Dress A Girl Around the World Sew-A-Long! / LBG STUDIO

Hi! I'm really excited to announce my very first sew-a-long on the blog. This isn't the usual sort of sew-a-long where I choose a pattern, break it down step by step, and have you join in with me. We're going to do things just a bit differently but with a great cause in mind! While chatting with some of my bloggy friends {and sponsors} Amy and Virginia, we came up with the idea to host a sew-a-long event that would benefit a charity. We came across the Dress A Girl Around The World campaign and thought it would be a perfect fit for what we had in mind. This organization collects pillowcase dresses made by people like you and me to hand deliver to girls all around the world!

So, during the week of March 7-12th, some of my favorite bloggers will be stopping by to share tutorials and crafty ideas to inspire you to create and embellish your own pillowcase dresses to send in! I'll have a Flickr pool open for you to share your dresses with us, and for every dress you sew and submit a photo for, you'll get an entry to an awesome giveaway.

I'll kick off the sew-a-long on Monday, March 7th with some basic pillowcase dress patterns/tutorials to get you started, introduce you to my guest bloggers, and reveal the giveaway goodies! I'll also give you the scoop on how the giveaway will work and where to mail your dresses when you're ready to send them. Below you'll find some blog buttons so you can help spread the word and let your readers know you're joining in. The buttons will link back to an archived version of this page which I'll update with links often. In the meantime. . . gather up some pillowcases {new or gently used} or lightweight fabrics and get ready to sew for a good cause!

29 comments

BethanyFebruary 28, 2011 at 1:31 PM
I don't have any spare pillowcases but I DO have lots of lovely fabrics that I don't have a purpose for right now...well..NOW I have a purpose. What a great idea!!
UnknownFebruary 28, 2011 at 3:02 PM
This is amazing. I'm so in. :)
JessicaFebruary 28, 2011 at 3:14 PM
What a great idea Vanessa! This is a good reminder to me to give back as I'm trying to make my future daughter a whole closet full of dresses. Love it.
The CoysFebruary 28, 2011 at 4:36 PM
Awesome! I made over 100 dresses for the care center when we picked up our daughter in Ethiopia. The nannies were so happy they cried. It was such a fun project and I had a counter on my blog while I sewed them!
HanaFebruary 28, 2011 at 6:39 PM
What a wonderful idea! I'd love to participate.
GinaMarch 1, 2011 at 1:49 AM
What a wonderful thing to do!

My hubs just got home from a trip to Haiti. He had pictures of the people in the church service he attended. They dress in their very best. They are so proud of what they have and are so happy. I would love to help put a smile on a little one's face!

Hugs,
Gina
JessMarch 1, 2011 at 8:17 AM
I'm in! My friend took some dresses we made to an orphanage in Haiti recently and the girls screamed with delight!
grammy and papiMarch 1, 2011 at 11:20 AM
Beautiful idea, I'm looking forward to next week. I've been to Kenya two times and have seen first hand the need for clothing in that country. The little girls love pretty dresses.

Have a God Filled Day
Shirley
Rachel Eggum CinaderMarch 1, 2011 at 11:04 PM
This is really awesome!! I'm the founder of dress a girl around the world and am so touched by all of you and your willingness to help. Thank you!
Kelly IreneMarch 2, 2011 at 8:49 AM
Some of the ladies from my church just sent a bunch of dresses to an orphanage in Ghana. I wasn't able to make it to their sewing night, so this is a great way to make up for it!!
BrittMarch 2, 2011 at 10:09 AM
I'm a somewhat beginner "seamstress" and have never done a pillowcase dress, but what a great reason to start! Thanks for posting this!
PinkSparkle And LaceMarch 2, 2011 at 11:59 AM
What a wonderful idea! I'm new to this and can't wait to join in! Thanks for the opportunity. I'll mention on my blog & send others your way.
~ Tammy
AnonymousMarch 2, 2011 at 12:30 PM
So cool! I couldn't find anyone locally to get excited about this with me! Glad you are doing this. Gives me a little wind in my sails.
audreypawdreyMarch 2, 2011 at 1:48 PM
I am definitely in on this one! It is such a great idea, and I had been wanting to make some for a while; I just needed a little kick.:)
DIY Crush BlogMarch 2, 2011 at 7:08 PM
Count me in as well!:)
country girl chroniclesMarch 2, 2011 at 10:09 PM
What a terrific idea! I can't wait to get out and find some cute pillowcases!!

