August 09, 2012

A C C E S S O R I E S / DIY Being Copied and Sold

Photobucket

Last week an unexpected nightmare became reality. My DIY transparent necklaces were ripped off, copied, plagiarized and being sold at one of Europe’s biggest online retailers.
Luckly everything has been set straight.

I shared the detailed description and measurements of this piece of jewelry a few months ago so that everyone can make their own. (I loooove love seeing people make and wear one of my DIYS!) DIY posts are an antidote to consumption. Though it was a big compliment and proof that bloggers do have a great influence on fashion rather than just following trends, seeing one of my do it yourself projects become a profitable product was something that turned my stomach around and made me feel physically sick.

Minutes after sharing this discovery on Facebook, the heartwarming, supporting reactions poured in. I never ever expected that so many people would care and I can not describe how grateful I am. Some comments almost brought me to tears and some people even took a few minutes out of their day to email the Nelly.com customer service to express their disgust. I have no words, Thank You is a huge understatement.

The next day I phoned Nelly.com and they took action right away by taking the necklaces and bracelets offline. My biggest question to them was; how could this happen? Nelly did not actually ‘design’ the accessories but bought them from a manufacturer in China for their line. They were not aware that the design of the jewelry was stolen and it wasn’t their intention to take advantage of the content of blogs. On the contrary Nelly says to be a big fan of bloggers and often works together with them. They took this matter very seriously and were sincerely sorry that it had happened. The necklaces are back online and have been renamed to 'Ivania Carpio necklace and bracelet’ acknowledging the design, also Nelly.com has said to give me all the profit that these pieces will make. So thank you Nelly for the acknowledgment.



__________________________________________________________________
FREE NECKLACES
Lastly, Nelly.com is giving away half of the stock of necklaces (145 pieces)
to the lovely readers of Love Aesthetics. Click here if you want one!
It is fantastic to see that fashion really has become somewhat democratic and that consumers have influence on the actions of big corporations.

96 comments:

Elisa said...

wow what a story! I can't imagine how you must have felt when seeing these online!

Elisa - Wandering Minds fashion
ourwanderingminds.com

Unknown said...

Wow that is such a good response from them. I am so used to hearing nothing but bad stories about the behaviour of companies on being called out on behaviour like this, that I reall didn't expect that! Glad to hear you getting proper credit and profit.
xxx

the style crusader said...

So awesome to hear that they took the matter so seriously and changed the name. Really great to hear of a store taking such quick and appropriate action.

Congratulations on having the necklace and bracelet named after you! xx

amalie said...

that is so cool!!
x

Unknown said...

Ik ben blij dat je gelijk hebt gekregen!

Lies said...

That is great news. You are such a unique blogger and even though my sense of style is completely different (and a lot less unique) I keep coming back to your blog. Seriously, your content and your philosophy behind blogging is so refreshing.

It's great to see them own up to it and make amends!

NONA LIMMEN said...

Wow, wat een verhaal zeg! Wel heel goed dat ze jouw belletje serieus genomen hebben en jouw naam direct verbonden hebben aan de armbanden! (alhoewel ik die van jou veel mooier vindt, maar goed). Gelukkig is alles toch weer een beetje goedgekomen!

Mijn maag zou zich ook omdraaien als ik zomaar iets van mijn eigen creaties voorbij zie komen zonder enige credits (of gewoon puur jatwerk). Zie het maar zo, je bent gewoon een trendsetter. Een verdomd goede zelfs :)

Xo!

Helen at THELOVECATSINC said...

it's so, so great that they acknowledged that they were in the wrong. there's some companies that have just ignored blatant rip offs of independent designers, so i'm glad you got the issue sorted!

from helen at www.thelovecatsinc.com // @thelovecatsinc

Laura said...

What a story!
There is nothing impossible outthere...
But I like the happy end of it :-)

meels said...

Brilliant news! Glad you're getting the credit you deserve!

Marloes said...

At least this story has a good ending, I hate it when things like this happen. They should do more research before they put new products on their site. x

Unknown said...

Echt super dat ze dit doen als compensatie en dat je vermeld wordt op hun site!

big yay!

x Sophie

Anonymous said...

That's so cool! Not only that they were so respectful but that you get a cut now too! If I could buy one (I live in the US) I would, to help support you and your awesome blog :)

Unknown said...

