In comparison, he said, the imitations were mass-produced in molds using cheap metal and gems.

She said: “The sterling silver ear wires I use are more expensive than the entirety of the fake designs they are selling.

“My real hedgehogs look alive, whereas theirs look dull and also somewhat menacing.”

Both sites have removed the items from sale.

Shein said as soon as it was alerted to the copyright infringement, it removed the product and had apologized to Ms Farley.

The firm said it had significantly reduced the number of infringement claims through controls such as image recognition and manual review to identify potential breaches.

AliExpress said it worked with owners of intellectual property to protect their rights and had a number of ways they could tell the platform about breaches.

Subsequent action could include sellers being banned from its platform, it said.

Ms Farley said she was grateful to Shein for acting efficiently.

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By Vira