tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-231771652024-03-05T17:50:32.147-08:00American IdleDigital media at the hands of idle minds.Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-43882863306126242102014-03-14T06:22:00.003-07:002014-03-14T06:22:49.353-07:00Land of Nod and a Happy Ending<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It's nice to find happy ending stories, and this seems to be one of them! I saw an instagram post (I was a little late to seeing it, it was posted 6 weeks ago!) about a design in the <a href="http://www.landofnod.com/">Land of Nod</a> catalog that was beyond close to a block printed design by textile designer <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/willowship">Blake Kahan</a>. <br />
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The first image is a screenshot of the initial conversation about the design on Instagram. The middle pic is a product shot from <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/willowship">etsy shop Willow Ship</a> and the third is the <a href="http://www.landofnod.com/kids-patterned-rugs/kids-room-decor/gold-bars-rug/f12718">Land of Nod rug</a>. The "irregularities" of the pattern look fairly specific to Blake's original carving.<br />
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Interestingly, I looked for the design on the Land of Nod site and it now credits her as the designer! I'm assuming that means proper payment through licensing, which Land of Nod has a pretty good record of doing. According to their site:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"You could put your Gold Bars Rug in a vault for safekeeping. But you
should probably put it on your floor and enjoy its 100% wool softness
and bold chevron pattern. It was designed just for us by Blake Kahan."</blockquote>
Hooray for happy endings and artists being able to own their own designs! <br />
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<br />Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-80891970627994151692013-10-17T07:10:00.000-07:002013-10-17T07:10:59.829-07:00<a href="http://www.nynow.com/">NY NOW Market</a> told Abigail Brown "too bad" about her ripped off design, despite the evidence against the poor behavior of Cody Foster. <br />
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Dear Abigail:<br /><br />My name is Scott Kramer, sales directory of NY NOW.
Your email has been forwarded to me and I appreciate that you took the
time to write us.<br /><br />The gift industry, along with many industries,
is faced with companies working with other’s ideas and designs. I can
understand the frustration that you must feel as an artist. This is
however a difficult situation for us in that as a show management
company we aren’t able to adjudicate these issues. We wouldn’t be
within our legal rights to stop them from exhibiting. You could go
through our legal system and attempt to stop them from producing any of
your designs. <br /><br />I wish you luck with this and hope you can reach a favorable conclusion.<br /><br />Sincerely,<br /><br />Scott W Kramer | Sales Director | NY NOW® - LIFESTYLE & NEW!<br />
<br />Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-28483944248992120082013-10-16T09:35:00.003-07:002013-10-17T09:11:32.148-07:00Cody Foster, again<br />
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Cody Foster, wow. Check out yesterday's post on <a href="http://jezebel.com/is-giant-folk-art-company-cody-foster-stealing-from-sma-1446015759">Jezebel on the subject</a>. <br />
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<br />Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-5934733855924511692013-09-27T08:55:00.001-07:002013-09-27T08:57:36.127-07:00Fast fashion faux pas<br />
Want to know how cheap, fashionable clothes originate? Take 2 minutes and watch this: <br />
<iframe allowtransparency="true" class="wistia_embed" frameborder="0" name="wistia_embed" scrolling="no" src="https://fast.wistia.net/embed/iframe/jl2dznbqln?controlsVisibleOnLoad=true&plugin%5BpostRoll-v1%5D%5Brewatch%5D=true&plugin%5BpostRoll-v1%5D%5Bstyle%5D%5BbackgroundColor%5D=%23e4e5eb&plugin%5BpostRoll-v1%5D%5Bstyle%5D%5Bcolor%5D=%23121112&plugin%5BpostRoll-v1%5D%5Bstyle%5D%5BfontFamily%5D=Gill%20Sans%2C%20Helvetica%2C%20Arial%2C%20sans-serif&plugin%5BpostRoll-v1%5D%5Bstyle%5D%5BfontSize%5D=22px&plugin%5Bsocialbar-v1%5D%5Bbuttons%5D=embed-twitter-facebook-googlePlus-linkedIn-email&plugin%5Bsocialbar-v1%5D%5BpageUrl%5D=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.onlinemba.com%2Fblog%2Fbusiness-of-fast-fashion&plugin%5Bsocialbar-v1%5D%5BshowTweetCount%5D=true&version=v1&videoHeight=360&videoWidth=640&volumeControl=true" width="480"></iframe>
