I really enjoyed Savory Stitches post this week, "Copycat Guilt," in which she asks if it's okay to make an indie designer knockoff.
As she says—and I would heartily agree—we rarely feel guilt when knocking off a big retail darling like Anthropologie. I'm certainly not above copying mega brands and small ones, too. It's been part of my sewing education and I'm not selling the FOs. In fact, half the time they're duds.
But think about it: When does inspiration become imitation, and is that okay? What role does imitation play in our creative work as seamstresses? Think of Sew Weekly's Make This Look series and sew-alongs that encourage knock-offs of silver screen loveliness.
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I think the struggle is wanting to support independent designers while also having an equal or greater desire to exercise our own skill/creativity.
With such visual inspiration, it makes sense that we would be tempted to copy, adapting along the way (a moved zipper, pockets, different fabric, etc.). Also: I don't see it as some great privilege or that I'm saving a great deal of money, if one considered the YEARS I spent learning to sew. Sheesh, if I got a penny for every minute I spent with my (ergonomic!) seam ripper, I might have the beginning of a retirement fund.
That said, I'll be the first to admit that I really admired a dress from an indie designer and I could've tried to recreate it, but it filled me with guilt because the dress was also handmade.
When pondering this issue, I often go back to this TED talk, "Lessons from Fashion's Free Culture." Johanna Blakley says, "One of the magical side effects of having a culture of copying is the establishment of trends. People think this is a magical thing. How does it happen? Because it’s legal [in the fashion industry] for people to copy one another.”
Copying Sewing Patterns?
Let's go down the rabbit hole a bit further. When I was taking pattern-drafting classes, my teacher told me, "At this point, you're better off just using your blocks."
My blocks—a term that I liberally use to refer to any well-fitting basic pattern—can be altered to nearly any design. But is it okay to copy sewing patterns, Big 4 or Indie?
Sure, I can buy the pattern and compare it to my block. But—given how much I hate fitting and struggle with it—it would be so much easier to begin with the block and draft it. I mean, I bet I could draft something that closely approximates the Colette Ginger (simple A-line skirt with a lovely waistband) or the Twinkle Sews A Plus A-line skirt (pleated front).
It's a conundrum for me. I want to support designers, but I don't want to make my sewing process harder—it is, after all, what I do in my free time. If I make it and it flops, I go out and buy the pattern. That happened with Simplicity 2443.
But what do you think? I know I've covered a lot of ground here—but do you think imitation sneaks its way into your sewing? Where do you draw the line? Is there a line?
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This is a good call. I love having a go at making my own version of garments I see in stores and online. Admittedly most of them just get put into the "I'd like to make that" file in my brain and never come out again. As a learner sewist though, I find imitating stretches my skills, makes me think really hard about construction, and gives me a whole new appreciation for the clever mind who inspired me at first. I never felt much guilt about it but I think that now I'll try to work on 'inspiration' rather than outright 'imitation'.
ReplyDeleteYes! It's an incredible learning opportunity -- if anything, I often learn the limit to my skills, ha. But pattern drafting and altering is one of my favorite parts of the sewing process, so I don't see it as lost time.
DeleteI'd say that I feel ok as long as I'm not selling the finished product or knock off pattern. So much about fashion (and all art forms really) is just reinventing something that's been done before that I don't feel bad about it.
ReplyDeleteAgreed -- fashion is cyclical! Sometimes I see a new pattern and realize I have nearly an identical one in my stash (vintage or contemporary).
DeleteI'm still not sure where I stand on all of this, but I have found it comforting to see that most who have commented feel that if you aren't selling the FO or giving explicit directions on imitating an indie pattern, then it's not something to feel guilty about. Putting myself in an indie pattern company owner's shoes though, I can see how seeing someone essentially make my design without buying my pattern would be upsetting and frustrating. Though, at the same time, when it's a fairly simple, standard silhouette with a few tweaks, maybe you have to expect on a certain level that you don't own the shape and it's going to happen? Clearly I'm still feeling conflicted! I need to watch that TED talk this weekend.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's really a hard call and I waffle by the minute. I think what I'm really talking about here are very simple shapes -- there are many a pattern that I'm so grateful to have as part of my arsenal because I could never draft it myself! If I didn't like trying to draft and alter so much, this would be a non-issue.
