We are going ever so slightly off topic today, but I’d like to talk about an issue that affects us all in various different ways. This post is about inspiration and imitation… and more specifically the grey area when one seemingly becomes the other.

With all RMW discussion topics we want you to know that’s exactly what it is – a discussion, there are no right or wrong answers, you are free to disagree or agree with the points made in this post and answer yes or indeed a whole bunch of No’s to our questions, all we ask is that you join in – it’s the taking part that matters.

Inspired.

We all rely on inspiration, from what clothes to wear, what colour to paint the fence to what we are going to have for dinner – it’s not about painstakingly recreating one single idea you’ve seen, it’s about taking in lots and lots of different ideas from all over the place and then using that knowledge, that research to create something new.

How many pop groups or bands are there around today who wouldn’t list The Beatles as an inspiration? But that doesn’t mean that every other song in the charts is called Hey Jude.

Sometimes spotting an imitation is easy, no more so than in the world of fake designer goods.

It would be hard for the maker of bag A to stand up and announce that although they were inspired by the design created by the maker of bag B (bag B maker more commonly known as Louis Vuitton) it was in no way an imitation. This is a black and white case, the Louis Vuitton bag is a protected design and so the clear imitation infringes copyright and the maker of Bag A can be held accountable. Job Done.

But, what about when the design, idea or concept in question is not being recreated verbatim. It quickly becomes a very grey area… Is it imitation or inspiration?

Have a look at this music video that OK GO Created (And starred in) for their song “Here It Goes Again”. It’s a great music video, and if you have never seen it before it truly is worth 3 minutes of your life.

Now have a look at this advert for Berocca, which made an appearance some years later.

Is this imitation or inspiration?

What I will say is this – it absolutely makes my blood boil to see a genius idea stolen. But realistically what can the OK GO Chaps say apart from:

“Oi, Berocca people… Those dance moves that you’re busting on those treadmills…
We did that ages ago…. you…. you goons…”

At the end of the day, I don’t think you can claim ownership over the concept of essentially mis-using gym equipment whilst listening to rock music. And unfortunately that means you just have to stand by and watch someone else nick your idea.

Or Do You?

Recently I read an interesting article about a company who make London Souvenirs successfully suing a company who make tea, because they used an image on their packaging that was claimed to be too similar in terms of subject, composition and style to the image used on the one of London Souvenirs.

Personally I think both companies should be disciplined for committing the most heinous photoshop crime of spot colour effect, but that aside this makes for a very interesting ruling… and one that the guys at OK GO! would be interested to read.

Even though the subjects themselves – Parliament, Westminster Bridge, The River Thames and a London bus, are not copyrightable by the photographer, it was the composition and the representation of these subjects that was deemed to have been an imitation of the original artists intellectual creation.

A Grey Area.

In any creative industry, issues of intellectual creation are always going to occur. Sometimes it can be hard to tell where the intellectual creation lies. Last year jewellery maker Stevie Koerner confronted Urban Outfitters over a new line they introduced that featuring charms in the shape of US States with a heart cut out.

It is a compelling case, not least because we have here a tiny independent jeweller going up against a massive corporation like Urban Outfitters (and we all know that everyone loves an underdog…)

Urban Outfitters response (which you can read here) adds further intrigue – according to them there were many jewellers making similar pieces for years prior to Urban Outfitters and Stevie Koerners designs. If this is true it’s a classic case of folk getting swept away in the drama of a scandal before bothering to actually learn the facts.

What is interesting though is that Urban Outfitters are not denying that their design is a “borrowed” concept – but because everyone is ripping everyone else off then it’s ok to jump on the band wagon?

Is this inspiration or imitation?

It’s a problem that seems to be on the rise in the wedding industry, I have heard time and time again of photographers who have had their marketing materials, websites and literature recreated by others almost word for word. I also heard of a stationery designer who, rather than creating their own ranges, decided to recreate a few ranges from stationery designer x, a few from stationery designer y, and a few from stationery designer z.

Do these people not expect to get caught out?

Do they just not care?

At Rock My Wedding we are all about giving inspiration and of course there is loads of stuff out there that inspires us to do what we do. But we strive to create original ideas, to create original content and to constantly innovate in order to stand out from the crowd. After all, why would anyone want to visit our blog if we are not offering anything different to anyone else?

