Apparatus and method for retaining pleats in hanging draperies

Claim 1

Apparatus for maintaining a plurality of pleats formed in a hanging drapery hanging from a drapery rod or the like a predetermined distance apart, each of said pleats having a portion folded up from the bottom of said drapery having a hem comprising: an elongated resilient cord extending along substantially the bottom of said pleats generally normally to the longitudinal axis of said pleats and generally parallel to the drapery rod from which the drapery hangs; a plurality of fasteners coupled to both said cord and successive ones of said pleats at spaced locations along said cord, each of said fasteners including a generally circular pin receiving member having an aperture therethrough, an elongated first flexible member inter-connecting said pin receiving member to a generally circular first body member, said first body member having a shallow groove extending across the face thereof in a direction generally normal to the longitudinal axis of said first flexible member, at least one cord piercing element disposed in said groove, at least one protuberance receiving cavity also disposed in said first body member, an elongated second flexible member interconnecting said first body member to a second generally circular body member, said second elongated flexible member having its longitudinal axis coincident with the longitudinal axis of said first flexible member and being substantially shorter in length than said first flexible member, said second body member also having a shallow groove extending across the face thereof in a direction generally normal to the longitudinal axes of said first and second elongated flexible members, said last mentioned shallow groove also having at least one cord piercing element therein, and said second body member having at least one protuberance of a configuration generally the same as said protuberance receiving cavity and receivable therein when the face of said first and second body members are brought together by folding of said second flexible memeber, the depth of said cavity being generally related to the thickness of said protuberance and adapted to releasably snap together so that, when brought together by folding, said first and second body members form a cord holding body with said faces abutting against each other and said grooves aligning with each other, an elongated substantially rigid member extending from said second body member having its longitudinal axis essentially coincident with the longitudinal axes of said first and second elongated flexible members, said rigid member terminating in a generally rigid sharp point having a generally triangular cross-section with the apex thereof extending away from said rigid member and the base thereof being adjacent said rigid member having a width greater than the width of said rigid member thereby forming a shoulder, each of said first flexible members being folded over the top of each hem of said successive pleat so that each of said pin receiving members is disposed between the inside of the fold of said pleat and said drapery, each said fastener being folded about said second flexible member with said faces abutting against each other and said protuberance entering said cavity, said elongated resilient cord being disposed in said aligned grooves with said elements piercing said cord, the overall diameter of said aligned grooves being generally the same as the diameter of said cord, said sharp point piercing the fold hem of each of said pleats from the outside of said fold to the inside thereof and passing through said apertures in each of said pin receiving members, said shoulder abutting against the furthest side of said pin receiving member to retain said sharp point through said aperture yet permitting said sharp point to be removed from said aperture by pushing it in a reversed direction out of said aperture, the resilience of said pin receiving member permitting the same so that each of said fasteners are removably secured to successive pleats and each of said fasteners can be relocated along said cord to change the depth of said pleats.