You be the Judge: Vuitton and Darfur

Tue, 06 May 2008 18:41:00 -0000

I’ll admit it: as Etsy's in-house attorney, I love reading legal disputes and thinking about what important issues each side should stress. I especially like to analyze pending copyright, trademark, and patent cases. I daydream about what points I would argue if I were the lawyer for each side and then I put on my imaginary judge’s robe and make a decision.

Well, here’s your chance again. If you were the judge, what would you decide on this real-life on-going legal battle? (Remember, this issue hasn't gone to court yet…and it will likely be decided in a Danish — not U.S. — court).

Nadia Plesner is a Danish artist. According to her website, the illustration “Simple Living” was inspired by “the media’s constant cover of completely meaningless things. My thought was: Since doing nothing but wearing designer bags and small ugly dogs is enough to get you on a [magazine] cover, maybe it is worth a try for people who actually deserve and needs attention.” One hundred percent of the profits from the Simple Living t-shirts and posters will be donated to Divest for Darfur.

In February, 2008 an attorney for Louis Vuitton Malletier (“Louis Vuitton”) sent Plesner a letter asking that she discontinue making and selling the Simple Living products. According to Louis Vuitton, the illustration infringes on the company’s intellectual property rights, in particular the Louis Vuitton Monogram Multi-Color Trademark, to which it is confusingly similar.

Plesner responded to the letter, arguing freedom of expression. She said she will continue her Simple Living campaign in order to raise money for the victims of Darfur. Louis Vuitton sued her and according to torrentfreak.com the company demands $7,500 for each day she continues to sell Simple Life products. Plesner found a lawyer to represent her free of charge.

Although this is likely a question for the Danish court, what do YOU think? Is there risk of confusion? What about the fact that Plesner is raising money for charity? Feel free to discuss Louis Vuitton and any other people or companies that may also have issue with Plesner’s illustration. In the comments below, you be the judge!

Read Sarah's previous post in the series Apples to Apples and all her Legal Info for Artists pieces.

Gift Ideas: Shop Local Scandinavia

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 23:07:00 -0000

Some great gift ideas from the cold countries of Europe!

Editorial note:
Keep your BuyHandmade Pledge and support local artists! See all of the Storque Shop Local pieces.

We want to do a series of Shop Local via Etsy posts, so give the Storque@etsy.com a shout and show us who your favorite 18-21 local Etsy sellers are. We can't wait to see what the Etsy Universe has to offer! You could consider your city or state or country local. That's up to your interpretion.

P.S. Don't send us tons of attachments with photos please. But do send us a screenshot of your Poster Sketch and 18 to 21 item numbers separated by commas. Yay!

P.P.S. Hey sellers! Fill in your geographical location so it's easier to find you! Here's how with the Geolocator.

Trends: Scandinavian Simplicity with This is Love Forever

Tue, 04 Dec 2007 12:02:00 -0000

We are pleased to introduce Kayte Terry of This is Love Forever as this week's esteemed trendspotter. Kayte, also known as loveforever on Etsy, is a stylist/crafter/writer living in Brooklyn, NY. She has contributed her skills to places like Anthropologie, Adorn magazine and Get Crafty.com. In true Libra fashion, Kayte loves over-the-top baroque and simple modern styles equally and finds harmony in mixing patterns, styles and colors that clash. She lives with her husband and their rabbit/muse, Potato.

You can find more of Kayte at her blog, Thisisloveforever.com/blog, where she talks about art, craft, baking, foreign design magazines and anything else that inspires her.

Without further ado, here's Kayte!

Are you captivated by the curve of a simple wooden spoon or a colorful ceramic vessel? Do you dream of filling your home with curved plywood furniture and quirky accessories? Do you prefer your florals without the frills? Well then, you love Scandinavian style.

...Like this modern birch plywood chair by michaelarras!

As my father tells it, it was only a matter of time before Scandinavian style took its hold on me. When he was a young man, my late grandfather, though of Welsh descent, joined the Swedish Glee Club in New York City. He quickly fell in love with Swedish culture and booked a boat passage to Stockholm, where he would return many times in his life. Some of my fondest memories of my grandmother's kitchen are the sets of enamel Catherine Holm bowls my grandfather brought back for her.