We are really proud of some of the ideas and concepts we have brought to the RMW community, like our Rock My Wedding Real Brides, themed weeks and more recently our regular series Ask the Experts, which has gone down a storm. We realised that our connections in wedding-ville could allow us to enable our readers to seek advice from some of the best suppliers and designers in the industry at the touch of a button, so after some careful planning and making sure something similar wasn’t available on W-day blogs elsewhere Ask The Experts was born.

Like everyone else we put a lot of hard work into what we do and you’d like to think that those who work in a creative field are exactly that – creative, otherwise… what’s the point?

So then folks, what are your thoughts on Inspiration vs Imitation?

Does this topic appear regularly in your chosen profession/field?

Have you ever been in a situation where you have percieved your own work/design to be imitated, yet others don’t share your view/think it is merely inspiration?

And finally ….Do you think that it’s just a fact of life and we should just get over it and get on with it?

Your thoughts as always would be appreciated.

Let me take this opportunity to assure you that we have a lot of new idea’s up our polka dotted sleeves and next week we’ll be telling you a whole lot more about it all, 2012 is shaping up to be a very inspiring year indeed.

Adam.

I’m a male wedding blogger – it’s not the most manly occupation I could have picked for myself, I can admit that, but today I’m going to use my lofty polka-dotted platform in order to redress this issue of manliness and earn my self a few macho points…

Who am I trying to kid? Today I’m talking about male skincare and cosmetics!

From hydrating to cleansing and moisturising, I’m even going to touch on makeup for men (shock, horror).

Rockstars Probably Do It.

I’m 33 years old next year. I remember when I was a young lad it was ace at the start of a new year as you could say “next year I will be…” and you could add two numbers onto your age (because you hadn’t had this years birthday yet) to make yourself seem extra old. It’s not so good to do that now. In fact it’s scary.

Even though I’m 33 next year (currently 31 thank you very much) I still get spots regularly… I have been waiting for ooh about 14 years now for clear skin – but it has never arrived. My skin is better now than it ever has been, but I rarely get a day when I don’t have a few visible skin issues, be it a big ole spot, a few red blemishes or some other dermatological nightmare. I don’t think I have had a single day of 100% clear skin since I was about 15 years old. FACT.

So, you’re probably thinking I’m not the best person to offer up my knowledge of male grooming – Don’t listen to spotty Crohill’s skin advice – look at his face for god’s sake! Well, I’m not offering up miracle cures, quite the opposite if anything. What I am suggesting is a routine and a few tricks that work for me and minimise the appearance of bad skin and also keep some of the more serious outbreaks at bay. As I said my skin is better now than it has been since I can remember, so I must be doing a few things right.

First thing is – it’s ok to use products! as the title to this section suggests – Rockstars probably do, and they’re doing alright… that’s how I reassure myself anyway.

The Products.

Moisturiser.
Having listened to a some of our real brides having a chin wag on facebook I learnt that a few of their H2B’s skin would benefit from being in better general condition, particularly in these winter months.

I’ve used a few moisturisers in my time and generally I hate them, I don’t like the feeling of having a layer of slippy grease sat on top of my face – it’s bad enough when I have to use suncream on holiday – why subject yourself to this on a daily basis? Persistence has paid off though and I have found a moisturiser that seems to do the job. I use Jean Paul Gaultier Energising Face Care. It feels bearable during application and literally in 10 seconds it’s like it’s not there at all. It is quite expensive at over £25.00 a time but I have also used L’Oreal Hydra-Energetic lotion which is a fraction of the price, still pretty good and can often be found in “2 for 1″ type deals in supermarkets. If it is on “2 for 1″ I wouldn’t really bother with any of their other male focussed products – just double up on the face cream.

Also my hands get really bad in the winter months – although this last mild winter has saved me a fortune in hand cream, usually by mid November my hands are so dry that a walk to the shops can result in bleeding knuckles – that Nutragena Hand Cream stuff usually sorts ‘em out.

Cleansing.
Exfoliation is key in keeping your pores clear – the girls know this – and just look at their lovely soft skin. The trouble is – it’s really boring. I hate those scratchy exfoliation pastes and face washes you get, they take so long to rinse off. Maybe I’m lazy but if its not a quick process I’m inclined to skip it… and then ultimately my skin suffers.

