thickened. Indeed it may even be doubled in thickness. This broadened end 2 permits the insertion of a slit 3 which is defined at each of its ends by a transverse hole 4.

The headband strip 1 is of sufficient length to extend at least around the circumference of the head of the usual wearer, and allow extra length for connection.

As stated above, the material from which the headband strip is made may be a foam plastics material. It may have a density of between l l-15kg/m ³ or may be as high as 22kg/m ³ . In the former case the hardness is likely to be in the region of 55-95 Newtons, while in the latter case the hardness may be in the region of 105-155 Newtons.

What is important is that the material is sufficiently resiliently deformable for the remote end 5 of the strip to pass into and through the slit 3 at the broadened end 2 of the strip. The material at the broadened end 2 can be so manipulated that the slit 3 is resiliently expanded to form an aperture of a size capable of receiving the remote end 5 which may be resiliently compressed. Once the headband is locked in place around the head of the wearer, it is found that the slit 3 will contract to hold the remote end 5 by virtue of the frictional forces generated between two surfaces of a material which, having a foamed construction, intrinsically has a high co-efficient of friction.

In use, it is intended that the headband is used during such hairdressing operation as perming, bleaching or dying and indeed any other such operations as may involve the application of liquids to the hair of the wearer. It may also be useful when washing the hair, particularly that of children. Of course, the term headband is not limited to bands

which go around the forehead of the wearer, but may include bands which encircle other parts of the wearer such as the neck, for example to protect the clothing of the wearer when the hair is being washed or otherwise treated.

The headband may find uses outside of hairdressing operations, for example as a sweatband during sporting events.

The strip could be so coloured as to identify its potential use. Since it consists of material which is washable and therefore it is reusable, such colouring would enable the hairdresser only to reuse those headbands that had been used for a previous operation of a similar type. Also, colouring would serve to identify headbands of a material density which particularly suited a certain operation.

The resilience and flexibility of the material will allow it to conform tightly around the head of the wearer. However it is sufficiently soft not to irritate the wearer. The foamed structure of the material of the headband makes it adsorbent. As with a sponge, excess liquid can be squeezed out at a convenient point in the operation. Also the method of connection of the ends enables essentially one size to fit all wearers, although a children's size could be provided for use with a smaller head. Alternatively any excess length after locking and which might interfere with hair treatment could be cut off.