Sleeves formed of polymeric materials having a texture or appearance simulating the texture or appea

专利摘要:
A substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article, such as a flower pot cover, is disclosed wherein the article has a paper-like appearance. The article can be made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material or a laminated material wherein at least one surface of the material is modified to provide the material with a paper-like texture or appearance. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article, which has an appearance of being made of paper, includes a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper and of the base. The base of the article has a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the article.
公开号:CA2300032A1
申请号:C2300032
申请日:2000-03-06
公开日:2000-09-04
发明作者:Donald E. Weder
申请人:Donald E. Weder；Southpac Trust International, Inc. Not Individually, But As Trustee Of T；
IPC主号:A47G7-08

专利说明:
PREFORMED POT COVER HAVING A PAPER-LIKE APPEARANCB SPECIFICATION FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to polymeric materials having a paper-like appearan~~e, and more particularly but not by way of limitation, to flower pot covers, floral wrappings, ribbon 5 materials and decorative grasses made from such polymeric materials. In one aspect, the present invention relates to methods for producing flower pot covers and methods of wrapping floral groupings and flower pots with a sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance to provide a decorative cover for such 10 floral groupings and flower pots. In yet another aspect, the present invention relates to methods of producing ribbon materials and decorative gra:~ses hawing a paper-like appearance or texture. BR:fEF DE.S~CRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance constructed in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance of Fig. 1 having a bonding material disposed along one edge thereof. Fig. 3 is a perspc>_ctive view of the sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance of Fig. 2 having a floral grouping disposed t:hereon.. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the floral grouping of Fig. 3 being wrapped with the sheet of material having a paper-like appearance of Fig. 2 by one method of wrapping. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a decorative cover for the floral grouping formed from the sheet of polymeric material of Fig.
2 wherein the decorative cover formed from the sheet of material has a conical configuration. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a decorative cover formed from a sheet of polymeric material of Fig. 2 wherein a floral grouping is wrapped with the sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance by a second method of wrapping so that the decorative cover formed from the sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance has a sub;~tantially cylindrical configuration.' Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a decorative cover positioned about a flower pot wherein the decorative cover is formed from a sheet of the polymeric material having a paper-like appearance of Fig. 1. Fig. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a flower pot cover former and band applicator apparatus wherein a sheet of the polymeric material having a paper-like appearance of Fig. 1 is disposed above an opening of the flower pot cover former and band applicator and wherein a flower pot is disposed above the sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance. Fig. 9A is a perspective view of a sheet of expanded core polymeric film having a paper-like appearance wherein an acrylic heat sealable lacqu~=_r is disposed on at least one surface thereof. Fig. 9B is a perspective view of a laminated sheet of material wherein one surface is modified or textured to provide the sheet of laminated material with a paper-like appearance. Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a preformed pot cover formed from a sheet of the polymeric material having a paper-like appearance similar to the polymeric material of Fig. 1, a sheet of the expanded core polymeric film of Fig. 9A, or a laminated sheet of material of Fig. 9B. Fig. 11 is a perspective view of the preformed pot cover of Fig. 10 having a flower pot disposed therein.
Fig. 12 is a diagrammatic, cross-sectional view of a male and female mold having a sheets of material disposed therebetween for forming the preforTned pot cover of Fig. 10. Fig. 13 is a perspective view of a floral sleeve formed from a sheet of the pol;rmeric material having a paper-like appearance. Fig. 14 is a perspec tive view of the floral sleeve of Fig. 13 disposed about a floral grouping. Fig. 15 is a perspective view of a floral sleeve having a cinching member wherein the floral sleeve is formed from a sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance. Fig. 16 is a p~erspec~tive view of the floral sleeve of Fig. 15 disposed about a floral grouping. Fig. 17 is a side view of a sleeve having a detachable portion wherein the sleeve is formed from a sheet of polymeric material having a paper-like appearance. Fig. 18 is a perspecltive view of the sleeve of Fig. 17 having a flower pot disposed therein. Fig. 19 is a perspective view of a flower pot disposed in the sleeve of Fig_ 17 vrherein an upper portion of the sleeve has been removed to provide a decorative cover having a skirt. Fig. 20A is a perspective view of a polymeric ribbon material having a paper-like appearance. Fig. 20B is a perspective view of a polymeric ribbon material having a paper-like appearance formed of an expanded core polymeric film.
Fig. 20C is a perspective view of a laminated polymeric ribbon wherein at least or.~e surface of the laminated polymeric ribbon is modified or textured to provide the laminated polymeric ribbon with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper. Fig. 21 is a schematic representation of a system for making decorative grass having a paper-like appearance or texture in accordance with the present invention. Fig. 22A is a perspective view of a segment of decorative grass having a paper-like appearance produced from the polymeric material having a paper-hike appearance. Fig. 22B is a perspective view of a segment of decorative grass having a paper-like appearance produced from a laminated polymeric material having a paper-like appearance. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Description of Figures 1-9 Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2, designated generally by the reference numeral 10 is a aheet or web of polymeric material having a paper-like finish or appearance (hereinafter referred to as sheet of polymeric material 10 or the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance). That is, at least one surface of the sheet of polymeric material 10 has been modified to provide a matte or textured finish assimilating the texture and appearance of paper. The modification of the sheet of polymeric material 10 to provide the sheet of polymeric material with a matte or textured finish assimilating paper ~~an be accomplished in several ways. For example, a matte finish can be provided by printing a desired pattern on the :sheet of polymeric material and thereafter laminating a matte material, such as a translucent polymeric film over the printed pattern. To further enhance the paper-like appearance of the sheet of polymeric material 10, the matte material may or may not have a plurality of spatially disposed holes extending therethrough. A matte or textured finish can also be produced by prim=ing a sheet of polymeric material with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface of the sheet of polymeric material with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer, by embossing the sheet of polymeric material to provide an embossed pattern simulating the appearance or texture of paper, or by embossing and printing the sheet of polymeric material to provide embossed a:nd printed patterns wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be in registry, out of registry or wherein a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte or textured finish capable of providing the sheet of polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be achieved by extruding a polymeric resin onto a matted or textured chill roll or by laminating a second sheet of material to the sheet of polymeric material. The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance has an upper ;surface 14, a lower surface 16, and an outer peripheral edge 18. At least one surface of the sheet of polymeric material 10, such as the lower surface 16, is matted or textured as described above to provide the sheet of polymeric material with a paper-like appearance. The outer peripheral edge 18 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 comprises a first side 20, a second side 22, a third side 24, and a fourth side 26. A bonding material 27 (Fig. c:) may be disposed on at least a portion of one or both surfaces of the ;sheet of material 10, such as the upper surface 14 thereof as shown and as further illustrated in U.S. Patent No. 5,181,364, t:he specification of which is hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference. The sheet of polymieric material 10 having a paper-like appearance may be employed to provide a decorative cover for a floral grouping (Figs. 3 and 6) or a decorative cover for a flower pot (Fig. 7); or to form a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flower pot (Figs. 10 and ll); or to provide a sleeve for wrapping or covering a floral grouping (Figs. 14 and 16) or a flower pot (Figs. 18 and 19); or to provide a ribbon material having a paper-like appearance (Fig. 20A); or to produce decorative grass (Figs.21 and 22A). The use of the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance t:o form a decorative cover for a floral grouping or a flower pot, or to form a sleeve for a floral grouping or a flower pot, or to foam a preformed flower pot cover, or as a ribbon material or to produce decorative grasses will be described in more complete detail h~=_rein. As noted above:, the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance can be utilized to form a decorative cover for a floral grouping or a flower pot. The term "flower pot" as used herein. refers to any type of container for holding a floral grouping, or a plant., or even another pot-type container. Examples of flower pots and/or pot-type containers include, but are not limited to, clay pats, wooden pots, plastic pots, pots made from natural and/or synthetic fibers, or any combination thereof. Such flower pots and or pot-type containers are provided with a retaining space for receiving a floral grouping. The floral grouping may be disposed within the retaining space of the flower pot with a suitable growing medium described in further detail below, or other retaining medium, such as a floral foam. It will also be understood 'that in some cases the floral grouping, and any appropriate growing medium or other retaining medium, may be disposed in a sleeve formed from the sheet of material 10 if the sleeve is adapted to cont<~in a medium."Floral grouping" a:> used herein means cut fresh flowers, artificial flowers, a :single flower or other fresh and/or artificial plants or other floral materials and may include other secondary plants a:nd/or ornamentation or artificial or natural materials which adld to the aesthetics of the overall floral grouping. Further,. the floral grouping may comprise a growing potted plant having a root portion as well. However, it will be appreciated that this floral grouping may consist of only a single bloom or only foliage, or a botanical item (not shown), or a propagule. The term "floral grouping" may be used interchangeably herein with the term "floral arrangement". The term "floral grouping" may also be use>_d interchangeably herein with the terms "botanical item" and/or "propagule." The term "growing medium" when used herein means any liquid, solid or gaseous material used for plant growth or for the cultivation of propagu=Les, including organic and inorganic materials such as :>oil, hmmus, perlite, vermiculite, sand, water, and including tree nutrients, fertilizers or hormones or combinations thereof required by the plants or propagules for growth. The term "botanical item" when used herein means a natural or artificial herbaceous oz- woody plant, taken singularly or in combination. The germ "botanical item" also means any portion or portions of natural or artificial herbaceous or woody plants including stems, leaves, flowers, blossoms, buds, blooms, cones, or roots, taken singularly or in combination, or in groupings of such portions such as bouquets. or floral groupings. The term "propagule" when used herein means any structure capable of being propagated or acting as an agent of reproduction including seeds, shoots, stems, runners, tubers, plants, leaves, roots or spores. In the embodiments shown in the drawings, the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance is square. It will be appreciated., however, that the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance can be of any shape, configuration or size as 7_ong as the sheet of polymeric material 10 is sufficiently sized and shaped to wrap and encompass a floral grouping or a flower pot. For example, the sheet of polymeric material 10 may have a rectangular, round, oval, octagonal or asymmetrical shape. Further, multiple sheets of the polymeric material 10 may be used in a single circumstance to provide a decorative cover or sleeve for a floral grouping or a flower pot.Moreover, when multiple sheets of the polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance .are used in combination, the sheets of polymeric material 10 need not be uniform in size or shape. Finally, it will be appreciated that the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance shown herein is a substantially flat sheet. except for the texturing, matting, embossing, flocking, application of a foamable lacquer or foamable ink, or other treatments and techniques employed to provide the sheet of polymeric material 10 with the desired texture or matting so that the sheet of polymeric material 10 has the appearance of paper. Any thickness or stiffness of the sheet of polymeric material 10 may be utilized i.n acco:rdance with the present invention as long as the sheet of material 1D can be modified to provide the sheet of polymeric material with a paper-like appearance and the sheet of material 10 having <~ paper-like appearance can be wrapped about at least a portion,of a floral grouping or a flower pot or to form a preformed flower pot cover, or to form a sleeve, or to provide ribbon material, or to produce decorative grasses, as described herein. Generally, the sheet of polymeric material 10 will have a thickness of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mils, and more desirably a thicknf~ss of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils. The terms "polymer film", "polymeric film" and "polymeric material" when used herein means a synthetic polymer such as a polypropylene, a naturally occurring polymer such as cellophane, an extruded polymeric material having an expanded core such as extruded polypropylene h<~ving an expanded core and combinations thereof. The extruded polymeric material having an expanded core may also be referred to herein as an expanded core polymeric material."Extruded polymeric material having an expanded core" or "expanded core polymeric :Film" as used herein means any extrudable polymeric material or pol~~rmeric film in which the core is expanded during extrusion, such as. by incorporation of a blowing agent in the polymeric resin which is being extruded. The sheet of material 10 may also be constructed, in whole or in part, from a cling mate>rial. "Cling material" when used herein means any material which is capable of connecting to the sheet of material and/or itself upon contacting engagement during the wrapping process and is wrappable about an item whereby portions of the cling material contactingly engage and connect to other portions of another material, or, alternatively, itself, for generally securing the material wrapped about at least a portion of a flower pot. This connecting engagement is preferably temporary in that the material may be easily removed, i.e., the cling material "clings" to the :Flower pot.
