I can't believe this even needs to be discussed. These flowers are your creations and you have ZERO obligation to sell these patterns to other people. There's a reason companies like KFC and Coke keep their recipes secret, because they want people to buy THEIR product, not someone else's. You worked hard to create those designs and I can't understand why other people feel so entitled to your hard work. I'm so sorry you have to deal with this at all or even bring it up. I can't wait to get to Otakon tomorrow and buy some of your flowers - they're literally one of a kind.
Yes exactly it's like that's why you can't copy their logos, like designer brands, there's fines and jail time lol😂 look at those videos where people get caught at the airport trying to bring in fake wallets/purses, it's a huge business, just people still risk it. But I wanted to say I just started seeing your beautiful flowers and would love to see you at the conventions one day ❤ and don't give up.
i love how you put into words a lot of what i'm struggling with right now... as a crocheter who really takes her business seriously, i find myself not wanting to copy all of the other crochet youtubers and sell the same stuff (leggy frogs, chonky cats, etc.) and i hate when people come up to my booth and say like, "oh, weren't you at x event last week?" when it wasn't me. i want to stand out as my own thing, have my own brand going for me and it's so hard if you're just making what everyone else is making. lately i've been trying to explain to my friends how i want to make what *i* want to make and have everything look good together or make sense. i think it's awesome that you as a crocheter have your own product and style and that's something that i strive for as i've begun eliminating oversaturated products and making things that actually have meaning to me and fit my business aesthetic lol
Thank you so much!! It is 100% super frustrating for me when people think im at other events because there was a similar booth there. I've noticed some similar setups to mine and while people can say oh there's only so many ways to display flowers! When it's too similar to the point that other people think you're me, that's too much!!
I get what you're saying about the girl of the keychains. but our businesses live in the online world and it's literally impossible to be the only one doing it. There's always the pioneer of the idea but with time and popularity a lot of people will start a business based on your idea. Yeah you can say that it is competition of course but there's space to everyone and every business, i personally don't think that another person owning a business selling similar things to you will steal your costumers. Everybody just need to build their own community and you clearly have a solid one and growing day by day. Love your work and you're one of my biggest inspiration. Love from Portugal
Thank you!! Agreed about it being difficult to have a completely original idea - I definitely wasn't the first to crochet flowers, BUT I am making it my own by making new flowers I've never seen and ones that don't actually exist in real life but from pop culture like anime and gaming. Ultimately, if anyone sells similar things as someone that's called competition! But agree that building your own community is vital to a healthy business!
surprised you didn't being up the duck thing because like ............... that's the most genuinely heinous case of this kinda stuff happening i've maybe ever seen. fantastic video !!! hard agree on all of these
@@zhanescorner cat cake crochet put out a fantastic video explaining it. a couple of other creators have made videos about it since quinn(cat cake crochet) put out the original call out video. I highly recommend starting there because almost every video I've seen references her original video. Also, Quinn is absolutely adorable.
I completely respect you for gatekeeping ur desings.ofcourse u created those patterns and u have the right to do so,you are doing amazing in your work and most people might be jealous of your progress...keeping going sis As a beginner crocheter ur are really inspiring❤
I get what you're saying, but sometimes ppl get pressed over like the bee pattern being copied when it's literally elongated sphere with circles as wings. Like at some point the design is so simple that it's just like basic crochet, or a specific stitch just. But I get it with more complicated designs being copied.
Definitely agreed! Someone mentioned this earlier, but Made in the Moment covered some drama about a fairly simple sweater being copied simply by coincidence because the design was so simple. Especially when we just have amigurumis of spheres with bobble stitch limbs, or bees like you say, where ultimately there's only so many different ways to make it, you can't really claim it as your own. I don't understand why people keep making patterns for these things when so many exist already. I feel like people should look up a design before they start writing it all up just in case tons exist already 😅 It's strange
This is actually a pretty deep conversation and I appreciate you bringing your viewpoints up. I am on the side where I have never created a pattern so I do appreciate having some available to purchase. I also understand supply and demand so those are valid points. It is hard to keep the copying down but also as a society we get inspired from things that inspire us. That in essence is how we evolve and get better. Very interesting conversation and I enjoyed your video.
It’s so wild especially living in a small town - because in 2021/22 there weren’t any other crocheters doing markets where I live and then all of a sudden last year they were popping up like crazy. I had one person (who at the time was a like vinyl tshirt vendor at an event I was at) buy a bunch of stuff from me (including one item that’s my own pattern that I like you don’t sell or post anywhere) and then they showed up at the next event I was at with like attempted copies of all my stuff. In 2022 I did an event and was one of three crocheters and all of our stuff was different. Like two of us made plushies but using different yarn and the other one did clothes. This year there are TWELVE crochet vendors with EIGHT of them making plushies. I opted out of that one thankfully. It’s crazy. I have to constantly find new stuff and new patterns because everything ends up being made by two or three other people locally and obviously if there are three tables with the exact same thing people will buy the cheapest one - even if it isn’t the most well made from my experience. It’s so, so frustrating!
I completely agree with your points. I like these kinds of casual video too! The amount of popular crochet items at these booths at some of the yyc events is getting so big. I understand that its very hard to be completely original but seeing the same thing over and over in a small market of clearly talented and creative individuals is getting old. Over saturation to the max
You go girl!! This is a topic that should be presented for all creative craft arenas. I have seen this same concept of taking someone’s original pattern and tweeking it to make it their own and making money on it. For instance, there are major companies out there who sell sewing patterns for clothing etc. Now there are independent designers making and selling patterns that are very similar or the very same pattern and selling them. This also goes for knitting patterns. There must be a million different sock patterns in print and online. The ones with the most followers will get paid the most. I saw this happening a number of years ago. I knitted a paid for pattern shawl and no sooner than I had finished it I saw the exact same pattern by someone else on Ravelry and with some research found out that the one was written and on the market months before the more popular designer pattern. This stuff goes on and on. It really made me not want to put out a pattern out there for sale because of that very same ordeal. I would encourage you to put your designs out there, and make money on them, you deserve it. If you don’t someone else will. Some people can look at something that someone else came up with and come up with a pattern to sell with no problem. You put in a lot of time and thought in what you do so you should get the benefit of all that thought and work. This is my opinion and I wish you the very best. You have beautiful workmanship, keep up the good work.
Thank you for sharing!! Definitely agree on having seen these things happen. I hate it, but it is true that those with the most following and social media presence usually make the most from that pattern. Eventually it leads to scenarios where larger creators are sometimes seen taking advantage of smaller ones by reselling (or slightly modifying and then selling) their patterns. It's a big no-no but they think they can get away with it because they have a following to back them up. I hope I never fall into that trap, and I'm lucky to have a pretty large following so I don't have to worry as much about others stealing my patterns without me knowing about it. Unfortunately it's a lot of mental upkeep 🥲 Thank you 🩷
I admit I was disappointed at first you weren't selling your patterns, but it makes sense and wholeheartedly agree with your decision. I thought about it too from my end when I considered maybe selling some stuff I am creating, though I have been on a quest to come up with things myself or ideas friends have given to me to attempt. That makes me think, maybe I should like find some art prompts to come up with new ideas. Prior to this, I kind of look at different patterns for ideas of what is out there, but I don't try to copy them but put my own spin on it based on what I love/like. I remember I was looking at tissue covers and tried to find a pattern of an idea I had, turns out no one has shared anything like it yet and I attempted to make it for myself. Also, I have noticed in a lot of the crochet videos/tiktoks that people have been sharing for markets have all been the same items. Like in a way, I see why they make them because they are fast and easy to turn out. I felt tempted to do the same, but then all it does is create more saturation of the same bee/cow design I've seen over and over. I kind of stopped watching those videos cause its starting to feel stale seeing the same designs over and over.
Thank you for sharing!! Totally agree - I do think that using other people's patterns and putting your own spin on it is a good way to learn new techniques and stitches to help make your own designs! And I definitely don't often see tissue covers that are crochet 👀✨️ Totally agree that a lot of crochet market-goers make a lot of the same thing. I can see how it happens and it's not a bad thing but it's just not the direction I want to go in!
You asked how so many people are doing the same patterns over multiple areas. Social media. The reason why we're seeing so many of the same items is because they are looking for anything that is quick to make and easy to sell. The market for blanket yarn plushies is getting oversaturated because people want to focus on what is a big seller for everyone else. To each their own, but this is why I refuse to use blanket yarn. I also refuse to make the same patterns everyone else. Instead, I use acrylic and use more complicated patterns. Will I have the massive inventory they have? No. But I am standing out from the crowd. And I'm making things I want to make. Great video. I agree 100%.
Thank you for sharing, I'm glad you can agree! I do think there is something about the nature of blanket yarn which is so plush and thick that it hides a lot of details, making lots of designs look similar!
Unfortunately that doesn’t always work…my sister only uses blanket yarn and has amazing work that she sells (thankfully a lot of)and then we have a friend that uses almost all acrylic and makes very detailed items that are also super nice but they Don’t sell…at least not here. So I really thinks it depends where you are.
@@priscillamarie1536 Of course. When it comes down to it, pretty much everything will depend on your area and your customers. For myself, I try not to do a lot of fancy items. I mostly do simple patterns, just with acrylic instead of blanket yarn.
I like your choice in gatekeeping your pattern bc you figured it out what works for your style. It's stupid that people think they're entitled to purchase it or that you're not being, lack of a better way of saying it "a girl's girl" for the community. There's been so much pattern plagiarism that happened a few months back that Made in the Moment had covered between two artists. Yes, there's only so many ways to create things and pattern out, but that creative integretiy to doing it yourself and figuring that out makes it incredibly better. I think that's why a lot of the side of the community I'm in likes Ikoxun's work, amazingishgrace, at least I do.
Thank you for sharing!! I definitely watched those videos too! When people start to claim simple patterns as their own I feel like there are a lot of problems that come with 😅 it's like.. if you came up with a pattern for a blanket and it's just a block of single crochets, it's simple enough that anyone could come up with it! If you claim something like that as your original design, and then try to take down others who have something remotely similar, it's just grasping at straws really 😵💫 The issue is.. where do you draw the line?
@@madewithapril I think where we draw the line is the type of patterns they're making. Typically blankets and general panels can be only so unique. But I feel the uniqueness comes in the intentions, materials, and what you're trying to create. Then again I view people with a set honesty view until proven otherwise. You've documented your journey online for a year plus at this point, you've done your hours in meeting these conventions with the stock you need. Even honest that people help, but these are family members and friends. Your transparency is your integrity. Versus someone who just shows up items incredibly in stock, but there's no cohesiveness to their work. People are allowed to dabble, but if there's some disconnect on what's being sold I think it's a clear sign to be dubious of their work. It's like your previous vlog of someone comparing your shop to another and ultimately decided with your work, I'm sure despite being higher in price(?) the latter could be incorrect, but usually your gut is good at letting you know who you may want to purchase from. Can't police everyone, likewise to artists. There're styles and things people pick up on to emulate good people. While infuriating, it's about the mentality, use it to create something better. You can tell who excel at their work because its their work. Compared to someone who emulates. Apologies for the ramble, but that's my take.
Aloha from Hawaii 🌴 I totally agree with you. It pays to be different. You're creative so your designs will stand out. At the end of the day most just copy. There's a big difference being creative and just copying. You're definitely creative. ALOHA!