I just found your blog and I love it! Thank you for having such a clean, clear, user-friendly site. It's wonderful!
UnknownMarch 2, 2011 at 11:34 PM
I love this idea! I would be so proud to have a little girl wearing a dress made by me. I would love to enclose a ribbon necklace or some type of jewelry made to march this outfit...oh, and a headband,too! (If that's appropriate) SOOOO excited!!
Kristie @ Me and My HouseMarch 3, 2011 at 11:57 AM
Reading this literally made me tear up. I <3 to sew and I love helping people. I have always had a heart for missions. My Mammaw had 10 children and they were very poor. She made most of her children's clothing and my Mom often wore dresses made of flour or grain sack cloth. As poor as they were they were always so proud of the clothes their Mom made for them. After she died I was blessed with much of her fabric stash. I've wondered what to do with some of it for quite some time. This seems to fit perfectly. I can't wait to! Thank you so much for this opportunity!!!
KimminitaMarch 4, 2011 at 4:53 AM
Joining! Even better, on my blog I will call out to all Dutch ladies to do the same and I will be the distribution point from here to the States for all dresses. Loving this!
SabineMarch 4, 2011 at 5:28 AM
How cool, thanks to Kimminita I got to your blog. I have to admit: I have only twice used a sewingmachine and I am not good at it - I will see where I can borrow one and hope I will be able to understand the instructions (praying it will be very easy)!
Faith PrayMarch 4, 2011 at 11:22 PM
I'm so excited about your idea! Thanks for doing this.
AmandaMarch 5, 2011 at 6:31 PM
I'm excited about participating. I bought some pillowcases and other materials today. I made some other dresses for an organization called "Little Dresses for Africa." Wonderful idea!
LisaMarch 5, 2011 at 10:13 PM
Love Love LOVE this!!! Count me in.
MarieMarch 6, 2011 at 7:32 PM
This is so great i am the PA rep for Dress a Girl around the world and on the 12 we have 100 dresses heading for Dominican Republic. But this week we are working on 50 to go to Guatemala on the 18th of march. so this Will be fun to Sew along side all of you wonderful ladies. If you don"t mind I will share a link to this on our Facebook page and Blog.
MorganMarch 7, 2011 at 5:13 PM
Yes, what a wonderful idea! I shared your blog on mine to tell my crafty friends about it too! Can't wait to get started!
SuzanneMarch 8, 2011 at 10:58 AM
Thank you for sharing about Dress A Girl Around the World!! You are helping so many little girls in need!!
Lorri in Sacramento, CAMarch 9, 2011 at 5:20 PM
I have been sewing these dresses for about a year now and love it! I hadn't sewn since I was in high school.. and I have sewn about 50 so far... they have been taken to Cambodia, Phillipines, Kenya and sent off in Christmas shoe boxes.. I am getting ready to set up a sewing room for people that want to sew during the day when I am at work.... great cause! Thanks Rachel! Lorri
mollymellMarch 13, 2011 at 5:30 AM
This is such a great idea? I have a question: Are you going to distribute dresses in South America as well, or just Africa and Asia.
Vanessa HewellMarch 13, 2011 at 11:01 AM
@Regina - check out the charity's site here for more info and for any specific questions you may have. I'm not affiliated with the charity, just trying to help out! From what I've read,so far, they've delivered almost 20,000 dresses to 36 countries so I imagine South America is probably included in that list!