I'm really glad that everything turn out ok! And yes, it's fantastic to see that consumers have a thing to say and that the companies actually listen. =)

Once again, congratulations for all of your work, I love to visit you =)

Love, Pi*
Filipa Moreno

http://theperfumerecipe.blogspot.pt/

Unknown said...

Its so sad that something like this happened and its a shame that people feel like bloggers have no legal rights to their creations. But its so great that there's a good ending to our problem as there isn't always x

http://thepastimebliss.blogspot.co.uk/

Anonymous said...

I am so happy to hear that everything was settled so calmly and respectfully. It is awful to have something like that happen and both you and the company showed great maturity.

Arevya said...

naaw, it's sad someone would do something like that ... But good that it was fixed! They are really nice, and maybe I'll buy one! (At least now when I know that a small part of the money goes to the designer)

Michele said...

Holy crap! Justice! Die van jou blijven mooier. Ik zie zoiets in de toekomst eigenlijk wel weer gebeuren bij een van je creaties, they're too good! Heb gehoord dat als je het aangetekend naar jezelf verstuurd het dan bewijs is dat het echt 'van jou' is, maar dat is een beetje een versimpeling van hoe het daadwerkelijk in elkaar zit. In principe gaat dit hele verhaal een beetje om in hoeverre iets intellectual property is, en wanneer het gewoon een leuk idee is en niets meer, zoals het afknippen van je jeans of iets anders wat al op miljoenen blogs heeft gestaan. Yada yada zo kan ik nog wel even doorgaan hihi. Sowiezo een goede actie dat ze gewoon for free de deur uit gaan!

cfattyowly said...

Wow that's amazing that they actually gave you the credit for it! I know a lot of stores that wouldn't have even cared.
You are an amazing/unique blogger! <3

Anonymous said...

You're conceited. I saw them on sale before you've 'invented' them. In my view they are not so unique to assign them inventor.

Unknown said...

What a story! But the end is good luckily!

XX
http://lauralexo.blogspot.com

Aubrey said...

Man, I wish Nelly.com shipped to the US! I would love to have one of these. But all the more reason to do the DIY, right?
I'm glad they are honoring your design now and congrats for the feature!

Hannah said...

That is such a great story! You're such an inspiration! I love the fact you took action and did'nt just do nothing.

WOLF359 said...

Heel goed dat je erachteraan bent gegaan, en fijn dat Nelly zo goed meewerkt.

Lara Maria said...

oh my god. this story is wooowww ... both amazing and shocking at the same time. but you ivania rock!!! It was so brave and honest of you, simply calling them! Hope you will get at least lots of profit out of this! RESPECT! You are officially a jewelry designer!

Anonymous said...

Wow I'm so surprised at how it turned out for you,Nelly aren't so bad after all!I'm delighted that they took the matter so seriously and I'm sure will be more aware of their stock in future.Well done Ivania!
Love from Ireland x

MADELINE said...

This is amazing! Like everyone else has said, their response is outstanding. It restores my faith in humanity, just a little bit!

Signeh90 said...

I rarely comment here, eventhough you are actually one of my favorite bloggers, but to this I simply have to comment and give you my support. Im so happy that things turned out this way for you, and that Nelly responded the way they did. You definetly deserve it!

erle said...

That's horrible! It's just pathetic to steal someone elses idea!!!

Helene said...

Wow that is such a terrible but in the end such a good story!
I can't believe that someone would just copy others designs just like that - well it has been seen before that expensive designs are copied, but actually using your DIY guide!!
Great to hear how Nelly reacted! and that they renamed the product with your name. Love to them! Unfortunatelly I'm too late for signing up to recieve a free one but I might consider buying one now, because it's your design :-))

xxHelene

Blue is in Fashion this Year said...

That's a good end for a bad story!

Jasmin said...

wow that's really cool. Makes Nelly.com sound very sympathic

Bodil Loïs Huisman said...

it such an awesome idea! unfortunately some big brand needed to steal your idea but it's a good ending right :)

LOVE BO,
PurePreciousPerfection.blogspot.com

▲ FARRAH ▲ said...

WHOA. Sorry that had to happen to you, it made me extra aware of this matter now. Glad to know Nelly fixed this issue though, great response from their part, and seems like the calamity was turned into a great opportunity for you!

x

Farrah ▷ DISTRIKMODE | DISTRIKSHOP

Anonymous said...

That is terrible! But so good it's all sorted out now :) xx

Kate {Modette}
http://modetteblog.com

Sharon (Style-Chameleon) said...

I'm glad this story had a happy ending :)




http://style-chameleon.blogspot.com/

SANS-ONLINE €50 VOUCHER GIVEAWAY!