I think your points are valid, and more discussion needs to happen. I'm not a seller and I don't make patterns, so whatever I make is for personal use. I'm on a disability pension, so buying alot of patterns, especially very expensive ones, just isn't a reality. I do riff off of other peoples designs, and if something I made is similar enough and I share about it, I always acknowledge the artist. If one is going to use another artists great idea, it is just common decency to at least name drop them. I do buy alot of patterns to support creators I love too, I'm not just stealing ideas without paying. Art is a dogpile of millions of peoples great ideas, we are all inspired by one another in some way. That's the beauty of art. In some ways, I do feel competition actually fuels innovation. If one sees alot of the same thing, then it is up to them to find ways to stand out. Is it hard? Frustrating? Scary? Yes, and in the age of the internet, it's both easier and harder. I think it balances itself out in the end. I'm not selling, because of how difficult it is to sell, I have alot of compassion for those who do. It's a weedy, complex topic. I think the answer is more awareness of artists, and courtesy. Creators are always going to be inspired by another creator. Just make sure to showcase the hard work of that creator if heavily inspired, and be respectful of one another. There is a difference between being inspired, and stealing ideas for personal gain
I had an idea that this was going on within the crocheting community, but your video really brought things more into light and put it in a way that was really easy to understand. Thanks for being courageous to post this, it was really insightful! I agree on the gatekeeping, it's OKAY to gatekeep and there's absolutely no obligation to share anything about your work especially when you put so much effort, energy, and time into your work. Great video as usual!
Ahhh I'm glad it was easy to understand for people who don't crochet too 😅 I feel like a lot of people outside of the community don't know about it and I'm like ahhh we're not all the same I sweaaar 😵💫 thank you for your support fr fr 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
I 100% understand your position. I used to have another much smaller business in a different area of things and this literally sounds like a repeat of conversations had and things I've went through in that area haha. I figured it would be similar in the crochet business because I'd like to start a crochet business and while looking for product ideas I've searched the internet and I'm seeing similar happening because everything is repetitive! It's been making me less excited to start. The video you made of how to create our own flower pattern is very helpful and its much appreciated but I totally understand why gatekeeping when it comes to a business is rather important.
I love your work, and you are right, I make my own designs, but I don't sell the patterns or final product because I put a lot of work and love on them so I completely understand you, keep crocheting beautiful stuff and making things kind of videos as well! Good luck on everything you do!!! ❤
it's insane, i think when i first joined the crochet community it wasn't that bad... In my small country i got accepted for a comic con as well as other artists, i was suprised to see a booth almost the same as mine, the price tags, scenting the plushies and they even used some of my patterns /this person probably hates me or something, but at the same time they admire my patterns? they didn't even come up to me and say "hi, i love your patterns".../ especally the appa pattern that takes forever to make and has 20 pieces to sew they sold as mid priced plush totally undercutting my prices on purpose...
Getting undercut in your pricing sucks 😢 not to mention with comiccons and the limited space for artists, it gets harder and more competitive to get accepted when everyone sells similar goods!
A great vid! Your last one about all crochet being the same is spot on, first time I’ve tuned in to you. A lot of valid points, way too many you-tubers all promote the same things, and local crafters in my area follow right along! I despise working with blanket yarn, and much prefer the artistry of complicated patterns. Between plagerism and AI, I’m hoping good designers can keep working and stay profitable! Kudos to you for bringing it into the open!
WOW!!!!!! This subject is in EVERY FIELD!!!!!!! I learned this subject from a fashion designing school. I also crochet 🧶 for customers and boutiques. If an item is very popular I don't care to copy it. I'm a person who see a 💡 idea and change the design. I don't buy patterns. I sketch out ideas and look at fashion magazines, films, music videos and other inspiration. I get TIRED 😩 of the people's complaints about how their patterns are COPY!!!! I used to be in a lot of crocheting groups and I just don't be bothered with them because everyone is CROCHETING THE SAME THING!!! I remember one time I went to a crocheting get together in Chicago and I wore a crochet 🧶 scarf 🧣 that I made. I got a lot of compliments . This scarf was crochet with Chunky yarn and it was perfect for a cold day. Most of the other crocheters were using regular weight yarns. A couple asked me for the pattern and I told them to change their hook size and to try different weight of yarns. Most of all think 🤔 outside the box. The teacher of the group loved what I said. The teacher and her sister had a photo shoot and I got to help with the photo shoot. LOVE IT!!!! Life is too short worrying who stole your 💡 idea!!!! Please think outside the box. Keep up the good work 😊Robin N.Otis-Clayborne
I think the struggle really boils down to the capitalism of it all. I mean that legitimately. The motivation for selling other people's designs as patterns or even just everybody selling the same plushies is because we're all trying to make ends meet financially. The crochet market is kind of oversaturated right now and places like timu and wish absolutely are not helping with that. And I think one of the best things we can do as a community is try to support each other and educate customers about why shopping fast fashion dupes is so unethical.
It’s easy to not sell your patterns which will stop the resell of same flowers, but that doesn’t stop the people who are willing to buy your flowers and do the count stitch method and recreate your design. If you don’t have a copyright to the design, can you really stop them from copying? Would you need to publish your pattern before you can say someone copied or stole your design? Lots to think about…but not tonight, I am crocheting daisy granny squares from a pattern I bought😂. Which by the way, is exactly the same as the free ones on TH-cam. Another thing I read was if the designer is dead, after 70 years the copywrite ends. Just food for thought. 😂
When people dont sell their pattern it only bothers me when they post but don't say they made the pattern because a lot of the time ppl post things theyve made but dont credit the original designer so it makes me wonder if they did that or theyre choosing not to credit themselves. Either way, its YOUR pattern. u have the right to not sell the pattern. your logic makes sense also the crochet pattern sharing groups?? An instagram gc got exposed like a month or two ago of people doing that but i didnt realize it was that common. Wow
I do notice that a lot of creators forget to credit their patterns, it's frustrating for sure. And yeah, I don't know if they have started to increase recently or what but I've gotten several DMs from people with screenshots of either my patterns in a Facebook group or people posting my photos and asking other people how they think I made something 👺
Hearing this blew my mind. I own hundreds of patterns at this point, and it would never occur to me to share them with anyone. Who could think that is right ??
Hi Tina!! I have been watching your videos for a while and I really enjoy your art and your take on things! I get where you're coming from AND I had so many thoughts during this video, I can't possibly comment them all. 😅 But just a couple things... plagiarism... I've been in the crochet and knitting communities for mmhmm years and this has been a hot button issue for a long time, even before there was such a thing as digital oatterns. I remember as a young knitter, I bought a paper pattern and I was so excited about it, I made paper copies for my knitting group. I was MORTIFIED when I realized later that I had basically stolen a bunch of copies of the pattern. I'm glad people talk about the issue because I might not have learned better if people weren't blogging about it. I just thought I was being generous! BUT obviously not everyone is going to have the same values around this issue. There are always going to be people who steal patterns and blatantly don't care. My opinion is, you can't worry about them too much. Thieves are gonna thieve, ya know? Temu is definitely going to Temu. I would rather focus on the fact that there are LOTS of people who would prefer to buy patterns and products on the up and up. And lots of people who want to support art and artitsts. I mean, just look at the whole "Taylor's Version" thing! 😂 One idea that really impacted me was Mama Made Minis posts about "community over competition". I like the idea that there's enough room for all of us in the crochet world. Maybe I'm a little too Pollyanna but I just want to see all of us crocheters succeed. A lot of us do sell similar things but I think for handmade businesses, people are buying a little bit of our individual brand flavor along with the actual items we sell. I think deciding whether or not to sell payterns for the items you sell is a highly individual decision and you've obviously thought a lot about it! But I do recall in the past you've pointed out that you probably can't keep making and selling flowers forever just because of all the intense manual labor involved. I think about that all the time when I'm making plushies... I know there's a finite amount to what I can do and it kind of makes each one more special. So maybe you'll hold onto each of your deaigns and eventually outsource more of the work so you can keep selling physical products, or maybe someday you'll decide to stop producing the physical items and release your patterns into the world. There's a lot of possibilities! Okay, I've rambled enough... I could have made my own video 😂 All the best!
Hahaha thank you for sharing!! I can totally see people printing and sharing patterns with absolutely no malicious intent - there have been debates about this for sure. I feel okay about people buying a pattern and sharing it with a friend but then again, where do you draw the line? 2 friends? Or 3 or 5? It's another one of the reasons I don't want to sell my patterns! The worst is when people resell a pattern for profit though 😵💫 I think when it comes time and I'm ready to 'retire'ill definitely take the time to write everything up and sell the patterns. At that point if I'm not selling physical products anymore I don't mind if people make what I make!
I want to be nice and say sometimes it's hard to draw a line between inspiration and full on theft but the tiny guy on my shoulder is like 👹👹 it's not 🥺👹
I've given up making plushies for this very reason. Everyone sells the same things at markets and there are 10 different patterns on Etsy for the same design. Social media can be a great learning tool, but it has also created this environment where we think we need to do what everyone else is doing to be successful. I love that you've managed to carve out a unique space for yourself in the copycat world of crochet.
Amen that’s why I stopped doing sublimation. I was denied a craft show entry because other crafters now make what I make now smh. I only do juried shows like old times now
YES!! To be perfectly honest, I am so tired of constantly seeing people ask about quick makes that sell fast. I get wanting to make as much profit as you can, but stop doing the same patterns in the same yarn as everyone else. I don't understand why people don't want to stand out from the crowd.
This is also why I don't really make plushies! There are some people who do it well, and have unique ideas but I'm not one of them for that type of product so I don't pursue it!
I think I agree with most of your points, ultimately the line between inspired and copying is really hard to see. Things can be so similar and you have no idea if someone else had even seen what they are accused of copying. I notice this when looking up sewing patterns for bags, there are so many that are just exactly the same (a strange example but I have more experience with sewing.) The problem is if you feel you are being copied but that person may not even have seen yours and it then can lead to paranoia (not saying 'you' as an individual, by the way.) For instance, you mentioned if something is 90% the same as yours but also that seeing the same inspiration flower would come up with a very similar design, for me I'd say that a 10% difference from the same flower would actually be a reasonable amount and not copying. It probably depends if you see the 90% or the 10%. I don't know if any of those thoughts connect, it is just putting thoughts out there. Anyway, it's sad that I'd never get to buy your Silent Princess pattern as I would love to make one (I just make for myself for fun) but it makes sense and they are yours to sell or not. Good luck at your markets and conventions!
Thank you and thank you for sharing!! I think for me, I expect there to be more differences with flowers since they're so intricate and a bit more detailed, vs something larger like sweaters or bags may have a lot more common designs freehanded between crafters. This is definitely a good example of how grey the line is though, there really isn't a good way to enforce it since everyone sees it differently!
I 100% agree on all the points mentioned in the vid . As someone who started creating patterns my biggest worry is creating a pattern that has been over done. I always try to make patterns based off things i personally like so there isn't an issue of being over done. I always double check that i haven't just made a pattern that has been over done to death. It is actually crazy the amount of people that just copy patterns and portray them as their own. I find it really hard to create new patterns for new things due to the mass amount of copying. Not to mention when a pattern goes popular similar patterns arise which in turn can kill creativity in the crochet art space. And if you do create something new and unique you will be hounded down to " release a pattern" when its ok to to gatekeep sometimes. Not everything has to be shared. There are large companies that have trade secrets that they do not share with the public and there is never a huge outrage that the secret wasn't shared with the class. However as soon as it comes to pattern designs or unique ideas there is always so much drama and hate that us as small business owners or artists have to share every last detail on how we created it, when in fact we do not have to. I do think the reason on why at least in the crochet community this isn't talked about enough is the toxic positivity culture that has been created around small businesses. In YYC there has been a huge amount in increase of crochet businesses ( which is ok) I think the issue is the popularity in designs and ppl making the same thing as other booths creating higher competition and then not pricing your products what they are worth which creates a disconnect in the whole community. The toxic positivity comes through and it portrays it as easy to have a business because "all small business" share their resources. In the event when we want to gatekeep is where the drama occurs and starts to spread. There is laws for copyright infringement and creative commons work but i feel when it come to crochet most people throw this out the window and do not care. sorry for the mini rant
Love the rant hahaha sometimes it's necessary! Totally agree on your point about competition between small businesses. I always want to support fellow local businesses and also fellow crochet artists, but ultimately, sometimes we are competition and that's okay! But at the same time, it's hard to deal with getting undercut and selling the same products. It's hard to find a balance and that's part of running a business - it's when people get fussy about it that things can get messy.
