Ornamental attachment for footwear

Abstract

The present invention relates to an ornamental attachment configured to be connected to a shoelace of a shoe, the ornamental attachment comprising a body and one or more brackets mounted to said body, the one or more brackets being configured such that in use a plurality of shoelace sections extend between eyelets of the shoe and the one or more brackets, wherein the one or more brackets are arranged such that in use the shoelace sections extend outwardly away from the body and outwardly away from one another. The present invention further relates to a combination of footwear and the ornamental attachment and to the use of an ornamental attachment for providing an ornament on a piece of footwear.

1 . An ornamental attachment configured to be connected to a shoe via a shoelace, the ornamental attachment comprising a body and one or more brackets mounted to said body, the one or more brackets being configured such that in use a plurality of shoelace sections extend between eyelets of the shoe and the one or more brackets, wherein the one or more brackets are arranged such that in use a plurality of shoelace sections extend outwardly away from the body and diverge from one another. 
     
     
         2 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets are arranged such that in use a plurality of shoelace sections form a widening pattern. 
     
     
         3 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets are configured and arranged to accommodate more than two shoelace sections. 
     
     
         4 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets are configured to support a plurality of shoelace sections extending between eyelets on a left side of the shoe and the one or more brackets, and to support a plurality of shoelace sections extending between eyelets on a right side of the shoe and the one or more brackets. 
     
     
         5 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets are arranged such that when the ornamental attachment is positioned between a left row of eyelets and a right row of eyelets of a shoe and laced to the shoe with a shoelace, shoelace sections are defined which extend between the eyelets and the one or more brackets, and wherein a distance between each shoelace section increases in a direction away from the body. 
     
     
         6 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets are arranged such that in use a plurality of the shoelace sections extend radially. 
     
     
         7 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets are constructed such that a shoelace can extend from one eyelet of the shoe to another eyelet of the shoe via the one or more brackets. 
     
     
         8 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets define one or more apertures through which the shoelace can extend. 
     
     
         9 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein at least one bracket is configured to accommodate multiple shoelace sections, such that multiple shoelace sections extend from the same bracket to different eyelets of the shoe. 
     
     
         10 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets extend substantially around an outer circumference of the body. 
     
     
         11 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the ornamental attachment comprises a front plate and a ring mounted to the front plate. 
     
     
         12 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets are provided behind the body, such that in use the one or more brackets are substantially concealed from a viewer. 
     
     
         13 . (canceled) 
     
     
         14 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets is/are provided as a ring or as a series of subsections of a ring, the ring or subsections of a ring being connected to the body via one bridging member or via a plurality of bridging members. 
     
     
         15 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the body comprises a face member which is substantially circular. 
     
     
         16 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the one or more brackets extend at a substantially uniform distance from an outer ridge of the body. 
     
     
         17 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , comprising a left bracket and a right bracket, the left bracket being configured to support a plurality of shoelace sections extending between eyelets on a left side of the shoe and the left bracket, the right bracket being configured to support a plurality of shoelace sections extending between eyelets on a right side of the shoe and the right bracket. 
     
     
         18 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the body has an ornamental form, chosen from a group comprising: a form of an animal, a form of a text, a form of a known object and a fantasy form. 
     
     
         19 . The ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 , wherein the body comprises a flat forward surface, wherein a text, an image, or another visual item is displayed on said surface. 
     
     
         20 . (canceled) 
     
     
         21 . (canceled) 
     
     
         22 . A combination of footwear and the ornamental attachment of  claim 1 , the ornamental attachment being provided on the footwear in such a way that the shoelace sections form a pattern of lines which extend outwardly away from one another, wherein the ornamental attachment is a center of said visual pattern. 
     
     
         23 . A combination of a shoelace and an ornamental attachment according to  claim 1 . 
     
     
         24 . (canceled)