The cling material i.s constructed and treated if necessary, from polyethylene :>uch as. Cling Wrap made by Glad°, First Brands Corporation, Danbury, Connecticut. The thickness of the cling material will, in p;~rt, depend upon the size of sleeve and the size of the flower pot in the sleeve, i.e., generally, a larger flower pot may require a thicker and therefore stronger cling material. The cling material will range in thickness from about 0.1 mils to about 10 mils, and more desirably from about 0.5 mils to about 2.5 mils. However, any thickness of cling material may be utilized in accordance with the pre::ent invention which permits the cling material to be modified a~.s hereinbefore described to provide the cling material with a paper-like appearance. A decorative cover for a floral grouping (Figs. 3 and 6), or a decorative cover i_or a flower pot (Fig. 7) , or a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flower pot (Figs_ 10 and 11), or a sleeve for wrapping or covering .a floral grouping (Figs_ 14 and 16) or a flower pot (Figs. 1.B and 1.9), or a ribbon material having a paper-like appearance (Fig_ 20A), or decorative grass (Figs. 21 and 22A) may also be constricted of a laminated material (Fig. 9B). The laminated material having a paper-like appearance can be produced by laminating two o:r more sheets of polymeric film (such as two or more sheets of polypropylene film or a sheet of polypropylene film and a sheet of expanded core polymeric film, such as expanded core polypropylene film) , or k>y laminating a polymeric film (such as polypropylene film or <~n expanded core polymeric film) to metallized foil and the like wherein at least one surface of the laminated material is textured or modified to assimilate the appearance or texture of paper. The only requirements in using a laminated material. having a paper-like appearance to form a decorative cover for a floral grouping, or a decorative cover for a flower pot, or a prefortr~ed flower pot cover for covering a flower pot, or a sleeve for wrapping or covering a floral grouping or a flower pot, or as ribbon material or decorative grass in accordance with the present invention is that at least one surface of the laminated material be capable of being modified to provide the laminated material with apt least one surface having a ~aper-like appearance and that the laminated material be sufficiently flexible or pliable to permit the laminated material to be formed into a decorative cover for a floral grouping, or a decorative cover for a flower pot, or a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flower pot, or a sleeve for wrapping or covering a floral grouping or a flower pot, or to he used as ribbon material or decorative grass. It should also be noted that two or more separate sheets of material can be used to form a decorative cover for a floral grouping, or a decorative cover for a flower pot, or a preformed flower pot cover for covering a flower pot, or a sleeve for wrapping or covering a floral grouping or a flower pot as long as one of the sheets of material is modified or textured to provide same with a paper-like appearance. The sheet of polymeric material 10 or a laminated material (Fig. 9B) having a paper-like appearance may vary in color. Further, the sheet of polyn~neric material 10 or a laminated material may be provided v~rith other decorative patterns or designs in addition to the mattingr, texturing, flocking, application of foamable lacquers or foamable inks, or embossing employed to impart the paper-like appearance to the sheet of polymeric material 10 or the laminated material. As illustrated in Fig. 3, the sheet of polymeric material 10 has a width 30 extending generally between the first side 20 and the second side 22, respectively, sufficiently sized whereby the sheet of polymeric material 10 can be wrapped about and encompass a floral grouping or a flower pot. The sheet of polymeric material 10 has a length 32 extending generally between the third side 24 and the fourth side 26, respectively, sufficiently sized whereby the sheet of polymeric material 10 extends over a substantial portion of the flor;~l grouping when the sheet of polymeric material 10 has been wrapped about. the floral grouping in accordance with the present invention, as described in detail herein. The sheet of polymeric material 10 may also be wrapped about a flower pot to substantially wrap and cover the flower pot in accordance with the present invention. A plurality of sheets. of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance ma~,~ be connected together to form a roll as is shown in U.S. Patent No. 5,459,976, issued October 24, 1995, entitled "MATERIAL AND ADHESIVE STRIP DISPENSER", the specification of which is hereby expressly incorporated in its entirety herein by reference.