In fact, the simplicity and functionality of Scandinavian design was a perfect match for my grandmother's tasteful but utilitarian Yankee sensibility. Kitchen implements and cast iron pots hung from simple wooden hooks and jars filled with twist ties, rubber bands and twine filled the shelves. As an adult, I set up my kitchen in the same way: I keep everything I need for cooking out on display for both function and aesthetic.

Modern Scandinavian design was often characterized by the use of simple materials, the reference to nature (the grain of wood, the curve of a lake) and the belief that design was a means of improving everyday life. Though the golden age of Scandinavian design was from the '30s to the '70s, lately everyone I know seems to be scouring the local thrift store for that perfect Danish Modern credenza or vintage Marimekko fabric. This print by pleasebestill recalls the heyday of Scandinavian design, featuring the work of design heavyweight such as Hans Wegner, Aero Saarinen and Alvar Aalto.

Though the golden age of Scandinavian design was from the '30s to the '70s, lately everyone I know seems to be scouring the local thrift store for that perfect Danish Modern credenza or vintage Marimekko fabric. This fashionable sling by bronwenhandcrafted and striking pillow by Francesrose are both made with Marimekko fabric, which is still being produced with new designs today. If you're lucky, you can find older classic designs as well.

There are always lots of vintage Scandinavian finds on Etsy, too, like this Vernor Panton-esque throw pillow from absoluut or these stackable mugs (sold!) from BowerBirdFound. Today's Scandinavian designers are harder to define (it's not all bent plywood and molded plastic), but the concepts of democratic design and appreciation for the beauty in the everyday are timeless.

It's this idea of design in the every day that really appeals to me. As a crafter and a designer, I try to find inspiration everywhere and appreciate even the most mundane of objects for the work that went into creating them. This love for utilitarian objects has found a fitting home in the modern design and craft world: the blog Happy Mundane has the tagline "There's Beauty in your Dishsoap," and Stephanie and Mav of the photo blog 3191 take gorgeous pictures of little moments in each of their mornings. Heather of skinnylaminx recently posted a photos of her spoon collection on her blog, which spurred dozens of other design bloggers to dig through their utensil drawers and do the same. The spoon collection eventually became a tea towel.

Jennifer Causey of photobird takes pictures of contemplative little still-lives, like a simple morning breakfast or spools of twine.

Japanese craft books, those precious tomes of whimsical styling and fresh faced, freckled models, are nothing short of a homage to Scandinavian style. The Jeu de Paume books take this fascination with Scandinavian style even further: the books Stockholm Kitchens and Stockholm Homes show young and design savvy Swedes in their cool and casual homes. In another example of Japanese and Scandinavian styles colliding, Lotta Jansdotter, a popular textile designer and crafter from Sweden (previously profiled in The Storque!), even has a collection of craft books that were published in Japan. There are loads of Japanese craft books on Etsy, including this fantastic one, called Scandinavian Embroidery Designs.

The designers behind the line somethingshidinghere use humble materials to create quirky yet beautiful accessories like plywood ornaments that are perfect for a modern Scandinavian inspired tree and wood rings that poke fun at gaudy jewels.

You can't talk about Scandinavian design without mentioning textiles. Most fabrics feature organic shapes, naïve flower prints and simple geometric designs, printed on natural materials. At home Collection has a beautiful array of designs on linen, but I really love this clothespin bag because hanging clothes on the line can be such a simple joy. hollabee and glorydaze also have beautiful screen-printed goods, like the fabric pack and linen pouch above.

While it's hard to characterize Scandinavian style as one thing (and who would want to?), I think that many of us are captivated by the ideas behind Scandinavian style. In fact, the principles of Scandinavian design, the love of beautiful, functional items, an appreciation for natural materials and a belief that design belongs to everyone, are very similar to that of the craft movement. That's one trend that I hope never goes out of style.

More Scandinavian Design Resources:

ScandinavianDesign.com
ScandinaviaHouse.org
New Scandinavian Design, available at Powell's
Holly of Decor8 recently spent a fewmonths in Scandinavia. She has great info on emerging Scandinavian style and culture.

Search results (tags) for: "denmark"

You be the Judge: Vuitton and Darfur

Gift Ideas: Shop Local Scandinavia

Trends: Scandinavian Simplicity with This is Love Forever