Good morning friends, fans, and followers 🙏 Recently a phony website has popped up claiming to sell PDF crochet patterns, all of which were ripped off and stolen from independent crochet artists. Right down to copying every word of the descriptions! I was one of the victims of this blatant theft, and in the past few weeks have been dealing with the fallout.
As many of you might now, this isn’t the first time my art has been stolen. Before, it was just the image, with a website making incredibly cheap and crappy knockoffs of my Elf Coat design and selling them with my image as the example. As if that wasn’t bad enough, I had crowds of people either complaining to me about the knockoff (that I didn’t sell them) or creating a ton of extra work for me by having to answer the HUNDREDS of messages (very kindly) letting me know my work was being ripped off.
This time though, the theives have hit my actual market – pattern sales. PDF patterns are what keeps food on my table.
While the loss of income is worrying, the emotional blow was the first and worst part of this. Not only is it already a difficult time of year for me – my sales normally dip somewhat during the Holiday season – but I was trying to use the yearly lull in activity to take a digital vacation from posting on social media.
Well, when someone suddenly steals a ton of artist’s work, your digital vacation plans get ruined 😒 I’ve been scrambling to figure out how to deal with this (getting someone to take down copyrighted work on the internet is a lot harder than you think).
I’m just posting this little update to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for defending my work, encouraging me, and pledging support for Morale Fiber here and on Patreon!
On the positive side, I have had some time to think and also to recover from the setbacks earlier in the year – my crashed computer has been replaced with a fresh machine, at least. While I wrestle with fractious file transfers for my upcoming Flower Child joining tutorial, I am also pondering the orb for the future direction of Morale Fiber.
Running your own business based around your art is a wild ride. A heady mix of passion and ambition, tempered against self doubt, fought for in real sweat and sometimes tears. When things feel out of my control, I have to remind myself that it’s my creativity that drives it all, and no one can ever take that because it’s not an image on a screen or a configuration of words and numbers – it’s my real experience.
The most real thing about this business is not the files. It’s connecting with other real people and sharing that creative fire 🔥 ✨
With that in mind, I am looking hopefully forward to the new year. I hope these thoughts aren’t too rambley and I hope you all have a beautiful, restful holiday season! I will be returning to my digital vacation now ☺ I’ll emerge in the New Year with some new developments for Morale Fiber 🥰
See you soon and thank you again, for all the love, support, and creative fire 🔥
Regina, Morale Fiber
I’m sure your regulars only by from your ravelry shop as do I, it’s a shame you can’t connect your site store and patterns in an inextricable way.
keep up the good fight as i look forward to your designs hitting my inbox.
Thanx
Dave
I wish you a bright and profitable new year. Don’t let the bastards win.
Lol, thank you! I won’t!!
I love your patterns, so does mu daugther! She is already begging me for a new colour elf coat for next winter (had to change your pattern a little since she’s 6) We wish you luck and don’t give up the fight!
Aww thank you!! 😊 I’m so glad she loves the coat! How did you size it down if you don’t mind me asking?
Ofcourse i don’t mind you asking🙂! It’s your pattern after all. I layed out alls the different pieces in my size and drew out the shape and stitches and rows they where. I took my daugthers measurements to see how much stitches and rows it should be, that’s the base and than just trial and error to be honest i just worked and reworked until i got the correct shapes. I used the same proces before for sizing up crochet stoffen animals. And it worked it’s far from perfect compared to your pattern but its enough alike to make my daughter happy!
Thats so awesome! I have had many people ask about children’s sizes but I’d never tried it, so I didn’t know the best way to go about doing it. 🙂 Thank you for sharing your process!
I am so sorry that this happened to you! I wish you all the best! I love your work! Manu
So sorry to hear this has happened to you! I fell in love with your Elf Coat pattern and have been eagerly directing everyone to your site when I get compliments wearing the one I made. Thank you for your lovely patterns!!
Aww thank you! I’m so glad you enjoyed and thank you so much for the kind words 🙂 <3
Blessings to you at this time🙏
I support you on digital vacation! Rest and all. I am so sorry to hear about the theft. I support you in what you decide to do. I wish I knew how to help!!
Have a lovely Holiday/Festivus/Xmas …!!!
I have not made nor ordered any of your patterns yet,but they are absolutely gorgeous, i pray that all works out for you,good will prevail
.
Aww thank you so much for your kind words of support! 🙂
I love your stuff and have been working albeit slowly on your elf coat pattern, legally purchased on your ravelry site. I am sooo sorry this is happening to you and although it is not a comfort you are not alone. I also diamond paint and it is rampant in that and the cross stitch world as well. I want to thank you for the patterns you make avail to us I greatly appreciate all your hard work and am more than willing to pay for the privilege. But I also want to thank you for take when things are out of your control, I run a bath and body shop and I have to remind myself too that it is my creativity that my customers love in my soaps and bath bombs, self doubt is the hardest thing I have to fight and I love how you put it!
Oh thank you so much Lianne! Your kind words really do help. It’s terrible to be a creator in this day and age when everything is so easily stolen… that’s why we have to stick together ❤ thank you!! Please let me know if I can help in any way with the pattern!