MYSTYLEDIARYY said...

Dat is het gevaar van delen he, er zijn altijd mensen die er misbruik maken, maar het is gelukkig goedgekomen! En wat goed dat Nelly meewerkt.
http://fashion-crushh.blogspot.nl/

Doni Brown said...

Wow, this is crazy and amazing!

http://thatsyleriot.blogspot.com/
http://thatsyleriot.blogspot.com/
http://thatsyleriot.blogspot.com/

Dominika said...

LOVE IT!!!

SW said...

So so glad you got this sorted out! Congratulations.

moiminnie said...

It's really a shame on them not to check it first! I'm glad everything was sorted out in the end, but I honestly think they wouldn't even apologize if you didn't react and if all of your readers didn't support you. If I ever get one of those I'll be sure to put it up on mu blog and link to this story for everyone to know <3
www.moiminnie.blogspot.com
xx

Closet Cravings said...

It's nice that Nelly.com rectified the situation and acknowledged your design.
It's also nice to know that readers support the blogs they love. This is the third time I've seen readers rally behind a blogger for the same kind of problem. It's nice to know that a supportive blogger community exists. =)
Satisfy Your Cravings For Celebrity Style and All Things Stylish and Sweet

Fashiable | Nanne said...

Echt super dat Nelly het zo goed heeft aangepakt, mijn complimenten. Ik moet ook toegeven dat jij altijd vol met geweldige ideeën zit, zo origineel allemaal. En ik heb ook natuurlijk eventjes mijn mail achtergelaten bij deze leuke 'give-away' :) X

Vanessa - PureGlam.tv said...

Wow - that looks superbeautiful - very well done!

New giveaways: --> Win a pair of CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN shoes <--

Van - PureGlam.tv * Fashion Calendar 2013

Ruby And Siel said...

This is insane O.o

Tine said...

I happy for your for the happy end and I must say I like the way Nelly reacted

Ari said...

I'm glad everything turned out OK for you. I really admire your creativity and authenticity. Maybe you should just start your own brand of handmade products ;)

Chuck said...

It is awful that this happened but I'm definitely impressed by their reaction. You can't help but think that if it had been Topshop or Anthropologie or UO or wherever you would just have been ignored or shouted down by lawyers. Glad it kind of worked out in the end. Love your stand.

Unknown said...

that's awful!

agata said...

What a blessing in disguise! This is some really great news. So glad it all turned out this way, you rule Ivania! x

Unknown said...

What a story !!! > @least they did not denied it :) Good on you for getting it back !
:)

thehautepursuit said...

omgggg...how did you even find it??? I mean that's so random....at least the company is being proactive and giving your royalties and a bunch of free cuffs to give away!
so happy to hear this is resolved!
V

Unknown said...

These would look very gorgeous on you hun. Oh, and hurry and enter my BIG giveaway which is an Alexander McQueen silk-chiffon skull print scarf, check it out.

xx nathan.niche
http://www.the-provoker.com/2012/08/alexander-mcqueen-giveaway.html

ALEXANDER MCQUEEN GIVEAWAY
ALEXANDER MCQUEEN GIVEAWAY

Unknown said...

P.S. congrats on getting over 7000 followers only on GFC! woohoo!! :D

xx nathan.niche

rachaelannep said...

ooh i would love one of those!

Karina De Jesus said...

oh, thank God, it all got resolved!! You deserve the credit and then much more, and they are giving it to you. Sad, you had to find out about it that way, but I’m truly happy it’s all good now. You are going to make a big name for yourself no matter what, and I wish the best for you!

cmbh said...

I have lived in China for the last year and I can tell you that anything you can EVER think off as been copied here. However the ironic part of your story is that 'blogspot' address are actually banned in China. Good on Nelly for sorting out the problem so quickly.

Anonymous said...

Thats so cool how something so shit turned into something so awesome for you. Yo must be so proud :D

Anonymous said...

Everything always happens for a reason & you deserve it x
http://romanticallysombre.blogspot.co.uk/

Kellee said...

I'm so glad this ended in a happy way! I'll be popping over to facebook to hopefully get my hands on one!

Lola Jaro said...

What a nightmare! I am so glad it worked out for you. Personally I like the ones you made in Your D.I.Y better than the ones being sold on Nelly. I still have to make one of my own!!


SHEWOLF
http://stylelolajaro.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

i really enjoy your blog but im sorry that necklace is not something you designed. i have seen it a number of times in the past year.