DeleteI'm definitely guilty of the Anthropologie knock-off, though in most cases, I'll give it my own twist in the color or adapting certain details. I generally make or thrift most of my clothes, so shopping vs. sewing isn't a huge conundrum for me. The indie patterns are tougher, because I do want to support them. Maybe you could use your slopers in conjunction with the patterns to streamline the fitting process?
ReplyDeleteThat would be the most logical thing to do -- good fit without the ethical dilemma. It's probably what I'll do in the end. But, as you said, most of the time I'm trying to give it my own twist, so I'm buying (and tracing and fitting) the pattern AND altering it.
DeleteThanks for linking the Blakely talk, it was very interesting.
ReplyDeleteI really liked her philosophy on the subject of a common collective of ideas that are 'free' to share. It makes me think that every time a singular person learns something -let's say about pattern altering an indie pattern- it's going to benefit me too in the end. Especially if there is an active global communication platform called the blogosphere.
Yeah, I really dig that concept too. If we take away the sense of "ownership," that can open the door for us all to tinker, learn and improve. It's widely accepted in the tech community, and I generally think most would be open to this sort of cross-pollination of ideas, we just don't want to do it while eating into an individual's livelihood.
DeleteThanks for sharing the Ted Talks presentation - I watched it immediately. Fascinating stuff!
ReplyDeleteI'm a bit addicted to TED talks, this one is definitely a fave, glad you liked it :)
DeleteI'm struggling with this too. After seeing many versions of an indie pattern online I made my own pattern for it. In fact the pattern is one of the basic blocks in my Metric pattern cutting book. I made sure not to copy the features that made the original pattern unique though so essentially i just made the block. It still makes me feel guilty though and I'm not sure I would post it on online.
ReplyDeleteI expect most pattern drafting involves some copying whether subliminal or not, the internet does make it more easy to trace the origins.
This makes me feel better -- and think about how much you learned in the process of drafting this block and the endless variations you can make on it. I often think sewing is about empowerment, about the way we think of our bodies and our consumption. And pattern drafting takes that one step further, we're empowered to make patterns ourselves and adapt them as we please! It's liberating and frustrating, but I love it.
DeleteI know there are issues around copying, but I think individual seamstresses shouldn't worry about this because the scale of this is so small. It's a totally different thing for H&M to copy an indie designer's idea and roll out 100,000 cheap copies of something than for one person to sew their own version of a dress. You're not devaluing the product - and if someone admires your dress, you're probably going to admit being inspired by someone else and point the person to their shop/etsy site/whatever.
ReplyDeleteSame with knocking off patterns - how many people actually have the skills to do that? Even of people who sew, relatively few.
And Stephanie Lynn's point about reinvention is an important one. Before the Colette Violet blouse came out, I had in my mind the idea of a blouse exactly the same - rounded peter pan collar, sleeves, everything. I could draft one, or I could buy the pattern. If I bought the pattern, I'd see it as paying for the work in drafting as much as for the design - saving me the trouble of drafting my own. But I wouldn't worry too much about drafting my own.
Fashion operates with a kind of hive mind anyway: without a back-and-forth of inspiration, we wouldn't get seasonal looks, where all the different designers put out thematically similar collections at the same time.
Thank you for pointing out scale, neatbutnotgaudy. I felt similarly about the Violet -- I have so many blouse patterns, contemporary basic ones, boxy 60s ones, peter-pan collared 70s ones. Buy buying the pattern, I'm partly buying someone else's efforts to franken-pattern for me, and that's often worth the pattern ten-fold on a pattern with lots of pieces.
DeleteI like thinking of it that way, thinking of a pattern not just as a design, but as someone else's superior pattern-drafting skills. I could have never drafted the Colette Lady Grey, the draped sleeve on the Sewaholic Pendrell, or all the curves in my much-loved Victory Patterns Lola.
I think about this a lot.There are two indie designers in particular whose clothes I want to own and wear... so my first instinct is to copy them! But then they lose the income they would have had if I had bought their version and I feel bad - I ought to support them so they can continue to design! So I end up not having the things, and that's a creative loss to everyone, but I suppose saves the planet a little :(
ReplyDeleteYes, I see the dilemma. But here's another thought, I—and your other readers—would never have been exposed to these designers if you weren't so inspired by them? And they're worthy of exposure -- indie designers with a small footprint. As a compromise, I might take elements/details I find so inspiring and worth them into my projects.
