Dress A Girl Around the World Sew-a-Long - Day 1

Yes!! Finally.

I hope everyone is ready to sew some dresses! I really look forward to seeing tons of creativity being put to good use. My fingers are crossed that we can get lots and lots dresses made and sent in to Dress A Girl Around the World. I've got a bunch of info to share with you in this post, so I'll get straight to it!

As I mentioned, I'll have several fellow bloggers stopping by this week to share tips, tricks, ideas, inspiration, and tutorials with you. Those bloggers include: Amy of Lots of Pink Here! (one of my co-hosts), Virginia of Gingercake (also a co-host), Anna of Noodlehead, Amy of During Quiet Time, and Jess of Craftiness is Not Optional. These ladies are amazingly talented so make sure to stop by here each day to check out their posts!!! 

Really there are no hard and fast rules here. If you have a favorite method for making pillowcase style dresses, go for it! If you are a beginner and are using actual pillowcases to make dresses, I suggest using the tutorial on the Dress A Girl website linked below. I've also created a dress tutorial along with a printable pattern with instructions for a few variations. Do what works best for you! When choosing your fabrics, you can used either new or gently used pillowcases or lightweight fabrics. Be as creative as you'd like but just keep in mind the dresses need to be lightweight (they'll be hand carried to their destinations) and comfy for the girls to wear!

Simple Pillowcase Dress Tutorial (for using pillowcases): if you scroll to the bottom of the tutorial, there is a link for a video! I think this would be very helpful for anyone who is just beginning to sew.

Pillowcase Dress Tutorial and Printable Pattern (for anyone using fabric):  I created this tutorial based on dresses I've made in the past for my little girl. There are instructions for adding a contrasting fabric band along the bottom of the dress along with two ways to make the shoulder ties. The tutorial is geared for beginners but feel free to ask me any questions in the comment section of the tutorial. 

Once you've finished your dresses, take some photos and upload the photos to the Flickr Pool I've created just for the sew-a-long. Post only one photo per dress please. Next, get those dresses in the mail!

Ship your dresses here:

Rachel Eggum Cinader

Hope 4 Women International

P.O Box 74010

Phoenix, AZ 85087

To give you a little motivation to sew up a storm, we're also hosting a giveaway along with the sew-a-long! By posting photos of your dresses to the Flickr Pool, you'll gain one entry per dress (please post only one photo per dress!). I'll leave the pool open to entries til next Wednesday (March 16th) and then I'll randomly draw 2 winners. The first person I draw will be the first place winner and the second person will be the second place winner. I'll post the names of the winners here on the blog. Make sure to come back and check to see if it is you! 

The giveaway is open to international entries!

So, what is up for grabs? Check out the awesome sponsors and the prizes they've donated below:

Pinked Fabrics, run by the fabulous Amy, offers fun, modern fabrics. If you like bright and colorful fabrics, pretty packaging, and fast shipping, this is the shop for you! She's generously offered up 2 yards of fabric to the 1st place winner! You'll get to choose not only your fabrics but the cuts as well (fat quarters, half yards, or yards). 

Gingercake carries the sweetest sewing patterns created by Virginia. I've used several of her patterns and they are clearly written and include lots of helpful photos. You won't be disappointed with what you are able to whip up using her patterns! Both winners will receive 2 patterns of their choice.

Amy , the creative mind behind the During Quiet Time shop, is offering up one of her adorable goldfish linocuts to the first place winner. Perfect for adding to a quilt, tote, and more! Click here to for more details on the linocut!

I'm sure many of you know Anna, of Noodlehead, by now! Lots and lots of craftiness going on over there. She's graciously offered up her Runaround Bag pattern to the first place winner. This super cute bag is perfect to use as your everyday bag---it's roomy and has pockets on the inside!

Cecilia, of So Tei Tei, designs unique and detailed sewing patterns for children's clothing (girls and boys!). I've already set aside a few of her patterns to make my little girl some cute summer clothes. The 1st place winner can choose 3 patterns from her shop and the second place winner can pick 2. 

Not only has Cecilia donated patterns for this giveaway, she is also donating 50% of the revenue from sales made in her shop during this week to the Dress A Girl Around the World organization!!! How awesome is that?? So, if you've got your eye on any patterns in her shop, this is the time to buy them :) It's a win-win situation.

One last thing . . . 

I'm giving both winners one of my padded camera strap covers! They fit most standard DSLR camera straps and include a lens cap pocket. I'll let the 1st place winner choose their strap first!

Sorry for the epic length of this post and for the delay in getting it up but there's a lot of info to share! See you tomorrow. Happy sewing :)

ps. you can find blog buttons for the sew-a-long to post on your blog here!