Unknown said...

congratulations, that is a really good outcome for bloggers everywhere!

Anna
stylescreed.blogspot.com

KATHRYN said...

I'm so glad everything turned out for the better! So often in this industry artists don't get the acknowledgment for their ideas that they deserve.

Keep up the good attitude girl, you deserve all of the credit for this trend setting DIY!

http://le-minimalist.blogspot.com/

WILDFLOWER said...

This is pretty unreal!? Now that I have read your story I realise that there must be people scouring the internet, and in particular fashion blogs, doing this exact thing...ripping people off! I am so happy to hear of the support you got from your readers, that is very heart warming and encouraging. I'm really pleased the way it has worked out and good on you for seeing it through!

Unknown said...

to be honest i was a little confused that nelly would do such a thing, mainly because they do work with bloggers and even let them create and design their own pieces (5inchandup). i thought that stealing ur design was a really weird move of them. but unlike zara, they actually care, said their sorrys and give u a percentage of the profit u truthfully deserve. Go Nelly :)
Love Lois xxx

Unknown said...

also i want to say that I'm glad to hear that under all those big money hungry companies there are still some good guys left.

LOVE AESTHETICS said...

Dear everyone, Yes it was a blessing in disguise indeed! I can not tell you how much I appreciate your kind and well thought comments and I can not thank you enough; so again, thanks everyone and thanks Nelly!!

*To anonymous; I would honestly not claim the design if I though I didn't deserve it, or worse, if I got the design from some place else. I always credit my inspiration sources.

Amy said...

Thank god for justice!!!
You deserve this!

Lollo said...

Getting the proper credit for one's work should really not be more complicated than all this. Congrats to your unexpected line and thank you for the lovely offer of free necklaces!

Adore your work.

Rini said...

This has a little bit from a modern fairy tale...I'm happy for you! Left my mail address on your FB page. Wo to love to own one... touchkajal@hispeed.ch

xoxo
TouchKajal.blogspot.com

Lia said...

Oh wow! This is such a bad story! Why can't people just use their own creativity for once and create something of their own... But it's great to hear that Nelly handled the situation so graciously!
I hope something like that never happens to you again. It must have been an awfull feeling

Anonymous said...

Hi,

I found it few minutes ago - check it:
http://zemelkapirowska.com/store/c49_73_131,zemelka+pirowska

It's so similar to your idea, but it is made of plexiglass.

Crystallography said...

wow. of course people will stand up to it. you are one of the best bloggers around, you deserve that.

Unknown said...

So incredibly happy for you Ivania, my heart goes out to you for having to deal with something so horrible. It's so lovely what Nelly have done for you! Lots of love from a big fan xxx

OH MY GILDED

Lian said...

ik heb vaker van dit soort zaken gehoord, maar erg fijn voor jou dat het zo wordt opgelost! het had natuurlijk nooit mogen gebeuren, maargoed.

so said...

that's awesome!!

Anonymous said...

Once I saw a Chinese advert of shoes online. I was shocked when I saw a friend of mine as a model for them. I was not sure if it was just a guy who looked too much like him so the first thing I did was sending him the link on Facebook. Turned out he had no idea about this and they just stole his photo without even asking for permission. I don't know what he did eventually, but he was hesitating weather to sue them or not...

Unknown said...

What a great response from Nelly!

XOXO
-Daisy Nguyen from PS BANANAS fashion blog:
http://psbananas.com
BLOGLOVIN
FACEBOOK

Katie Biscuit said...

so glad at last :) entered the competition.

Anonymous said...

Amazing outcome,congratulations!!!!! Getting one's ideas stolen is so easy in fashion, especially if you aren't a big brand. Great to know that the creator won this time :) Love your blog, your attitude, and your look, by the way! xx

Faeleia said...

Wow YAY! Go you, IVANIA!!!! I didn't expect Nelly to be this serious about it. I'm glad they aren't like Forever 21, with a bad rep.

I'm glad now their profits go to you. It could have turned out badly, but it didn't. :)

I couldn't join the giveaway because they don't ship to Singapore, i think. Sigh. But thanks for having the giveaway! That is so sweet of Nelly and you!

Gloria said...

hey ivania,

to be honest, i'm not surprised someone's stealing your ideas, they're just to good!
unfortunately not everybody's as creative and talented as you are. for me - i simply don't have the time to try things like that. as i'm not registered on facebook, i just bought one from your bracelets and hope the money will really come to you! i think you should start a shop, i'd love it!

greetings from me to you, gloria

Anonymous said...