DeleteHonestly with RTW indie designers - I know I won't buy their clothes, because no matter how much I like the lines I won't like the color, and if I like the lines and the color I won't like the fabric, and if I like those it almost definitely won't fit me right. (I actually have standard-size horizontal measurements, but there are only one or two brands that fit my vertical measurements well, and I stick with those.) And if by chance all of the qualifications are actually met (and I have a way of finding that out - there's not exactly a Modcloth store next door) then there's a very small chance the clothing will be in my price range. One of the great democracies of fashion's pretty free-and-loose intellectual property laws is that you're not supposed to choose between buying groceries and wearing something fairly current in its styling.
ReplyDeleteAs far as Colette Patterns - I buy those for the instructions :D Colette has really great instructions.
Hear, hear! Prices can be a problem, even as I deeply believe designers and garment workers should be paid what they're worth -- and that's a lot. Sewists know how much work goes into a garment and when I see $150-200 tag, I no longer balk. All the while, I can't afford it. My compromise is just to try and have less overall.
DeleteAnd agreed on the amazingness of Colette's directions. When I was working on my 1940s slip, I went out and bought the Colette Oolong just for the directions on sewing bias. I'll get around to sewing the dress one of these days too (when I get my hands on 3+ yards of fabric!).
In a perfect world, garment workers would be able to buy the clothes they make at retail. In the world we have now, I mostly stick with RTW brands that have established fit models and also clear, straightforward sourcing and auditing procedures for their factories. I buy my yoga pants from Patagonia, for example, because their process is more rigorous than similar sportswear designers. I am under no illusions that anyone manufacturing Patagonia clothes can buy them, though.
DeleteHowever, as someone sitting at the American median income, with a standard American educational debt? This means one pair of yoga pants, and an unappealing sense of panic whenever they start to wear out.
I have no drafting skills, but if I did I would have very few qualms about knocking off the Anthros and Gaps of the world (for the reasons cited by neatbutnotgaudy), as opposed to imitating indie designers who fighting the valiant fight against fast fashion.
ReplyDeleteI think that imiatation is part of any creative process. I love this line from Bruce Mau's Incomplete Manifesto for Growth:
Imitate. Don’t be shy about it. Try to get as close as you can. You’ll never get all the way, and the separation might be truly remarkable.
Jane, that is stunning. I think I need to tape that above my sewing machine. In the separation lies all the difference doesn't it? It could be the separation of the amateur (me) and the pro (the designer), or (if all goes well) the perfect-for-me-adaptation and the designer's vision.
DeleteMy friend and I were just discussing this issue with regards to other types of crafting. It feels different when we copy a small crafter than when we copy a name brand but it's really no different. I believe in most areas of my life if I can make it won't buy it. And if I can get it from a crafter I won't buy it from a store. So I support crafters in the things I can't make and I don't have guilt when I'm inspired by something name brand and I make it myself.
ReplyDeleteI think that's a good balance. As I mentioned earlier, I'm only tempted to draft things I can, but there are a great number of designs I can't. And I'll happily buy and learn from them.
Deletefantastic post and comments!! i agree with everyone that copying a giant is less guilt-inducing than an indie designer. i have to confess, there's very few things i've sewn where the finished version is an outright copy of the original (mainly because i'm ADD and start changing things and second because i'm still learning). but i'll be keeping this in mind the next time i am inspired to imitate and i'll be watching that TED talk ASAP :)
ReplyDeleteIMO, there isn't anything that hasn't been there before, so whatever is "new" is mostly a copy itself. That certainly goes for sewing patterns; what the independent designers are presenting can mostly all be found in a couple of decades of Burda magazines... They make it attractive for a new customer base and that's okay, but that wouldn't make me feel I'm "copying" anything. The same goes for pairing a pattern/style with a certain style or color of fabric. Look at the decades of fashion/runway shows and tell me what hasn't been there? Not much. I also don't think copying a garment that's for sale right now would hurt the vendor's business. It would make the style even more popular and might inspire others (who can't sew) to buy the "original".
