Post #81484 by kctiki on Thu, Mar 18, 2004 10:15 AM

My comment on the shelf was meant as a pat on the back to someone learning something new & using his spare time constructively. As far as putting someone else’s design on ebay, that’s a different issue. Copying somebody else’s stuff is a standard way to learn and practice, but fair play in the marketplace would dictate coming up with a design of one’s own.

I think there’s often a misconception that creative people just pull ideas out of the air as easily as most people breath, and therefore don’t mind being copied. On a few occasions a unique design has popped into my head in a split second. However, it took hours of erasing, hair pulling , snorting , & cussing to transfer the vision from my mind’s eye to the paper.

Now if I took the time to execute that design into a sellable form, went to the trouble and expense to market it, then saw someone selling the same design on ebay, I’d be plastered to the ceiling.

I get just a big a kick out of seeing the do-it-yourselfer’s projects as the work of the pro’s. Not everyone can make a living creatively, or even earn an occasional profit. But a creative hobby can have therapeutic value that can’t be measured in dollars and cents.

Nice to meet you Jim. I didn't mean this to sound like a lecture. Just my perspective.