To Sell or Not to Sell... Patterns, That Is

As time goes on I'm asked more and more if I sell patterns and if I would ever consider doing so. I've always felt rather strongly about not selling them and protecting the really unique ones that took me a while to come up with on my own. They're my brain children and I simply can't part with them is what goes through my mind when asked.

I also wonder why people wish to buy patterns. Is it so they can sell the exact same hats they make from my design? That's all we need, to see a whole new group of similar looking hats on Etsy or the web in general, but I digress. I pride myself on having designs that no one else does. Maybe that's the egotistical artist part of me speaking but if everything and everyone was the same the world would be a very boring place. I've noticed that some pattern writers specifically ask people to only use their patterns for personal use and to not sell finished items. Does this really deter anyone from selling them anyway? I wonder.

I also think about sales. If I have patterns available through my shop will people only buy them and not my hats since they're cheaper?

Now, on the flip side, I have seen shops that successfully sell patterns right alongside with their hats and are selling almost equal amounts of hats as patterns. Also, sometimes when I feel overwhelmed by orders or my hands feel as though they are about to fall off, sending a pattern as opposed to making an entire hat would be a nice sort of passive income for a change.

Well, everything has its pros and cons. These are some I've considered. Anyone else faced with this dilemma? Have you sold patterns? Why do you? Why won't you? I'd love to hear your thoughts.