Vanity case

Claim 1

A vanity case comprising: a receptacle member molded of plastic material and adapted to contain cosmetic material, said receptacle member having a front portion having a first latch tongue, a rear portion, and an upper surface; a cover member molded of plastic material and having a front portion having a second latch tongue, a rear portion, and a lower surface; and means for hingedly connecting said rear portion of said cover member to said rear portion of said receptacle member such that said cover member is pivotable over said receptacle member between a closed position whereat said lower surface is over said upper surface and said first and second latch tongues are in snap engagement, and an open position whereat said lower surface is spaced from said upper surface and said first and second latch tongues are out of engagement, said connecting means comprising: a recess formed in a substantially central area of one of said rear portion of said receptacle member and said rear portion of said cover member, said recess being partially defined by a pair of spaced side walls; a horizontal pin integrally provided at said central area and extending between said walls of said recess; a hinge block provided at a substantially central area of the other of said rear portion of said receptacle member and said rear portion of said cover member; a groove formed in said hinge block and extending vertically when said cover member is in said closed position, said groove having an upper groove half and a lower groove half, and said groove including a horizontally extending enlarged section between said upper groove half and said lower groove half, said enlarged section having a diameter slightly smaller than a diameter of said horizontal pin; said horizontal pin being forcedly inserted into said groove and snugly fitted in said enlarged section thereof when said hinge block is positioned within said recess, thereby hingedly connecting together said cover member and said receptacle member with a frictional resistance generated between said horizontal pin and said enlarged section, said frictional resistance being sufficient to maintain said cover member at any desired opening angle with respect to said receptacle member, and said frictional resistance being maintained semi-permanently by the elasticity provided by said upper and lower groove halves; and said upper and lower groove halves enabling elastic expansion of said hinge block while retaining said pin in said enlarged section, such that said cover member is capable of sufficient movement with respect to said receptacle member to avoid overly tight engagement between said first and second latch tongue due to dimensional inaccuracies therebetween.