Selling Items Made Using Someone Else’s Pattern
First and foremost, I’m going to answer the real question:
Yes, you can sell finished items made from my patterns. Any pattern. But like most designers, I would like credit for my hard work.
As a rule of thumb, you should always put “Pattern by www.hookedbykati.com” (or the name of the designer) on your tags or listings for the finished items. This shows the designer you value their work and that you are not taking credit for the design.
Crediting and linking back to the designer also protects you from accidentally lying by omitting that verbiage. Leaving the designer’s information off of the tag implies that you designed the item, and MAY make you vulnerable to legal action from the designer. It could be argued that you claimed ownership of the pattern itself and are, therefore, selling their intellectual property as your own.
Technically, unless the designer has gone through the extensive process of specifically Copyrighting the finished products, you can sell finished products made by any pattern out there as long as you make it known that you did not design it.
My belief is that the PATTERN belongs to the designer. The ART belongs to the artist.
Give credit to the designer for his/her work. Take credit for your craftsmanship.
Respect the Pattern Designer
You MAY sell the finished items from a pattern you purchased from a designer or found for free on their blog or website.
You MAY NOT copy that pattern and give copies to your friends, make a few changes to the pattern and call it your own, or use it in a class and give away copies of the pattern to students. The written words of the pattern are the intellectual property of the designer and any time they change hands, the designer should see the profit, not you.
You MAY NOT use the designers photography of his/her finished items to sell your finished items. You should represent your product truthfully to your customers, so your photos should be of work YOU completed with your hands. Never use someone else’s work as your example. You are certain to end up with customers who feel you misrepresented the product.
The Best Way To Approach the Designer
Here is a tip for when you do decide to use someone else’s pattern for your craft fair or Etsy shop:
PLEASE SEND THEM A THANK YOU NOTE!
Write a thank you note for the pattern and tell them how much you love it. Mention that you will be adding their credit to the tags at your upcoming local craft fair, or better yet, a link to their website so others can find this great pattern. Share where you are selling it and a little about your business.
A thank you note will prevent the possible knee-jerk reaction when they see their pattern at a craft fair (made by your hook) and feel that itchy possessiveness over it. It feels like it belongs to them, especially if you are great artist and you do it just like they would have. But a thank you will often make seeing the finished product a joy instead of a shock.
It’s Hard To Let Go Of The Pattern
Be understanding of the newer designers who are having a hard time letting go of their perception that they need to have some control over the end product. It is hard to put a piece of your heart out there and hope that people respect you for it and don’t try to take credit for it.
By letting them know you are using their pattern and that you are giving them credit for their idea (or even helping promote their designs), they will be reassured that you are not out to steal their pattern.
Do it to be kind, not because the law requires it.
And, as a designer, I love to hear from people who are selling items made from my patterns! I love to hear how they did at a show, or to see pictures of your finished work. And I would love to know where they are selling, so when I travel, I can watch for them, or better yet, meet you and admire your stitchwork. 🙂
Yarn on, people!
Kati
Kati is the designer behind Hooked by Kati. With thousands of patterns sold around the world, Kati prides herself in creating innovative, easy-to-follow amigurumi patterns. She has designed for several publications, including Crochet!, Crochet World, Simply Crochet, and I Like Crochet. Kati finds her inspiration in science fiction, video games, and numerous visits to the zoo — all passions she shares with her husband and two boys.
i loved the article it was really in formative and helpful! Especially as i am trying to start my own small crochet business. and it’s stupid not to give credit to the pattern designer. even if you have bought the pattern.
I am curious. All this is incredibly helpful but I would like a little bit more clarification on one specific thing. My husband is in the military and it makes things easier with me working from home which is why I decided to open an Etsy shop. I am still very new and most of the sales I’ve made are from family and friends. I was wondering, when they say you are allowed to sell your finished works does that mean you have to make the item first and then you can sell it or is it ok to do a made to order? since my shop is so new, I don’t want to go and spend hours making a bunch of things that I just don’t know if they’ll sell or not. I will always credit the designer out of respect and thanks for their hard work creating a design I love. I will use my own photos to showcase what I MADE, what is the point if you are showing off someone else’s work and not your own. I appreciate that you took the time to explain all this, it really was quite helpful.
You can make a listing for custom pieces, but having a few examples of your work is a good option, and having some popular designs premade is the best way to get your shop noticed.
I feel if you follow a pattern you find and like, after you have crochet it, you can do as you like with it. if I sold any crochet work I would tell people where I followed the pattern from of course, but I did this work myself and wouldn’t take credit for inventing it. If I choose to gift my work you should be able to no problem. I would not crochet and take credit on someone’s pattern. That’s not cool!
I have a question about free patterns. I am thinking of uploading tutorials for free patterns that I like, but I feel conflicted beause yes, I am making my own video with one or two more methods to help the learner, useing a pattern that is free and is not my own. I hope this makes sense and thanks in advance
Make sure you contact the owner of the pattern even though it is a free pattern. let them know you would like to make a video using their pattern and give them credit in the video for the use of the pattern. Also thank them for letting you use the pattern and let them know when you plan on releasing the video so they can watch and possibly subscribe to your channel. I recently got in touch with a pattern designer about the background stories she adds to her pdfs and blogs for her patterns that she should make them into small books to sell with her patterns as a stand alone book or as a printable book to go her pdf patterns. That way when a person purchases her pattern with the book pdf they can print the book to give with the animal plushie as an extra gift. The stories are about encouraging kids to be who they are and not follow the crowd.
Wow! I was thinking that I was glad I hadn’t sold anything when I came across the word “donated”. Never sold anything in my life but before I became quadriplegic I knit and crocheted literally hundreds of chemo caps. I often combined techniques but I’m pretty sure I never bought a pattern for this project. Actually many of the ones I used were posted on online bulletin boards which were popular when I started doing this. I can’t imagine anyone sueing you for using a pattern for charity, but I guess every thing is possible!