I do agree with what you said about the lack of originality when it comes to crochet pattern writers, BUT! For me, and that's my opinion as someone who sells their crochet patterns, I reach a lot more people when I take a crochet pattern and change a few details to make another pattern. A lot of people don't read pattern descriptions and only buy based on the first picture they see. I also like to offer one pattern that has, let's say, 5 different style options, and then sell one pattern for each individual style (for cheaper of course). Some people prefer a cheap option, while others prefer package deals. I try to make it as clear as possible in the description of those patterns that they can get all 5 style options for a little bit more money to avoid them buying all the styles separately. I have a pattern for a matching hand warmer and leg warmer set, and i have a pattern for each item separetly because some people don't want to do leg warmers, etc. However, if i see someone purchase both items separetly, I will initiate a partial refund because it's not fair for them to pay more. I will say though, I don't think every crochet artist is willing to be transparent about stuff like that, so yea. That's just my opinion, I do agree that tweaking one thing and reselling a new pattern feels fucky, you have to be a responsible artist about it lol
Thank you for sharing, I totally understand that point of view! It's been frustrating for me as well to try faster patterns and some non crochet items to pad my table that take a lot less time. For me, I end up making tons of lavender and eucalyptus because they don't take as long and are at a lower price point for customers. At the same time, they're more common designs that everyone has some variation of. Definitely hard to find a balance between this and being unique sometimes!
I agree with probably 95% of what you were saying. The thing about the animal keychains is a little broad versus someone doing just dog keychains of different breeds. I was surprised at someone copying your exact set-up. I know when I am searching for patterns I try and make sure I am getting it from the actual designer. It’s very tempting to want to buy the hundreds of patterns for very cheap adds while having a low craft budget. I also hate that places make it difficult for stolen patterns to be reported. I have come across several pictures of patterns that I know belong to their original designers places they should be but can’t report it because I am not the designer.
Yeah, it's definitely hard to draw a line! And omg yes agreed. It's the worst when someone steals a pattern and then uses THE SAME PHOTO to try and sell that pattern 😭
Just saying though becareful not to put some people into the plagerisim category because a lot of older people and others like me taught as children by older people were taught how to look at things crochet or not and recreate it without a pattern because crochet didn’t really have patterns it was done off the hook. So a lot of people like me don’t use patterns at all they just see and make for them selves. Knitting is a pattern field but crochet is and always has been a free for all because it’s simple stitches put together to make a shape and some people have been taught how to make anything from just a few stitches. If you ask any old lady in the uk for a pattern to crochet something they will say why don’t you just make it if you can crochet you can just make it. This is because they can’t see how someone couldn’t recreate anything if they were taught.
I feel there is a difference between an artist and a maker. The artist has different core values to their business model. A crafter/maker will crochet large volumes of simple items to sell. That’s why the patterns are often repeated. The simplicity and popularity of the items drives the maker to focus on profit and trends. Also I don’t design patterns to sell because I’m not a proficient pattern writer. I think all these models work together in the community.
i see what you mean, i make Cro-Knit patterns of my flowers . i dont sell them online because i wanna keep as original as possible. ill have customers ask me if i sell my patterns and i tell them no. anytime i come up with an idea i check to see if it has been created. this world is just not original anymore , sadly! its the world we live in :( i love your videos! thank you for all your creativity !!!!
As a scientist in the making, plagiarism and other form of copying without giving proper credits to the original owner of the information is ultimately making you a person with no credibility. I am trying to follow this in crochet. Yes, I am not a designer, I am not capable of creating my own work (though I keep practicing). I am following in your footsteps in becoming a flower crochet shop as I haven't seen as many shops in the UK, but I never ever did something without giving proper credit. I respect you so so much and you are teaching me a lot of new things about crochet. I am planning to make my own flowers as I have seen that they don't currently exist. :)
Thank you so much!! I come from a medical research background as well and omg maybe that's why I'm so peeved about plagiarism 😂 It's not as simple as oops I copied someone, plagiarism in science is a BIG DEAL! But enforcing these rules is what gives people credibility!!
The fact that I was literally just thinking about this very topic and was like, dude it should not be so villainized to gatekeep if ppl so choose to do so
I just want to add my 2 cents about one thing. I think that you, Tina, are an artist. People who make their own patterns are artists, while I consider myself a crafter, as I work from other peoples patterns that i buy. So, the way you think about ideas being stolen is very different from the people who crochet similar things for markets. I don't generally have the patience to create an original pattern (though its on my to do list). But mostly, i just want to crochet and not be bothered by figuring out something new. Also, just to be clear, i don't disagree with anything you said, necessarily, i just wanted to give a different perspective.
Ahh I love this perspective!! (Or do I just like being called an artist HAHA) Love the idea of pattern creators being called artists and makers being called crafters. I do think that while everyone is still an artist and still a crafter, this is a great perspective to take - and a great way to see how people view pattern theft differently. It's also different for people who don't even have an interest in selling their makes. Thank you for sharing!!
I completely agree with you!!! I have the same business model as you and a lot of the plushies I sell are my own patterns that others don't have access to. I consider my business a success so far, and I'm sure gatekeeping helps a lot...they can't find my products elsewhere.
Omg you verbalized a lot of my thoughts in this video 😩 I can't wrap my head around people wanting to duplicate and then selling my designs especially with how unique they are. I would feel so awkward seeing someone selling the exact same design at a con/market. Designs get stolen whether we sell the patterns or not.
I was thinking about what you said about gatekeeping a bit vs making things that others sell too. I have only original things on my stand, except a bunch of leggy froggies and octo's, but they sold the best. Which really annoyed me, but I suddenly realized that people buy familiair things, because they saw them before and started liking them through exposure. Its just like how trends develop. Socks in sandals, see it often enough and they become normalized and eventually you might start liking them. But thats just my two cents.
people ask me all the time if i make my items or if they are resale from amazon or temu . its kinda sad that they cant tell the difference, in my general area there is three ladies , myself being one of them and the other two resale from temu ... they buy for cheap and sell for more. im sorry im just ranting out my fustration on here i cant post it on my social media so i need to write it out somewhere .
It's more and more common these days and I hate it 😭 hopefully the trend passes soon so they stop doing it and move on to the next thing but man, I wish there was an easier way for people to tell.
Intelectual property are going to be always a tricky moral subject. The lines between inspiration, and copy are blurry and depends on the eyes of the viewers, some people more exposed to other designs can tell if something has more or less inspiration of other project, but that's not the majority of people. I could say that the key is to be the more original that you can but I have heard designers like PicaPau complaining about their designs being stolen or replicated in tutorials. It seems like the only persons who respect the work of the designers are the people who want to be designers too, that's sad.
I get you and get what you’re saying. As for me, I have never bought a pattern or bought a crocheted item because I know I can make it myself. So I can never spend on something I know I can make myself. Or perhaps I just haven’t found an crocheted item that I love enough to spend my money on. However, I have also never thought to profit off my crochet..because I know that there’s a majority of people who think like I do. They’d rather make it themselves than buy off someone else. And for reasons that you’ve stated, the crochet community is ambiguous on its rules on ownership and plagiarism so I find it a hassle to dabble on that. When I find a cute crochet pattern, i try to replicate that and use that item lovingly and purposefully, and that brings me joy. But I know not everyone stops at that, and most would try to profit off stuff they didn’t originally create. So yeah, i get you.
Thank you! It's also different when you're not selling it, I think when it's just for personal use I'm a lot more lenient on whether people copy me. Ultimately, it's still not good but if you're just replicating it for your own room decor and not selling or sharing it then no harm is really done.
@@madewithapril Thank you. I was a bit hesitant to post my comment, because ultimately, I am taking inspiration from creators who sell their work, sometimes I could even copy it stitch by stitch. In a sense I am contributing to the ambiguity of ownership in the crochet/knitting community. But that’s just how it is for most of us, especially spendthrifts like me. When someone comments on my work, (like did I make it etc), if I remember, I’d refer them to the artist and pattern, but most of the time I’d say I copied it off youtube. So it’s real hard to give credit where credit is due if the stuff is free on the internet. So I totally support you not handing out patterns or pattern tutorials for free or paid. Because as you said, once a paid pattern is shared it becomes free for all. Most just doesn’t care about stuff like copyright or pattern ownership. It’s a matter of personal moral integrity - to give credit where credit is due, but sadly this principle is almost disregarded in crochet communities, generally.
Girl you are not getting cancelled!!! Lol As someone who doesn’t have many followers or any patterns yet I have always found it weird how many people in the crochet community think of it only as a “we share it all” type of thing and not as an actual business. This really needs to be talked about more because yes, you can make a living out of crochet but we gotta be smarter. In the end business is business. Also we are seeing more and more people just copy and paste patterns and sell it like its theirs and we are even seeing these patterns being mass produced and people who have no idea about crocheting are selling them. Anyways, hope that made sense. Love you videos! ❤
To take someone’s creation and mass produce it - and not even mention or thank the real creator is wrong. I understand what you mean and I agree. Keep on being creative and gatekeep your business. And please register and copyright your creations. It’s your property and don’t let someone copy your work and earn big money on mass production of it. Sending you love and light ❤
Thank you!! Unfortunately it's too expensive and time consuming for someone at my scale to register and copyright my designs, but I'll do my best to keep going!
I really appreciate this video. I crochet but don't make patterns because well.. I suck at it, I really love your flowers and I would love to make my own but I totally understand your point of view. It's rather sad that in the crochet community everything is copied but unfortunatly I don't think it will be ending soon. I must say I'm probably also very guilty of plagiarism even though I didn't realise it at the time (by this I mean I crocheted items and sold them), I was just happy to share my creation even though not my own pattern with someone else. I'll also probably be guilty of this in the future but I never copy someone's design that hasn't been released like you mentioned with your flowers. I feel like I'm rambling so I'll stop. Have a very nice day!
I agree that it won't stop soon, unless we do something about it!! The community ultimately determines what is socially acceptable or not so we have the ability to raise awareness about these issues too!
Idk what the experience has been like for others, but I know that i need a few of those super common, super easy makes, because they can be sold at such a low price point. And I absolutely hate making them, I'm making octopi right now in fact. I prefer making larger, more complicated amigurumi, and those have a large price tag on them, so they don't sell nearly fast enough to make markets worth it for me. So it's like a Catch 22, where I need to make these awful little things, so I can continue supporting myself, and making bigger items. I'm at least trying to avoid as much overlap as possible, so I've been sticking with less common makes, to help avoid showing up to a market with a huge overlap of inventory with other artists. But it's really so draining to have to struggle to find or create a unique enough pattern that I can sell for a low price to pay off my table fees, lol. If I see one more loaf cat (a pattern which has been around for a DECADE) on insta, I'm going to scream. There's just so many of them everywhere, I absolutely loathe them
Thank you for sharing, I totally understand that point of view! It's been frustrating for me as well to try faster patterns and some non crochet items to pad my table that take a lot less time. For me, I end up making tons of lavender and eucalyptus because they don't take as long and are at a lower price point for customers. At the same time, they're more common designs that everyone has some variation of. Definitely hard to find a balance between this and being unique sometimes
im only a hobbyist but if i posted an original pattern plushie i made and ppl get mad at me for not sharing my pattern i'd be rly upset. cuz i dont wanna bear the responsibility of sharing a pattern that hasnt been tested for mistakes and potentially disappoint someone that used my pattern and dont get the desired outcome. besides i dont have the time or connections to make sure i can create replicable patterns. i feel like ppl underestimate how much work goes into making something from scratch, yet get angry when ppl refuse to make the pattern available due to whatever reason :///
I don't agree with this limited or scarcity mindset and putting so much worry into competition. Nature works on principles of abundance. We can help help each other out AND all make money. There is plenty of pie to go around
I can definitely see where you're coming from! The crochet community does have a lot of people who love to help each other positively, and it's the way competition drives negativity in aspects like plagiarism that irks me!
