is it okay to replicate a limited costume?

There are a lot of 'one of a kind' outfits I wanna make because I love them so much... [ and so they're not 'one of a kind' anymore >) ] And I know I'm not doing anything wrong because I'm NOT gonna try to sell it as the real thing, or keep copying it to make money and all those illigal things.

As long as you're not selling it you're good to go!

 

A note from the other side of the needle:

I make replicas of 'one of a kind' outifts, but outward appearance is the only similarity. When I make the pattern I usually alter it in some way. I refuse to put velcro on any outfit. My fabrics are all prewashed and dried so there is little chance of fade or rub-off, something you won't find in ANY purchased item. I choose whatever fabric I feel gives the look of the outfit, it is most likely not what they used. I've worked sewing factories and fabric quality isn't high on the list.
I make these items for the dolls. The owners come to me; I offer my skill as a seamstress to create something either they cannot afford or create themselves. I have no intentions of mass-producing anything, or taking credit for some design I didn't create. I work one-on-one, creating one happy owner at a time. And my conscience does not bother me a bit.

 

I think it's totally OK, as long as you NEVER sell it and NEVER try to pass it off as the original.

~Erin

 

i say its perfectly fine, it sucks when u see an outfit u totally love but u cant get it for w/e reason (money, limited, etc), so making it = happiness

 

I'm not sure if this was asked before, Is it okay to replicate Limited Doll's clothes?

I saw some dolls that wearing clothes a replica celebrity clothes like Gack, Dir en grey, Hyde etc... and I think it's acceptable... How about the limited doll's clothes?

I like Black Ducan's outfit and I'm sure that it's one in million chance to get that actual clothes and it'll cost me a hundred dollars. So I'm thinking if I should make something like that or replicate it.... I know that it's illegal to copy but I wonder if it's ok or acceptable to replicate limited doll's clothes that are for personal use not for sale. Please enlighten me with this...

By the way, I don't want any bad impressions here and I don't want to cause any trouble for any one. Please don't sue me... I came here in peace


thank you!

 

Sometimes I have the same feeling about clothes. I love them so much, but of course, can't buy them. I can use the clothes for inspiration, but would never make something exact like it.
I think you CAN, but I think it is better when you don't make pictures and post it on the web. If it's really for personal use, I don't really see the problem. But if you're out on everybody's "wow, nice clothes!" comments, I would not do it.
Just my opinion. ^^

 

I dunno.. Me, personally, I don't see any problem with it. As long as you aren't selling it, aren't claiming it's the actual bought outfit, or aren't claiming that you designed it yourself, it wouldn't bother me.. I know there's a lot of people out there who would disagree however.

 

As long as you arent making a profit off of it, i see no problem. Also, make sure you state that its your own creation/rendition of *insert outfit here* because you loved it so much you just had to have your own version of it.

Although honestly, i dont forsee a problem. Whats teh worst they can do, ask you to take down the pics? Which, even that seems silly, since you'd think they'd be flattered that you loved teh outfit so much.

and hey, the whole cosplay industry (...if its an industry XD) is based on copying outfits that arent for sale. *shrugs* I'd do it. Probably will. There are always outfits i really really like but can't get for some reason or another.

--tht, and DOD has some REALLY lovely outfits. And black Ducan's downright pretty =D

 

thanks everyone!

Yeah I was also thinking about the cosplay concept... I'm also a cosplayer by the way...

Well, as long as didn't I claim ng copied clothes as mine and doesn't make any profit from it I'll be fine...

ok... I'll keep this in mind

 

It should be OK to do anything for your own use, but not to sell it or claim the design your own.

 

I personally don't like people copying clothes that i've spent ages designing. If you copy the outfit for a private use and don't go showing pictures of it everywhere on the internet (aside from critiques and such) then i suppose it's ok. But remember people put alot of effort into their designs, and DOD are known for getting quite upset about being copied (especially with the increase happening lately)

Outfits like Ducan's your better off trying to split the doll with a group because they still sell that outfit. If you do want to recreate it though never create more than one, never sell it for any sort of profit, and do credit DOD.

 

I saw a costume I too love. It's all sold out I have searched Ebay, DOA and anywhere possible it could be found. No Luck! So looking into have someone make it for me with lis. to play around with design as well as materials. If they sell it to me it will be a OOAK in my eyes. If they decide to mass produce, again they switched things around so not really a problem in my eyes. Maybe I am only one who wants one.

 

If you're only making it for yourself, I don't see a problem with it especially since it's a company's design. I'd have a bit more of a problem with copying another private designer's work but even there, if you have no plans to sell it or take credit for the design & really love the outfit, the problem's not huge. I also can see no reason for you not to post pictures of it. Even though it's not your own design, if you give credit to the original it should be ok. Really though, it'll never be an exact copy as there'll be some differences in your pattern & I highly doubt if you'll be able to exactly match the fabric & trim.

As a designer myself, I take inspiration from all sources including other designers. I always end up tweaking things though so it's never a real copy. But when I sewed for antique dolls I would recreate original costumes as closely as possible, including using the sewing techniques of the period so they would be as authentic as possible.

