Sampling the Fruits of Originality

What constitutes an original design?

This is a topic that comes up again and again in so many different circles. And one that I am thinking about again as I prepare to follow through on a threat that is more than 2 years in the making: to pitch my own book ideas. So this post may be a bit rambling, but these are the actual thoughts that have been tumbling out of me. Join me in the mind jumble, won't you? If you don't want to sit through my meanderings, feel free to jump to the end where I issue a bit of an informal challenge...

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In preparing for the blog hop that I just did with the Bohemian-Inspired Jewelry book, I knew that I wanted to find a way to take the concepts in the book and make them my own. Sure, I could have just as easily taken the instructions and made an exact replica of the piece I saw, but that wouldn't be a challenge to me and it just wouldn't feel right.

I am quite aware that for some, especially those just starting out, that it is very hard to find that original spark. It is just easier to copy a design from a publication or a book. I don't discount that this is crucial if you are learning a new skill. Same is true of a class situation. You do what the teacher instructs and authors are by nature teachers of technique. But it is what you do with that knowledge once you move past the learning phase that makes a difference and really moves you forward to tasting those fruits of originality.

I really don't believe that there is anything new under the sun, and all great ideas are just recycling of a previous one or piggy backing on top of another. I have inspiring designs in my Pinterest boards that are drawn on ancient patterns and classic techniques. I don't do anything myself that is unique to me. I build on all the knowledge that I have gleaned from everywhere else. I know that when I started designing my own pieces I would often try to replicate something that I saw on TV, in a movie, in a catalog. It was more the fun to see if I could engineer it from the picture rather than following step by step instructions (I am horrid at doing that! I make the worst student in class!). In fact, I would rather dig in and mess it up and have to fight my way out of that paperbag just to teach myself something about the process rather than trying to faithfully recreate an exact copy.

I admitted in that post that I am a book junkie. There is not a book that I have met - particularly ones related to crafting, jewelry or other artistic pursuits - that I didn't like. I always find something that turns the light bulb on, something that moves me to act. There are so many great ideas out there that it is hard to reign them in, and over time it is hard to remember where that spark came from to even give credit.

I mentioned to some people who commented on that post that one way that I cope with this idea overload is to put little stickie notes on the pages I love. I also am fond of scribbling in the margins and making notes on alternate materials or color palettes that I would use. When I get a new book and I am devouring it from cover to cover, I like to have some scratch paper or better yet those really nice sized stickie notes handy. I sketch out design elements that I like from the piece and leave it in the page as a rough idea of what my interpretation would be. That way when I am seeking some inspiration in the future, I can just pull any book or magazine from my resources library and find an instant morsel that can whet my appetite and get me going for a full course creative session!

One of the kind commenters on my post sent me an email and asked me this question:

I still am not sure how the copyright works, I would never sell anything that was an exact replica of a design..but how far off the design can one go to be fair to the jewelry artist and be honest to oneself? And can one pin one of [the]designs on Pinterest which gives a link back to [the] book?

I have been thinking a lot about this over the past few days. I do a lot of design work for various companies, blog partner programs, design teams, as well as publications. Anyone who designs for someone other than themselves should consider their feelings on this. Now, I am not saying that my opinion is the right one for everyone, and I am not interested in opening up a kettle of worms on this sticky issue, but I will share with you my response to this question as a jumping off point for your own thoughts.

Any book or publication is meant as a jumping off point. You can see where I took those concepts in my designs and ran with them. I tried to make them my own using their techniques. As such, I feel I would have no problem selling them. But I am quick to give credit where it is due, and that is important. I have seen people who make almost exact replicas of something in a magazine or book and then sell it or take a class or even just read a book and then set up their own classes teaching that material as if it was their own. That is just plain wrong. It is an insult to the original authors as well as to the person who is doing it who doesn't trust their own creative nature. That is why I advocate that you need to look at these things as building blocks to your own style. It is perfectly fine to copy a design for your personal use, especially when you are learning something new, but to then turn around and sell it as your own original idea is not right.

Recently I was privy to a thread in a Facebook group where someone took a design that was pioneered by someone else in the beading community and which was taught to this person in a class...she then recreated the design and submitted it to a magazine. The magazine recently published that design with great kudos to this knockoff designer. The problem is that the publication did not realize their error and the person who took the class and then passed off this design as 'original' to the publication acted like it was no big deal. It takes a lot of time and effort to make something new and fresh and choose the right materials, then write all the instructions.

I would say that making sure that pins have the original links is very important. I try not to repin things that don't go back to the original. I don't mind my own things being repinned as it is a way to connect, and I try to pin people who use my own Simple Truths components to help promote them as well. I think that it is about making connections and building community and I love Pinterest for that reason.

I gave this person kudos for thinking about this topic at all, and I hope that I didn't scare her away with my answer. But I think that it is something to consider if you plan to do more than just make pretty things for yourself.