You just reminded me of this creator of tumblers on Instagram that told everything she did, exactly how she did, and even the list of products she used (brand and other specifications), and people still got mad at her, some saying she didn't share enough, others saying she shared too much! There is no way to please everyone, so we might as well do what we want (craftwise).
The real problem is greed. One person wants to make a quick buck. So the mass produce and underprice their work. This hurts the whole market. Then we have a group of people without any respect for others work and skill. They buy a pattern and seem to think they have some kind of ownership. They give that pattern to their firend because they share everything and on and on. So that designer has not only lost sales, but they have also lost their credentials. I dont sell my patterns anymore. I absolutely love teaching and helping people to expand their knowledge. I was teaching at a local college. I didnt get hired for the next semester. Turns out a student of mine took my whole class, patterns and all, agreeded to work for less and the college sold me out.
There’s Facebook groups where people share paid patterns?! 😮 I’ve never heard of this but that’s horrible!!!! I worked on a complex crochet mandala square and my stitch count on the rounds was totally off; I wanted to ask my TH-cam c o hey friend for help but the idea of sending her the pattern or parts of the pattern felt so wrong so I didn’t do that!!! When people resell paid or free patterns or share patterns that they did not create it makes me very made!!! It’s so mean and really hurts the original creator. I bought a pattern on Etsy once and realized that the pattern was stolen from another designer. Luckily I had also purchased the pattern from the original person; but I was so mad when I found out I unintentionally supported someone who stole a pattern!!
Unfortunately yes there are! Lots of pattern sharing clubs that justify it by saying they can't afford that many patterns or that they're only sharing it with their friends. I try to understand it from their perspective but at some point, public groups and super large ones are just not cool 😭
I only sell the stuff i kake from patterns that say i can. I have never really seen a pattern say you cant sell the finished make...they just ask for credit...i think a lot of pattern makers know people are buying their patterns specifically to sell the finished products :)❤
Well, I wouldn’t say that your are wrong but there are also aspects that are things that you need to realize about the way the world works. No, you don’t have to give out your exact patterns and people shouldn’t plagiarize, but if a product comes out in the world that there is a demand for, then people will try and replicate and improve on it. Ford Motors were the first ones to make cars and now there are cars everywhere. You keep improving and staying ahead of the game and creating more and expanding more and that is how you stay ahead and win in the game. This is the nature of anything in commerce. That being said, paid patterns shouldn’t just be posted for free other places. Because that it like just selling someone’s art prints.
@@madewithapril and your design is beautiful. I have looked up a lot of crochet flowers and yours are very unique and detailed. To me they are higher quality than most!
Some good ways I have seen to protect your intelectual property is offering tutorials, just for limited time, so you anticipate that the only payment you're going to recive is for that first time, I have seen people making a good amount of money that way.
I saw a crocheter comment on a designer's Instagram that they bought their pattern (but didn't make it), instead her daughter released a reworked version of the pattern and released it as her own. I've changed how I buy patterns and appreciate a talented designer over someone who pumps out basic designs for the quickest market sales. I love how your business and flowers have evolved and always excited to watch the adventures of you and your friends at cons
Yikes, that's a big no-no 😭 I feel like there are definitely people with this mindset though and it turns into 50 variations of the same pattern, and the original creator gets totally ripped off 😵💫 Thank you so much for your support!!
This is exactly why I don’t post everything I make. I’ve had other crocheters at markets literally start making something I’ve posted right after I post about it. These are crocheters that go to the same markets as me. They’ll also undercut prices and use the excuse that they’re in a “small community” while literally living in the Phoenix, AZ metro area, lol. Nowhere in the Phoenix area is a “small community.” The one in particular that I’m thinking of doesn’t post her location so people don’t actually know where she is and she doesn’t post the location of her markets. I just try to stay as unique as possible. I stay away from the typical mushroom boys, leggy froggys, octopus, etc. I’ve also started to stay away from the creators with large followings patterns because everyone uses them.
It does sometimes feel like I see one cool thing on my explore page and then suddenly I see a hundred variations of the exact same thing- lately it's been the crochet calico critters 😅 omg I've totally had the same experience with people undercutting my prices - I was at a market once with someone selling a lot of the same products as me and their prices were all the same as mine minus $3, to the point that she had definitely looked mine up before 😭 how was every single one $3 off??!
I saw another crochet youtuber saying that she thinks it would be so cute for people to set up "create your own bouquet" set up with different crochet flowers in different buckets🙃 I swore she saw your set up and was describing it perfectly. I was like HEY Tina does that!! Lol 😂
It's honestly so common now that I see it all the time and even though I don't remember anyone else doing it when I started, I can't necessarily claim that as my thing - at the same time it does irk me a little when their set up is exactly like mine 😅 it is what it is sometimes, maybe I'll try to change up the graphics or add something somewhere to make myself stand out!!
I don't make a lot of clothes but I've seen lots of drama with pattern copying with it 🥲 I think with basic pieces it's hard to claim a design, especially when it's just one or two stitches throughout the whole piece.
as a brazilian crocheter, ever since I started to watch market prep videos here on youtube I get legit horrified about how EVERY PLUSHIE looks the same!!! like dude 😭 I think its so sad because I cant even tell people apart If their photos dont have a watermark or something Here on Brazil I see a lot more contrast between crafters, even when we have the same style. I believe this has a lot to do with chenille yarn too. i think maybe using it limitates creativity a little bit, it seems like for some crafters the plushie being made of fluffy yarn is just enough lol
100% agree about chenille yarn! I see the same thing in Canada too with a lot of similar plushies. While it's fine when starting out, I would love if people tried more complicated or unique designs even with chenille yarn!
And also from this 8:59 they'd have a choice to buy from a seller who sold the product for less but yours is priced higher or well cause you made the pattern but non crocheters would not know that and are lowkey cheap so they'd buy from the cheaper finished product
Ooh I also found two Etsy shops that sell the exact same patterns and they seem to have the same owner so I got really suspicious 🤨 that one of the shops might be stealing. I messaged one of the sellers (the one whose patterns were priced higher) and they said both shops are legit. But idk it just didn’t sit right with me and I felt like I should avoid both shops just incase one of them is stealing from the other and copying the shop owner profile picture.
to be honest i love this "tired rants" lol (i am from chile for context) i also make and sell crochet flowers, but i personally i feel pretty bad if i am selling similar stuff from others, and i wish more people feel the same at least sometimes lol even if i make flowers from a tutorial or feel inspired from yours or others creators flowers, i should not do the same or even similar, like thats wrong there are a lot of people here tho that sell amigurumis, and yeah they all sell pretty much the same stuff, i wish people tried to put themself in others shoes, because trying to do different stuff and then someone go and do the same without shame is so exausting and i have a little story here to vent a little lol one day i was in a market for mothers day, and a lady come asking if a had sunflowers, at the time i didnt have yellow or the right shade of brown to make one, so i told them that i didnt make sunflowers yet, but then she goes "you should make them, they sell well", at he moment i said "oh thanks for the advice hehe" but i was weird out, like why they say that, i should be the one who decide if i sell them or not, right? then i market after, a friend of my mom told me something kinda similar, that people liked sunflowers and they sell pretty well, but then realize, that they not sell things because they liked doing it, it was just to sell people what the people wanted, as if the customer control their shop or something i am still i little piss off from that, i like sunflowers but i didnt want to make them to please other people but i recently made one trying not to look the same as all the others ive seen, in hopes to not get mad at poor sunflowers lol
Thank you for sharing! The sunflower story is definitely relatable, sometimes something will sell well but I hate making it or I just don't feel like I like it a lot. It's really hard for me to get motivated about making them when that happens 😅 I do often feel conflicted about which designs to pursue when it comes to what I like vs what i think the customer wants!
I totally agree with the artist alley video point. Like they are nice but man ever since people started posting those videos, legit no one can get into artist alley anymore unless you have like 100k followers or a youtube channel because right now it seems like it's the same people who are making those AA vids that are the only ones getting in shows back to back. It's crazy out there.
I know right! I'm still learning about it all and I definitely think I've gotten really lucky with a lot of my admissions. Notably, I also think I'm lucky because I'm applying in a category (3D handmade) that's a little less competitive than most of artist alley. It's tough out here!!
my new favorite conspiracy theory: big yarn is behind all the views on how much the creators make at market shows. They want us all believing we can make it with a couple of octopi and a big show stopper item so that those of us looking for a side hustle will be convinced we can do something with a hundred or so dollars worth of fuzzy yarn. its big yarn yanking all our chains.
HAHA this reminds me of the Big Milk controversy 😂 If big yarn wants to sponsor me maybe I'll start selling some cheap acrylic yarn patterns to level out all the chenille 😂😂 /s
people that post their actual income in their videos is putting a target in their back for potential theft and robbery to happen. its already a concern of mine that someone can just target you at a show and just take all your money.
I agree with you. It may be frowned upon, but why would you tell everyone all your company's workings? You took the time and energy to research and learn what it takes to be successful. If people get so salty about you not telling them exactly how to take away your business, that's their problem. Those lazy people need to find their own style and success, not steal yours.
I find it funny because she is gatekeping. I tried to buy her patterns to start my own small business where I sell other peoples patterns online. She also likes to try and subtly make people feel dumb by saying things like TLDR. Sorry Tina, not all of us went to college. I’m too embarrassed to even ask what that means.
imagine being so salty you spent $10 to whine about not being able to resell someone's pattern... the brain rot is real here. TLDR is not COLLEGE MATERIAL, dude. It means 'too long, didn't read'. Google it.
![[118] From a Biological Point of View Essays in Evolutionary Philosophy By Elliott Sober](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/vIEMC5t8m4U/mqdefault.jpg)
I can't believe this even needs to be discussed. These flowers are your creations and you have ZERO obligation to sell these patterns to other people. There's a reason companies like KFC and Coke keep their recipes secret, because they want people to buy THEIR product, not someone else's. You worked hard to create those designs and I can't understand why other people feel so entitled to your hard work. I'm so sorry you have to deal with this at all or even bring it up. I can't wait to get to Otakon tomorrow and buy some of your flowers - they're literally one of a kind.
Yesss omg that's a way better comparison than any of the ones I used LOL thank you I appreciate this so much!! See you at Otakon ahhhh!!! 🙈🩷
Yes exactly it's like that's why you can't copy their logos, like designer brands, there's fines and jail time lol😂 look at those videos where people get caught at the airport trying to bring in fake wallets/purses, it's a huge business, just people still risk it. But I wanted to say I just started seeing your beautiful flowers and would love to see you at the conventions one day ❤ and don't give up.
@@Wynnithepooh903 Thank you so much!! 🩷🩷
i love how you put into words a lot of what i'm struggling with right now... as a crocheter who really takes her business seriously, i find myself not wanting to copy all of the other crochet youtubers and sell the same stuff (leggy frogs, chonky cats, etc.) and i hate when people come up to my booth and say like, "oh, weren't you at x event last week?" when it wasn't me. i want to stand out as my own thing, have my own brand going for me and it's so hard if you're just making what everyone else is making. lately i've been trying to explain to my friends how i want to make what *i* want to make and have everything look good together or make sense. i think it's awesome that you as a crocheter have your own product and style and that's something that i strive for as i've begun eliminating oversaturated products and making things that actually have meaning to me and fit my business aesthetic lol
Thank you so much!! It is 100% super frustrating for me when people think im at other events because there was a similar booth there. I've noticed some similar setups to mine and while people can say oh there's only so many ways to display flowers! When it's too similar to the point that other people think you're me, that's too much!!