Figs. 3-5 illustrate the use of the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance in wrapping a floral grouping 34 to provide a. decorative cover 36 (Fig. 5) for the floral grouping 39:_ Th.e sheet of polymeric material 10 may optionally have a strip of bonding material disposed upon the upper surface 14, the lower surface 16 or both, such as the strip of bonding material 27 dispo:aed along at least a portion of the upper surface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 so as to be disposed substantially ;adjacent the fourth side 26 thereof substantially as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Further, the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance can be provided either as an individual sheet or from a pad or roll of material. The bonding material 27, if present, may have a backing or release strip (not shown). The backing or release strip may be left applied for a period of time to the bonding material 27 after it is disposed on a surface of the sheet of polymeric material 10 prior to its use as a wrapping material to protect the bonding qualities of the bonding :strip. In operation, .an operator may dispose the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance on a support surface (not shown); the .Lower surface 16 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 (which has been modified to provide the sheet of polymeric material 10 with a paper-like appearance), contacting the support surface. Referring more specii:ically to Figs. 3-5, the floral grouping 34 is placed upon the upper surface 14 of the sheet of material 10 in a diagonal orientation. The floral grouping 34 has an upper bloom or foliage portion 42 and a lower stem portion 44. The sheet of polymeric material 10 is then wrapped about the floral grouping 34 by the operator (Figs. 4 and 5), the operator overlapping a portion of the sheet of polymeric material 10 over another portion of the sheet of polymeric material 10. That is, for example, the op.=_rator places the first side 20 of the sheet of LO polymeric material :LO over the floral grouping 34, as shown in Fig.4. The operator continues to roll the floral grouping 34 and the sheet of polymeric material 10 in the direction toward the second side 22 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 until the upper surface 14 near second side 22 firmly engages the lower surface 16 L5 of the sheet of polymeric material 10, wherein the floral grouping 34 is substantially encompassed by the sheet of polymeric material 10, and wherein the bonding material 27 contacts the sheet of polymeric material :LO to provide the decorative cover 36 having a paper-like appearance which substantially encompasses and surrounds ZO a substantial portion of the floral grouping 34. Fig. 5 shows the floral grouping 34 wrapped in a conical fashion to provide t:he decorative cover 36 for the floral grQUping 34 which has the appearance of being made of paper. When the floral grouping 34 .is wrapped in a conical fashion, the bloom end Z5 42 of the floral grouping :34 is exposed near the open upper end of the decorative cover 36 and the stem end 44 exposed near the lower end of the decorative cover 36. In another embodiment, illustrated in Fig. 6, the sheet of polymeric material :10 having a paper-.like appearance is utilized to wrap the floral grouping :34 in a cylindrical fashion. The floral grouping 34 is disposed upon the sheet of polymeric material 10 approximately parallel to side 24 of the sheet of polymeric material 10. The sheet of polymeric material 10 is wrapped generally about the stem portion 44 of the floral grouping 34 to a position wherein the third side 24 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 generally overlaps the fourth side 26 of the sheet of polymeric material :LO in a cylindrical fashion. It should be noted that the sheet of polymeric material 10 may be wrapped a plurality of times about the saem portion 44 of the floral grouping 34 before the overlapping of the third side 24 and the fourth side 26 of the sheet of material 10. A,s before, the portion of the sheet of material 10 near the third side 26 is disposed generally adjacent another portion of the sheet of material 10 and the two adjacent portions then are brought into contact where they may be bondingly engaged, thereby securing the sheet of polymeric material 10 generally about the floral grouping 34 so as to provide a decorative cover 36a for the floral grouping 34 which has the appearance of being fabricated of paper. In another version o:E the invention, the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance may be used to wrap a flower pot or pot-type container, as noted above. Shown in Fig.7 is a flower pot designated by the reference numeral 50 having an open upper end 52, a bottom end 54, an outer peripheral surface 56, and an inner retaining space 58 within . which may be disposed a growing medium. Tlhe flower pot 50 may contain a botanical item, such as a plant 60, which has an upper portion 62 comprising blooms or foliage or both, The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance may be wrapped about the flower pot 50 by any one of numerous methods used to wrap sheets of material about flower pots to form decorative spot covers for flower pots, such as a decorative cover 61 having a paper-like appearance disposed about the flower pot 50 illustrated in Fig_ 7. The sheet of polymeric material 10 may, for example, be formed by hand about the outer peripheral surface 56 of the flower pot 50 to produce the decorative cover 61 which has the appearance of being fabricated of paper. The decorative cover 61 can then be secured about the flower pot 50 by a bonding material or by an elastic band 64 such that the open upper end 52 of the flower pot 50 remains substantially uncovered by the decorative cover 61 substantially as shown in Fig. 7. Referring now to Fig'. 8, a flower pot cover former and band applicator apparatus 66 for forming the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance into the decorative cover 61 for the flower pot 50 of Fig. 7 is illustrated. The flower pot cover former and band appl'_icator device 66 comprises a band applicator 68 and a flower pot cover former 70. The flower pot cover former and band applicator device 66 has a support platform 72 with an opening 74 formed therein. A band, such as elastic band 64, is disposed circumferentially about the opening 74 in the support platform 72. The lower surface 16 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 (which has been modified to provide the sheet of polymeric material 10 with a textured or matted surface assimilating paper in appearance) is positioned on an upper surface 76 on the support platform 72 such that t:he sheet of polymeric material 10 is positioned over the opening 74 in the support platform 72. The flower pot 50 is positioned above the sheet of polymeric mater~,al 10 and is moved in ;~ direction 78 into the opening 74 of the flower pot cover former and band applicator device 66. As the flower pot 50 is moved into th<: opening 74, the sheet of polymeric material 10 is pressed about the outer peripheral surface 56 of the flower pot 50 thereby forming the decorative cover 61 about the flower pot 50. The decorative cover 61 (which has a paper-like appearance) is then secured about the flower pot 50 by the elastic band 64. The flower pot 50 having the decorative cover 61 is then moved in a direction 80 out of the opening 74 in the support platform 72. The elastic band 64 can be applied manually or automatically such as by the method shown in U.S. Patent No. 5,105,599 which is hereby incorporated. herein by reference. The band 64 can also be applied as a tie. One method for using a tie is described in "Single Station Covering and Fastening System", U.S. Patent No.5,609,009, the specification of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. The sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance can also be applied automatically about the pot 60, for example, by methods shown in U.S. Patent Nos. 4,733,521 and 5,291,721, both of which are hereby incorporated herein by reference. Instead of securing the decorative cover 61 about the flower pot 50 via the band 64, the decorative cover 61 formed from the sheet of polymeric material l0 having a paper-like appearance may be secured to the flower pot 50 by the use of one or more bonding materials. For axample, the upper surface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 may have a bonding material such as bonding material 27 disposed upon a portion thereof. When the sheet of polymeric material 10 is dLisposed about the flower pot 50, at least a portion of the upper surface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 contacts the outer peripheral surface 56 of the flower pot 50 and is thereby bonded and held about the flower pot 50 via the bonding material. The bonding material may cover a portion of the upper surface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material 10 or the bonding material may entirely cover the upper surface 14 of the sheet of polymeric material 10. The :bonding material may be disposed on the upper surface 14 of the sheet o:E polymeric material 10 in the form of a strip or in the form of: spaced-apart spots. One method for disposing a bonding material on the sheet of polymeric material 10 is described in U.3. Patent No. 5,111,637, entitled "Method For Wrapping A Floral C3rouping", issued to Weder, et al. on May 12, 1992, which is expressly incorporated herein by reference. The term "bonding material" when used herein can mean an adhesive, frequent7.y a pressure sensitive adhesive, or a cohesive or any adhesive/cohesive combination, having adhesive qualities (i.e., qualities of adhesion or adhesion/cohesion, respectively) sufficient to causs~ the attachment of a portion of the sheet of polymeric material 10 to itself, to a floral grouping, or to a flower pot. Since the bonding material may be either an adhesive, or a cohesive, or an adhesive/cohesive combination, it will be appreciated that both adhesives and cohesives are known in the art, and both are commercially available. When the bonding material is a cohesive, a similar cohesive material must be placed on the adjacent surface for bondingly contacting and bondingly engaging with the cohesive maaerial. The term "bonding material" also includes materials which <~re heat sealable and, in this instance, the adjacent portions of the material must be brought into contact and then heat must. be applied to effect the seal. The term "bonding material" also includes materials which are sonically sealable and vibratory sealable. The term "bonding material" when used herein also me~~ns a heat sealing lacquer or hot melt material which may be applied to the material and, in this instance, heat, sound waves, or vibrations, also must be applied to effect the sealing. The term "bonding material" when used herein also means any type of material or thing which can be used to effect the bonding or connecting of the two adjacent portions of the sheet of polymeric material 7.0 to effect the connection or bonding described herein. The term "bonding material~ may also include ties, labels, bands, ribbons, strings, tapes (including single or double-sided adhesive tapes), staples or combinations thereof. Some of the bonding materials would secure the ends of the material while other bonding material may bind the circumference of a wrapper, or a sleeve, or, alternatively and/or in addition, the bonding materials would secure overlapping folds in the material and/or sleeve. Another way to secure the: wrapping and/or sleeve is to heat seal the ends of the material to another portion of the material. One way to do this is i.o cont:act the ends with an iron of sufficient heat to heat seal the material. Alternatively, a cold seal adhesive may be utilized as the bonding material. '.Che cold seal adhesive adheres only to a similar substrate, acting similarly as a cohesive, and binds only to itself. The cold seal adhesive, since it bonds only to a similar substrate, does not cause a residue to build up on equipment, thereby both permitt=ing much more rapid disposition and use of such equipment to form articles and reducing labor costs. Further, since no heat is rec;uired to effect the seal, the dwell time, that is, the time for they sheet of material to form and retain the shape of an article, such as a flower pot cover or flower pot, is reduced. A cold ,seal adhesive binds quickly and easily with minimal pressure, acid such. a seal is not readily releasable. This characteristic is different from, for example, a pressure sensitive adhesive. The term "bonding material" when used herein also means any heat or chemically shrinkable material, and static electrical or other electrical means, chemical welding means, magnetic means, mechanical or barb-type fastening means or clamps, curl-type characteristics of the fi:Lm or materials incorporated in material which can cause tree material to take on certain shapes, cling films, slots, grooves, shrinkable materials and bands, curl materials, springs, and any type of welding method which may weld portions of the material to itself or to the pot, or to both the material itself and the pot. Description of Figs. 9-12 Referring now to Figs. 10 and 11, a decorative preformed flower pot cover 1:LO is illustrated constructed from a sheet of flexible material 112 having a paper-like appearance (Fig. 9A) or a flexible laminated sheet of material 112a having a paper-like appearance (Fig. 9E3). In the embodiment shown in Fig. 9A, the sheet of flexible material 112 used in the construction of the preformed flower pot cover 110 comprises a sheet of expanded core polymeric material 7.14 having an upper surface 116, a lower surface 118 and a thicknes:~ in the range of from about 0.5 to about 10 mils, more desirably in