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Posted by lots_of_threads on January 29, 2006, 11:59 am
I have been reading all the old posts on pattern copyrights and I am
happy to draft my own patterns for accessories for sale, but I am
having difficulty coming up with shapes (handbags or totes, for
example) that have not already been published by some pattern company.
There are only so many bag shapes - circular, square, rectangular,
hobo, tube, knapsack, etc. - and every pattern company has these
designs in their collections in one form or another. Most pattern
companies even have patterns that look almost the same as those of
other companies. If I draft my own pattern for a rectangular bag for
sale, for example, that is similar to everyone else's rectangular bag
and I embellish it with my own trims and use unique fabric, can a
pattern company say it is too close in design to their pattern even if
I didn't cut the bag from that exact pattern?
Likewise, if a client asks me to make a bag that looks like a bag they
already own or have seen somewhere, I guess I cannot agree without
infringing on some copyright. So how much would I have to change the
design in order to comply with the client's request? I guess I could
find a ready-made bag pattern that looks similar and have the client
buy that pattern and then make that exact bag without issue as long as
the client owns the pattern.
In clothing and accessories, there really isn't much new under the sun
in terms of basic shapes and types of wearables. The designer's
influence really comes in during choice of fabrics and trims. I can't
imagine coming up with a bag pattern shape that would not be already on
a paper pattern somewhere in some form. If ten people all think of the
same design separately and draft their own patterns, who legally "owns"
the pattern?
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Posted by on January 29, 2006, 5:54 pm
Dear Lots...,
That's not how copyrights work. If you took a commercial pattern, and
used it to sew up a handbag, then you sell it, you'd be infringing on
that company's copyright. On the other hand, if you sit down with
ruler and pencil, and come up with your own design, whatever the shape,
then embellish it in your own way, it's yours and you can sell it.
Make sure that you keep your original sketches and copies of the
patterns developed from the sketches, to back up your claims of
originality.
I had work stolen from me many years ago. It was used to launch a
cloth doll magazine. The woman who owned the magazine at the time
simply removed the seam allowances from my patterns, and made the doll
a bit smaller. But it was a complete ripoff of my work. The magazine
has since gone belly-up. The same book (that I wrote) was used to get
work into a Better Homes magazine issue by a woman who claimed it was
her work. She didn't even bother to change the type of fabric used for
the clothing. Better Homes wrote a correction in the next issue, but
who reads them except the person who was plagiarized?
Many designs are done over and over (princess seams, for instance). If
the pattern is the work of the dressmaker, it's considered original.
But even an altered commercial pattern can't be used for sale of a
garment, unless only one garment is made from the pattern for a client
who has paid for the pattern, fabric and labor. Another pattern is
required for a separate client.
Teri
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Posted by lots_of_threads on January 29, 2006, 8:29 pm
Yes, you are very right: Save all sketches and pieces of paper for a
design that you make at home and date them!
Do patterns you draft yourself have to be significantly different (how
is that determined) than existing patterns? Or does it not matter as
long as you don't use the exact pattern to make items for sale?
I guess it seems gray to me whether or not a pattern company can claim
violation of copyright if one sees a bag design on a pattern and then
drafts one's own pattern that looks similar (in shape most likely, not
exact colors and fabrics). After all, one is not using their actual
commercial pattern to make items for sale; one is using one's own
drafted patterns. But the design is probably too similar to be allowed?
So is it the exact paper pattern that is copyrighted or the pattern's
design itself in any form? If it is just that exact pattern as printed
that is protected, then I guess any self-drafted patterns would be ok.
What about patterns printed by pattern companies that have designer
names attached? Do the designers (eg: Laura Ashley) have any rights to
those designs as represented on the patterns?
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Posted by on January 30, 2006, 11:19 am
Dear Lots...,
A designer's name on a commercial pattern means that the designer has
"licensed" his/her name, and will receive royalties for each
pattern/item sold. When you see designers' names on many different
items, it doesn't mean that they have designed them, but have approved
them to use their names on them.
Finished garments seen in fashion shows are not covered by copyright
laws. That's because there are only so many different ways that tubes
for our bodies can be cut. But, if patterns of the garments are
offered for sale, they are covered. It gets confusing, doesn't it?
If you're designing your own things for sale, the best way to proceed
is to go out and see what's in the market at the price range for which
you are aiming. Not to copy, mind you, but to see what kind of things
are popular and are selling well. You wouldn't want to offer beaded,
spangled somethings if tailored, hard-edge designs are what sell best.
Then you can go back to your studio, confident that your original
designs will be desirable.
Teri
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