Copyright is a frequent topic in the weaving community. If a centuries-old weaving draft appears in a book, is it then owned by the author or publisher? Can you weave from a pattern in Handwoven and give the item as a gift? What about if you sell the item? If you develop a weaving draft or curriculum and share it in a class, how can you protect your rights?
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Well, you're in luck. It turns out that April 26th is World Intellectual Property Day, a day to remind people of the rights of creators and copyright holders and to educate the public about fair use and proper respect for people's copyrights. In honor of this special day and our very special readers, Interweave has produced a set of free ebooks on basic copyright practices for different kinds of crafters. Copyright 101 for Weavers is a 10-page copyright guide for weavers, designers, shop owners, teachers, and others.
The new book explains how copyrights work, how to protect your own intellectual property, and how to be respectful and lawful in using information and designs created by others. You'll be excited to learn that specific patterns,are technically within copyright as soon as they're written, even if they haven't been published or distributed. On the other hand, techniques and patterns such as basic twills or summer-and-winter are considered common knowledge and are not subject to copyright. The ebook also covers new issues such as sharing information on social media web sites.
We all want our creative efforts to be respected, and we want to respect the rights of other crafters. This little booklet will help you do just that. So download a copy now and help celebrate the respect and sharing that make our community great.
-Anita