Do you think it's kosher to sell a finished product from a free pattern?

[Rachel Firestone]

Ok, I've been wondering this since I started crocheting. I'm a stay at home mom and I have 3 kids. My hubby works but we could definitely use another income. And I would love to make some kind of income from my crafting and crochet. I don't want him working any more than he is, because then he loses family time and we have a 9 month old son. My question is, If a free pattern does NOT ask that you not sell the finished product from their pattern, would you feel comfortable selling it? I've done a little searching and found that pattern designers have rights to the pattern/written instructions, but not the end result. But if I got a free pattern or a paid pattern that asked me not to sell the finished item, I would not sell it out of respect for the designer. And I don't want that kind of negative publicity and I'm not a dishonest person.

 

I would love to be able to design my own patterns, but I don't think I have a good enough understanding of the stitches and techniques of crochet to design my own, say, amigurumi (which I thoroughly enjoy making).

 

I, personally, wouldn't care what people did with the end product if I provided a pattern for the public. I just wouldn't want people to sell or distribute my pattern except through me and what ever means I chose to sell or offer my pattern. Like, if I chose to offer a free pattern of my own design through Craftsy.com, I'd want it only offer through there. But people would be more than welcome to link back to the site when telling people where they got the pattern.

 

So how do you feel about this subject? What about YouTube? I have yet to notice anyone's disclaimer stating the end product should not be sold. I'm guessing because the instructions are not written?

 

I would like to note that I have not sold, nor given away anything I have crocheted. Everything I've made so far has been put in a drawer or given to my kids

[Rachel Firestone]

Lol, thank you for your input. I definitely agree. I would never sell, nor share anyone's pattern, period. Whether free or paid for. If someone asked me if I could give them the pattern for something I sold them or something I posted on facebook to show off what I made and it wasn't my pattern, I'd simply direct them to the exact site that I downloaded it from. I can't ethically share someone else's pattern. It's like the golden rule. If I made a pattern, I wouldn't want someone sharing the instructions with someone else. I would, however, love for them to tell the person where to find my pattern.

 

The only one's I would give instructions for is from companies like Red Heart, where their patterns are free to use and sell. They don't care if you sell the finished work. Let's say I buy a skein of yarn and the pattern is on the inside of the label, I'd share that, and of course tell the person where the pattern came from. But usually, in cases like that, they also have the pattern on their website, so to save me time on writing, I'd probably just send the person a link to the pattern lol.

 

And I'd love to see your patterns! If you give me permission to sell the finished work, that would be fantastic. And of course, I would credit you for the pattern if I sold any I will never take credit for someone else's work. I think that is SO wrong on so many levels.

[Ginger Morgan]

Hi! Brand new here, but my 2 cents: IF the pattern maker asks that you don't sell your finished items made with their pattern, then ethically, you should not sell those items. Nor should the pattern be re-sold or given away (if you ever write down pattern, its hard work to keep it readable & makeable!)

If you get a free pattern, then you should not sell the pattern, or offer it as your own, but items made with it could be sold.

Asking the pattern maker if you are in doubt is good karma. And I think they would be flattered to be asked anything about their terrific pattern (hint, hint).

Good luck!