What do you do when...

[AlaskanGrown]

someone copies your personal pattern, makes the item, and sells the item?

[sabrinat]

Originally Posted by AlaskanGrown

someone copies your personal pattern, makes the item, and sells the item?

Was it copyrighted? That's an issue that comes up a lot since there's patterns out there and then people make stuff to sale and most patterns say that they are for personal home use and not for commercial use. I guess you could sue.

[oldgirl,newtricks]

I've had this done to me. All works are copyrighted as soon as they are created. You don't have to file and have it copyrighted with the gov. I sent the offending party a really formal letter stating they were in violation of my copyright and to stop or I would take action. They stopped.

You might want to make sure your pattern has all the needed verbiage.

[Daisie125]

Hate to bust your bubble, but even if a pattern has all the correct verbage about "personal use" people can still sew and sell from it. Once they create an item, it's theirs, even if they coppied it from you. Except in the case of a patent.

There is a whole huge thread about it at sewingmamas. It may not be morally okay, but legally it is.

The reason most WAHMs don't do this is because of reputation and a moral obligation.

[Erinok]

also, you should be really sure that it is your pattern they copied from. there are often many similar patterns floating around.