I get what you're saying about the girl of the keychains. but our businesses live in the online world and it's literally impossible to be the only one doing it. There's always the pioneer of the idea but with time and popularity a lot of people will start a business based on your idea. Yeah you can say that it is competition of course but there's space to everyone and every business, i personally don't think that another person owning a business selling similar things to you will steal your costumers. Everybody just need to build their own community and you clearly have a solid one and growing day by day. Love your work and you're one of my biggest inspiration. Love from Portugal
Thank you!! Agreed about it being difficult to have a completely original idea - I definitely wasn't the first to crochet flowers, BUT I am making it my own by making new flowers I've never seen and ones that don't actually exist in real life but from pop culture like anime and gaming.
Ultimately, if anyone sells similar things as someone that's called competition! But agree that building your own community is vital to a healthy business!
surprised you didn't being up the duck thing because like ............... that's the most genuinely heinous case of this kinda stuff happening i've maybe ever seen. fantastic video !!! hard agree on all of these
OMG I just discovered that whole scenario recently - I didn't want to being anything up that would call out anyone or name anyone in particular 😅
@@madewithapril makes total sense!!! i just thought the audacity of that situation was out of the roof 😵💫
what’s the duck thing 👀 i would like to look into that lol
@@zhanescorner cat cake crochet put out a fantastic video explaining it. a couple of other creators have made videos about it since quinn(cat cake crochet) put out the original call out video. I highly recommend starting there because almost every video I've seen references her original video. Also, Quinn is absolutely adorable.
@@amandabottoms1 thank you!
I completely respect you for gatekeeping ur desings.ofcourse u created those patterns and u have the right to do so,you are doing amazing in your work and most people might be jealous of your progress...keeping going sis
As a beginner crocheter ur are really inspiring❤
Thank you so much!! 🩷🩷
Agreed
I get what you're saying, but sometimes ppl get pressed over like the bee pattern being copied when it's literally elongated sphere with circles as wings. Like at some point the design is so simple that it's just like basic crochet, or a specific stitch just.
But I get it with more complicated designs being copied.
Definitely agreed! Someone mentioned this earlier, but Made in the Moment covered some drama about a fairly simple sweater being copied simply by coincidence because the design was so simple. Especially when we just have amigurumis of spheres with bobble stitch limbs, or bees like you say, where ultimately there's only so many different ways to make it, you can't really claim it as your own.
I don't understand why people keep making patterns for these things when so many exist already. I feel like people should look up a design before they start writing it all up just in case tons exist already 😅 It's strange
This is actually a pretty deep conversation and I appreciate you bringing your viewpoints up. I am on the side where I have never created a pattern so I do appreciate having some available to purchase. I also understand supply and demand so those are valid points. It is hard to keep the copying down but also as a society we get inspired from things that inspire us. That in essence is how we evolve and get better. Very interesting conversation and I enjoyed your video.
I agree with your feelings on this subject matter and thank you for this vid. It takes courage to speak about some subjects out loud.🌻❤️
Thank you!! I appreciate that
You’re welcome! 🤗💞🌻 (btw: I’m business model 1, too. 😉)
It’s so wild especially living in a small town - because in 2021/22 there weren’t any other crocheters doing markets where I live and then all of a sudden last year they were popping up like crazy. I had one person (who at the time was a like vinyl tshirt vendor at an event I was at) buy a bunch of stuff from me (including one item that’s my own pattern that I like you don’t sell or post anywhere) and then they showed up at the next event I was at with like attempted copies of all my stuff.
In 2022 I did an event and was one of three crocheters and all of our stuff was different. Like two of us made plushies but using different yarn and the other one did clothes.
This year there are TWELVE crochet vendors with EIGHT of them making plushies.
I opted out of that one thankfully.
It’s crazy.
I have to constantly find new stuff and new patterns because everything ends up being made by two or three other people locally and obviously if there are three tables with the exact same thing people will buy the cheapest one - even if it isn’t the most well made from my experience.
It’s so, so frustrating!
I completely agree with your points. I like these kinds of casual video too!
The amount of popular crochet items at these booths at some of the yyc events is getting so big. I understand that its very hard to be completely original but seeing the same thing over and over in a small market of clearly talented and creative individuals is getting old. Over saturation to the max
Thank you!!
I stopped doing local markets for this reason and also that it's all temu now 😭😭 why does yyc have so many temu crochet resellers maaaaan
You go girl!! This is a topic that should be presented for all creative craft arenas. I have seen this same concept of taking someone’s original pattern and tweeking it to make it their own and making money on it. For instance, there are major companies out there who sell sewing patterns for clothing etc. Now there are independent designers making and selling patterns that are very similar or the very same pattern and selling them. This also goes for knitting patterns. There must be a million different sock patterns in print and online. The ones with the most followers will get paid the most. I saw this happening a number of years ago. I knitted a paid for pattern shawl and no sooner than I had finished it I saw the exact same pattern by someone else on Ravelry and with some research found out that the one was written and on the market months before the more popular designer pattern. This stuff goes on and on. It really made me not want to put out a pattern out there for sale because of that very same ordeal. I would encourage you to put your designs out there, and make money on them, you deserve it. If you don’t someone else will. Some people can look at something that someone else came up with and come up with a pattern to sell with no problem. You put in a lot of time and thought in what you do so you should get the benefit of all that thought and work. This is my opinion and I wish you the very best. You have beautiful workmanship, keep up the good work.
Thank you for sharing!! Definitely agree on having seen these things happen. I hate it, but it is true that those with the most following and social media presence usually make the most from that pattern. Eventually it leads to scenarios where larger creators are sometimes seen taking advantage of smaller ones by reselling (or slightly modifying and then selling) their patterns. It's a big no-no but they think they can get away with it because they have a following to back them up.
I hope I never fall into that trap, and I'm lucky to have a pretty large following so I don't have to worry as much about others stealing my patterns without me knowing about it. Unfortunately it's a lot of mental upkeep 🥲
Thank you 🩷
I admit I was disappointed at first you weren't selling your patterns, but it makes sense and wholeheartedly agree with your decision. I thought about it too from my end when I considered maybe selling some stuff I am creating, though I have been on a quest to come up with things myself or ideas friends have given to me to attempt. That makes me think, maybe I should like find some art prompts to come up with new ideas. Prior to this, I kind of look at different patterns for ideas of what is out there, but I don't try to copy them but put my own spin on it based on what I love/like. I remember I was looking at tissue covers and tried to find a pattern of an idea I had, turns out no one has shared anything like it yet and I attempted to make it for myself. Also, I have noticed in a lot of the crochet videos/tiktoks that people have been sharing for markets have all been the same items. Like in a way, I see why they make them because they are fast and easy to turn out. I felt tempted to do the same, but then all it does is create more saturation of the same bee/cow design I've seen over and over. I kind of stopped watching those videos cause its starting to feel stale seeing the same designs over and over.
Thank you for sharing!! Totally agree - I do think that using other people's patterns and putting your own spin on it is a good way to learn new techniques and stitches to help make your own designs! And I definitely don't often see tissue covers that are crochet 👀✨️
Totally agree that a lot of crochet market-goers make a lot of the same thing. I can see how it happens and it's not a bad thing but it's just not the direction I want to go in!
You asked how so many people are doing the same patterns over multiple areas. Social media. The reason why we're seeing so many of the same items is because they are looking for anything that is quick to make and easy to sell. The market for blanket yarn plushies is getting oversaturated because people want to focus on what is a big seller for everyone else. To each their own, but this is why I refuse to use blanket yarn. I also refuse to make the same patterns everyone else. Instead, I use acrylic and use more complicated patterns. Will I have the massive inventory they have? No. But I am standing out from the crowd. And I'm making things I want to make. Great video. I agree 100%.
It goes for pattern makers as well. They see the trend of quick makes that'll sell easily and that is all they will sell.
Exactly why I never sold any crafts on social media since social media hit the scene. I’m a walking billboard and I sell word of mouth and craft shows
Thank you for sharing, I'm glad you can agree! I do think there is something about the nature of blanket yarn which is so plush and thick that it hides a lot of details, making lots of designs look similar!
Unfortunately that doesn’t always work…my sister only uses blanket yarn and has amazing work that she sells (thankfully a lot of)and then we have a friend that uses almost all acrylic and makes very detailed items that are also super nice but they Don’t sell…at least not here. So I really thinks it depends where you are.
@@priscillamarie1536 Of course. When it comes down to it, pretty much everything will depend on your area and your customers. For myself, I try not to do a lot of fancy items. I mostly do simple patterns, just with acrylic instead of blanket yarn.
I like your choice in gatekeeping your pattern bc you figured it out what works for your style. It's stupid that people think they're entitled to purchase it or that you're not being, lack of a better way of saying it "a girl's girl" for the community. There's been so much pattern plagiarism that happened a few months back that Made in the Moment had covered between two artists. Yes, there's only so many ways to create things and pattern out, but that creative integretiy to doing it yourself and figuring that out makes it incredibly better. I think that's why a lot of the side of the community I'm in likes Ikoxun's work, amazingishgrace, at least I do.
Thank you for sharing!! I definitely watched those videos too! When people start to claim simple patterns as their own I feel like there are a lot of problems that come with 😅 it's like.. if you came up with a pattern for a blanket and it's just a block of single crochets, it's simple enough that anyone could come up with it! If you claim something like that as your original design, and then try to take down others who have something remotely similar, it's just grasping at straws really 😵💫
The issue is.. where do you draw the line?
@@madewithapril I think where we draw the line is the type of patterns they're making. Typically blankets and general panels can be only so unique. But I feel the uniqueness comes in the intentions, materials, and what you're trying to create. Then again I view people with a set honesty view until proven otherwise. You've documented your journey online for a year plus at this point, you've done your hours in meeting these conventions with the stock you need. Even honest that people help, but these are family members and friends. Your transparency is your integrity.
Versus someone who just shows up items incredibly in stock, but there's no cohesiveness to their work. People are allowed to dabble, but if there's some disconnect on what's being sold I think it's a clear sign to be dubious of their work. It's like your previous vlog of someone comparing your shop to another and ultimately decided with your work, I'm sure despite being higher in price(?) the latter could be incorrect, but usually your gut is good at letting you know who you may want to purchase from.
Can't police everyone, likewise to artists. There're styles and things people pick up on to emulate good people. While infuriating, it's about the mentality, use it to create something better. You can tell who excel at their work because its their work. Compared to someone who emulates.
Apologies for the ramble, but that's my take.
Aloha from Hawaii 🌴 I totally agree with you. It pays to be different. You're creative so your designs will stand out. At the end of the day most just copy. There's a big difference being creative and just copying. You're definitely creative. ALOHA!
Thank you! Aloha!!
I think your points are valid, and more discussion needs to happen. I'm not a seller and I don't make patterns, so whatever I make is for personal use. I'm on a disability pension, so buying alot of patterns, especially very expensive ones, just isn't a reality. I do riff off of other peoples designs, and if something I made is similar enough and I share about it, I always acknowledge the artist. If one is going to use another artists great idea, it is just common decency to at least name drop them. I do buy alot of patterns to support creators I love too, I'm not just stealing ideas without paying. Art is a dogpile of millions of peoples great ideas, we are all inspired by one another in some way. That's the beauty of art. In some ways, I do feel competition actually fuels innovation. If one sees alot of the same thing, then it is up to them to find ways to stand out. Is it hard? Frustrating? Scary? Yes, and in the age of the internet, it's both easier and harder. I think it balances itself out in the end. I'm not selling, because of how difficult it is to sell, I have alot of compassion for those who do. It's a weedy, complex topic. I think the answer is more awareness of artists, and courtesy. Creators are always going to be inspired by another creator. Just make sure to showcase the hard work of that creator if heavily inspired, and be respectful of one another. There is a difference between being inspired, and stealing ideas for personal gain
Love your point about competition fuelling innovation and I agree so much! Thank you for sharing!!
I had an idea that this was going on within the crocheting community, but your video really brought things more into light and put it in a way that was really easy to understand. Thanks for being courageous to post this, it was really insightful! I agree on the gatekeeping, it's OKAY to gatekeep and there's absolutely no obligation to share anything about your work especially when you put so much effort, energy, and time into your work. Great video as usual!