 

No, I don't think it's alright to replicate a limited costume. Here's my reasoning; If you see a limited doll you really like, you're not going to try and replicate it unless you want to get into some major legal trouble. It's the same with any other "limited" item, doll related or not. If you really want the outfit that bad then try and purchase it from the site or from a user on a doll forum. If you'd like, you can ask any seamstress on here for tips on making patterns to make your own unique costume. I think that would make you feel much better knowing that there's no other outfit out there since you made it yourself and not from a company design.

 

This belongs in the 'debate' category, I think.

I used to initially think 'if you make it for personal use and not for profit, what is the harm?' but then as the doll community got bigger and bigger a lot of problems showed up and made me change my mind. Taking inspiration from a picture of a character in a computer game and then recreating that image for a costume for personal cosplay is fine, in my opinion. However, recreating a costume that was made with the objective of being sold as a limited edition, is not. Let me elaborate.

This is an issue that is being constantly discussed in the Korean doll community, between companies and owners of handmade shops and customers. (We have quite a few dolly wars going on, and it gets pretty ugly, I'm ashamed to admit.)

First, what's blatantly wrong. Everyone has already pointed out that copying for mass production is unethical.
We have a bi-monthly Doll Freemarket here in Seoul, with approximately 200 booths participating. Most of those who participate are those who genuinely enjoy the hobby. Some have their own handmade clothing shops. Some just come to display their dolls. Doll companies participate to show off their new lines.
A couple of years ago (when that doll movie came out) there was a media frenzy regarding this 'odd hobby'. There was the misdirection that people were making a lot of money selling clothes and such for these overpriced dolls. There are a lot of talented seamtresses and small clothing businesses in Korea. They all suddenly became interested and started to bombard the event.
Soon after, a whole bunch of new shops showed up on the web with designs very similar to or exact copies of those shops that participate in the event. They took unique designs from popular shops and started selling them at more than half the price, by producing the garments in Chinese factories. The shops whose products were being copied really couldn't do anything because legal action costs more than the profit they were making.
Also, the customer is only interested in the product and price and buy the products anyway, so it's a no win situation for the original design-maker. The Korean doll community monitors itself and when such a certain shop is discovered, action is taken by 'blacklisting' and so forth but that doesn't stop them from doing overseas sales. (There is a pretty famous international online doll shop in the 1/6 world that mostly sells to western customers, who is famous for ripping off designs from Korean and Japanese handmade shops, for example.)

Okay, so much for the 'mass production for profit part'. What about 'mass production not for profit'? A famous handmade shop made a limited edition outfit. The owner's friends all fell in love with it. They all begged for it so the owner gives in and makes some additional ones, but gives it to them for free. Ethical? Not ethical?
I'd assume most of you would agree with the latter. Because the reason why people purchase limited outfits are different. Some people might buy them because they purely like the design, nothing more, nothing less. But there are also those who buy the limited designs because they are limited. The 'rarity factor' becomes a huge merit. So in the case of additional outfits being made, this is a major wrong-doing to the people who actually bought them for this reason. If they bought it because there were only 10 of them in the world, then it should remain that way.
Even if the original design itself belongs to the owner and whatever they wish to do is their prerogative, it isn't ethical to the customers involved.

Next to non-mass production, which was the original question. (Sorry to take so long to get to this point.) The delicate issue here being, "not one's own design but someone else's". As I've mentioned before, I didn't see a problem with people making their own reproductions for personal use in the beginning. They make outfits for their dolls, take pictures of them and play. So what?
The problem lies in the long run. You can never say never. You don't know what's going to happen to that outfit. You might have to sell it. The person you gave it to might have to sell it. Who is to say that the outfit wouldn't be confused with the original?
Plus, the problem gets worse when the skills of the seamstresses get better. There are a lot of talented people out there. Some people even make clothes better than the real thing. So let's say these talented people all fall in love with the same limited edition and decide to make one for themselves. It's all 'for personal use'. What if there were 10 of them? Or 20? Or 100?
With the preassumption that it's okay for an individual to make one for personal use, is it okay for that person to make an extra 10 outfits for her friends for 'individual personal use'? Who is to say that those 10 individuals didn't sew for themselves? How are we to know and how are we to judge? Where do you draw the line?

Conclusion: I'd refrain from replicating a limited edition that is initially the property of someone else, even if it's for 'personal use' only.

Sorry for the long winded post, but it seems like I have an unpopular opinion and I hoped to make the why of it very clear.

 

I think if you use the idea to create something similar but still unique thats alright. But copying someone else's idea completely is an aweful thing to do. If you created an outfit and worked hard on it and someone copied u u wouldnt like it either. put your place in the other persons shoes.

 

For personal use I don't see a problem with copying outfits, it only becomes an issue if you're trying to make money by copying.

 

to me as long as it just for u i think its really fine cause u r not trying to sell it to other and not trying to copy right it to u i guess its fine and go ahead and do it.. many lovely dress but limited i know how u feel :*

 

I don't think it would be a problem, unless people try to sell them or use the company's logo.