Apparatus with removable holder for displaying pictures and other materials on a garment

Abstract

An apparatus and method are disclosed for the display on a T-shirt, tote bag, hat, or other garment of essentially flat, decorative and/or informational materials in a removable, transparent pouch. The pouch is attached to the garment by hook-and-loop, snaps, etc, and in preferred embodiments it is sized to accept one or more pictures or printed documents with standard sizes. In some embodiments, the pouch can contain a stack of items, so that the displayed item can be changed by reordering the stack. Other embodiments include a flap or other seal to retain items and/or protect them from water, and some embodiments hold the pouch perimeter close to the garment. Other embodiments allow dry erase marking on the pouch, and still others allow washing of the garment after pouch removal without harming or loosening the hook-and-loop etc. A plurality of pouches can be included that can be preloaded and exchanged.

1 . An apparatus for visible display on a garment of essentially flat display materials, the apparatus comprising:
 a garment;   a flexible display pouch able to contain the essentially flat materials, the flexible display pouch including an outward facing side and an inward facing side, the outward facing side including a transparent area through which contents of the flexible display pouch can be observed;   a first attachment mechanism fixed to the inward facing side of the flexible display pouch; and   a second attachment mechanism fixed to the garment and able to be aligned with and removably attached to the first attachment mechanism, thereby attaching the flexible display pouch to the garment.   
   
   
       2 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible display pouch is sized so as to conveniently accept display items with standard dimensions, the standard dimensions being at least one of 8.5 inches by 11 inches, 21 centimeters by 30 centimeters, 5 inches by 7 inches, 4 inches by 6 inches, 3 inches by 5 inches, and other standard dimensions applicable to documents, photographs and other display items. 
   
   
       3 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible display pouch includes a closable, openable seal that is able to prevent materials from falling out of the flexible display pouch. 
   
   
       4 . The apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the closable, openable seal is a flap that extends from an edge of the inward facing side of the flexible display pouch and is able to overlap a corresponding edge of the outward facing side of the flexible display pouch. 
   
   
       5 . The apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the closable, openable seal is a zip lock seal that seals an edge of the inward facing side of the flexible display pouch to a corresponding edge of the outward facing side of the flexible display pouch. 
   
   
       6 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible display pouch is able to protect contents inside the flexible display pouch from exposure to water. 
   
   
       7 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein one of the first attachment mechanism and the second attachment mechanism includes hook material and the other of the first attachment mechanism and the second attachment mechanism includes loop material, the hook material and the loop material being configured so as to allow the first attachment mechanism to attach to the second attachment mechanism at least partly by hook-and-loop attachment. 
   
   
       8 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein one of the first attachment mechanism and the second attachment mechanism include at least one of zippers, snaps, buttons, and other attachment mechanisms. 
   
   
       9 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the garment is a shirt. 
   
   
       10 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the garment is a T-shirt. 
   
   
       11 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the first attachment mechanism is fixed to the inward facing side of the flexible display pouch by at least one of sewing and gluing. 
   
   
       12 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the second attachment mechanism is fixed to the garment by at least one of sewing and gluing. 
   
   
       13 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the first attachment mechanism and the second attachment mechanism are configured so as to maintain the perimeter of the flexible display pouch in close proximity to the garment when the flexible display pouch is attached to the garment. 
   
   
       14 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the second attachment mechanism can be laundered together with the garment without damage to the second attachment mechanism and without degradation of the fixing of the second attachment mechanism to the garment. 
   
   
       15 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible display pouch is made from flexible plastic. 
   
   
       16 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible display pouch is able to contain a plurality of documents printed on photographic printing paper. 
   
   
       17 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the transparent area of the outward facing side of the flexible display pouch is compatible with marking by a dry erase marker and with erasure of marks made by a dry erase marker. 
   
   
       18 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein a plurality of flexible display pouches is included that can be pre-loaded with essentially flat materials, so that a change in the materials displayed can be made simply by removing one of the flexible display pouches from the garment and attaching another of the flexible display pouches to the garment. 
   
   
       19 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible display pouch is able to contain a plurality of essentially flat materials arranged essentially in a stack, such that only the item nearest to the outward facing side of the flexible display pouch is visible, and such that the item displayed can be changed by changing the order of items in the stack. 
   
   
       20 . A method for visible display on a garment of essentially flat display materials, the method comprising:
 providing a garment, a flexible display pouch able to contain the essentially flat materials, the flexible display pouch including an outward facing side and an inward facing side, the outward facing side including a transparent area through which contents of the flexible display pouch can be observed, a first attachment mechanism fixed to the inward facing side of the flexible display pouch, and a second attachment mechanism fixed to the garment and able to be aligned with and removably attached to the first attachment mechanism, thereby attaching the flexible display pouch to the garment;   aligning the first attachment mechanism with the second attachment mechanism;   attaching the first attachment mechanism to the second attachment mechanism, thereby attaching the flexible display pouch to the garment; and   placing the essentially flat materials into the flexible display pouch, this action being taken at least one of before completing the previous two actions and after completing the previous two actions.