An article of apparel having an improved collar and/or lapel structure is provided, as well as the method and patterns for making same. In making prior art garments a great deal of time has often been spent in raising all the seams around collar and lapel structures, and it has been necessary to employ plastic stays or the like to prevent collar and lapel tips from curling -- or if such stays are not practically utilizable in certain garments the lapel and collar tips have been subject to curling over extended usage. This is especially true of leather and suede leather coats and the like. Typical prior art structures are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 539,834, 1,177,688, 3,488,775, and 3,871,028, and in prior manufactured garments as will be described more fully hereinafter.
According to the present invention, an article of apparel is provided that is generally less expensive to manufacture than comparable prior art garments, requiring less time and labor to be spent in construction thereof, and eliminating the need for any accessory stays. According to the present invention, collar and lapel tips are prevented from curling and remain flat against the garment body portion by seams formed in the underside thereof, which seams do not show on the garment surface during normal usage thereof, however, effectively act to prevent curling. Such seams preferably are join seams, requiring a minimum amount of time and effort as compared to raised seams. Also, a lapel according to the present invention, being formed of a separate piece from the collar and body portion, may be join seamed to the body portion, providing a crease line for the lapel so that it lies flatter against the body portion of the garment.
According to a method of the present invention, a collar is formed from a pattern having a pair of angled side surfaces coming together at a point, the collar pattern is folded to form a double layer collar having a pair of tips each defined by a pair of edges, a base, an underside, and a top surface, and by forming a seam extending from each tip toward the base intermediate the edges defining the tip. The collar may then be attached to the body portion and lapel, with or without stands. Each lapel is formed from a pattern formed of a single sheet and having four adjacent angled side edges coming together in points, by folding the lapel pattern to form a double-layerd generally triangular portion having a top surface, underside, and a tip defined by two edges, and a single-layer terminal edge on the underside, and by forming a seam extending from the tip to the terminal edge intermediate the tip forming edges. The lapel is then attached to the article body portion with a join seam along the terminal edge and a terminal edge of the article body portion. A pair of yokes may be provided as the body portion sections having terminal edges thereon for connection to each lapel, and the collar, yoke, and lapel can be connected together, and the assembly thereof then connected to the rest of the garment.
Accordingly, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide an article of apparel having an improved collar and/or lapel construction, and improved methods and patterns for making of the apparel article. This and other objects of the invention will become clear from an inspection of the detailed description of the invention and from the appended claims.