A friend of mine runs a quilt shop in Omaha and here is what she said at one of our guild meetings:
Whenever you purchase a pattern or a magazine with a pattern in it, it is meant for the purchaser to make said pattern for personal use or as a gift. Copyright permission is usually granted for free if asked if you are going to teach a class regarding the pattern or use that pattern in some form of class. It is against the copyright laws to purchase a pattern and then make a quilt to sell it. The only time it is okay to make a non-original quilt design and sell it is if you are using a traditional pattern that' been around forever.
I would be extremely careful when making a quilt to sell. It is really treacherous waters out there....
Melissa