ReplyDeleteInteresting post, Ali. I agree with others that there would mainly be a problem if I fully copied a designer's work and then tried to sell it or pass it off as my own original creation.
ReplyDeleteThis is something I've thought about before too. When it comes to copying RTW clothes I don't really feel any guilt. My phone is full of changing room photos of clothes, which I would have bought if they'd fit me. But they didn't fit so i didn't want to waste my money on them. I feel no guilt in copying them myself.
ReplyDeleteCopying the idea of patterns is slightly different, as I could use the pattern to make something myself. However, it really depends on the fit of the pattern (or how well i've found other patterns from the same company/designer) to fit. It's a waste of my money to pay for the pattern and then still have to spend hours and hours making it fit me when if I'd drafted it myself from the beginning it would have fit pretty much straight away...
It's certainly a tricky one.
This is a blatant and full copy of what Iwrote in the comments section over at Savory Stitches:
ReplyDeleteI think that unless the pattern is the start of a completely new, never before seen style you have every right to do what you want with it. Are the pattern sellers also selling the finished goods? No. Well that's all in your favour. You are not taking anything away from them. Does the manufacturer of typing paper say you can't make paper planes and sell them on? No. I am certain a lot of un-necessary angst is being caused by a few paranoid people and an even fewer lot who have been genuinely ripped off. Does the pattern designer give copyright credit to the ruler manufacturer, the company who made their French ruler, the person who first brought hems up off the floor,etc< No. Somewhere along the way we have to accept things as normal and in a sphere that belongs to everyone. If they don't need to give credit to the manufacturer of the curved rulers they use then why should you worry about hacking those same lines and coming up with something different? Cherrie
PS I do not sell anything that I have not designed fully myself but I do buy my fabric, zips, buttons and thread. Hope no one minds!!
Here's another perspective: Steph of 3hourspast.com put out a free tee pattern around Christmas. Every month since, she's posted instructions for drafting a different style "hack" from that basic block. However, she had so many requests to start selling actual patterns for the hacks, that she has started selling them on the Craftsy patterns. Not everyone wants to go to the effort of drafting from their own blocks---they'd rather pay for someone else to put that time in.
ReplyDeleteI have other thoughts, but I'm distracted right now so I'll leave it at that. :)
Perhaps I am taking this a little too far beyond the issue of sewing, but I think you're touching on an issue that simply is growing in relevancy because the access to knowledge and the extent of information sharing has boomed since the internet. Humanity has survived by the sharing of, and sometimes ripping of, concepts from one another. Musical artists (e.g. Amanda Palmer) are changing how they share their music because the internet has changed the music industry's viability for small artists. Pinterest has to redefine their legal conditions of use to account for effective sharing without infringing upon individuals' intellectual rights. The skills and resources to make clothes in various fashions has been available to us for a very long time, and there are never completely original ideas. As Tanit-Isis said, sometimes we just want to pay others for the time and effort it takes.
ReplyDeleteThat's a tough question with many answers, I guess. It reminds me of an article I read last year about Forever 21 knocking off quite a few designers, just weeks after their collections came out (shame on them). I think it's fine for home sewists to knock off designs, be it from big companies or indie designers. I guess it really comes down to scale. Additionally, chances are, their ideas were probably also inspired by someone else - it's really hard to invent something totally new nowadays. You'll also be working with different fabric, different notions... I also like the idea that you're actually paying for good drafting more than for the actual idea of the garment. So yeah, while I think it's deplorable for big companies to knock off designers without compensation, because they make millions of dollars with that, I think it's fine for home sewists.
ReplyDeleteMaybe this is naive of me, but I feel like patterns are mostly directed at those who haven't the knowledge or courage to design their own patterns from blocks. If you don't know how to make a shirt with no guidance then you're going to be buying patterns. Once you get to the stage where you're creating blocks and have surpassed using them to modify patterns to fit and on in to creating your own designs (even if those designs are based on items of clothing or patterns you've seen elsewhere) I think that its okay not to be buying those patterns any more. You're not copying exactly all the detail, you can't without the garment or pattern in question. And numbers dictate the more people sewing are still using those patterns so numbers of sewists creating knock offs are never going to exceed those buying patterns. That said, I think smaller companies should be considered carefully before copying because it is so much harder for them to survive. Maybe it just comes down to what your conscience tells you?
ReplyDelete