I actually scoffed out loud when I heard you were complaining about Nelly selling these. To actually believe some stole such a simple and common sense design is quite pretentious of you. You do a diy with acrylic glass and now if anyone else plays around with it, they're copying you? You deserve no rights to anything, this is a huge mistake.
Great you have all these people supporting you. But they should really look back and evaluate the whole situation, people, use your minds. It's a disaster how this world doesn't investigate anything and just runs with the popular vote.
Your blog is nice and you have a basic and safe style, but you aren't an item of worship.
Fellow independent bloggers need to realize this: no group of trendy bloggers deserve all your idolization and credit as the source of your inspiration. Inspire yourself. Don't give these popular blogs all the credit. Don't let them get away with things like this. Stay out of it, because all you're doing is making the popular more popular & rich- while the unpopular opinion & hard working blogger like yourself remains unrecognized.

Yuka said...

ivania, im so sorry that this happened, and im happy that things were straightened out.

xo

Unknown said...

yes I am too furious about this, damn them!! How dare they steal this from the Queen of DIY/minimalism, do they even know people know the true source?! I'm pissed at those who copy from smaller companies and young designers, it's seriously ridiculous and disgraceful. Ivania, we're all here to support you and we all know the TRUTH! I remember seeing you do this months ago and thinking wow this is gorgeous, this girl is seriously such a genius everytime she does her own projects, we love babes and support you all the way!

xx nathan.niche
http://www.the-provoker.com/2012/08/the-tale-of-sale.html

ALEXANDER McQUEEN GIVEAWAY
ALEXANDER McQUEEN GIVEAWAY

Tori said...

Wow you're going to be so rich!!! :P

LOVE AESTHETICS said...

to anonymous ;
Thank you, I do appreciate that you left your thoughts and I partly agree with you. Yes it is a simple idea, but that doesn't make it simple minded. The simplest ideas are the hardest ones to come up with.

I agree with you that bloggers, and people in general should't be worshipped. But are you saying that bloggers shouldn't support each other? Or that I don't deserve the support because my blog has become bigger?(I am also a hard working blogger, and my blog also started with 0 readers) Blogs don't need to compete against each other like magazines, because they are free, people can read as many blogs as they like. Reading one blog doesn't mean ignoring the other one. So there is no need to be so competitive.

Standing up against a company like this is not only to defend something I came up with, but also defending ALL online content. So those people supporting me are also supporting all other blogs and giving companies the message; don't take advantage of blog content.

And if you were wondering, I'm not making massive cash off of this, the necklaces only cost 10 euros, marketing production costs need to be taken off of that price, half of them will be given away for free, and some of them might end up being sold with discount making even less-to no profit. This is not about the cash.

steph said...

Wow, what a story... I'm glad Nelly responded as they did ;) A lot of these sites buy off manufacturers in Asia so I can understand how that happened!

Anne-Fleur said...

Wat fijn om te horen!! Ik was echt zo verbaasd toen ik zag dat ze zo maar ineens jouw ontwerp gestolen hadden.. wat fijn dat het zo is opgelost en ze geen kwaad in de zin hadden. Nu is het gewoon alleen nog een heel mooi compliment :)

Linda said...

Go Ivania! Glad you worked it out.. Great compliment for your design!

♥ Linda

www.straatstijl.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

finally this story ends well, so cool that so much people shown their support. They are good people in this world :).

Bisous bisous.
Coralie.

http://mademoiselleunderground.blogspot.com/

O D Y S S E Y said...

Wow...
That surely caused a lot of stress for you! At least it had a good outcome; unfortunately we've all heard similar stories that didn't end in the blogger's favor.
Please don't let this incident prevent you from sharing DIYs in the future.
I hope you make massive profits from your designs.
xo

Carr Spinella said...

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tkanine.blogspot.com

Juliette said...

Hey ivania.. van een slecht ding toch nog wat goeds uitkunnen halen gelukkig. Zelf zou ik zo'n reactie van Nelly's nooit verwachten eigenlijk, fijn dat ze dus actie hebben genomen! En het is uiteindelijk natuurlijk een mega compliment dat ze dit wel echt ook op de markt brengen.
Stress vrij nu gelukkig toch!
xo HyperJulia

Catherine said...

Wat fantastisch om te horen. Wat fijn dat zo'n organisatie dan toch nog zo menselijk is.