the range of from about 0.6 to about 1.25 mils, and a coating of an acrylic heat sealable lacquer 120 disposed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces 116 and 118, respectively, of the expanded core polymeric film 114. It should be understood, however, that the sheet of flexible material 112 is not limited to being the expanded core polymeric film 114 having a paper-like appearance; rather, the sheet of flexible material 112 can be' any flexible polymeric material (such as the sheet of polymeric nnaterial 10 herein before described) or flexible laminated material (such as will be described herein after with reference to Fig. 9B) which can be modified or textured so that at least one surface of such polymeric material or laminated material is provided with a paper-:Like appearance and/or texture. As previously stated, the modification of the expanded core polymeric film 114 to provide the sheet of flexible material with the desired paper-like matte or textured finish can be accomplished by printing a desired pattern on the sheet of expanded core polymeric material Bind thereafter laminating a matte material, such as a translucent polymeric film over the printed pattern. To further enhance the paper--like appearance, the matte material may or may not have a pluralii~y of spatially disposed holes extending therethrough. A matte or textured finish can also be produced by printing a sheet of expanded core polymeric material with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface of the sheet of expanded core polymeric material with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer, by embossing the sheet of expanded core polymeric material to provide an embossed pattern assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, or by embossing and printing the sheet of expanded core' polymeric material to provide embossed and printed pattern: wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be in registry, out of :registry, or wherein a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte or textured finish capable a providing the sheet of flexible polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be achieved by extruding a polymer=ic resin onto a matted or textured chill roll to produce the expande=d core' polymeric material or by laminating a second sheet of mat=erial to the sheet of expanded core polymeric material. When the sheet. of flexible material 112 is formed into the preformed flower pot cover 110, a plurality of overlapping folds 122 are formed and at leaea a portion of the overlapping folds 122 are connected to adjacently disposed portions of the preformed flower pot cover 110. As shown in Figs. 10 and 11, the decorative preformed pot cover 122 has an upper end 125, a lower end 126, and an outer peripheral surface 128. An opening 130 intersects the upper end 125, forming an inner peripheral surface 132 which defines and encompasses a retaining space within which a flower pot 134 containing a floral group=ing 136 may be disposed in a manner well known in the art. In another embodiment:, a sheet of flexible laminated material 112a (Fig. 9B) is used in the construction of the preformed flower pot cover 110. The sheet of flexible laminated material 112a comprises a first sheet of material 114a having an upper surface 116a, a lower surfac=e 118a and a second sheet of material 120a. At least one surface of: the first sheet of material 114a or the second sheet of material l2;Oa is modified to provide the sheet of flexible laminated material 112a with the desired paper-like appearance. The sheet of flexible laminated material 112a having a paper-like appearance can be produced by laminating two or more sheets of polymeric film (such as two or more sheets of polypropylene film or a sheet of polypropylene film and a sheet of expanded core polymeric film, such as Expanded core polypropylene film), or by laminating a polymeric film (such as polypropylene film or an expanded core polymeric film) with a sheet of metallized foil and the like wherein at least one surface of the laminated material is textured or modified to .assimilate the appearance of paper_ In addition to texturing or modifying at least one surface of the laminated material to pro~ride same with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper, at least one of the sheets of polymeric film or the sheet of metaT.lized foil film may contain embossed and printed patterns, designs or materials; and the embossed and printed patterns, designs or materials may be in register with one another, out of register with one another, or a portion of the embossed and printed patterns may be in register with one another and a portion of tile embossed and printed patterns may be out of register with one another. The first sheet of material 114a desirably has a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mils, and more desirably from about 0.6 mil to about 1..25 mils, and the second sheet of material 120 desirably has a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mils, and more desirably from ;about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils. The second sheet or material 120 is desirably laminated to the first sheet of material 114a with a colored adhesive so as to impart a desired color to the laminated sheet of flexible material 112a. While the thickness of the sheet of flexible material 112a can vary widely and will generally depend on the thickness of the first sheet of material 114a and the thickness of the second sheet of material 120, desirable results can be obtained where the laminated sheet of flexible material 112a has a thickness in the range of from about 1 mil to about. 20 mils, and more desirably from about 1.2 mils to about 2.5 mils. As previously stated, the preformed flower pot cover 110 may be constructed from the sheet of material 10 (Fig. l), or the sheet of the flexible mai:erial 112 (Fig. 9A) , or the sheet of flexible laminated material 112a (1 ig. 9B)_ The preformed flower pot cover 110 so formed will have a plurality of overlapping folds formed therein, at least a. portion thereof being connected. If desired, the pre formed flower pot cover 110 can be formed of a plurality of sheets of the same and/or different types of material. The method and apparatus employed to form the preformed flower pot cover is substantially identical whether one uses one or more sheets of the polymeric material 10 (Fid. 1), one or more sheets of the flexible material 112 (Fig. 9A), or one or more sheets of the flexible laminated material 112a (:Fig. 9B) or a combination of such sheets of material. Thus, only the formation of the preformed flower pot cover 110 using a sheet of the flexible material 112 of Fig. 9 will be described in detail hereinafter The decorative: preformed flower pot cover 122 may be formed using a conventional mold system 140 comprising a male mold 142 and a female mold 144 having a mold cavity 146 for matingly receiving the male mold 142 (Fig. 12). The sheet of flexible material 112 is positioned between the male and female molds 142 and 144, respectively. Movement of the male mold 142 in the direction 148 and into the mold cavity 146 forces the sheet of flexible material 112 to be disposed ~~bout the portion of the male mold 142 disposed in the mold cavity 1.46 of i:he female mold 146 and thereby forms the LO sheet of material 112 into the preformed decorative flower pot cover 110 (Figs. 10 and 1.1). Further, in accordance with the present invention, the pre~formed flower pot cover 110 constructed from the materials described herein above, may have a bonding material disposed upon a portion thereof. Methods for forming pouch preformed decorative pot covers are well known in the .art. 'Two methods of forming such covers are described in U.S_ Patent Nos. 4,773,182 and 5,291,721, each of which is expressly :incorporated herein by reference. Description of Figs. 13-19 Shown in Fig. L3 is a. decorative cover designated therein by the general reference numeral 160 which comprises a f lexible bag or sleeve 162 of unitary construction having a paper-like appearance in accordance with the present invention. The sleeve 162 may be used as a decorativc> cover for a floral grouping or a flower pot. The sleeve 162 initially comprises a flexible flat collapsed piece of material which i.s openable in the form of a tube or sleeve. Such sleeves are well known in the floral industry. Further, in accordance with the present invention, the decorative cover 160 can be constructed of the polymeric material 10 (Fig. 1), the flexible material 112 (Fig. 9A), or the flexible laminated material 112a (Fig. 9B) , whereby at lea:>t a portion of one surface, preferably an outer peripheral surface 164 of the sleeve 162, has been modified to provide the sleeve 162 with a paper-like appearance as previously described herein. The sleeve 162 has an upper end 166, a lower end 168 and the outer peripheral surface 164. The sleeve 162 may be tapered outwardly from the lower end 168 toward a larger diameter at its upper end 166_ In its flattened state the sleeve 162 generally has ~~n overall trapezoidal or modified trapezoidal shape, and when opened i:> substantially frusto-conical in shape. It will be apprec»ated, however, that the sleeve 162 may have variations on the aforementioned shapes or may have significantly altered shapes such as square or rectangular, wherein the sleeve 162 when opened has: a cylindrical form, as long as the sleeve 162 functions in accordance with the present invention in the manner described herein. The sleeve 162 (or any other sleeve disclosed herein) may have an. angular or contoured shape-. The sleeve 162 has an opening 170 at the upper end 166 and may be open at the lower end 7.68, or closed with a bottom at the lower end 168. The slEeve 162 ,also has an inner peripheral surface 172 which, when the sleeve 162 is opened, defines and encompasses an inner retaining space 174. When the lower end 168 of the sleeve 162 has a closed lower end 168, a portion of the lower end 168 may be inwardly folded to form one or more gussets (not shown) for allowing the lower portion of the inner retaining space 174 to be expandable, for example, for receiving the circular bottom of a pot or growing medium. The sleeve 162 is generally frusto-conically shaped, but the sleeve 162 may be, Iby way of example but not by way of limitation, cylindrical, frusto-conical, a combination of both frusto-conical and cylindrical, or any other shape, as long as the sleeve 162 functions as descriibed herein as noted above. Further, the sleeve 162 may comprise ;any shape, whether geometric, non-geometric, asymmetrical and/or fanciful as long as it functions in accordance with the present invention. The sleeve 162 may also be equipped with drain holes (if having a closed bottom) or side ventilation holes (not shown) , or can be made from gas permeable or impermeable materials. The material from whiLch the sleeve 162 is constructed is the same as previously described above for the sheet of polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance, or the sheet of flexible material 11.2 or the sheet of laminated material 112a_ Any thickness of material may be utilized in accordance with the present invention as long as the sleeve 162 may be formed as described herein, i:: provided with a paper-like appearance, and as long as the formed :sleeve 162 may contain at least a portion of a flower pot or a floral grouping, as described herein. Additionally, an insulating material such as bubble film, preferable as one oi_ two or more layers, can be utilized in order to provide additional protection for the item, such as a floral grouping, contained. therein. In Fig,. 14 the sleeve 162 is illustrated having a paper-like appearance provided on the outer peripheral surface 184 of the sleeve 162. A floral grouping 176 is disposed within the inner retaining space 174 of tlhe sleeve 162. Generally, an upper or bloom portion 178 of the floral grouping 176 is exposed near the opening 170 of the sleeve 162 and a lower or stem portion 180 of the floral grouping 176 is exposed near the lower end 168 of the sleeve 162. Either end oi= the sleeve 162 may be closed about the floral grouping 176.. Gerierally, a portion of the sleeve 162 is tightened about a portion of the stem portion 180 of the floral grouping 176 for holding the decorative cover 160 about the floral grouping 176. For example, the sleeve 162 may be held by a tie 182 tied about the sleeve 162 such as is shown in Fig. 14. Other means for binding the sleeve 162 may be employed such as the bonding materials <iescribed elsewhere herein. For example, as shown in Fig. 15, a decorative cover 160a is shown which comprises a sleeve 162a having a paper-like appearance and a cinching tab 184 having a bonding material :L86 disposed upon a surface thereof . The cinching tab 184 can be used to gather portions of the sleeve 162a together about the ;stem portion 180 of the floral grouping 176 as shown in Fig. 16 for holding the sleeve 162a tightly about the floral grouping 176. Similarly, it may generally be desired to use the sleeve 162 as a decorative cover for a flower pot (not shown) . The flower pot will generally contain a botanical item or plant. The flower pot can be deposited into the open sleeve 162 in a manner well known in the art, such as manually wherein the sleeve 162 is opened by hand and the flower pot deposited therein. As noted above, a bonding material may be disposed on a portion of the sleeve 162 or any sleeve described herein to assist in holding the sleeve 162 to the flower pot when the flower pot is disposed within the sleeve 162 or to assist in closing the upper end 166 of the sleeve 162 or adhering the sleeve 162 to the flower pot after the flower pot. has been disposed therein, as will be ' discussed in furthcsr detail below. It will be understood that the bonding material, if present, may