Very, Very, OT- But need a variety ofopinions on something not WL related

So, I enjoy being crafty, and have toyed with the idea of crafting and selling some things to friends and acquaintances, maybe possibly online at some point.  

Here is the tricky part.  I am an avid Pinterest browser and have pinned a slew of tutorials on different crafts ( to be clear, theses are tutorials with step-by-step instructions about how to make something).  If I use the tutorials as inspiration to create my own items, would it be unethical to sell them, since the original idea is not my own?  I do not intend to make exact replicas, the items would have my own influence with changes in things like colours, textures, embellishments, etc... But the overall concept would be the same.  For example, using a tank top to make a summer beach bag, but in the tutorial, they used a plain, solid coloured tank, and I would probably use a patterned tanks, and add embellishment like vintage buttons, or fabric flowers that I've handmade. I should also mention that I would intend to upcycle previously loved items, and would be sure to avoid brand names.

What do you think?  Anyone know anything about this or have any strong opinions?  

So I am going to put it to you like this:

If a store sells a pattern for a quilt... And a quilter learns and evolves and then emerges with their own variation to the original pattern... Did they do any less work, or have any less validation in selling the fruits of their labours?

I say you made it... Even if you found out how in another place and learned about it elsewhere... You still provide the materials, and the time as well as the creative backing to make it and create it.

Thanks.  That makes sense.  If it is a tutorial, then I can't imagine the original poster wouldn't assume that people would take and use the idea, possibly to sell later on.

The Simpson's have been doing it's for years! 

I've just recently gotten into beading, and have noticed on most patterns that the creator will indicate that you cannot reproduce the actual pattern, but that you are free to do whatever you please with the items you create yourself from the pattern. Unless it says something about copyright on the website where you found an idea, you're probably good to go with making it your own.

I would argue that most of the time, it doesn't really matter what the creator "indicates" - they can't enforce it, and nor should they be able to.  If I came up with a new crochet stitch, if I share how to do it, I can't "copyright" that stitch as mine and say that no one else can show someone else how to do it.  Pattern companies try to intimidate people into not sharing their patterns or even selling stuff they make from their patterns all the time, even though they don't really have the legal grounds to do so, according to this article:

http://www.tabberone.com/Trademarks/CopyrightLaw/Patterns.sh tml

There is a whole movement out there to fight back against corporations who try to abuse copyright and patent law to try and "own" things that are basically unownable, or things that SHOULD be unownable.

So you don't need anyone's permission to make or sell items that you create from patterns or recipes they post online.  Doesn't matter what kind of "copyright" they try to claim.

Thanks.  I will likely have to go back to each tutorial and make sure that I have clicked back to the actual original poster.  Sometimes people pin things on Pinterest, but what they pin is a tutorial in a blog, and sure enough, that blogger got the information from another webpage and so on! 

I don't think you have to worry that much, Marny.  I love crafting myself - the thing I'm really into is making cards.  (By the way, I'd love to follow you on Pinterest!  I post all the cards I make there.)

I make my own card designs, but I like to browse other card designs on there, and I will sometimes take ideas I see as a design inspiration, then make my own cards with my own materials, different colours and textures, but similar designs.  For instance, someone posted an amazing card design with candles made of rolled up fancy paper with a bit of string glued into the end for a wick.  Well, I've been incorporating those kind of candles into my own designs now, and they're great!

I'm not selling my cards (yet), just because I don't have time to make enough, and really, I couldn't sell them for enough money to pay for the time I spend making them.  Although I could get enough for materials to keep enjoying crafting and making it revenue-neutral, if not time-neutral! :)  But if I do sell my cards, I don't think there's anything wrong with taking inspiration from other cards I see.

And if people are posting tutorials on how to do something, I think they're giving you explicit permission to copy their pattern and make things - and there's no reason why you shouldn't sell stuff you make!

I have very, very strong opinions on so-called "intellectual property" for things like designs, recipes, patterns and such.  My strong opinion is that you can't "own" a pattern or recipe or any other set of instructions for creating something.  Humanity has shared information and passed along patterns, recipes, and other instructions for creating things since the beginning OF humanity.  All knowledge builds on knowledge passed down before.  For that reason, copyright law can often be an ass.  Here's an interesting article about recipes, for instance, called, "Can a recipe be stolen?":

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01 /03/AR2006010300316.html

Let me ask you this: if you found a recipe for cookies online, would you worry about using that recipe to bake cookies and then sell them at a bake sale?

If not, then I don't think you should worry about finding patterns online and then using them to create clothing and accessories and crafts to sell, especially if you're modifying their pattern to make it your own!  But I would argue that even if you made EXACTLY THE SAME THING, you should feel free to sell it.  You made it!

If you want to, then as a courtesy, you could credit them for the design inspiration.  If I make a card that is inspired by another person's design, I will do that if I post a pic of it online (although currently, the only pics I have on Pinterest are of cards that I designed myself).  I have a whole Pinterest board called "Inspiration - cards" or something like that, where I repin all sorts of cards I see where I want to try some aspect of their design in my own cards. 

Thanks for the reply.  I also love card making.  For a while I doing a lot of cards with iris folding incorporated in them.  So much fun!  BTW, how do I find you on Pinterest? 

I use my full name (first and last) on Pinterest, so I'll send you a PM. :)  Still too shy to post the first and last name on the forum! :)