Hiyah!
It’s my turn again over at The Team KnK Design Team Blog and today I have made some Cupcake Wrappers, just to tease you here is one of the 4 designs available:
I wanted to let you all know just how completely awesome you are and to thank you so very much for all of your support, it has meant the absolute world to me. I have been flooded with the most fantastic emails, helpful suggestions, kind comments and amazing acts of support – so much so – that you have completely floored me!
I was kind of aware of how many people could be reading my blog but the amount of contact I have had over these last few days has really made it hit home, it feels a little overwhelming that so many people were actually following my little corner of blog-land.
I have read stories from some of you that unfortunately have had to face similar issues and some who are still facing them, it is truly awful and although it is heartbreaking we can’t let it break our spirit (easier said than done, I know) and we can’t let it stop us from standing up for ourselves :)
So, just as I do every morning, last Friday morning I turned on the TV to watch Create and Craft while I had my breakfast. I knew they were launching a week of Christmas shows so I was excited to see what goodies were about to be shown.
Ali Reeve, who I recognised from some Craft Clinic shows, was introducing some of her new Stamps Away MDF Kits:
One of the products was an MDF Christmas Tree kit which looked very familiar…
As they showed more and more of these Tree Kits I grew more sure that this was one of my designs.
The Tree Kit was selling on it’s own for £9.89/£10.99.
But it was also included in a multi-buy which was priced at £26.99/£29.99.
I ran up to my craft room and dug out my Swirly Christmas Tree design and could see straight away that it either was my design or something incredibly similar:
The only way to know for sure was to lay one design over the other to see if there was a match:
When I saw the results of the overlay I just buried my face in my hands, I could not believe that someone would be so blatent and to do it on TV of all places.
My Terms of Use have always allowed other crafters to sell their completed projects, I even give an example by saying ‘finished cards etc’. The Stamps Away Kit is not a completed project, it is a raw MDF 3 piece kit which is sold for completion by the purchaser:
Even the description states that it needs completing:
And there are the Assembly and Decoration instructions:
Doesn’t seem like a completed project does it?
I sent a message to Ali Reeve’s email address who sent it on to her husband Paul. In Paul Reeves reply he admitted taking my design saying:
When putting together our MDF Christmas tree I took to searching the web for “Free Swirly Christmas Tree” which resulted in a number of images, including your own appearing. I then traced this image, modifying the centre (for our specific needs) to cut the tree out of MDF…we only lifted the image from the Google search results
When I replied pointing out that this was in breach of my Terms of Use I was accused of changing my Terms after I had seen Ali Reeve on TV selling my design:
the item was sold to the TV and to CleverCut prior to you expanding your terms and conditions and you stating that we are now in breach of them
In a later email they refered to this apparent change again:
we complied with your terms and conditions on your website at the time of using your design, we do acknowledge your NEW terms and conditions you sent us at 3:03pm on the 20th June 2014
NEW huh? I don’t think that Ali or Paul Reeve knew that there was such a thing as the Internet Archive, here is the proof (from 9th Feb) that my Terms of Use have not changed since last year:
So, What Happened?
After several accusations and criticisms from The Reeves saying that I had changed my Terms…and being told that it was my responsibility to make my Terms clearer…and being told that I should include my Terms with every single download I offer etc etc… I had enough by then and I sent a Cease and Desist requiring that they stop selling, promoting or displaying the Stamps Away MDF Christmas Tree Kit under The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Ali and Paul Reeve have since removed their Kit from their own website but it remains on the Create and Craft website and many photographs displaying the Kit are still online.
The Final Straw
Yesterday I checked back to the Reeve’s online store and guess what I saw:
They have tweaked the design of the Tree Kit and put it straight back up online.
How Do I Feel Now?
You know, a simple apology or some recognition of their wrong doing would have gone a long long way. I have not been offered an apology nor a single penny for the kits they have sold to date, the most they would offer was a mention in a newsletter that they send out once or twice a year and added that :
we felt (that) far exceeded what was required for us for using your design
I guess that Ali & Paul Reeve feel some sense of satisfaction by getting one over on a crafter who was trying to be generous and gave her time away freely to crafters who struggle to afford craft supplies or raise money for charity, if that was their intention then I guess I should say well done you!