be disposed as a strip or block on a surface of the sleeve 162.The bonding material may also be disposed upon either the outer peripheral surface 164 or the inner peripheral surface 172 of the sleeve 162, as well! as upon the flower pot. Further, the bonding material may be di;posed as spots of bonding material, or in any other geometric, non-geometric, asymmetric, or fanciful form, and in any pattern including covering either the entire inner peripheral surface 172 and/or outer peripheral surface 164 of the sleeve 162 and/or the flower pot. The bonding material may be covered by a cover or release strip which can be removed prior to the use of the sleeve 162 or flower pot. The bonding material can be applied by means known to those of ordinary skill in their art. One method for disposing a bonding material, in this case an adhesive, is described in U.S. Patent No. 5,111,637, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference. As noted above, a bonding material may be disposed on at least a portion of the inner peripheral surface 172 of the sleeve 162 (or any other sleeve described herein), or, alternatively, the bonding material may be d:isposed~. on the outer peripheral surface of a flower pot contained within the sleeve 162, while the sleeve 162 may be free of the bonding material. In a further alternative, the bonding material ma.y be disposed both on at least a portion of the flower pot as well as capon at least a portion of the inner peripheral surface 172 of the sleeve 162. In addition, a portion of the bonding m~~terial may also be disposed on the outer peripheral surface 164 of the sleeve 162 as well_ It will be understood that thss bonding material may be disposed in a solid section of bonding materia 1. The bonding material, when present, is disposed on the sleeve 162 and/or flower pot by any means known in the art. Certain versions of sleeves described herein may be used in combination with a preformed pot cover. For example, a preformed pot cover may be applied 1.o the pot, then the covered pot wrapped or disposed within a sleeve. Either the cover or the sleeve, or both, may have a paper-like appearance. Examples of sleeves which may be used in this invention are shown in the specification of U.S. Serial No. 08/237,0713 which is expressly incorporated herein by reference in its. entirety. Equipment and devices for forming sleeves are commercially available, and well known in the art. Shown in Figs . 17 and 18 is another embodiment of a decorative cover 160b comprising a sleeve having a paper-like appearance constructed from t:he polymeric material 10 having a paper-like appearance, or the flexible material 112 or the laminated material 112a in accordance with the present invention and designated by the general reference numeral 162b. The sleeve 162b has a "detaching"element in predetermined areas for detaching a portion of the sleeve 162b. The sleeve 162b generally initially comprises a flexible flat collapsed piece of material which is openable in the form of a tube or sleeve.. The sleeve 162b is constructed of the same material and in the same way as described previously herein and may be described exactly the same as the other sleeves described herein ~sxcept for the additional elements described hereinafter. The sleeve 16: b has an upper end 166b, a lower end 168b, and an outer peripheral_ surface 164b. The sleeve 162b has an opening 170b at the upper e:nd 166b thereof, and the sleeve 162b may be open at the lower end ~.68b or closed with a bottom at the lower end 168b. In a flattened state, the sleeve 162b has a first side 171 and a second side' 173. The sleeve 162b also has an inner peripheral surface 172b which, when the sleeve 162b is opened, defines and encompasses an inner retaining space 174b as shown in Fig. 18. When the lower end 168b of the sleeve 162b has a closed bottom, a portion of the lower end 168b may be inwardly folded to form one or more gussets. (not shown) for permitting a circular bottom of an object: such as a potted plant 176b to be disposed in the inner retaining' space 174b of the lower end 168b of the sleeve 162b. As shown in Figs. 1'7 and 18, the sleeve 162b is demarcated into an upper portion 1f.8 and a lower portion 190. The lower portion 190 of the sleeves 162b is generally sized to contain the flower pot 176b. The upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162b is sized to substantially surround and encompass a plant 192 contained in the flower pot 176b disposed within the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b. The sleeve 7.62b is demarcated into the upper portion 188 and the lower portion 190 by a detaching element 194 for enabling the detachment of the upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162b from the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b. In the present version, the detaching element 194 is a plurality of generally laterally-oriented or alternating diagonally-oriented perforations or other non-linear configurations which extend circumferentially across the outer peripheral surface 164b of the sleeve 162b from the first side 171 to the second side 173. In the embodiment shown in Figs. 17 and 18, the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b fu=rther comprises a base portion 196 and a skirt portion 198. The base portion 196 is that part of the lower portion 190 which, when the flower pot 176b is placed into the lower portion 190, )zas an inner peripheral surface which surrounds the outer peripheral surface of the flower pot 176b. The skirt portion 198 is that. part of the lower portion 190 which extends beyond an open upper end of the flower pot 176b and about at least a portion of the plant 192 contained within the flower pot 176b and which is left to freely extend at an angle, inwardly or outwardly, from the base portion 196 when the upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162b is detached from the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b by actuation of the det-_aching element 194. In the intact sleeve 162b, the skirt portion 198 comprises an upper peripheral edge congruent with the detaching element 194 which is connected to a lower peripheral edge, also congruent with the detaching element 194, of the upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162b. In Figs. 17 and 18, the upper peripheral edge of the skirt portion 198 is congruent 'with a series of alternating diagonally-oriented lines of perforations which together form a zig-zag and comprise the detaching element 194. The upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162b may also have an additional detaching element 200 indicated as a plurality of vertical perforations for facilitating removal of the upper port=ion 188 and which are disposed more or less vertically therein extending between the detaching element 194 of the sleeve 162b and the upper end 166b. The upper portion 188 of the sleeve 162b is thereby separable from the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b by tearing the upper portion 188 along both the vertical perforations 200 and the detaching element 7.94, thereby separating the upper portion 188 from the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b. The lower portion 190 of the sleeve :L62b re>mains disposed as the base portion 196 about the flower pot 176b and as the skirt portion 198 forming a decorative cover 202 as shown in Fig. 19 which substantially surrounds and encompasses the flower pot 176b and the plant 192 contained therein. An outer peripheral surface 124 of the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b, for example, the base and skirt portions 196 and 198, may be modified to provide the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b with a paper-like appearance, while the upper portion 188 is left unmodified or is printed with a design. When the upper portion lEte is detached, the lower portion 190 of the sleeve 162b remains about the flower pot 176b and thereby forms a decorative cover about the flower pot 176b which has the appearance of a decorative paper cover. ."Detaching element" as used herein, means any element, or combination of elements, or features, such as, but not by way of limitation, perforations, tear strips, zippers, and any other devices or elements of this nature known in the art, or any combination thereof:. Therefore, while perforations are shown and described in detail herein, it will be understood that tear strips, zippers, or any other "detaching elements" known in the art, or any combination thereo:E, could be substituted therefor and/or used therewith. In a general method of use of sleeves 162, 162b as a decorative cover for a flower pot, an operator provides a sleeve 162 or 162b, and the>_ flower pot 176b having a plant 192 disposed in a growing medium contained within the flower pot 176b. The operator then disposes the flower pot 176b having the plant 192 contained therein into the sleeve by opening the sleeve at its first end and assuring both that the opening therein is in an open condition, and that the inner peripheral surface of the sleeve is somewhat expanded outward as well, as shown in Fig. 18. The operator then manu;~Ily or automatically disposes the flower pot 176b into the opening in the sleeve, the flower pot 176b being disposed generally through the upper portion of. the sleeve into generally the lower portion of the sleeve, the flower pot 176b remaining in the lower portion of the sleeve, permitting the sleeve to substantially surround and encompass the pot_ It will be understood that alternatively, the sleeve with an extension (not shown), may be utilized, the sleeve being disposed on rods, or wickets and the flower pot then being disposed in the sleeve either before or after the sleeve has been removed from the wickets. Embodiments of Figs. 20A-20C Referring now to Fig. 20A, designated generally by the reference numeral 210 is a polymeric ribbon material having a paper-like appearance for forming decorative bows and for wrapping items. That is, at least one surface of a web of polymeric material (not shown) is modified to provide a matte or textured finish 212 assimilating the appearance of paper. The modification of the web of polymeric material (not shown) to provide the polymeric ribbon material 210 with a matte or textured finish 212 can be accomplished in several ways. For example, the polymeric ribbon material 21o having the matte or textured finish 212 can be produced by printing a w~ b of polymeric material with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, b~,t lacquering at least one surface of the sheet of polymeric material with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer, by embossing the aheet of polymeric material to provide an embossed pattern ae~similating the texture and appearance of paper, or by flocking the sheet of polymeric material, or by application of a foamable lacquer or foamable ink to the sheet of polymeric material, or by embossing and printing the sheet of polymeric material to provide embossed and printed patterns wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be in registry, out of registry or wherein a portion of t:he embossed and printed patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte or textured finish capable of providing the sheet of polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be ~~chieve~d by extruding a polymeric resin onto a matted or textured chill roll. Thereafter, the web of material having a paper-like appearance can be cut in a conventional manner to provide the pol~~neric ribbon material 210 having a paper-like appearance. Any polymeric material capable of being textured or otherwise modified to provide the polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be employed in the formulation of the polymeric ribbon material 210. For example, the polymeric material employed to produce the polymeric ribbon material 210 can be the polymeric material 10 (Fig. 1), i.e. a polypropylene film having a thickness of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mils, and more desirably of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils, or the sheet of flexible material 112, i.e., an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness of from about 0.5 to about 10 mils. Referring now' to fig. 20B, designated generally by the reference numeral x:20 is another embodiment of a polymeric ribbon material for forming decorative bows and for wrapping items. The polymeric ribbon material is a laminated material comprising a first web or sheet of material 222 having a thickness of from about 0.5 to about 10 mils, anal more desirably from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, arid a second web or sheet of material 224 having a thickness of from about 0.5 to about 10 mils, and more desirably from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils. The laminated material having a paper-like appearance can be produced by laminating two or more sheets of polymeric film (such as two or more sheets of polypropylene film or a sheet of polypropylene film and a sheet of expanded core polymeric film, such as expanded core polypropylene film), or by laminating .a polymeric film (such as polypropylene film or an expanded core polymeric film) with a sheet of metallized foil and the like wherein at least one surface of the laminated material is textur~=d or modified to assimilate the texture and appearance of paper. The second web or sheet of material 224 is desirably laminated to the> first web or sheet of material 222 with a colored adhesive :~o as to impart a desired color to the polymeric ribbon material 220. If dlesired the polymeric ribbon material 220 may be treated or otherwise processed to provide the polymeric ribbon material 22C~ with a matte or textured finish assimilating the texture and apF>earance of paper so that the polymeric ribbon material has a paper-like appearance