Created by <a href="http://www.onlinemba.com/blog/business-of-fast-fashion">OnlineMBA.com</a><br />
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The process of fast fashion generally bypasses true, original designers and neglects to maintain artistic integrity. More and more often independent designers find their products ripped off and for sale in big box stores without their consent or knowledge.<br />
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Don't believe me? Just ask Shannon Kennedy of Sass & Peril. Her <a href="http://instagram.com/p/exJ3WpEv6i/#">Instagram tells the whole story</a>. <br />
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Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-39797259719990522312013-04-03T08:42:00.001-07:002013-10-22T10:21:58.323-07:00Doug Johnston<br />
Not so long ago I pinned some images of baskets, simple in concept, but with a surprisingly fresh and new approach that made them modern and unique. Those baskets were (and are) made by <a href="http://www.dougjohnston.net/">Doug Johnston</a>. Not only are they visually stimulating, the description of the process of making, the evolution of form, and the studies behind the product make the objects that much more fascinating. <br />
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From Doug Johnston's website/portfolio:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
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<b>sash cord studies </b>| 2010 - present <br />
cotton or poly sash cord and polyester thread / dimensions variable <br />
<a href="http://shop.dougjohnston.net/">A selection of bags, baskets and sculptural vessels based on these studies is available for purchase in [Johnston's] <b>webshop</b></a><br />
Vessels, masks and sculptural pieces utilize an old crafting technique
in which rope or cord is coiled and stitched to forms bowls and
baskets. The technique is itself based on the ancient method of making
ceramic coiled pots as well as coiled basketry. The method explores ways
of transforming a linear material into three-dimensional objects, an
interest I have also studied in other materials such as yarn or plastic
tubing. I also see the process as a form of analog 3D
printing/prototyping performed by a sewing machine and with much less
precision. In this way the "3D file" is in my head as I begin each piece
and its formation happens by making certain adjustments to the work
while sewing. The process has its own limitations, largely determined by
the sewing machine, and each piece takes on deformations and glitches
that give it unique personality.<br />
<br />
The studies use the raw 100% cotton braided cord, often called sash
cord, and colored sewing thread. They are individually sewn on an
industrial zig-zag sewing machine without the use of forms or molds and
allow me to explore ideas for larger works such as Rumpleskillskid.</blockquote>
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Not too long after seeing and pinning Johnston's work, I saw a <a href="https://twitter.com/archinect/status/306917189611556864">tweet about identical, but mass made, baskets</a>, now available at Target, a corporation known for copycat behavior.<br />
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Then today a shop was featured on the etsy front page with product photography and descriptive language eerily similar to Johnston's own.<br />
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<br />Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-10095968651885740512012-12-12T06:09:00.000-08:002013-10-22T10:18:15.296-07:00Jessica Nichols' Loads of Ranunculus<br />
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Recently Chris Benz used Jessica Nichols' <i>Loads of Ranunculus</i> photograph
without her permission and without compensation on his Spring 2012 line, including a promotional item in partnership with Lancome.<br />
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In case you're not on top of fashion designers (I, for one, am not) here's a bit more <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_Benz">about Mr. Benz</a>. <br />
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Not sold that this is infringement? Read <a href="http://www.sweeteventide.com/2012/11/chris-benzs-spring-2012-line.html">Jessica's full post here</a>, with a follow up here. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/16/chris-benz-photo-jessica-nichols-_n_2145222.html">Huffington Post reported on this instance as well</a>. <br />