What I have found to be good are the slightly abrasive cleansing wipes you can get now. A good mannish scrub with these seems to do the trick pretty well, then I use Clinique scruffing lotion (which is actual sold as a pre-shave prep) for after I’ve given my face a scub and cleared out those pores. You can get a scruffing lotion to suit your skin type which is a bonus, and also its got quite a blokey name so you can keep it on the window sill in the bathroom and not be ashamed of it.

Vinny Jones don’t use cleanser… he bloody well uses scruffing location, Alright? (said in best cockney gangster voice). Anyway, the combination of scrubby wipe thing followed by scruffing lotion makes my skin feel really clean and clear. End of.

Concealing.
There is an opinion that men should be “men”… but does that mean we have to walk around with a spot on our face? Everyone is ok with men using hair products to enhance our appearance, so what about a bit of make up? What’s the difference? The question is then – to conceal or not to conceal?

Personally I do, on occasion… Not every day but I will consider it, particularly if there is any danger of a camera being in the room. I think if you’ve got a full blown MAHOOSIVE spot on your face somewhere, just live with it – trying to conceal that bad boy is only going to lead to trouble. However, say you’ve got some inflamed skin, maybe a spot is on the way – it’s gone a bit angry but the skin hasn’t actually broken yet. It’s at this point where a little dab of concealer can reduce the red effect dramatically, and boost your confidence at the same time. Most concealers have ingredients in them to fight off the spot too, so if caught early it may never even arrive.

If you do apply concealer – check yourself in a brightly lit room, or a bathroom mirror. If you look alright close up in bright lighting you’ll be fine – no ones going to catch you wearing make up in public, which let’s face it has to be the only reason for not wearing concealer. Unless you are a particular fan the bright red angry skin look. You can get Clinique Anti Blemish Concealer from mankind for £11.50 and it will last forever! Or if you are feeling flush you can go for Jean Paul Gautier Monsieur Concealer which comes in at around £18.00.

Secret Weapon.
Probably the cheapest thing on the block… brought to us seemingly from the same marketing team that branded “Lard” back in 1973, we have sudocrem. Forget the packaging, forget that it advertises that it’s for bed sores and nappy rash… dab a bit on an area of bad skin, be it a dry patch or a spot and leave on for as long as you can. This is particularly tricky if the blob of sudocrem is in your peripheral vision, but seriously if you prevail you’ll discover that this stuff is good. You can pick it up anywhere for little more than a quid. Bargain.

Of course the ideas I present here are simply what seems to work for me, I’m not even using some of these products for their correct purpose (especially not the lard) but hopefully you might feel like going out and trying a few for yourself.

You Get What You Pay For?

A high price tag of course does not necessarily mean quality and won’t intrinsically lead to success. The key is to try a range of products and find which works best for you, from a success point of view and as a routine. There is no point having products that work if the application takes 20 minutes out of your day meaning you skip the routine half the time because you’re running late.

I have my own tale about a high price not leading to success… A few years back I paid a massive amount of money for a sk:n consultation and subsequent arsenal of lotions and potions they suggested that I needed. Although I would never say blankly “IT DOESN’T WORK” sk:n didn’t work for me. I remember I was given a hydrochloric acid face wash that was designed to burn off dead skin cells… (scary) In fact what it did do was make my hands feel all slippy and smooth after a few weeks of applying it every day in the shower – it was as if the cream was slowly removing my finger prints or something…

I did actually consider doing a bank robbery, it would have been the perfect crime with no prints left and I needed a sharp influx of cash from somewhere if I was going to be able to afford another shopping trip to sk:n… In the ended I decided to stay inside the law and instead changed my routine for a more wallet friendly (and fingerprint friendly) option.

Well, that’s about it folks – hopefully there might be some useful bits of info here, and maybe a few products for H2B to try. And just for the sake of starting a nice Friday afternoon debate – Girls, what is your opinion of a man who conceals? Are you all for it, do you see it as part of modern mans routine, you know – scrub face, brush the old toothy pegs, put clean pants on, splash a bit of aftershave about, mess up hair… conceal the spots?…

…or is that one step too far?

And of course, also please share any wonder potions that you may know of too.

Adam.