Laundry retention device

Abstract

The invention is directed to a laundry retaining device comprising a strap and a bag. The strap is suitable for retaining larger articles of clothing that have openings to pass the strap through, such as shirts and shorts. The bag, preferably a mesh bag, retains smaller articles of clothing or articles that do not have openings to pass the strap through. The device allows for the washing and drying of a set or several sets of clothes at once without having to sort and recreate each set of laundered clothes.

1 . A laundry retention device comprising: 
 (a) a strap having opposing strap ends;    (b) a fastener for releasably connecting said opposing strap ends; and    (c) a bag having an opening and a closure to close said opening of the bag;    wherein said bag is attached to said strap.    
     
     
         2 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein said bag is a mesh bag.  
     
     
         3 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the closure comprises a cord and a releasable cordlock fastener.  
     
     
         4 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the closure comprises a conventional zipper.  
     
     
         5 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the closure comprises a plastic zipper.  
     
     
         6 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the closure comprises a drawstring.  
     
     
         7 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the closure comprises hook and loop strips.  
     
     
         8 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the fastener for releasably connecting the opposing strap ends comprises a male buckle connected to one strap end and a mating female buckle connected to the other strap end.  
     
     
         9 . The device of  claim 1 , wherein the fastener is a squeezable, side-release fastener.  
     
     
         10 . The device of  claim 1 , further comprising an identification tag.  
     
     
         11 . A laundry retention device comprising: 
 (a) a strap having opposing strap ends;    (b) a fastener for releasably connecting said opposing strap ends;    (c) a cord attached to one strap end; and    (d) a bag having an opening and a closure to close said opening of the bag;    wherein said bag is attached to said strap with said cord.    
     
     
         12 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein said bag is a mesh bag.  
     
     
         13 . The device of  claim 12 , wherein said cord extends from one end of said strap through the mesh of the mesh bag and wherein said closure comprises said cord and a releasable cordlock fastener.  
     
     
         14 . The device of  claim 11  wherein the opening includes a pair of opposing opening sides to the opening, said cord has a pair of opposing cord ends, and said bag further includes (i) an opening collar, (ii) a bottom, and (iii) a pair of edges, further wherein one cord end is attached at one strap end and the other cord end passes through the opening collar along one opening side beginning at the edge of the bag that is closest to said strap, the cord end then exits the opening collar on the edge of the bag farthest from said strap and extends outside the opening collar creating a cord tail, then the cord end passes back through the opening collar starting at the edge of the bag farthest from said strap and along the other opening side and then the cord end exits the opening collar and attaches to the same strap end forming a loop of cord, and wherein the closure comprises said cord and a releasable cordlock fastener with the cord tail threaded through the cordlock fastener.  
     
     
         15 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the closure comprises a conventional zipper.  
     
     
         16 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the closure comprises a plastic zipper.  
     
     
         17 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the closure comprises a drawstring.  
     
     
         18 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the closure comprises hook and loop strips.  
     
     
         19 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the fastener for releasably connecting the opposing strap ends comprises a male buckle connected to one end of the strap and a mating female buckle connected to the other end of the strap.  
     
     
         20 . The device of  claim 11 , wherein the fastener is a squeezable, side-release fastener.  
     
     
         21 . The device of  claim 11 , further comprising an identification tag.  
     
     
         22 . A laundry retention device comprising a strap having a opposing strap ends, a bag, and a cord, wherein said bag is attached to said strap using said cord, further wherein said device retains articles of clothing that do not have openings by placing them inside said bag.