similar to the polymeric ribbon material 210 hereinbefore described with reference to Fig. 20A. That is, a matte or textured finish assimilating paper in appearance can be painted on the first web or sheet of material 222 and thereafter the second web or sheet of material 224 (which in this case is desirably a matte material of translucent polymeric film) is laminated to the' first web or sheet of material 222 to provide the polymeric ribbon material with a paper-like appearance. To further enhance the paper-like appearance of the polymeric ribbon material 220, the second web or sheet of material 224 may or may not have a plurality of spatially disposed holes extending therethrough. The matte or textured finish 212 can be produced by printing at least one of the first and second webs or sheets of material 222 and 224 with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least. one surface of at least one of the first and second webs or shee>ts of material 222 and 224 with a dull finish lacquer or a mattin<3 lacquer, by flocking at least one of the first and second webs or sheets of material 222 and 224, by application of a foamable lacquer or foamable ink to at least one of the first and second webs or ;sheets of material 222 and 224, by embossing at least one of the first and second webs or sheets of material 222 and 224 to provide <~n embossed pattern assimilating the appearance of paper, or by emk~ossing and printing at least one of the first and second webs or sheets of material 222 and 224 to provide embossed and printed patterns wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be in registry, out of registry or wherein a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte or textured finish capable a providing the polymeric ribbon material with a paper-like appearance can be achieved by extrud_~ng the resin used to produce one of the first and second webs or sheets of material 222 and 224 onto a matted or textured chill roll.. Referring now to Fig. 20C, designated generally by the reference numeral 230 is .another embodiment of a polymeric ribbon material for forming decorative bows and for wrapping items. The polymeric ribbon material 230 comprises a polymeric film 232 having an upper surface 2'.34, a lower surface 236 and a thickness in the range of from about. 0.1 m.il to about 30 mils, and more desirably, from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mils. An acrylic heat sealable lacquer 238 can be applied to at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the polymeric film 232, such as the Lower surface 236 of the polymeric film 232, and the upper surface 234 of the polymeric film 232 is desirably modified to provide the polymeric ribbon material with a matte or textured finish assimilating the appearance of paper. The modification of the polymeric film 232 to provide the polymeric ribbon material 230 with a paper-like appearance can be accomplished in several ways. For example, the polymeric ribbon material 230 having the matte or textured finish can be produced by printing a web of polymeric material with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface of the sheet of polymeric material with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer, by flocking the sheet of polymeric material, by application of a foamable lacquer or foamable ink to the sheet of polymeric material, by embossing the sheet of polymeric material to provide an embossed pattern assimilating paper in appearance, or by embossing and printing the sheet of polymeric material to provide embossed and printed patterns wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be in registry, out of registry or wherein a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte o:r textured finish capable of providing the sheet of polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be achieved by extruding a polymeric resin onto a matted or textured chill roll. Thereafter, the web of material having a paper-like appearance can be cut in a conventional manner to provide the polymeric film 232. Any polymeric film capable of being textured or otherwise modified to provide the polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be employ.=d in the formulation of the polymeric ribbon material 230. .For example, the polymeric film 232 employed to produce the polymeric :ribbon material 230 can be polypropylene film having a thickness of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mils, and more desirably of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils, or an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils. Embodiment, of Fias. 21-22B Referring now to fig. 21, designated generally by the reference numeral 240 is a system for producing decorative grass 242 having a paper-like appearance in accordance with the present invention. That 'Ls, at least one surface of a sheet or web of polymeric material is modified with a matte or textured finish to provide a web of polymeric material 244 having a paper-like appearance (i.e. a;ssimilates paper in appearance) as hereinbefore described. Thus, the decorative grass 242 produced from the web of polymeric material 244 having a paper-like appearance will also have a matte or to}cured finish 246 (Figs. 22A) which provides the decorative grass 242 with paper-like appearance. Any polymeric material capable of being textured or otherwise modified to provide the polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be employed to produce the decorative grass 242 having a paper-like appearance. For example, the polymeric material employed to produce the web of polymeric material 244 having a paper-likes appearance can be polypropylene film having a thickness of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mils, and more desirably of from .about 0.5 mil to about 10 mils, or an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness of from about 0.5 mil to about 10 mils, or laminates having a thickness of from about 1 mil mils to about 20 mils. The laminates which can be used to produce the web of polymeric material 244 having a paper-like appearance can be formed by :Laminating two or more webs of polymeric film (such as two or more webs of polypropylene film ar a web of polypropylene film and a web of expanded core polymeric film, such as expanded core polypropylene film), or by laminating a polymeric film (such as polypropylene film or an expanded core polymeric film such as expanded core polypropylene film) with metallized foil and the like. The only requirement in using a laminate to produce the web of polymeric material 244 having a paper-like appearance is that at least one surface of the laminate be capable of being modified to provide the laminate with at least one surface having a paper-like appearance. The modification of the web of polymeric material 244 to provide the matte or textured finish can be accomplished in several ways. For example, the web of polymeric material 244 having the matte or textured finish which provides the web of polymeric material 244 with the paper-like appearance can be produced by printing a web of polymeric material with a matted (i.e. dull finish) ink, by lacquering at least one surface of the web of polymeric material with a dull finish lacquer or a matting lacquer, by embossing the we:b of polymeric material to provide an embossed pqlymeric material :having the appearance of paper, or by flocking the web of polymeric mat<~rial, or by application of a foamable lacquer or foamable ink to the web of polymeric material, or by embossing and printing the web of polymeric material to provide embossed and printed patterns wherein the embossed and printed patterns may be in ,registry, out of registry or wherein a portion of the embossed and printed patterns are in registry and a portion of the embossed an~~ printed patterns are out of registry. In addition, a matte or textured finish capable of providing the web of polymeric material with a paper-like appearance can be achieved by extruding a polymeric resin onto a matted or textured chill roll. Referring again to Fi.g. 21, a roll 248 of the web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish is supported on a mandrel 250 having a brake: assembly 252 operably connected thereto so that the web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish can be controllably withdrawn from the roll 248. The web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish is passed through a pair of tension or nip rollers 254 and 256 and into a slitter or shredd~=r unit 258 where the web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish is slit to provide a slit web of polymeric m<~terial 260 having a plurality of strips of predetermined width. The slitting of the web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish to produce the slit web of polymeric material 244 having a plurality of strips of predetermined width can be accomplished using any well known method and device. Such common methods of slitting the web of polymeric material 244 having a matt or textured finish include: (a) slitting the web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish assimilating the appearance of paper to produce side-by-side strips of material wherein. the longer dimension of the strips is in the direction of travel of the' web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish,, i.e. the machine direction; or (b) slitting the web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish so that the longer dimension of the strips of material are obliqme to the direction of travel of the web of polymeric material 244 having a matte or textured finish, i.e.obliquely to the machine direction. The slit web of polymeric material 260 having a plurality of strips of predetermined width is then passed through a cutting unit 262 where the strips of the slit web of polymeric material 260 are cut into segments to form the decorative grass 242 having at least one matted or textured surface 246 which provides the decorative grass 242 with a paper-like appearance. A segment 264 of the decorative grass 242 having at least one matted or textured surface 246 which provides the decorative grass 242 with a paper-like appearance is illustrated in Fig. 22A. Any conventional device and method can be employed as the slitter or shredder unit 258 for slitting the web of polymeric material 260 to produce the slit web of polymeric material 260 having a plurality of strips of predetermined width and as the cutting unit 262 for cutting the strips of the slit web of polymeric material 260 to form the decorative grass 242 having a paper-like appearan~~e. Examples of conventional devices which can be used as the slitter or shredder unit 258 and/or as the cutting unit 262 are rotary knives, reciprocating knives, die cutting, laser cutting, water jet cutting, air jet cutting and the like. The decorative grass 242 having a paper-like appearance produced by cutting the strips of the slit web of polymeric material 260 can then be conveyed to a storage area (not shown) which may be in the form o:E a suitable bin, or the decorative grass 242 having a paper-like appearance may be conveyed to.a packaging machine, or conveyed to a baling machine for baling prior to storage. As other alternatives, the decorative grass 242 having a paper-like appearance may be placed into boxes or cartons, subjected to further processing immediately or held for subsequent processing. Referring now to Fig. 22B, designated generally by the reference numeral 266, is a segment of a decorative grass 268 having a paper-like appearance produced from the laminated material 112a having a paper-like appearance hereinbefore described with reference to Fig. 9B, except that the both the upper and lower surfaces of the laminated material 112a is provided with a matted or textured finish so that the decorative grass 268 is also provided with a matte or textured finish 270 on an upper and lower surface 272 and 279: of th.e segments of the decorative grass 268, such as the segment 266 illustrated in Fig. 22B. However, it should be understood that the decorative grass 270 having a paper-like appearance can be produced from any laminated material where at least one surface of the laminated material can be modified, such as by matting or texturing, to provide the laminated material with an appearance assimilating paper. The decorative grasses having a paper-like appearance prepared in accordance with the present invention, such as the decorative grass 242 (Fig. 22A.) and the decorative grass 268 (Fig_ 22B) can also be provided with various types of curl configurations, can be crimped or otherwise modified. That is, in addition to providing the webs of material from which the decorative grasses are produced with a matted or textured surface which assimilates paper in appearance, various types of curls, crimps and combinations thereof can be imparted to the webs of material prior to slitting the webs of material to produce slit webs of material, or to the slit web of material prior to cutting the slit webs of material to produce the decorative grasses having a paper-like appearance. Any method or apparatus capable of imparting the desired curl and/or crimp to the webs of material so that the decorative grasses produced from such webs of material possess both a curl and/or crimped configuration and a paper-like appearance can be employed to impart a curl and/or crimp to the webs of material_ Examples of various methods and apparatus which ma~,~ be u:~ed to impart curl configurations to the webs of material employed to produce decorative grasses having a paper-like appearance are described in co-pending U.S. patent application U.S. Serial No 08/879,242, entitled "Method and Apparatus For Making Curled Decorative Grass" which is hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference. Crimping machines capable of imparting the desired crimp to the webs of materiel so that the decorative grasses produced from such webs of material possess a crimped configuration, as well as having a paper-like appearance, are well known and commercially available. One method for imparting a crimp configuration to the webs of material so that t:he decorative grasses produced from such webs of material poasess a crimped configuration, as well as having a paper-like appearance, is disclosed in co-pending U.S. patent application U.S. Se:rial No. 08/796,182, entitled "Method Of Forming Curled Or Crimped Decorative Elements Having An Optical Effect"which is hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference. Changes may be made in the construction and the operation of the various components, el~=ments and assemblies described herein or in the steps or the sequence of steps of the methods described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

