Hello Fellow Knot Tyers!
Well, after many months of hard work, considerable heartache and expense, Richard Phelan and I have at last taken delivery of our first batch of ?Knots Made Easy? DVDs.
Some of you will remember the original VHS video that Richard made, thanks to the help and advice from Guild members, which we acknowledge gratefully on the DVD.
We have converted the original footage to a menu-driven DVD, and hope to open the world of decorative knot tying to a much wider audience than just existing knot tyers.
Whilst there is passionate enthusiasm for tying knots amongst Guild members, we?d like to see knot tying appeal to a whole new audience, which is why we emphasise that the DVD is ?a new dimension in arts and crafts?. At the AGM in Chichester this year, there was much talk about education, and this DVD will add to the fabulous teaching resources published by Guild members (and others).
We make no apologies for the DVD being devoted to decorative rope work, although there is a little practical stuff too, such as splicing and fender making.
However, we do hope that our new audience may be prompted to think ?Why do I need a bungy cord or a tie-wrap? I could probably use a piece of string to do such-and-such ...?. There is potentially a knock on effect of creating decorative articles, and we trust that the DVD will not only prove a successful commercial venture, but will help promote the Guild and its members, who hopefully continue to find ways to demonstrate their own particular skills and areas of expertise.
I am aware that there is a feeling amongst some Guild members that the original video plageurised the work of others. That, in part, is true, but isn't that the case too with books and videos produced on all sorts of topics? As I say, the DVD does acknowledge the fact that the tutorials would not have been possible without the help of the IGKT.
It would also appear that one or two members were upset (unintentionally) by Richard's post regarding copyright. Whilst we recognise that some offers have been made in good faith to supply copies of the original video in DVD format, I support Richard 100% in his warning about infringing copyright. As already mentioned, we have invested such a lot of time and money in this venture, I am sure most of you will understand the need for us to protect our interests (as you would with those who publish books).
Thanks once again for the help, advice and support from so many of you fellow Guild members.
We will retail the DVD at ?18 per copy, but will offer discount to IGKT members - ?16.00, including postage and packaging worldwide.
The current version is PAL format, encoded for "All Regions", but NTSC users (e.g. USA folks) will need to ensure their players are enabled to play "All regions".
If you want to know more, visit
http://www.knotsdvd.comKindest Regards,
Phil ?The Rope? Cook
Berkshire, UK