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BrideStyle #3: Using inspiration, respecting copyrightby Stacy Werkheiser | Last week in BrideStyle #2, I showed you how to use jewelry inspiration to create a list of design elements you might like to use in your wedding jewelry. Notice that I did not tell you to just pick your favorite necklace and make a duplicate. Why? Because that would be illegal, a violation of copyright law. |
How copyright applies to jewelry
Whenever you're using other designers' work as inspiration for your own, you need to keep in mind that their original designs are copyrighted. You might think that the only products that are copyrighted are ones that have been registered with the U.S. Copyright Office or that bear the symbol ©, items like books, movies, or Web site content. But here's the truth of the matter: Everything that a person creates is copyrighted even if it hasn't been registered or doesn't bear a ©. That includes jewelry.
Don't believe me? Check out the U.S. Copyright Office's FAQ page: "Your work is under copyright protection the moment it is created and fixed in a tangible form..." That means that as soon as a designer completes a piece of jewelry, it's copyrighted. It would be illegal for you to duplicate the piece unless the designer gives you permission to.
But the good news is that you can still use that designer's jewelry as inspiration for your own. Only the form of the original design is copyrighted, not the elements that compose it. In my previous post, I used other jewelry as inspiration for my own by asking myself what I liked in the original and also how I would change it. This method does not violate copyright because I'm not duplicating an original piece but rather looking for design elements that I can use in my own original creation. I encourage you to do the same. |
How copyright applies to BeadStyle designs
Now, several of my inspirational designs from last week's post came from BeadStyle magazine, which warrants a special disclaimer: It's OK to recreate designs from BeadStyle and BeadStyleMag.com - otherwise what would be the point of BeadStyle? All our project designers sign a contract that gives you permission to recreate their designs, as long as it's for your own personal use. It would be illegal to sell or teach those designs without permission or to copy and distribute the instructions. |
Check your knowledge of copyright
If you'd like to test your knowledge of copyright as it applies to jewelry design, Jeannette Shanigan has a great copyright quiz on her Web site, shanigansbeadshenanigans.com. I guarantee you will learn something new and surprising about jewelry copyright. For more information on how to protect your rights as a jewelry maker, read "Without copyright, where would we be?" from Fire Mountain Gems and Beads.
So that was a heavy topic, but necessary for all burgeoning jewelry designers to understand - and you made it! To celebrate, next week we go shopping! Using the list of design elements I created in my previous post, I'll start collecting the materials for my wedding necklace and earrings. I'll also give you some helpful hints for buying pearls, the perennial bridal accessory.
Coming next week…
BrideStyle #4: Let's go shopping! How to buy pearls and other bridal jewelry components
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