权利要求:
Claims (35)
[1] 1. A substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article for receiving an item wherein the flexible, shape-sustaining article is made from at least one sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, the base of the article having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the article wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material comprises at least one sheet of polymeric film laminated to at least one sheet of a material selected from the group consisting of a polymeric film, metallized foil and combinations thereof and wherein at least one surface of the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material is textured or modified so as to provide at least one surface of the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material with a paper-like appearance so that at least a portion of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article formed from the sheet of substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material is provided with a paper-like appearance.
[2] 2. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 1 wherein the sheet of polymeric film laminated to at least one sheet of material has a thickness of from about 0.5 mils to about mils and the sheet of material has a thickness in the range of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils.
[3] 3. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 2 wherein the sheet of polymeric film is laminated to the sheet of material with a colored adhesive.
[4] 4. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 2 wherein the sheet of polymeric film is a sheet of an expanded core polymeric film or polypropylene film.
[5] 5. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 4 wherein the sheet of expanded core polymeric film is a sheet of expanded core polypropylene film.
[6] 6. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 1 wherein a substantial portion of the overlapping folds in the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article extend over different distances and at various and arbitrary angles.
[7] 7. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 6 wherein the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article is a flower pot cover.
[8] 8. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 7 wherein the decorative border of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article is substantially free of permanently connected overlapping folds.
[9] 9. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 8 wherein the sheet of polymeric film laminated to the sheet of material has a thickness of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils and the sheet of material has a thickness in the range of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils.
[10] 10. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 1 wherein the decorative border of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article is substantially free of permanently connected overlapping folds.
[11] 11. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 1 wherein the article is a flower pot cover, the sheet of polymeric film laminated to the sheet of material has a thickness of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils and the sheet of material has a thickness in the range of from about 0.5 mils to about 10 mils, and wherein a substantial portion of the overlapping folds formed in the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover extend over different distances and at various and arbitrary angles, and the decorative border of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover is substantially free of permanently connected overlapping folds.
[12] 12. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 1 wherein at least one of the sheet of polymeric film and the sheet of material is provided with printed patterns, embossed patterns, and combinations thereof.
[13] 13. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 12 wherein at least one of the sheet of polymeric film and the sheet of material of the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and wherein the printed and embossed patterns are in register with one another.
[14] 14. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 12 wherein at least one of the sheet of polymeric film and the sheet of material of the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and wherein the printed and embossed patterns are out of register with one another.
[15] 15. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 12 wherein at least one of the sheet of polymeric film and the sheet of material of sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material is provided with printed and embossed patterns, and wherein a portion of the printed and embossed patterns are in register with one another and a portion of the printed and embossed patterns are out of register with one another.
[16] 16. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 1 wherein at least one of the sheet of polymeric film and the sheet of material is modified by printing, embossing, and combinations thereof so as to provide at least one surface of the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper.
[17] 17. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 16 wherein the sheet of polymeric film and the sheet of material are laminated with a colored adhesive.
[18] 18. A substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining laminated material into a substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article comprising ara base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, the base of the article having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the article wherein at least one surface of the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining material is modified so as to provide the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining material with a paper-like appearance so that at least a portion of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article formed from the substantially non-shape sustaining material is provided with a paper-like appearance, and wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining material having a paper-like appearance comprises:a sheet of an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils, the sheet of expanded core polymeric film having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein at least the lower surface of the expanded core polymeric film is textured, embossed, printed, or embossed and printed to provide the lower surface of the expanded core polymeric film with a finish or texture assimilating the appearance of paper;and an acrylic heat sealable lacquer disposed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the sheet of expanded core polymeric film.
[19] 19. A flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover, comprising:a flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface and a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils, at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film being provided with a paper-appearing textured or matte finish to provide such surface with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper; and an acrylic heat sealable lacquer disposed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the expanded core polymeric film whereby, upon forming the flexible surface modified expanded core polymeric film into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover, a plurality of overlapping folds are formed and at least portion of the overlapping folds are connected to adjacently disposed portions of the flower pot cover via the acrylic heat sealable lacquer.
[20] 20. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 19 wherein the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film provided with a paper-appearing textured or matte finish assimilating the appearance of paper further contains printed and embossed materials, designs and combinations thereof.
[21] 21. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 20 wherein the printed and embossed materials, designs and combinations thereof provided on the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film are in registry with one another.
[22] 22. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 20 wherein the printed and embossed materials, designs and combinations thereof provided on the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film are out of registry with one another.
[23] 23. A flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover, comprising:a flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils; and a flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils, the substantially water impervious polymeric film laminated to the expanded core polymeric film so as to provide a laminated material having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein at least ones of the expanded core polymeric film and the substantially water impervious polymeric film is provided with a paper-appearing texture or matte finish such that at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the laminated material is provided with a textured or matte finish assimilating the appearance of paper.
[24] 24. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 23 wherein at least one of the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film and the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film further contains printed and embossed materials and combinations thereof.
[25] 25. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 24 wherein the printed and embossed materials and combinations thereof provided on at least one of the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric material and the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film are in registry with one another.
[26] 26. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 24 wherein the printed and embossed materials and combinations thereof provided on at least one: of the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric material and the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film are out of registry with one another.
[27] 27. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 24 wherein the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film and the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film are laminated with a colored adhesive.
[28] 28. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 24 wherein at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film or the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric material is modified by printing, embossing, and combinations thereof so as to provide at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the laminated material with a paper-like appearance.
[29] 29. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 28 wherein the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film and the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film are laminated with a colored adhesive.
[30] 30. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 29 wherein the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils and the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils.
[31] 31. The flexible, non-shape sustaining material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 28 wherein the flexible, non-shape sustaining expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, and the flexible, non-shape sustaining, substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils.
[32] 32. A flexible material capable of being formed into a shape-sustaining flower pot cover, comprising:a sheet of material formed of an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils, the sheet of material having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein at least one of the upper and lower surface of the expanded polymeric film is modified by embossing, printing, and combinations thereof to provide such surface with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper; and a substantially water impervious polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils laminated to the expanded core polymeric film to provide a laminated material wherein at least one surface of the laminated material is provided with the appearance assimilating the appearance of paper.
[33] 33. The flexible material of claim 32 wherein the upper surface of the expanded core polymeric film is modified to provide the upper surface of the expanded core polymeric film with the appearance assimilating the appearance of paper and the substantially water impervious polymeric film is laminated to the lower surface of the expanded core polymeric film with a colored adhesive.
[34] 34. The flexible material of claim 33 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 1.25 mils and the substantially water impervious polymeric film laminated to the lower surface of the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils.