Ahhh I'm glad it was easy to understand for people who don't crochet too 😅 I feel like a lot of people outside of the community don't know about it and I'm like ahhh we're not all the same I sweaaar 😵💫 thank you for your support fr fr 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
I 100% understand your position. I used to have another much smaller business in a different area of things and this literally sounds like a repeat of conversations had and things I've went through in that area haha. I figured it would be similar in the crochet business because I'd like to start a crochet business and while looking for product ideas I've searched the internet and I'm seeing similar happening because everything is repetitive! It's been making me less excited to start. The video you made of how to create our own flower pattern is very helpful and its much appreciated but I totally understand why gatekeeping when it comes to a business is rather important.
I love your work, and you are right, I make my own designs, but I don't sell the patterns or final product because I put a lot of work and love on them so I completely understand you, keep crocheting beautiful stuff and making things kind of videos as well! Good luck on everything you do!!! ❤
Thank you!! 🩷🩷
it's insane, i think when i first joined the crochet community it wasn't that bad... In my small country i got accepted for a comic con as well as other artists, i was suprised to see a booth almost the same as mine, the price tags, scenting the plushies and they even used some of my patterns /this person probably hates me or something, but at the same time they admire my patterns? they didn't even come up to me and say "hi, i love your patterns".../ especally the appa pattern that takes forever to make and has 20 pieces to sew they sold as mid priced plush totally undercutting my prices on purpose...
Getting undercut in your pricing sucks 😢 not to mention with comiccons and the limited space for artists, it gets harder and more competitive to get accepted when everyone sells similar goods!
A great vid! Your last one about all crochet being the same is spot on, first time I’ve tuned in to you. A lot of valid points, way too many you-tubers all promote the same things, and local crafters in my area follow right along! I despise working with blanket yarn, and much prefer the artistry of complicated patterns. Between plagerism and AI, I’m hoping good designers can keep working and stay profitable! Kudos to you for bringing it into the open!
Thank you for the support!!
WOW!!!!!! This subject is in EVERY FIELD!!!!!!! I learned this subject from a fashion designing school. I also crochet 🧶 for customers and boutiques. If an item is very popular I don't care to copy it. I'm a person who see a 💡 idea and change the design. I don't buy patterns. I sketch out ideas and look at fashion magazines, films, music videos and other inspiration. I get TIRED 😩 of the people's complaints about how their patterns are COPY!!!! I used to be in a lot of crocheting groups and I just don't be bothered with them because everyone is CROCHETING THE SAME THING!!! I remember one time I went to a crocheting get together in Chicago and I wore a crochet 🧶 scarf 🧣 that I made. I got a lot of compliments . This scarf was crochet with Chunky yarn and it was perfect for a cold day. Most of the other crocheters were using regular weight yarns. A couple asked me for the pattern and I told them to change their hook size and to try different weight of yarns. Most of all think 🤔 outside the box. The teacher of the group loved what I said. The teacher and her sister had a photo shoot and I got to help with the photo shoot. LOVE IT!!!! Life is too short worrying who stole your 💡 idea!!!! Please think outside the box. Keep up the good work 😊Robin N.Otis-Clayborne
I think the struggle really boils down to the capitalism of it all.
I mean that legitimately. The motivation for selling other people's designs as patterns or even just everybody selling the same plushies is because we're all trying to make ends meet financially.
The crochet market is kind of oversaturated right now and places like timu and wish absolutely are not helping with that. And I think one of the best things we can do as a community is try to support each other and educate customers about why shopping fast fashion dupes is so unethical.
Fully agree, education and awareness is always the first step!
It’s easy to not sell your patterns which will stop the resell of same flowers, but that doesn’t stop the people who are willing to buy your flowers and do the count stitch method and recreate your design. If you don’t have a copyright to the design, can you really stop them from copying? Would you need to publish your pattern before you can say someone copied or stole your design? Lots to think about…but not tonight, I am crocheting daisy granny squares from a pattern I bought😂. Which by the way, is exactly the same as the free ones on TH-cam. Another thing I read was if the designer is dead, after 70 years the copywrite ends. Just food for thought. 😂
To take someone’s creation and mass produce it - and not even mention or thank the real creator is wrong. I understand what you mean and I agree.
When people dont sell their pattern it only bothers me when they post but don't say they made the pattern because a lot of the time ppl post things theyve made but dont credit the original designer so it makes me wonder if they did that or theyre choosing not to credit themselves. Either way, its YOUR pattern. u have the right to not sell the pattern. your logic makes sense
also the crochet pattern sharing groups?? An instagram gc got exposed like a month or two ago of people doing that but i didnt realize it was that common. Wow
I do notice that a lot of creators forget to credit their patterns, it's frustrating for sure.
And yeah, I don't know if they have started to increase recently or what but I've gotten several DMs from people with screenshots of either my patterns in a Facebook group or people posting my photos and asking other people how they think I made something 👺
Hearing this blew my mind. I own hundreds of patterns at this point, and it would never occur to me to share them with anyone. Who could think that is right ??
Hi Tina!! I have been watching your videos for a while and I really enjoy your art and your take on things! I get where you're coming from AND I had so many thoughts during this video, I can't possibly comment them all. 😅 But just a couple things... plagiarism... I've been in the crochet and knitting communities for mmhmm years and this has been a hot button issue for a long time, even before there was such a thing as digital oatterns. I remember as a young knitter, I bought a paper pattern and I was so excited about it, I made paper copies for my knitting group. I was MORTIFIED when I realized later that I had basically stolen a bunch of copies of the pattern. I'm glad people talk about the issue because I might not have learned better if people weren't blogging about it. I just thought I was being generous! BUT obviously not everyone is going to have the same values around this issue. There are always going to be people who steal patterns and blatantly don't care. My opinion is, you can't worry about them too much. Thieves are gonna thieve, ya know? Temu is definitely going to Temu. I would rather focus on the fact that there are LOTS of people who would prefer to buy patterns and products on the up and up. And lots of people who want to support art and artitsts. I mean, just look at the whole "Taylor's Version" thing! 😂
One idea that really impacted me was Mama Made Minis posts about "community over competition". I like the idea that there's enough room for all of us in the crochet world. Maybe I'm a little too Pollyanna but I just want to see all of us crocheters succeed. A lot of us do sell similar things but I think for handmade businesses, people are buying a little bit of our individual brand flavor along with the actual items we sell.
I think deciding whether or not to sell payterns for the items you sell is a highly individual decision and you've obviously thought a lot about it! But I do recall in the past you've pointed out that you probably can't keep making and selling flowers forever just because of all the intense manual labor involved. I think about that all the time when I'm making plushies... I know there's a finite amount to what I can do and it kind of makes each one more special. So maybe you'll hold onto each of your deaigns and eventually outsource more of the work so you can keep selling physical products, or maybe someday you'll decide to stop producing the physical items and release your patterns into the world. There's a lot of possibilities!
Okay, I've rambled enough... I could have made my own video 😂 All the best!
Hahaha thank you for sharing!! I can totally see people printing and sharing patterns with absolutely no malicious intent - there have been debates about this for sure. I feel okay about people buying a pattern and sharing it with a friend but then again, where do you draw the line? 2 friends? Or 3 or 5? It's another one of the reasons I don't want to sell my patterns! The worst is when people resell a pattern for profit though 😵💫
I think when it comes time and I'm ready to 'retire'ill definitely take the time to write everything up and sell the patterns. At that point if I'm not selling physical products anymore I don't mind if people make what I make!
People see success and try to make the same thing to also be successful, instead of taking it as inspiration.
Its like small business vultures idk
I want to be nice and say sometimes it's hard to draw a line between inspiration and full on theft but the tiny guy on my shoulder is like 👹👹 it's not 🥺👹
I've given up making plushies for this very reason. Everyone sells the same things at markets and there are 10 different patterns on Etsy for the same design. Social media can be a great learning tool, but it has also created this environment where we think we need to do what everyone else is doing to be successful. I love that you've managed to carve out a unique space for yourself in the copycat world of crochet.
Amen that’s why I stopped doing sublimation. I was denied a craft show entry because other crafters now make what I make now smh. I only do juried shows like old times now
YES!! To be perfectly honest, I am so tired of constantly seeing people ask about quick makes that sell fast. I get wanting to make as much profit as you can, but stop doing the same patterns in the same yarn as everyone else. I don't understand why people don't want to stand out from the crowd.
This is also why I don't really make plushies! There are some people who do it well, and have unique ideas but I'm not one of them for that type of product so I don't pursue it!
I think I agree with most of your points, ultimately the line between inspired and copying is really hard to see. Things can be so similar and you have no idea if someone else had even seen what they are accused of copying. I notice this when looking up sewing patterns for bags, there are so many that are just exactly the same (a strange example but I have more experience with sewing.) The problem is if you feel you are being copied but that person may not even have seen yours and it then can lead to paranoia (not saying 'you' as an individual, by the way.) For instance, you mentioned if something is 90% the same as yours but also that seeing the same inspiration flower would come up with a very similar design, for me I'd say that a 10% difference from the same flower would actually be a reasonable amount and not copying. It probably depends if you see the 90% or the 10%.
I don't know if any of those thoughts connect, it is just putting thoughts out there.
Anyway, it's sad that I'd never get to buy your Silent Princess pattern as I would love to make one (I just make for myself for fun) but it makes sense and they are yours to sell or not.
Good luck at your markets and conventions!
Thank you and thank you for sharing!! I think for me, I expect there to be more differences with flowers since they're so intricate and a bit more detailed, vs something larger like sweaters or bags may have a lot more common designs freehanded between crafters. This is definitely a good example of how grey the line is though, there really isn't a good way to enforce it since everyone sees it differently!
I 100% agree on all the points mentioned in the vid . As someone who started creating patterns my biggest worry is creating a pattern that has been over done. I always try to make patterns based off things i personally like so there isn't an issue of being over done. I always double check that i haven't just made a pattern that has been over done to death. It is actually crazy the amount of people that just copy patterns and portray them as their own. I find it really hard to create new patterns for new things due to the mass amount of copying. Not to mention when a pattern goes popular similar patterns arise which in turn can kill creativity in the crochet art space. And if you do create something new and unique you will be hounded down to " release a pattern" when its ok to to gatekeep sometimes. Not everything has to be shared. There are large companies that have trade secrets that they do not share with the public and there is never a huge outrage that the secret wasn't shared with the class. However as soon as it comes to pattern designs or unique ideas there is always so much drama and hate that us as small business owners or artists have to share every last detail on how we created it, when in fact we do not have to.
I do think the reason on why at least in the crochet community this isn't talked about enough is the toxic positivity culture that has been created around small businesses. In YYC there has been a huge amount in increase of crochet businesses ( which is ok) I think the issue is the popularity in designs and ppl making the same thing as other booths creating higher competition and then not pricing your products what they are worth which creates a disconnect in the whole community. The toxic positivity comes through and it portrays it as easy to have a business because "all small business" share their resources. In the event when we want to gatekeep is where the drama occurs and starts to spread. There is laws for copyright infringement and creative commons work but i feel when it come to crochet most people throw this out the window and do not care.
sorry for the mini rant
Love the rant hahaha sometimes it's necessary!
Totally agree on your point about competition between small businesses. I always want to support fellow local businesses and also fellow crochet artists, but ultimately, sometimes we are competition and that's okay! But at the same time, it's hard to deal with getting undercut and selling the same products. It's hard to find a balance and that's part of running a business - it's when people get fussy about it that things can get messy.
I do agree with what you said about the lack of originality when it comes to crochet pattern writers, BUT! For me, and that's my opinion as someone who sells their crochet patterns, I reach a lot more people when I take a crochet pattern and change a few details to make another pattern. A lot of people don't read pattern descriptions and only buy based on the first picture they see. I also like to offer one pattern that has, let's say, 5 different style options, and then sell one pattern for each individual style (for cheaper of course). Some people prefer a cheap option, while others prefer package deals. I try to make it as clear as possible in the description of those patterns that they can get all 5 style options for a little bit more money to avoid them buying all the styles separately.
