No Pin Code

Although I've had several  kind and understanding people contact me regarding my concerns about Pinterest and copyright infringement, I've also run into a lot of opposition on the subject.  A LOT!

May I say that just because it's on the internet, does not mean that it's free for the taking!  It seems to me that some people don't understand what copyright means or they don't care.  In most cases, it's that they don't care.

I won't get myself or you all worked up with this issue.  I spent years chasing the copyrights for my cross stitch designs all over the internet.  These included patterns that I had for sale, patterns that were published in magazines and books and patterns that I offered for free.  As you know, I no longer sell my cross stitch patterns and I've deleted every free pattern (with the exception of one) that I've ever offered because I got tired of finding them on other peoples sites.  And there was no reason for it!  All anyone ever had to do was to link to my blog.  Well, too bad now!

With all that said, if you would like the instructions on how to add a "no pin" code to your blog, please hop over to Sharon B's Pintangle Blog.  It's very easy to do and I have already added the code to this blog.  You can also find a link at Sharon's blog on how to keep your Flickr photos from being pinned.  I've left Sharon a message asking if she knows where to add the code to my website (I have a little trouble with HTML) and if she's aware of anyway to keep my content at Etsy from being shared.

For those of you on Facebook, no worries there!  Facebook already has a "no pin" code installed on their site.  Photos on Facebook can not be pinned on Pinterest.  At least not at this time.

So in other news, I've been stitching on my bunny pillow:

Other than a bit of cleaning and laundry today, I'm planning on having a good amount of stitching time so we'll see where it goes!

Pinterest and Copyright Issues

It has come to my attention, that the website Pinterest has policies that are quite controversial regarding copyright issues.

They claim that all photos pinned gives them the right to use those photos as they choose.  Well, I'm not sure how they can make this claim a policy because people are pinning photos from all over the internet without permission from the copyright holder's.

I confess, I have enjoyed Pinterest for several months now and thought of it as a social network as well as an indirect way to promote my blog, website and Etsy shop however, it's a dangerous situation.  It never occurred to me that my copyrights were being infringed upon.  Please note:  I own the copyrights on all photos posted here on my blog, on my website, in my Flickr albums and on my Etsy shop!

If I post photos from anyone else's website here on my blog, I always ask for permission and I always include a link to the source site!  Not only is this the "legal" way of doing things, it's also proper etiquette.

I will be removing my boards from Pinterest momentarily and I would like to ask that if any of my photos are on your boards, please remove them as soon as possible.

I would like to point you in the direction of Sharon B's Pintangle blog.  Sharon has posted an indepth discussion on the subject of Pinterest and the copyright implications of using the site.

Easter Bunny Stitching

I spent a few days earlier this week running my sewing machine.  I piece a bunch of small crazy quilt blocks so now I have a nice pile of things to stitch on.

I thought I'd do one more little Easter Bunny project:

And here are some of the trims that I pulled for it:

I hand painted the lace flower piece yesterday.  I'll cut it apart and use the flowers individually.  I'm going to sit here now and work on this for a little while before I straighten up the house and go over to mom's for awhile.

Magnolia Tree

Oh, the weather here is just gorgeous!  It's been the warmest March ever and although it feels a bit odd, I'm not complaining!

My Magnolia Tree is blooming.  It smells good and it's beautiful:

When I sit on my deck, this is what I get to see!  My grandmother loved Magnolias.  When I was little, my grandfather planted a Magnolia tree for her outside the picture window in their kitchen.  Grandma was so excited about this tree, that she had a party to celebrate it! 

We bought our house here in early March of 1993.  When we bought it, I had no idea that this tree was a Magnolia.  When it bloomed that first April, I was just thrilled!  It was something to remind me of my grandmother who passed away when I was 14.  Every year when it blooms, I think of her. We almost lost it a few years ago but thankfully, Scott was able to bring it back.

In other news, I finished up stitching on my little basket of kittens:

This design is from my collection of vintage Vogart embroidery patterns.  I love this design and have now stitched it twice!

I have 3 pieces now all ready to sew together which I'm planning on doing over the weekend.  Stop by again to see some new hanging pillows!

Happy First Day of Spring!

It's official!  Today is the first day of Spring!  I've had a hard time tearing myself away from my deck lately.  It's been so beautiful outside lately.  I picked my first Daffodils of the season yesterday and put them in a little Jadite vase in my garden window.  The grass is green now and my Magnolia tree is blooming.  Since when does that happen in March?  I'll try to get a picture of it today.  We almost lost it a few years ago but my dear husband and his green thumb, managed to bring it back and it's just beautiful!

I started stitching on this little embroidered piece yesterday:

It's a little hard to see the markings.  Two little kittens sitting in a basket of flowers.  This is an old Vogart pattern.  I've been collecting vintage embroidery iron-transfers for years and years! I find them at flea markets and antique shops.  I've gotten a few from Ebay and Etsy too.  I have so many now, it's hard to find ones that I don't have!  Anyway, I expect to finish this up today.  I may run my sewing machine a bit too.  I want to sew some more crazy quilt blocks and I have a few things to finish.

It's a little hard to type now because Lucy has draped herself across my computer again!  CATS!!! 

Happy Spring everyone!