Welcome

I hope you enjoy my new blog, with fluffy love and quacks, Mother Duck xxxx

Tuesday 24 January 2012

Should I really be flattered if my work is copied?




Why is it when people see a piece of your work or a picture of it they say "I think I might make one of those" rather than where can I get one of those? Even if said in jest it makes the designer of the original piece bristle and get upset.

How many times have you been at a craft fair and heard someone say 'I could make that' or 'that's expensive it's just a couple of beads(fabric or whatever)".
I have been creating items to sell via craft fairs and wedding fairs for a number of years now and I still hear it, yet every time I want to tell these people how long it had taken to make from inception to completion. Often at craft fairs or on the website we don't price items to their true value, taking into account the work put into the item, materials, cost of utilities used, transport to get it to the craft fair, your time for a day at a fair etc 
(the thorny issue of pricing our products are for another Blog) and we know that the people saying these things are unlikely to actually go away and do it but you never really know.

I spend a lot of my time making a product to sell; not just the physical time spent making it but the time spent sketching ideas, drawing or writing a pattern, checking the pattern works by making a prototype (often several to get it just right) and finally sourcing all the materials etc to make it just right BEFORE it gets to my stand at a craft fair or the website.

We are all told that pride comes before a fall BUT why shouldn't we be proud that we have designed something, if we've created the pattern, adapted it several times to get it just right and finally producing something beautiful ... even a practical item can be beautiful. Why shouldn't we be proud of the hard work, and final item?

Hold your head up high, say I designed and made that. If you are using someone's pattern then you can say I made this beautiful thing because such & such a person took the time to create the pattern; give credit where credit is due.


A word of advice if you use a pattern, whether knitting, crochet, sewing, jewellery or anything else make sure you read the fine print. Many patterns have a little note that says "for personal use only" which in a nutshell means you cannot sell the items you make from this pattern. You need to get written permission to sell items you make from commercially produced patterns; just because a crafter publishes patterns in their Blog it doesn't mean you can take that pattern, make it and sell items ... check with the Blogger first.  No matter where you purchase or find a pattern check the fine print ... even if the pattern is in a book there will be a note in the front or back of the book saying whether you can use the items made to sell. If you cannot find it in the small print then it probably means you cannot sell the items you make BUT no matter where you get the pattern from you should out of courtesy name the pattern creator. For example "this item is made using a pattern from ........." NEVER claim it to be your original design if it isn't.

Many designers of patterns that you can find in books or on the internet are happy to sell you a licence that will give you the permission you need to sell the items you make; obviously they set limits and these should be adhered to to avoid legal issues at a later date. A licence will cost you but better to buy the licence than risk a very expense law suit for breach of copyright. Some companies have what is called an Angel Policy which will mean that they give limited permissions for their patterns to be used, each is different so check them out don't make an assumption you can sell if they have an angel policy. The thorny issue of intellectual copyright is too complex to tackle here but is one you have to consider if using designs created by someone else.

There are many, many agencies that will register your unique designs to protect them; I haven't personally used these,yet, but if you do have a truly unique item and want to protect it then it might be worth checking the agencies out. The one I have noticed at larger craft events is http://acid.eu.com/  I have also had these two suggested to me http://www.copyrightservice.co.uk/ and 
http://copyright.co.uk/index.html  I haven't used any of these Agencies and cannot vouch for them; you will have to make your own mind up whether you want to register your UNIQUE design/item and whether any of these can help in your own situation. You could also seek legal advice but be aware this may cost more from the outset.

As crafters, artists, and designers we enjoy making something new to share with the world but that doesn't give the world permission to copy what we have made and say that it is their own.

Be unique!
with fluffy love & hugs from
Mother Duck


Sunday 15 January 2012

And the winner is ...

Thank you to everyone that took time to enter our competition.
The winner is Sarah Stiff.
We selected the winner from all of the correct entries received by numbering them in the order they were received and selecting a number using Random.Org

I do hope Sarah gets great pleasure from her necklace when it arrives

much fluffy love
from
Mother Duck

Saturday 14 January 2012

Treasure Hunt or Hunt the Hunk as it has become known here



If you would like the opportunity to win this necklace from Mother Duck then all you need to do is go to our website
 www.dizzy-ducks-creations.co.uk
and follow the clues.
I must just say at this point that we have used pictures of scantily clad men and women to hold the clues! You have been warned, just trying to save your blushes LOL


Please note that we do not hold the copyright to any of the 'hunk' images (except the puppy, he's ours) they were all found on Google images.



So here’s how to be in with a chance to win ...
1.
Follow the clues, these will take you to our online shop, our gallery and our website.
You will need to open the picture of the item to find the clue and may need to scroll down on the picture of the hunk as the clues are at the bottom of the picture.
2.
When you find the last picture you will be asked a question (the answer can be found on the website).
3.
Once you have the answer send it in an email to competition@dizzy-ducks-creations.co.uk
4.
Only one entry per person ... we trust you not to enter using multiple email addresses

The competition closes at 8pm (UK time) Sunday 15th Janaury.
The winner will be chosen at random from all of the correct answers received.
The winner will be emailed and once we receive acknowledgment from them, including an address for posting, we will announce the winner on the Blog and our facebook page.
The pix holding the clues will remain on the website until the winner is announced and there is nothing to say you can’t go and view the images more than once.

You have to be in it to win it and it's not going to cost you anything!

Have fun searching the website for the hunks and their clues.

love & fluffy hugs from
Mother Duck

Friday 6 January 2012

So we have waved goodbye to 2011








So 2011 has passed into the filing system of time.

We should look at 2012 as a new chapter in the book of life, each day is a lovely new blank page for some wondrous adventures. As Mother Duck has always said we can make some amazing memories from even the most mundane tasks. 

My biggest dilemma for any New Year is the new diary selection ... I am so particular about its configuration and all the little extras that I want too. Am I the only one that is so picky and therefore finds it so hard every year to find the perfect diary. This year I have the answer, I think, I have a filofax. I am like a little  girl in a sweetie store I didn't know there were so many different things I needed for my diary! LOL

So what adventures lie in store for 2012 for Dizzy Ducks Creations?
The first wonderful thing happening is the updating of our logo ... we are not getting rid of Dizzy, we just couldn't do that; our Logo was one of the first things that we purchased when we started the business and Dizzy is one of the ways our returning customers can locate us at craft fairs and wedding fairs. So no he isn't going anywhere he is getting a make-over ... not a how to look good naked kind of make over, heavens we couldn't ask Dizzy to ditch his feathers for anybody! We have trusted the lovely Claire at  https://www.facebook.com/DesignatNo.11 with his make over. She is also creating Mother Duck's new business cards, letter head and compliment slips. We are so excited! We have had a peep at our new Dizzy and he is soooooooooooooooo cute but we are not giving away any secrets. We are looking forward to his launch on the website, our fb page and hopefully some new banners for craft fairs and wedding fairs.

Mother Duck's next  Blog will also include a little competition ... I will be offering the chance for someone to win the lovely necklace in the picture above. But I have a problem with this ... the last time we did a similar competition we didn't really get a great response. So let me ask you, is having a competition on the Blog a good idea? The competition would probably be in the form of a question to be answered and the winner will be randomly selected from the correct answers.

So apart from wishing you all the most amazing adventures in your book of life for 2012 Mother Duck wants to send you all lots of fluffy love & hugs.