Friday 27 September 2013

Stolen



A few weeks ago, I discovered (thanks to someone on Twitter) that an ebay shop was selling skirts and leggings with my cat pattern. 
After researching a little more (yay for google images!), I found that MANY online shops were selling these clothes: RomweSheinside, Oasap... 


It's a very frustrating situation, I always share my illustrations the smallest size possible and at 72dpi... 
But it obviously doesn't stop these people from stealing. 
Does anyone know how to protect your work without adding watermarks?

Please, do not buy these items... And if you feel like sharing this post, I would really appreciate it!





29 comments:

  1. This makes me so angry and it happens all the time. I hope everyone goes online to shame them - this needs to stop.

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    1. Thanks Alice, I really appreciate your help!

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  2. You get a lawyer to send a letter headed letter for a cease and desist. (if you don't have a lawyer just make a fake letter head and write it yourself. You are entitled to a percentage of the money made from your stolen design. Don't let them win. This is a crime. Good luck x

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    1. Thank you! I wrote to them, let's hope I get an answer!

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  3. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.... I feel your pain - I hope you get some redress.

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  4. THREATEN TO GET YOUR LAWYERS ON THEM IF THEY DONT GIVE YOU A CUT OF THE CASH

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  5. Oh merde!! c'est dégueulasse ça :(
    et évidement je suppose que tu peux rien faire ?

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    1. C'est très difficile, car ils sont tous situés en Chine!

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  6. Some years ago it happened the same with a Spanish young graphic designer whose pictures were stolen by Zara!! She spoke on the radio and published it on her blog, like you've done, and finally Zara agreed that the pictures on their t-shirts were too similar to the ones designed by the young woman.
    I wish you luck! You have done the right thing, we'll spread the voice! Facebook and Twitter are weapons against these thiefs!

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    1. Thank you, I've had a lot of support on Twitter, Tumblr and Facebook! I'm very touched!

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  7. Omg not jumpers and leggings too! :-( I saw the skirt on someones blog the other day and told them it had been stolen from you but not sure whether they changed it

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    1. Oh thank you! I've shared it everywhere I could, I hope people will see it!

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  8. THE BASTARDS! Get on it now! x

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  9. ARGGG this makes me so ANGRY!!! :o(

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  10. That's a bummer! You should definitely hire a lawyer! Your work shouldn't be used this way, it's illegal! I'll be sharing!

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  11. Shared this. You should definetly take action! They'll ignore a letter but you should follow up with legal action. The silver lining may be that you could make a decent amount out of this and fund future projects! x

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  12. Speak to ACID. Anti Copyright in Design. x

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  13. If it is China there isnt anything you can do. I hate China for ripping people off and their treatment of animals.

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  14. Get an agent and join ACID if you can. Hopefully they can advise. Good luck! PS We love your work!!!

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  15. Also on ASOS market place , there's store sell it and I Saw it on ETST as well...
    Copycats are pathetic ...

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  16. Yes, you should definitely take action... start with a Cease and Desist letter and take it from there. These big chains need to stop ripping artist's work off, so unethical, so rude, so arrogant! Please don't let them get away with it... but Schmoomunitions comment worries me, if it is correct... that's terrible that if it is China you can't do anything about it. I'm not sure how Copyright laws work internationally. I really hope you get them to stop!

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  17. I stumbled across your design on Chicnova too: http://www.chicnova.com/loose-printed-sweatshirts.html
    A similar incident happened with Ivania from Love Aesthetics and Nelly, she recieved both acknowledgement and reimbursement. http://love-aesthetics.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/life-my-diy-being-copied.html
    All the best with resolving this.
    x

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  18. Thank you so much everyone, I really appreciate all the support, help and advice! I'm working on it and I'll hopefully get them to take the clothes off their websites!

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  19. You should speak to an attorney specializing in intellectual property.

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  20. great post, in the sense of putting it out there and letting people know it is your work, that sucks that people are cheeky enough to steal your work and make money off your creations. and your work is amazing too, you should be givent he credit for it off these people. If you find out any useful info please let me know as I am an illustrator and want to know how to protect my work too :) hope you can get this resolved! xx

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  21. Ma pauvre Laura, tu es victime de ton talent ! J'espère que tu pourras faire quelque chose !
    En tous cas, tu le sais déjà mais, j'adore ton travail et je le suis régulièrement !!! :)
    Bises

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  22. I feel awful because I bought a skirt and it wasn't till I got it that a friend told me it was a design stolen from you. It was through Amazon by Romwe, I left a negative review and have contacted Amazon about it. If I had known, I wouldn't have bought it. Your design is beautiful. I've had my Doodlecats stolen several times and now watermark them all so I know how crappy it feels. Sorry :(

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