I have a pattern for a matching hand warmer and leg warmer set, and i have a pattern for each item separetly because some people don't want to do leg warmers, etc. However, if i see someone purchase both items separetly, I will initiate a partial refund because it's not fair for them to pay more. I will say though, I don't think every crochet artist is willing to be transparent about stuff like that, so yea. That's just my opinion, I do agree that tweaking one thing and reselling a new pattern feels fucky, you have to be a responsible artist about it lol
Thank you for sharing, I totally understand that point of view! It's been frustrating for me as well to try faster patterns and some non crochet items to pad my table that take a lot less time. For me, I end up making tons of lavender and eucalyptus because they don't take as long and are at a lower price point for customers.
At the same time, they're more common designs that everyone has some variation of. Definitely hard to find a balance between this and being unique sometimes!
I agree with probably 95% of what you were saying.
The thing about the animal keychains is a little broad versus someone doing just dog keychains of different breeds.
I was surprised at someone copying your exact set-up.
I know when I am searching for patterns I try and make sure I am getting it from the actual designer. It’s very tempting to want to buy the hundreds of patterns for very cheap adds while having a low craft budget. I also hate that places make it difficult for stolen patterns to be reported. I have come across several pictures of patterns that I know belong to their original designers places they should be but can’t report it because I am not the designer.
Yeah, it's definitely hard to draw a line!
And omg yes agreed. It's the worst when someone steals a pattern and then uses THE SAME PHOTO to try and sell that pattern 😭
I love your ramble! And totally get exactly what you mean. You can't share everything with everyone. ❤❤❤
Thank you!!
Just saying though becareful not to put some people into the plagerisim category because a lot of older people and others like me taught as children by older people were taught how to look at things crochet or not and recreate it without a pattern because crochet didn’t really have patterns it was done off the hook. So a lot of people like me don’t use patterns at all they just see and make for them selves. Knitting is a pattern field but crochet is and always has been a free for all because it’s simple stitches put together to make a shape and some people have been taught how to make anything from just a few stitches. If you ask any old lady in the uk for a pattern to crochet something they will say why don’t you just make it if you can crochet you can just make it. This is because they can’t see how someone couldn’t recreate anything if they were taught.
I feel there is a difference between an artist and a maker. The artist has different core values to their business model.
A crafter/maker will crochet large volumes of simple items to sell. That’s why the patterns are often repeated. The simplicity and popularity of the items drives the maker to focus on profit and trends.
Also
I don’t design patterns to sell because I’m not a proficient pattern writer.
I think all these models work together in the community.
i see what you mean, i make Cro-Knit patterns of my flowers . i dont sell them online because i wanna keep as original as possible. ill have customers ask me if i sell my patterns and i tell them no. anytime i come up with an idea i check to see if it has been created. this world is just not original anymore , sadly! its the world we live in :(
i love your videos! thank you for all your creativity !!!!
Thank you and thank you for sharing!!
As a scientist in the making, plagiarism and other form of copying without giving proper credits to the original owner of the information is ultimately making you a person with no credibility. I am trying to follow this in crochet. Yes, I am not a designer, I am not capable of creating my own work (though I keep practicing).
I am following in your footsteps in becoming a flower crochet shop as I haven't seen as many shops in the UK, but I never ever did something without giving proper credit.
I respect you so so much and you are teaching me a lot of new things about crochet. I am planning to make my own flowers as I have seen that they don't currently exist. :)
Thank you so much!! I come from a medical research background as well and omg maybe that's why I'm so peeved about plagiarism 😂
It's not as simple as oops I copied someone, plagiarism in science is a BIG DEAL! But enforcing these rules is what gives people credibility!!
@madewithapril it does make sense now doesn't it! :D
The fact that I was literally just thinking about this very topic and was like, dude it should not be so villainized to gatekeep if ppl so choose to do so
RIGHT idk why it's like that 😭
@@madewithapril Yep 100%. Yet there are so many accusations of being "selfish" and "gatekeeping" when it is good business sense.
I just want to add my 2 cents about one thing. I think that you, Tina, are an artist. People who make their own patterns are artists, while I consider myself a crafter, as I work from other peoples patterns that i buy. So, the way you think about ideas being stolen is very different from the people who crochet similar things for markets. I don't generally have the patience to create an original pattern (though its on my to do list). But mostly, i just want to crochet and not be bothered by figuring out something new.
Also, just to be clear, i don't disagree with anything you said, necessarily, i just wanted to give a different perspective.
Ahh I love this perspective!! (Or do I just like being called an artist HAHA)
Love the idea of pattern creators being called artists and makers being called crafters. I do think that while everyone is still an artist and still a crafter, this is a great perspective to take - and a great way to see how people view pattern theft differently. It's also different for people who don't even have an interest in selling their makes.
Thank you for sharing!!
I completely agree with you!!! I have the same business model as you and a lot of the plushies I sell are my own patterns that others don't have access to. I consider my business a success so far, and I'm sure gatekeeping helps a lot...they can't find my products elsewhere.
Love that!!
Omg you verbalized a lot of my thoughts in this video 😩 I can't wrap my head around people wanting to duplicate and then selling my designs especially with how unique they are. I would feel so awkward seeing someone selling the exact same design at a con/market. Designs get stolen whether we sell the patterns or not.
RIGHT like I purposely go out of my way to avoid looking the same as other people 😭😭
I was thinking about what you said about gatekeeping a bit vs making things that others sell too. I have only original things on my stand, except a bunch of leggy froggies and octo's, but they sold the best. Which really annoyed me, but I suddenly realized that people buy familiair things, because they saw them before and started liking them through exposure. Its just like how trends develop. Socks in sandals, see it often enough and they become normalized and eventually you might start liking them.
But thats just my two cents.
Ouu this is a good perspective and I never thought about it this way!! Thank you!!
people ask me all the time if i make my items or if they are resale from amazon or temu . its kinda sad that they cant tell the difference, in my general area there is three ladies , myself being one of them and the other two resale from temu ... they buy for cheap and sell for more. im sorry im just ranting out my fustration on here i cant post it on my social media so i need to write it out somewhere .
It's more and more common these days and I hate it 😭 hopefully the trend passes soon so they stop doing it and move on to the next thing but man, I wish there was an easier way for people to tell.
Intelectual property are going to be always a tricky moral subject. The lines between inspiration, and copy are blurry and depends on the eyes of the viewers, some people more exposed to other designs can tell if something has more or less inspiration of other project, but that's not the majority of people. I could say that the key is to be the more original that you can but I have heard designers like PicaPau complaining about their designs being stolen or replicated in tutorials. It seems like the only persons who respect the work of the designers are the people who want to be designers too, that's sad.
your feelings are absolutely valid ❤❤
I get you and get what you’re saying. As for me, I have never bought a pattern or bought a crocheted item because I know I can make it myself. So I can never spend on something I know I can make myself. Or perhaps I just haven’t found an crocheted item that I love enough to spend my money on. However, I have also never thought to profit off my crochet..because I know that there’s a majority of people who think like I do. They’d rather make it themselves than buy off someone else. And for reasons that you’ve stated, the crochet community is ambiguous on its rules on ownership and plagiarism so I find it a hassle to dabble on that.
When I find a cute crochet pattern, i try to replicate that and use that item lovingly and purposefully, and that brings me joy. But I know not everyone stops at that, and most would try to profit off stuff they didn’t originally create. So yeah, i get you.
Thank you! It's also different when you're not selling it, I think when it's just for personal use I'm a lot more lenient on whether people copy me. Ultimately, it's still not good but if you're just replicating it for your own room decor and not selling or sharing it then no harm is really done.
@@madewithapril Thank you. I was a bit hesitant to post my comment, because ultimately, I am taking inspiration from creators who sell their work, sometimes I could even copy it stitch by stitch. In a sense I am contributing to the ambiguity of ownership in the crochet/knitting community. But that’s just how it is for most of us, especially spendthrifts like me.
When someone comments on my work, (like did I make it etc), if I remember, I’d refer them to the artist and pattern, but most of the time I’d say I copied it off youtube. So it’s real hard to give credit where credit is due if the stuff is free on the internet. So I totally support you not handing out patterns or pattern tutorials for free or paid. Because as you said, once a paid pattern is shared it becomes free for all. Most just doesn’t care about stuff like copyright or pattern ownership. It’s a matter of personal moral integrity - to give credit where credit is due, but sadly this principle is almost disregarded in crochet communities, generally.
Girl you are not getting cancelled!!! Lol
As someone who doesn’t have many followers or any patterns yet I have always found it weird how many people in the crochet community think of it only as a “we share it all” type of thing and not as an actual business. This really needs to be talked about more because yes, you can make a living out of crochet but we gotta be smarter. In the end business is business. Also we are seeing more and more people just copy and paste patterns and sell it like its theirs and we are even seeing these patterns being mass produced and people who have no idea about crocheting are selling them. Anyways, hope that made sense. Love you videos! ❤
That all makes sense and I agree! I don't know how to enforce it but we definitely need to be more aware of pattern copying. Thank you for watching!!
To take someone’s creation and mass produce it - and not even mention or thank the real creator is wrong. I understand what you mean and I agree. Keep on being creative and gatekeep your business. And please register and copyright your creations. It’s your property and don’t let someone copy your work and earn big money on mass production of it. Sending you love and light ❤
Thank you!! Unfortunately it's too expensive and time consuming for someone at my scale to register and copyright my designs, but I'll do my best to keep going!
Aww Tina thank you so much for sharing dragonfly pattern
Thank you and thank you for the support! That sucks about the keychains 😢
I really appreciate this video. I crochet but don't make patterns because well.. I suck at it, I really love your flowers and I would love to make my own but I totally understand your point of view. It's rather sad that in the crochet community everything is copied but unfortunatly I don't think it will be ending soon. I must say I'm probably also very guilty of plagiarism even though I didn't realise it at the time (by this I mean I crocheted items and sold them), I was just happy to share my creation even though not my own pattern with someone else. I'll also probably be guilty of this in the future but I never copy someone's design that hasn't been released like you mentioned with your flowers. I feel like I'm rambling so I'll stop.
Have a very nice day!
I agree that it won't stop soon, unless we do something about it!! The community ultimately determines what is socially acceptable or not so we have the ability to raise awareness about these issues too!
@@madewithapril Totally, awereness is always the first big step en I love that you made a video about it ❤
People have a lack of respect for artist ownership. So sad that it happens on all types of art media. 😢
Idk what the experience has been like for others, but I know that i need a few of those super common, super easy makes, because they can be sold at such a low price point. And I absolutely hate making them, I'm making octopi right now in fact. I prefer making larger, more complicated amigurumi, and those have a large price tag on them, so they don't sell nearly fast enough to make markets worth it for me. So it's like a Catch 22, where I need to make these awful little things, so I can continue supporting myself, and making bigger items.
I'm at least trying to avoid as much overlap as possible, so I've been sticking with less common makes, to help avoid showing up to a market with a huge overlap of inventory with other artists. But it's really so draining to have to struggle to find or create a unique enough pattern that I can sell for a low price to pay off my table fees, lol. If I see one more loaf cat (a pattern which has been around for a DECADE) on insta, I'm going to scream. There's just so many of them everywhere, I absolutely loathe them
Thank you for sharing, I totally understand that point of view! It's been frustrating for me as well to try faster patterns and some non crochet items to pad my table that take a lot less time. For me, I end up making tons of lavender and eucalyptus because they don't take as long and are at a lower price point for customers.