[35] 35. The flexible material of claim 32 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils and the substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils.37. A substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article wherein at least a portion of the flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article is provided with a textured or matte finish assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article made by forming at least one sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material having at least a portion of one surface thereof modified to provide at least a portion of the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with a textured or matte finish assimilating the texture and appearance of paper into a substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, at least a portion of one of the base and decorative border of the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article being provided with a texture or matte finish assimilating the appearance of paper, the base of the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material has a thickness in the range of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mils.38. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 37 wherein a substantial portion of the overlapping folds in the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article extend over different distances and at various and arbitrary angles. 39. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 37 wherein the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article is a flower pot cover.40. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 37 wherein the decorative border of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article is substantially free of permanently connected overlapping folds.41. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 37 wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:an expanded core polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface and a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils, at least the lower surface of the expanded core polymeric film being modified so as to provide the lower surface of the expanded core polymeric film with a textured or matte finish assimilating the appearance of paper; and an acrylic heat sealable lacquer disposed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the expanded core polymeric film whereby, upon forming the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material into the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article, at least a portion of the overlapping folds formed in the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article are connected via the acrylic heat sealable lacquer.42. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 41 wherein the expanded core polymeric film further contains printed and embossed materials, designs and combinations thereof.43. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 42 wherein the painted and embossed materials, designs, and combinations thereof provided on the expanded core polymeric material are in registry with one another.44. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 42 wherein the printed and embossed materials, designs, and combinations thereof provided on the expanded core polymeric material are out of registry with one another.45. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 37 wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:an expanded core polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils, at least one surface of the expanded core polymeric film having a textured or matte finish assimilating the appearance of paper; and a substantially water impervious polymeric film laminated to the expanded cove polymeric film, the substantially water impervious polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils.46. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 45 wherein the expanded core polymeric film further contains printed and embossed materials, and combinations thereof.47. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 46 wherein the printed and embossed materials, and combinations thereof provided on the expanded core polymeric material are in registry with one another.48. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 46 wherein the printed and embossed materials, and combinations thereof provided on the expanded core polymeric material are out of registry with one another.49. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 45 wherein the expanded core polymeric film and the substantially water impervious polymeric film are laminated with a colored adhesive. 50. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 45 wherein at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the expanded core polymeric film is modified by printing, embossing and combinations thereof to provide the expanded core polymeric film with a texture or matte finish assimilating paper in appearance.51. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 50 wherein the expanded core polymeric film and the substantially water impervious polymeric film are laminated with a colored adhesive.52. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 51 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils and the substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils.53. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 45 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils and the substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils. 54. A substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material into a substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, the base of the article having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the article wherein at least one surface of the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is modified so as to provide the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper so that the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article formed from the substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, and wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:a sheet of material formed of an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils, the sheet of material having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein at least the lower surface of the expanded polymeric film is textured, embossed, printed, or embossed and printed to provide the lower surface with a finish or texture assimilating the appearance of paper; and a substantially water impervious polymeric film laminated to the expanded core polymeric film, the substantially water impervious polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 to about 10 mils.55. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 54 wherein the expanded core polymeric film and the substantially water impervious polymeric film are laminated with a colored adhesive.56. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 55 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils and wherein the substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils.57. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 54 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils and wherein the substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils. 58. A substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material into the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from t:he open upper end of the base, the base of the flower pot cover having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the flower pot cover may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the flower pot cover wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is modified so as to provide the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper so that the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover formed from the substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, and wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:an expanded core polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a thickness in the range of about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils wherein at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the expanded core polymeric film is modified to provide the expanded core polymeric film with a texture and appearance assimilating the appearance of paper.59. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 58 wherein the expanded core polymeric film further contains printed and embossed materials, and combinations thereof.60. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 59 wherein the printed and embossed materials, and combinations thereof provided on the expanded core polymeric material are in registry with one another.61. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 59 wherein the printed and embossed materials, and combinations thereof provided on the expanded core polymeric material are out of registry with one another.62. A substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material into the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, the base of the flower pot cover having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the flower pot cover wherein at least one surface of the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is modified so as to provide the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with a texture and appearance assimilating paper so that at least a portion of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover formed from the substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, and wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:a polymeric film having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a thickness in the range of about from 0.6 mil to about mils; and a sheet of material having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6. mil to about 10 mils, the sheet of material laminated to at least one of the upper and the lower surface of the polymeric film to provide a laminated material, at least one of the polymeric film and the sheet of material laminated thereto being modified to have a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper so that the laminated material is provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper. 63. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 62 wherein the polymeric film and the sheet of material are laminated with a colored adhesive.64. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining flower pot cover of claim 62 wherein the polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, the sheet of material laminated to the polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, and the flexible laminated material has a thickness in the range of from about 1.5 mils to about 2.5 mils.65. A substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material into the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, the base of the article having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connect ed so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the article wherein at least one surface of the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is modified so as to provide the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with a texture and appearance assimilating paper so that at least a portion of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article formed from the substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, and wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:a sheet of material formed of an expanded core polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils, the sheet of material having an upper surface wind a lower surface wherein at least one of the upper and lower surface of the expanded polymeric film is embossed, printed, or embossed and printed to provide the lower surface with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper; and a substantially water impervious polymeric film laminated to the expanded core polymeric film to provide a laminated material having an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper, the substantially water impervious polymeric film having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils.66. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 65 wherein the expanded core polymeric film and the substantially water impervious polymeric film are laminated with a colored adhesive.67. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 66 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, the substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, and the laminated material has a thickness in the range of from about 1.5 mil to about 2.5 mils.68. The substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article of claim 65 wherein the expanded core polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, the substantially water impervious polymeric film has a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 1.25 mils, and the laminated material has a thickness in the range of from about 1.5 mils to about 2.5 mils.69. A substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material into a substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, the base of the article having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the article wherein at least one surface of the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is modified so as to provide the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with texture and appearance assimilating paper so that at least a portion of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article formed from the substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, and wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:a sheet of polymeric material having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein at least one of the upper and lower surface of the sheet of polymeric is modified by embossing, printing, and combinations thereof to provide such surface with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper.70. A substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper made by forming a flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material into a substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article for receiving an object, the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, the base of the article having a plurality of over-lapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the article may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the article wherein at least one surface of the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is modified so as to provide the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with a texture and appearance assimilating paper so that at least a portion of the substantially flexible, shape-sustaining article formed from the substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, and wherein the flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material comprises:a first sheet of flexible, non-shape sustaining polymeric material having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils, the first sheet of flexible, non-shape sustaining polymeric material having an upper surface and a lower surface wherein at least the lower surface of thee first sheet of flexible, non-shape sustaining polymeric material is modified by embossing, printing, and combinations thereof to provide the lower surface of the first sheet of flexible non-shape sustaining polymeric material with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper; and a second sheet of flexible, non-shape sustaining polymeric material laminated to one of the upper and lower surfaces of the first sheet of material to provide a flexible, non-shape sustaining laminated material wherein the modification of at least the lower surface of the first sheet of flexible, non-shape sustaining polymeric material is visible and thereby provides the flexible, non-shapes sustaining laminated material with an appearance assimilating the appearance of paper, the second sheet of flexible, non-shape sustaining polymeric material having a thickness in the range of from about 0.6 mil to about 10 mils.71. The substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining article having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper of claim 70 wherein the first and second sheets of flexible, non-shape sustaining polymeric material are laminated with a colored adhesive.72. A substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper, the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot made by forming at least one sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material having at least a portion of one surface thereof modified to provide at least a portion of the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material with a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper into the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot, the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot comprising a base having a closed lower end, an open upper end with an object opening extending therethrough and a decorative border substantially free of permanently connected overlapping folds extending outwardly from the open upper end of the base, at least a portion of one of the base and decorative border of the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot being provided with a texture and appearance assimilating the appearance of paper, the base of the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a plurality of overlapping folds of which at least a portion are permanently connected so that the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot may be substantially flattened and then unflattened to assume the original shape of the substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot and wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material has a thickness in the range of from about 0.1 mil to about 30 mils. 73. The substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper of claim 72 wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is further provided with printed material on at least one surface thereof.74. The substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper of claim 73 wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is further provided with an embossed design on at least one surface thereof.75. The substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper of claim 74 wherein the printed material and the embossed design on the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material are in register with one another.76. The substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper of claim 74 wherein the printed material and the embossed design on the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material are out of register with one another. 77. The substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper of claim 74 wherein at least a portion of the printed material and the embossed design on the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material are in register with one another and at least a portion of the printed material and the embossed design on the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material are out of register with one another.78. The substantially flexible, polymeric shape-sustaining flower pot having a texture and appearance assimilating the texture and appearance of paper of claim 72 wherein the sheet of flexible, substantially non-shape sustaining polymeric material is further provided with an embossed design on at least one surface thereof.

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同族专利:

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公开号 | 公开日

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引用文献:

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公开号 | 申请日 | 公开日 | 申请人 | 专利标题

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法律状态:
2000-11-14| EEER| Examination request|

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2009-05-27| FZDE| Dead|

优先权:

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申请号 | 申请日 | 专利标题

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US09/262,401|US6403207B1|1997-06-26|1999-03-04|Preformed pot cover having a paper-like appearance|

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US09/262,401||1999-03-04||

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