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Ravelry Forewarning

Tidal Wave Sock

Tidal Wave Sock

Ok, so it’s been well over a year since I posted about the Tidal Wave socks. Tomorrow we leave for Hawaii to visit the grandkids and I thought this would be a perfect, small knitting project to carry on the plane. What’s the problem you ask? Well…… Let this be a warning to all of you Ravelry users. I often knit from my iPad, saves paper and ink and storage space, etc. I store all of my patterns on Ravelry in my library at their site. There are so many patterns, I don’t even download all of them, saves space on  my iPad. For my continuing woe and warning…..

Shot of Ravelry Library

Shot of Ravelry Library

See the Tidal Wave pattern sitting so nicely on the shelf in my Ravelry Library? It was a free sock pattern when I saved it to the Library in July 2012 and started knitting the socks from it. Well guess what? If I click on it now I no longer get the pattern I saved in my library! I now have to pay for it!!! To me that is outrageous. Did I miss the warning somewhere that if you store a free pattern in your library and if, in the future, the designer decides to charge for it you can no longer access your stored, free copy in the library? Color me angry! I will now go in and download every single free pattern stored in my library. Be forewarned! Download all free patterns.

Has this happened to anyone else? Is this just a fluke? I don’t want to rip out the sock and start yet another pattern; however, I don’t want to pay $3 for the pattern. I know, I know The Hubs says to just pay and download it. It won’t break me, it’s the principle! I purchase a lot of patterns, it’s that it was free when I saved it. Where did I miss the warning? VENT!!!

Ok, I just found it for free. Still agro at Ravelry. I printed it out this time!

28 thoughts on “Ravelry Forewarning”

  1. I had the same issue. I don’t think they give warnings I think patterns become popular and designers decide to charge for them. I was a little cranky about it too. 😉

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  2. I just checked two patterns that I know were free when I added them to the library, but are now paid patterns. They’re still free. (whew!) One of them is the Wingspan, and when I read that it was going to be a paid pattern, I immediately downloaded the pattern, because I didn’t know if what I had was still going to be free. Maybe yours was just a fluke, or maybe it was a paid pattern for a short time only? That was what happened to my Reds Waves Cowl pattern – it was free, then it was a paid pattern when I posted about it, and then now it’s free again!

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    • Q – The pattern actually started out as a free pattern on SWTC to go with their Footsie yarn. One of the bloggers I follow had posted about it , so I immediately added it to my library. It was free a couple of months ago when I pick up the socks to knit. After noticing this problem last night, I immediately started downloading all of my library. When I saw Wingspan, I was afraid too. Yeah, it’s now downloaded. I found another pattern that is on my library shelf, but I have to pay for now. It’s actually the Mobieus Bowls I had in a blog last week. Got to run and get the Reds Waves Cowl! Thanks!

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    • Q – That’s the problem. If I’d know ahead of time that they’d charge items already in the library, I would have downloaded. 8-( I’m on page 2 of my library now, downloading everything. I found another pattern that is no longer free, the mobieus bowls I posted about last week.

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    • Q – Thank you! It is the principle. If there was a warning that all items in your library are subject to price change, then I wouldn’t be irked! What if the price goes up on an items paid for, will I then have to pay the difference?

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  7. my 2 cents. I am a designer and I have free and paid for designs. I wouldn’t dream of changing a pattern that was free to a paid one. I don’t make a decision lightly and once I have made it, it is made. If a free pattern becomes extremely popular (I have a few that have) I think “well this is good will and publicity for the paid ones!” I agree with you for being cross. Don’t give up on ravelry though.
    Perhaps when you have time, you could take it up with them? I would love to know their policy and opinion on this.

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    • Q – Thank you! As mentioned, I purchase A TON of patterns, I like to support designers. It’s the principle. I’m on page 2 of my library, downloading all. I’ve found yet another pattern that is no longer available unless I pay for it. I will contact them when I return home. I get so busy with the grandkids that I won’t be on the computer much the next 3 weeks. LOL!

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  8. My understanding was that if you’d added it to your library when it was free you still had access to that version should the pattern later be upgraded or improved and perhaps no longer free…off to check my library…

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  11. I guess it does not seem a problem to me, I can think of a few designers that gave away a lot of patterns freely, however after a while they did charge for some of their patterns and justifiably so. They put the time and effort to come up with the pattern so if they chose at a later date to charge I’m not bothered by that at all. I don’t know their financial situation and I’m more than happy to support designers by paying a small fee if I enjoy their patterns and yes that’s includes the ones that changed from free to paid. 🙂

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    • Q- I don’t mind purchasing patterns. My problem is that I was under the impression that adding a pattern to one’s library is as in Kindle. You add it and it becomes “yours”. I did not know that your library really is not yours and is subject to change.

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