At the same time, they're more common designs that everyone has some variation of. Definitely hard to find a balance between this and being unique sometimes
im only a hobbyist but if i posted an original pattern plushie i made and ppl get mad at me for not sharing my pattern i'd be rly upset. cuz i dont wanna bear the responsibility of sharing a pattern that hasnt been tested for mistakes and potentially disappoint someone that used my pattern and dont get the desired outcome. besides i dont have the time or connections to make sure i can create replicable patterns. i feel like ppl underestimate how much work goes into making something from scratch, yet get angry when ppl refuse to make the pattern available due to whatever reason :///
I don't agree with this limited or scarcity mindset and putting so much worry into competition. Nature works on principles of abundance. We can help help each other out AND all make money. There is plenty of pie to go around
I can definitely see where you're coming from! The crochet community does have a lot of people who love to help each other positively, and it's the way competition drives negativity in aspects like plagiarism that irks me!
You just reminded me of this creator of tumblers on Instagram that told everything she did, exactly how she did, and even the list of products she used (brand and other specifications), and people still got mad at her, some saying she didn't share enough, others saying she shared too much! There is no way to please everyone, so we might as well do what we want (craftwise).
omg that's crazy 😭 it's the worst to when you do share and people just don't read it and keep nagging gah
The real problem is greed. One person wants to make a quick buck. So the mass produce and underprice their work. This hurts the whole market. Then we have a group of people without any respect for others work and skill. They buy a pattern and seem to think they have some kind of ownership. They give that pattern to their firend because they share everything and on and on. So that designer has not only lost sales, but they have also lost their credentials. I dont sell my patterns anymore. I absolutely love teaching and helping people to expand their knowledge. I was teaching at a local college. I didnt get hired for the next semester. Turns out a student of mine took my whole class, patterns and all, agreeded to work for less and the college sold me out.
There’s Facebook groups where people share paid patterns?! 😮
I’ve never heard of this but that’s horrible!!!! I worked on a complex crochet mandala square and my stitch count on the rounds was totally off; I wanted to ask my TH-cam c o hey friend for help but the idea of sending her the pattern or parts of the pattern felt so wrong so I didn’t do that!!!
When people resell paid or free patterns or share patterns that they did not create it makes me very made!!! It’s so mean and really hurts the original creator.
I bought a pattern on Etsy once and realized that the pattern was stolen from another designer. Luckily I had also purchased the pattern from the original person; but I was so mad when I found out I unintentionally supported someone who stole a pattern!!
Unfortunately yes there are! Lots of pattern sharing clubs that justify it by saying they can't afford that many patterns or that they're only sharing it with their friends. I try to understand it from their perspective but at some point, public groups and super large ones are just not cool 😭
I only sell the stuff i kake from patterns that say i can. I have never really seen a pattern say you cant sell the finished make...they just ask for credit...i think a lot of pattern makers know people are buying their patterns specifically to sell the finished products :)❤
Well, I wouldn’t say that your are wrong but there are also aspects that are things that you need to realize about the way the world works. No, you don’t have to give out your exact patterns and people shouldn’t plagiarize, but if a product comes out in the world that there is a demand for, then people will try and replicate and improve on it. Ford Motors were the first ones to make cars and now there are cars everywhere. You keep improving and staying ahead of the game and creating more and expanding more and that is how you stay ahead and win in the game. This is the nature of anything in commerce. That being said, paid patterns shouldn’t just be posted for free other places. Because that it like just selling someone’s art prints.
I see your point! I definitely need to stay on top of it by continuing to keep making new designs and perhaps expanding my product line!
@@madewithapril and your design is beautiful. I have looked up a lot of crochet flowers and yours are very unique and detailed. To me they are higher quality than most!
@@Ldmm1983 Thank you so much!!
Some good ways I have seen to protect your intelectual property is offering tutorials, just for limited time, so you anticipate that the only payment you're going to recive is for that first time, I have seen people making a good amount of money that way.
I saw a crocheter comment on a designer's Instagram that they bought their pattern (but didn't make it), instead her daughter released a reworked version of the pattern and released it as her own.
I've changed how I buy patterns and appreciate a talented designer over someone who pumps out basic designs for the quickest market sales.
I love how your business and flowers have evolved and always excited to watch the adventures of you and your friends at cons
Yikes, that's a big no-no 😭 I feel like there are definitely people with this mindset though and it turns into 50 variations of the same pattern, and the original creator gets totally ripped off 😵💫
Thank you so much for your support!!
This is exactly why I don’t post everything I make. I’ve had other crocheters at markets literally start making something I’ve posted right after I post about it. These are crocheters that go to the same markets as me. They’ll also undercut prices and use the excuse that they’re in a “small community” while literally living in the Phoenix, AZ metro area, lol. Nowhere in the Phoenix area is a “small community.” The one in particular that I’m thinking of doesn’t post her location so people don’t actually know where she is and she doesn’t post the location of her markets. I just try to stay as unique as possible. I stay away from the typical mushroom boys, leggy froggys, octopus, etc. I’ve also started to stay away from the creators with large followings patterns because everyone uses them.
It does sometimes feel like I see one cool thing on my explore page and then suddenly I see a hundred variations of the exact same thing- lately it's been the crochet calico critters 😅
omg I've totally had the same experience with people undercutting my prices - I was at a market once with someone selling a lot of the same products as me and their prices were all the same as mine minus $3, to the point that she had definitely looked mine up before 😭 how was every single one $3 off??!
I saw another crochet youtuber saying that she thinks it would be so cute for people to set up "create your own bouquet" set up with different crochet flowers in different buckets🙃 I swore she saw your set up and was describing it perfectly. I was like HEY Tina does that!! Lol 😂
It's honestly so common now that I see it all the time and even though I don't remember anyone else doing it when I started, I can't necessarily claim that as my thing - at the same time it does irk me a little when their set up is exactly like mine 😅 it is what it is sometimes, maybe I'll try to change up the graphics or add something somewhere to make myself stand out!!
Exactly this! I was just discussing this today 🎉
Hiiiiii, it mila here! (from TikTok) How are you? ❤love your vids!❤❤
❤
Thank you!!
Do you think people that do garments have a wider range in pattern design?
I don't make a lot of clothes but I've seen lots of drama with pattern copying with it 🥲 I think with basic pieces it's hard to claim a design, especially when it's just one or two stitches throughout the whole piece.
Exactly why I sell my wares at craft shows since 2011
💯‼️ I agree with every word.
Also... "Tired Ramblings with Tina" a podcast I'm here for 😁
A canadian crocheter i can follow ♡
Thank you!!
as a brazilian crocheter, ever since I started to watch market prep videos here on youtube I get legit horrified about how EVERY PLUSHIE looks the same!!! like dude 😭 I think its so sad because I cant even tell people apart If their photos dont have a watermark or something
Here on Brazil I see a lot more contrast between crafters, even when we have the same style. I believe this has a lot to do with chenille yarn too. i think maybe using it limitates creativity a little bit, it seems like for some crafters the plushie being made of fluffy yarn is just enough lol
100% agree about chenille yarn! I see the same thing in Canada too with a lot of similar plushies. While it's fine when starting out, I would love if people tried more complicated or unique designs even with chenille yarn!
And also from this 8:59 they'd have a choice to buy from a seller who sold the product for less but yours is priced higher or well cause you made the pattern but non crocheters would not know that and are lowkey cheap so they'd buy from the cheaper finished product
Ooh I also found two Etsy shops that sell the exact same patterns and they seem to have the same owner so I got really suspicious 🤨 that one of the shops might be stealing. I messaged one of the sellers (the one whose patterns were priced higher) and they said both shops are legit. But idk it just didn’t sit right with me and I felt like I should avoid both shops just incase one of them is stealing from the other and copying the shop owner profile picture.
It's hard to say, I wouldn't be surprised if they all had multiple etsy accounts in case one got banned.
to be honest i love this "tired rants" lol
(i am from chile for context)
i also make and sell crochet flowers, but i personally i feel pretty bad if i am selling similar stuff from others, and i wish more people feel the same at least sometimes lol
even if i make flowers from a tutorial or feel inspired from yours or others creators flowers, i should not do the same or even similar, like thats wrong
there are a lot of people here tho that sell amigurumis, and yeah they all sell pretty much the same stuff, i wish people tried to put themself in others shoes, because trying to do different stuff and then someone go and do the same without shame is so exausting
and i have a little story here to vent a little lol
one day i was in a market for mothers day, and a lady come asking if a had sunflowers, at the time i didnt have yellow or the right shade of brown to make one, so i told them that i didnt make sunflowers yet, but then she goes "you should make them, they sell well", at he moment i said "oh thanks for the advice hehe" but i was weird out, like why they say that, i should be the one who decide if i sell them or not, right?
then i market after, a friend of my mom told me something kinda similar, that people liked sunflowers and they sell pretty well, but then realize, that they not sell things because they liked doing it, it was just to sell people what the people wanted, as if the customer control their shop or something
i am still i little piss off from that, i like sunflowers but i didnt want to make them to please other people
but i recently made one trying not to look the same as all the others ive seen, in hopes to not get mad at poor sunflowers lol
Thank you for sharing! The sunflower story is definitely relatable, sometimes something will sell well but I hate making it or I just don't feel like I like it a lot. It's really hard for me to get motivated about making them when that happens 😅
I do often feel conflicted about which designs to pursue when it comes to what I like vs what i think the customer wants!
I totally agree with the artist alley video point. Like they are nice but man ever since people started posting those videos, legit no one can get into artist alley anymore unless you have like 100k followers or a youtube channel because right now it seems like it's the same people who are making those AA vids that are the only ones getting in shows back to back. It's crazy out there.
I know right! I'm still learning about it all and I definitely think I've gotten really lucky with a lot of my admissions. Notably, I also think I'm lucky because I'm applying in a category (3D handmade) that's a little less competitive than most of artist alley.
It's tough out here!!
my new favorite conspiracy theory: big yarn is behind all the views on how much the creators make at market shows. They want us all believing we can make it with a couple of octopi and a big show stopper item so that those of us looking for a side hustle will be convinced we can do something with a hundred or so dollars worth of fuzzy yarn. its big yarn yanking all our chains.
HAHA this reminds me of the Big Milk controversy 😂 If big yarn wants to sponsor me maybe I'll start selling some cheap acrylic yarn patterns to level out all the chenille 😂😂 /s
people that post their actual income in their videos is putting a target in their back for potential theft and robbery to happen. its already a concern of mine that someone can just target you at a show and just take all your money.
RIGHT I'm lowkey so nervous every time
@@madewithapril i low key carry my cutter or hammer around
0:05 🇺🇲Hawaii🤙 😻
I agree with you. It may be frowned upon, but why would you tell everyone all your company's workings? You took the time and energy to research and learn what it takes to be successful. If people get so salty about you not telling them exactly how to take away your business, that's their problem. Those lazy people need to find their own style and success, not steal yours.
Thank you for the support!!
Wait, what? Someone literally copied your entire business concept right next to you at the same market?
They weren't right next to me but they were at the same market!
I find it funny because she is gatekeping. I tried to buy her patterns to start my own small business where I sell other peoples patterns online. She also likes to try and subtly make people feel dumb by saying things like TLDR. Sorry Tina, not all of us went to college. I’m too embarrassed to even ask what that means.
you sell other peoples patterns? Thats so not okay 💀
wait what that's so messed up
Sell other people patterns is not ok…wth! and if u don’t know what a word means google is free look it up 😂
imagine being so salty you spent $10 to whine about not being able to resell someone's pattern... the brain rot is real here. TLDR is not COLLEGE MATERIAL, dude. It means 'too long, didn't read'. Google it.
HAHAHA JOE YOURE ABOUT TO GET SO MUCH HATE (he is trolling I swear) thanks Joe 🩷🩷🩷 I appreciate u
Your feelings are valid. So is your hard work and dedication. I respect the gatekeeping. 🫶🫶🫶
Girl sell them for 500$ or 1k and you’ll see that they will stop asking why you don’t sell em 🫠🙂↕️
😂 I should lmaoo