<br />Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-53061489481828155622012-07-11T05:54:00.001-07:002013-10-22T10:19:33.790-07:00Rachael Taylor vs. Marks & SpencerAnother case of corporations stealing independent designer's wares: Marks & Spencer in the UK. <a href="http://rachaeltaylordesigns.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/strikingly-similar-design.html">Rachael Taylor</a> found one of her patterns on Marks & Spencer t-shirts, unlicensed of course. From her blog,<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
My 'Etched Floral' design has been a key print for my brand & has
been sold successfully on my own branded products along with achieving
international success as a licensed design throughout the UK, Europe
& the USA.</blockquote>
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<a href="http://rachaeltaylordesigns.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/strikingly-similar-design.html">Read more here</a> and if you're interested in urging Marks & Spencer to come clean and play fair, contact them on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MarksandSpencer">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/marksandspencer">Twitter</a>, or <a href="https://www.marksandspencer.com/gp/contact">one of the good ol' fashioned ways</a>.Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-65767149345587943712011-11-15T06:21:00.001-08:002011-11-15T06:21:40.607-08:00Investing in creative ownership<br />
Sometimes the icky feeling of finding a copy starts with just a little crumb of discomfort, like <a href="http://thehappyhomeblog.com/?p=3554">seeing a how-to</a> of one of your <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/upintheairsomewhere?ga_search_submit=&ga_search_query=paper+bowl+gold&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade">favorite maker's wares</a>. Except there's a style difference and everything seems innocent enough, the author is straightforward and somewhat apologetic about the whole approach.<br />
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But it seems like if the creator doesn't actively pursue branding and ownership of a unique style, it ultimately becomes <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/83302497/paper-mache-bowl-hand-painted-hand-made?ref=sr_gallery_8&ga_search_submit=&ga_search_query=paper+mache+bowl&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_ship_to=US&ga_search_type=handmade&ga_facet=handmade">something of a trend</a> <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/etco">popping up elsewhere</a>.<br />
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How much branding should the maker do to protect themselves? Is it fair to expect a lengthy amount of time to be invested in creative ownership of design?Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-58988933266596924852011-06-01T09:40:00.000-07:002011-07-28T05:20:17.083-07:00Paper and StringIn case it seems I pick on the UO, Inc. empire a little too much, let's talk about Tiffany's, a brand closely associated with a more sophisticated design.<br />
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Recently the integrity of a jewelry line by Tiffany has been called into question. <a href="http://www.mediabistro.com/unbeige/tiffany-co-twist-collection-similar-to-kiel-meads-forget-me-knot-jewelry-designs-unbeige-exclusive_b13764">According to Unbeige</a>, Tiffany & Co. are creating a suspiciously similar series of items to those of designer <a href="http://www.kielmead.com/">Kiel Mead</a>'s 2005 line. (<i>Image from the Unbeige article.</i>)<br />
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Before I read that article, I read about this experience, from <a href="http://www.sublackwell.co.uk/2010/12/06/the-american-jewellery-company-%E2%80%98tiffany-and-co-%E2%80%99-have-stolen-my-ideas-for-their-christmas-window-display-and-disneyfied-them/">Su Blackwell's blog</a>, <br />
<blockquote><i>The newly appointed Vice President for Creative and Visual Merchandising at Tiffany and Co. ‘Richard Moore’ contacted me back in August, with a proposal for me to create the designs for their Christmas Windows.<br />
But then I got an email from him saying ‘We have proceeded down a slightly different route for this year’s windows, but thank you for your proposal’.<br />
Seems like ‘they proceeded down a slightly very similar route to me!’</i></blockquote><br />
