Two Knitting-Related Questions -- Seeking Opinions

[gnomi]

1. Mostly for those who knit with natural fibers exclusively, but open to everyone: Do "regenerated" yarns such as those made of corn silk or soy or whatever qualify as "natural" in your mind? Why or why not?

2. If I have a pattern that was originally available free online but is no longer due to the designer removing it from his/her site, is it ethical of me to share my copy of that pattern? Why or why not?

Comments

[xavcat.livejournal.com]

1. I tend to go with what feels best and that's typically wool, silk, etc. The crazy silk yarns, etc, are natural because they're not made from the same material as the stuff lining my garbage can and that's pretty cool as far as I'm concerned. I'm going to be casting on for a tank in a wool-hemp-"soysilk" blend soon. Don't know how much I'm going to like it, but I'm going to do it. :)

2. I'm inclined to say it's okay to share that copy. It was once in the public domain and if a friend had sought out the pattern when it was in the public domain it would have been fine. Now, it could just be a bandwidth thing or something.