Custom My Little Pony jewellery - copyright?

[Lilith1981]

I'm not really sure if this is the right section to post this, so mods please feel free to move it if it isn't


I've been making jewellery for years now and I sometimes do custom orders (in case anyone's interested, here's my Etsy shop). I've been thinking about making pony-inspired pieces for a while, specifically necklaces with a pony focal medallion (here's an example of a similar piece I made recently, with a bird theme) but of course I'll need cute little pony images.


Anyone know of any copyright-free images I could use? If the pieces are custom I could always use the buyer's own images and/or photos, but I'd also like to make at least one for general sales.

[LadyStarCatcher]

That's an excellent question. I've seen a few other sites making jewelry and key chains and even shirts. Some have been custom art though.

[Lilith1981]

That's the thing, there are quite a few people on Etsy who have no regard for copyright so it's hard to tell... I know some Deviantart artists allow free use of their images as long as they're not for personal gain, so that's ruled out as well.


I could do the pictures myself, but the time and effort going in to that would make the final sale price a lot higher, which I'd like to avoid (my prices seem steep enough because of the euro to dollar conversion ratio and international shipping costs...).

[BerryMouse]

Not sure about the whole copyright thing.

I did some MLP brooches they are not that expensive and hand made but also inspired by the original Ponies & poses.

But really they sell hand made plushies fro over 1k on ebay .... I'm not afraid yet cuz I think they'll get them first lol =) j/k

[Maniah]

hand made plushies are not the same as using art from the show.. If it were me, I would find an artist I like, and ask them to use some art. I would offer to either buy full rights to the picture from them for a flat fee, or offer them a commission on each sale made with their piece.  Then you are using fan art, so there is not a copyright issue because it is not original Hasbro art.

[hlbmlp]

this is very tricky... which is why i stay away from copywrited characters for selling ( i view trading and gifts differently because i am not making any money).
I do know that their patent or copywrite or whatever is no longer in affect for G1 and i think G2 ponies... which is why you dont see any exactly the way they were in the show, except for applejack and spike. They were the only two they kept for some reason.  So i assume those are ok...  newer stuff.... golly... if my uncle (copywrite laywer) was easier to get ahold of and ask questions, i'd be asking him...but he likes to fall off the face of the planet quite often...

[xkelpiex]

Can I just say that your shop is AMAZING? If you do figure the pony thing out, I would love to see the outcome.

[HavACrumpet452]

Honestly, I wouldn't worry so much. Just about anything you make that is mlp character inspired and sold as an mlp custom is a copyright infringement. If Hasbro was worried they could do something about all of the customizers out there. The thing is, we're kinda keeping ponies alive so they don't fall into the trench of forgotten toys. Its kinda good for them and like I said, they'd take some action if they are worried. Now if you want to ruffles some feathers of a company that takes action, try doing something disney.

[Lilith1981]

Thank you, xkelpiex 


I thought of that, Maniah, maybe offering an artist a commission per piece (on one hand it would keep prices up, but on the other the piece would be even more exclusive since it's OOAK art). IF copyright is no longer applicable to some of the G1s, as hlmlp says, does that mean I could use images based on the characters OR actual images from the show/books, etc? I know copyright on text can last up to 100 years, don't know about images!


Legal stuff is complicated 

Post Merge: February 28, 2012, 11:14:04 AM

I agree, Haveacrumpet (not just Disney, Mattel is pretty nasty too!). I was surprised to see so much MLP customization since companies usually pursue that kind of thing. I'd imagine that as long as you're not making big bucks out of it there wouldn't be any trouble...

Post Merge: February 29, 2012, 03:32:38 AM

Bouncing this in case anyone else can help

[hikari_amaya]

I know I recently bought a Rarity Blind Bag Pull extra, which the previous owner converted to a pendant then sold it as such on ebay!! (I'm wearing it now, gotta show some Pony love!!) So legally I'm not sure where it stands, but they gave Hasbro credit to owning the character & such. I dont think Hasbro fusses much since we cant make copies or identical images since fan artists tend to give their art their own flare

[Maniah]

Worst that can happen at first is you get a cease and desist order from Hasbro. That happens, and you just stop and they are happy.

[hlbmlp]

i think it's up to you to decide.  Personally i dont feel right doing that, and i feel like it's more my work if it is all completely me.  but i also like to do fanart...  I think if it bothers you dont and if you are ok with it, go ahead.  I highly doubt hasbro will attack you. If you were making knockoffs, that's another story.

[Lilith1981]

Thanks for the advice! I'll think about it. It would be great to use images from old MLP sources (such as annuals from the 80s or something similar), but it just feels wrong.