 

There have been times when I have been approached by someone about a design they see on my website, in a magazine ad, or my Etsy site and they ask me to provide them with the instructions and a list of materials so that they can make their own just like it. Or the woman who contacted me locally from seeing a necklace at the Gallery Q who insisted that I tell her where I sourced my materials from because she thought the simple design was so clever she wanted to make it herself. Or when I have been told that they saw the exact necklace I created at Kohl's or Target and that they can get it for much cheaper (!). Ummm... no. No, you can't get that from a department store, and no I will not provide that long list of materials and the step by step instructions unless that is something that I was paid for in a publication. It has taken me many years and a lot of dollars invested to source the materials that I use, and while many are obviously available to everyone, not all are. I am fairly open to sharing information and encouraging others to pursue their creative passions, but the intent behind such a request, and the fact that it is demanded matter-of-factly, as if I owe it to them, just astounds me.

I have been working on some design team projects that can get quite involved and I was thinking about this last night. The end result of a piece I made will come off as fairly simple, but I made all the mistakes along the way that you would do if you were coming up with something new to you. So when I write the instructions I will be sharing hours worth of working through a design so that you don't have to make the same mistakes I made. I learned from them and I am passing that knowledge on to the end user. And that is worth something. I am sure that Erin Siegel and Lorelei Eurto and their fellow contributors will tell you that there was a fair amount of trial and error that went into making up each piece in their book.... coming up with innovative ways to use tried and true techniques... sourcing just the right materials and color palettes... recreating it to be sure that the dimensions could be listed just right... and then perfecting the designs with the step by step instructions that anyone would be able to follow. 

With the rise in social networks like blogs that have so many do-it-yourselves and knock off projects and places like Pinterest that are a virtual playground for all that is visually stunning, it sometimes feels like we have let go of the notion that there are limits to what we can do with what we see and are inspired by. It is a double-edged sword. I want people to like my projects enough to pin them but do I want them to knock them off? I guess that is a risk I am willing to take in this day and age. So my question to you is this... where do you find inspiration that speaks to your soul and how do you translate that into an imaginative and inventive design that is original?

Inspiration can truly come from anywhere. That is my mantra and I am sticking to it. We all have the same inputs that we are seeing around us, from Pinterest and Facebook, books and publications, to Etsy and the internet. Truly, I love all of these places. I find myself on all of them every day, pinning and liking and generally soaking it all in. But it has me thinking...with everyone accessing the same things, can anything you make be truly untouched by another inspiration? Can you truly have an original design? 

We have all seen a trend overplayed. Think of the trend to make ladder stitch style wrap bracelets. Is there anything new under that sun? That doesn't mean that you shouldn't do it. Just that you need to work even harder to make something like that your own. What about making that style but not putting it into a wrap bracelet. Hmmm.... That is a challenge but one that will allow you to innovate the design. 

And what about materials? I bought a lot of pricey gems at Bead & Button, but I also bought a lot of very inexpensive things. I am fond of mixing the mundane with the magnificent for intriguing results. I am not a bead snob whatsoever. If it has a hole, it is fair game. If it is the right color of metal, I don't care if it is precious or plated. I like what I like. I have seen some threads in posts that put down materials from one store because they don't feel that they are worthy. Truthfully, I have found good quality and bad quality from all retailers across the board whether they are an online giant of a wholesale only company, a big box craft store, a local bead store, or an Etsy seller. Often it is the cheapest strand in my collection that I have loved the most. I don't believe that you have to have the fanciest materials to make the most impressive things but you do have to have a vision for what you are doing and where you are taking it. That is where your unique personality and sense of style come into play. And I believe that we all have that and we need to trust in it. It is easy to be inspired by someone else's design sense, but it takes someone truly confident in their own creative self to turn that design inspiration into something that is truly their own. 

I want to be able to continue providing my own designs are jumping off points for others and inspiring people to be creative in their own unique way and I hope that in some small way they have inspired you. I need to write those books that I have been storing up inside my heart to encourage others to find their favorite piece of the puzzle and build on it to become their own work of wearable art or just to follow your heart wherever its creative path may take you. And I believe that there is enough creativity to go around so that no one needs to feel like they have to knock off a design of someone else in order to be a success. 

After all, that is what tasting the fruits of originality is all about, isn't it?

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What about you? What do you think about these concepts? 
Is there a truly unique idea out there that has not already been tried? And if you had it would you actually share it? ;-)
What do you think about all the websites and blogs and tutorials showing how to knock off a particular style? Is that just crafty cleverness or could that be considered stealing? 
Do the materials you choose make or break a piece or is it more about the inventiveness of the design?

Now for the {informal} challenge....  should you choose to accept it ;-)...

Find one of my designs in my Etsy shop (for sale or sold) in my website , on my personal design board on Pinterest, or on this blog... Now I want you to take break it down to the parts... consider the focal, the clasp, the bead shapes, the patterns, the textures, the colors....whatever it is that draws you to it. Pick the one part you like the best, not the whole piece, just one thing that I have done... now add that one thing to something you are creating.  Then be sure to share the results!

I suppose I am taking a risk in asking you to do this, but I believe in you and the fact that you can make something amazing from that one piece of the puzzle. I want to see what you do! Go ahead and try it. You might be surprised at how 'you' it will be! (And do be sure to share it with me so that I can share it with everyone else on this blog and on Pinterest as well!)