In a message dated 11/09/2003 23:25:41 GMT Daylight Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> This led to the question from one of my students as to how to get > permission if all you have seen is a pattern a friend is working which > you would like to work, with a name of someone you have never heard of > and that is someone ordinary, not famous, so you haven't got a clue how > to contact the copyright owner to ask for permission to make or buy a > legal copy... Spiders, Lukily, quite a few designers put both their name and their address onto their patterns - certainly Vivienne from Biggins does and I for one, can remember who I bought patterns from because there are only so many designers and suppliers who sell individual patterns. My concern comes with patterns which are 'out of print' either because the designers have retired (or worse still died) or because the supplier is no longer in business. This is when we have issues. For instance, I have quite a few Joan Kelly patterns (and yes, Russel, I'm trying to work out which ones I have and which ones you still have to get the difference) however, Joan has stopped designing and selling her patterns and the one supplier that I know who has any of her's only has a few left - and certainly, some of my patterns weren't on the available list. So, what do I do if one of my friends or students like a pattern I have but Russel can't supply it? That's where the problems really start because I know who designed it, I know who supplied it but I can't get another copy. Part of me thinks, what the heck. But most of me thinks simply that there are enough patterns in the world that if one isn't available, will the person really die if they don't make it? For example, I had a pattern from the lace guild (yonks old) which was for a piece of Bucks about 1" in diameter and meant to go into a broach or locket - however, this was just the right size to make as a table centre for my mum's dolls house. So I did. When her friend bought a dolls house, mum really wanted me to make the piece again so that she could give it to her friend. However, I couldn't, at that time, find the pattern and also I didn't really want them both to have the same piece of lace, I thought it would be nice if they had similar but differnt unique pieces. Why? Because neither lady is likely to be given a piece of lace by anyone else so why shouldn't it be different. So I went through my books and found another piece which was very similar in size and idea but a slightly differnt pattern. In other words, I just made something different. And for those of you who have always wanted to design - here is a thought - I remember making Joan Kelly's basket for my mum. A friend at my lace group liked the pattern but wanted to make a bigger basket, so she sat down and designed her own one. When she finished, it looked nothing like Joan Kellys' - the pattern of the torchon was completely different but she had used the idea as inspiration. Also, she learned a lot from the process - like trying to get the outer lace strip to the circumferance fit the base - after two redesigned she realised that she could just enlarge or reduce using a photocopier. I still subscribe to the principle that I have too many patterns for one life time so if I can't make that, then I'll make this. But, and this is the big one, I do realise that for many people, when they start making lace, seeing a piece that someone else is making is often the inspiration to 'have a go' and I do not want to see that lost - so that makes the quandary. Regards Liz Beecher I'm <A HREF="http://journals.aol.com/thelacebee/thelacebee";>blogging</A> now - see what it's all about - To unsubscribe send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help, write to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