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There is a <a href="http://www.sublackwell.co.uk/2010/12/21/after-writing-a-letter-of-appeal-to-the-visual-merchandiser-at-tiffany-and-co-i-have-since-been-requested-to-remove-their-images-from-my-blog/">follow up here</a>. The paper cut sculpture above left is Su Blackwell's, as seen on her blog. The sculpture above right is the window display in question, at a Tiffany retail store for the 2010 holiday season.Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-26139524869759477372011-05-31T07:40:00.000-07:002013-10-22T10:25:39.276-07:00Stories to TellWhen I first blogged the Cody Foster fiasco I received stories directly from artists who had similar experiences.<br />
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Pictured above left and below center are beds made by <a href="http://slmetalworks.com/">Shawn Lovell</a>, one of the artists with a story to tell. Pictured above right is a bed from the Anthropologie catalog. <br />
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<blockquote>
Your blog was forwarded to me by a friend with a link to your "Drawing the line on theft" thread. I was approached by Anthropologie back in 2008 regarding my Tree Bed which I designed and began making in 1997 and have been perfecting ever since. Anthropologie asked if they could use one of my beds for a “photoshoot”, but I didn’t have one in stock to lend as they are one-of-a-kind and take about 200 hours to make, and are made on commission. Without any acknowledgment or permission they are now clearly selling a simplified knock-off version of the bed. I've attached a shot of the bed being sold by them as shown in their latest catalog and a shot of my original bed. Fortunately for me the Treebed is a difficult design to mass-manufacture and this is the closest they could come to reproducing it. (Notice, they even shot the bed in the exact same angle as my shot!)</blockquote>
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Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-56972113505905016272011-05-27T09:32:00.000-07:002013-10-22T10:25:02.156-07:00It is, indeed, a very <a href="http://thelongthread.com/?p=8064">Long Thread</a>.Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-9059195916038762312011-05-27T05:47:00.000-07:002013-10-22T10:32:17.515-07:00Cody Foster Continues<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Well, kids, I hate to say it, but it appears <a href="http://nobitingwolfie.blogspot.com/2010/12/drawing-line-on-design-theft.html">someone is back at it</a>, and they seem to love Alyssa's work. If you recall the cable knit bone china candle holders last year at Anthropologie, also a riff from Alyssa's catalog.<br />
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<i>How</i> is this still going on?<br />
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What can we, as designers, do to <i>claim ownership of a design</i> without sinking all our hard earned money into the process?<br />
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What can we, as consumers, do to let companies know we <i>won't support those that support design theft</i>?<br />
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[<i><a href="http://nobitingwolfie.blogspot.com/2011/05/well-kids-i-hate-to-say-it-but-it-looks.html">Originally posted here</a>.</i>]Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-38496997714321809002011-05-26T06:27:00.000-07:002012-10-23T10:08:56.184-07:00Urban Outfitters stole her heart<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Continuing the theme of "Why I don't shop Anthr/UO/FP anymore" is <a href="http://imakeshinythings.tumblr.com/post/5855716317/not-cool-urban-outfitters-not-cool">the latest example of stolen design padding the wallets of a CEO while the actual designer loses big time</a>.<br />
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Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-22248916766812626572011-03-31T06:59:00.000-07:002011-03-31T09:58:33.214-07:00Uniquities<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href=http://www.etsy.com/treasury/4d9426610e436d91e147b624/little-birdies?index=256&utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Treasury&utm_campaign=Share>treasury on etsy</a></td></tr>
