Original artwork is also copyrighted... doesn't fall into the same category as shapes. So some applique quilt patterns would be copyrighted.

You're probably confusing copyright with patent or trademark. Copyright has always been simple, the other two are not.

The fashion industry is another thing, because wearable items are considered utilitarian, and courts have generally decided that they cannot therefore be copyrighted.

You can make the quilt - where you could get into trouble is if after drafting the pattern for your own use you decide to sell the pattern as your own. The quilts are not copyrighted, the patterns are

To help understand this better, I listened to the following podcast, Just Wanna Quilt, in which the hostess --Elizabeth Townsend Gard (a law professor and a quilter)--interviews a copyright lawyer, Cynthia Burstein Waldmen. Gard asks Walmen many of same questions we as quilters have on the subject.

https://www.justwannaquilt.com/podcast Look for Episode 207, I believe it is. (It's the most recent as of today's date.)

No copyright infringement. Chances are no matter the pattern you have seen somewhere, they have seen it before as well. With the designing software these days, hundreds of people could be creating the same design.

Very true.

No. I understand the difference between copyright and patent. I was just remembering a lot of time involved in the research to make sure the item hadn't already been copyrighted.

One thing to remember..... don't believe everything you read. wikihow.com is a site where anyone can write an article and compose a page. That means that the information isn't always accurate and could be totally misleading and a lot of the facts can be left out.

A lot of the quilts I make I recreate from someone's pattern without purchasing the pattern. If it's a copyright infringement then I have a closet full of evidence against me. lol! When I share my quilts with others, I always credit the pattern or designer for the inspiration and provide links, if I can, but I do disclose I did not use a pattern so other's know it may not be a perfect rendition of a specific pattern. I respect designers and their creations but, at some point, some have to realize that it's the same stuff of history, just regurgitated in a quilt top differently. I was playing with a bearclaw quilt block the other day in EQ8...just changing the color placement alters the block to something completely different. Then, a couple of days later, I saw a quilt using that redesigned block in a quilt top and the pattern was $9. lol...go figure!