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Can't you imagine the conversation? "Oh! Where'd you find such a cute necklace?!" "You know? I found it on etsy. They have such unique, handmade things on there!" <a href="http://www.etsy.com/search/handmade?q=bird+branch+lariat">It makes me want to type things like WTF and OMFG</a>, and I swear I don't type that way.Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-463422369819146892011-03-19T07:00:00.000-07:002011-03-19T07:00:01.448-07:00From Both Sides<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.uniformnatural.com/blog/?p=435"><img border="0" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyqnzglFKhQRoTZ8yd3UUzocgxmjwkHvZ9XeULFJWHvtgTraW6tqBAHhrzrXYaij6wU4JOXp96kwLSlMP2a85uUR0acuQWZEvK9Mk4HDS5YcZrdmYN0mHf5TPs2-rU_sB8X7Z1TQ/s400/un.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<a href="http://www.uniformnatural.com/">Martha of Uniform Natural</a> has some <a href="http://www.uniformnatural.com/blog/?p=435">thoughts from both sides</a> of the plagiarism experience.Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-87347426901908289332011-03-17T08:19:00.000-07:002013-10-22T10:30:29.738-07:00Drawing the Line on Design Theft<b><i><a href="http://nobitingwolfie.blogspot.com/2010/12/drawing-line-on-design-theft.html"></a></i></b><br />
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After reading Jan's Sidetrack Cafe post yesterday on Poppytalk I had a flood of thoughts. I reminded myself to keep working and moving forward, developing ideas and keep blinders on but maintain wisdom to know there are people in the world that will steal designs and ideas. I also wanted to reach out to all the people who felt like her message was telling "newbies" to give up. That wasn't it at all, the beauty of the internet as a medium is that there is a level playing field for everyone, but you're not playing fair if you're duplicating (stealing) another person's work.<br />
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Yes, people steal. Even on etsy. There are people who buy your work and ship it off to China to have it reproduced, then sell that work wholesale to big companies (Urban Outfitters/Anthropologie/Terrain, I'm looking at you).<br />
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UO/A/T also sell a lot of artist-made items, so somewhere between buyer and seller the integrity of their wares becomes muddled. {And yes, it's a bit scary to call them out because they do support the independent crafts person.}But they also <a href="http://www.anthropologie.com/anthro/catalog/productdetail.jsp?subCategoryId=HOME-HOLIDAYDECOR-FORTHEHOME&id=073326&catId=HOME-HOLIDAYDECOR&pushId=HOME-HOLIDAYDECOR&popId=HOME&sortProperties=&navCount=35&navAction=top&fromCategoryPage=true&selectedProductSize=&selectedProductSize1=&color=095&isSubcategory=true&isProduct=true&isBigImage=&templateType=subCategory">support Cody Foster</a> {perhaps inspired by <a href="http://www.etsy.com/listing/19417789/reindeer-figurine">this</a>?}, a gift ware wholesaler who <i><b>does</b></i> shop etsy, and seems to send those hand-crafted items off to China to be duplicated and resold, <a href="http://ashleyannabrown.typepad.com/blog/copyright-case/">without the consent of the artist</a>.<br />
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I could go through their whole catalog and attribute 75% of their goods to online crafters' wares. These images are just an example.<br />
So what do we do? I'm going to write a letter to Anthropologie and let them know I won't be shopping with them while they support design thieves. I don't know what else to do, but this will be a good start. And maybe, just maybe, others will do the same. And someone will see Cody Foster wares at another retailer and let me know and I'll send that retailer a letter. . . and maybe something bigger will happen. <br />
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Maybe not, who knows. But as we all figure out how to maintain image rights and property within the abstract realm of technology we have to start drawing lines somewhere, right? Anyone else up for a boycott?<br />
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(Obviously this blog post is written based on my own observations and
findings. I am not aware of any court findings or judgements on the
subject. I am only presenting things as I see them.) Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23177165.post-86274423347709745402011-03-17T06:27:00.000-07:002013-10-16T07:03:58.162-07:00Credit where credit is due<div style="text-align: left;"><a href="http://www.designformankind.com/2011/03/lets-talk-photo-crediting/">Let's talk photo crediting ~ over on Design for Mankind</a>. Actually, this is good for referencing for all kinds of copyright issues. </div><br />
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Poster design by <a href="http://www.designformankind.com/">Erin Loechner</a>, <a href="http://blog.piajanebijkerk.com/">Pia Bijkerk</a>, and <a href="http://www.yvettevanboven.com/">Yvette Van Boven</a>Wolfie and the Sneakhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14164915413455009255noreply@blogger.com0