Parcel for Kenya received today

Received an email today from Jennifer Hughes-Bystrom that she has received the parcel I sent last week for the girls of the Kijji Mission in Kenya. Also received this picture of a few of the kids from the mission who will be recipients of the dresses, leggings, undies and t-shirts sent. 

Seeing this picture makes the work of sewing those dresses and learning how to sew leggings more rewarding. Thank you Jennifer for sharing this picture and more pictures in the future. Much appreciated.

Reminder for the Easter Collection 2016

Just a friendly reminder to those who are intending to donate dresses for the Easter distribution to send a message to dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com for further instructions. All donations must be posted on or before the 15th of Feb 2016. There will be no pickups from the PO Box address. Thank you.

Parcel picked up today and last postage docket for 2015

The parcel for Kijji Mission was picked up by a courier from Australia Post today and also I was able to get a new copy of the postage docket for the third and last parcel I sent last month to the Philippines for Christmas distribution where I paid $101.00. I remembered I didnt have a copy at all for my reference.

To see a larger version, please click here. For all postage dockets for 2015, please click here. 

Donation Acknowledgement #4 - 01/2016 Donated by Yvonne and Cynthia

The dresses for the Easter distribution are starting to arrive. Received two parcels of dresses which I am acknowledging -
1) 10 dresses from Yvonne Henderson which arrived today -

2) 2 dresses from Cynthia Sheikh -

Thank you to Yvonne and Cynthia for the dresses. It is much appreciated.

Feedback Distribution - Sariaya - Christmas 2015

This distribution was made in a town called Sariaya about 2-3 hours away from Metro Manila. I think there are more pictures from this distribution but the lady who did the distribution is taking care of her mother and sometimes spends most of the night and early morning fully awake to look after her needs so I cannot really put pressure on her to send me pictures if she had more. She sent these pictures very early in the morning when her mother was fast asleep.

I am asking for more understanding especially from donors who are after pictures to prove that their dresses have been given away and not sold and for those who ask for receipts of their donations as I really cannot issue receipts to avoid further inconveniences. I humbly ask that if these are your requirements to PLEASE not make any donations in order to make life a little bit easier for me in making a difference. Thank you.

Dress Distribution #101 - Kijji Mission Kenya c-o Jennifer Hughes-Bystrom - 02/2016

This collection officially opens the first dress distribution for the year 2016, a distribution I regularly do for the little girls of the Kijji Mission of Kenya c-o Jennifer Hughes-Bystrom. I try to make sure that I sew all the dresses that I include on this parcel from either my fabric personal collection or donated fabrics. (Note: I do not accept fabric donations at this time.) 

Anyway, here is the parcel which contains 30 dresses, 30 girls' t-shirts, 30 undies & 27 leggings between the sizes of 4 to 6 for the children of the Kijji Mission in Kenya c-o Jennifer Hughes-Bystrom -

and the contents of the parcel -

made possible by my sewing , fabric donations and sponsored undies and dress accessories generously donated by the following donors and/or sponsors -
1) Monika Osvald for the t-shirts, leggings and undies
2) Dresses and leggings sewn from fabrics donated by Lucienne Magnay, the Millhouse Collections and Dress A Girl Australia
3) Heather Harris for a t-shirt
4) Lee Auyoung from South Korea for the sponsored undies
5) Dress A Girl Australia

For larger and individual images of the above collection, please click here. This parcel will be picked up by Australia Post on Monday for delivery to Jennifer who is going to handcarry these items that will make little girls happy. Click here for postage details.

My heartfelt thanks to the donors and sponsors for making this distribution possible and special thanks to Jennifer Hughes-Bystrom for giving me the chance to make a difference to the lives of the little girls in the Kijji Mission Kenya and see happy faces when they get to receive their new dresses. It is much appreciated. Thank you.

Undies for Kijji Mission Kenya

About a month ago (a week before Christmas I think) I sold a brand new quilting craft book (Ladies Day out with the Bonnet Girls) from my on-line shop  to someone from South Korea. In fact the buyer wanted more than one copy but I only had one left so yesterday I decided to use the money to buy the remaining 17 undies I needed for the little girls of the Kijji Mission in Kenya. K-mart still had it for $4.00 per pack of 6. I no longer need anyone to sponsor the one-time sponsorship for undies as I have already bought them and have taken down the dresses from my sponsorship website. The two dresses that I sew for this purpose will now be included in the parcel for Easter Distribution under the buyer's name from South Korea. 

Although I have thank the South Korean buyer for making the book purchase, I still want to show my gratitude on this posting and say 'thank you' once again for making the purchase and allowing me to make the undie purchase($12.00). I am now ready to close my parcel for the Kijji Mission Kenya and have Australia Post courier pick it up on Monday for an extra fee then I do not have to lift the parcel and go to the postoffice to send.

Donation Acknowledgement #3 - 01/2016 - Sponsored Dresses from Denise

Yesterday I received sponsorships for three dresses from Denise Scott. My petty postage cash fund which will fund the cost of distributing dresses this year is now starting to rise still quite slowly but surely and I hope and keeping my fingers crossed that all costs I incur to sustain this campaign will come from my Dress Sponsorship program. Here are the 3 dresses sponsored and will be included in the Easter Distribution in March.

Denise, thank you for your generosity and believing in this campaign. It is much appreciated.

Donation Acknowledgement #2 - 01/2016 - Undies from Monika

I received this parcel of 10 undies for girls and 5 for boys from Monika Osvald today. Second donation for the year 2016. One pack of 5 girls undies size 6 to 8 will be allocated to the Kijji Mission of Kenya. The two other packs will be allocated for future distributions.

Monika, thank you so much for your generosity and thoughtfulness. Your support of Dress A Girl Australia's campaign to make this world a better place for disadvantaged kiddies is very much appreciated. Thank you.

Re-routed Dresses from South Africa to Easter Distribution 2016

I sent a couple of parcels to South Africa last year and to my surprise I received back the last parcel I sent in October due to non-delivery. The parcel was returned by the South African postal service via Australia Post. I had mixed reactions when I got the parcel back. One was that the dresses will not find a girl to wear it and the second I was glad that it was actually returned due to non-delivery as I paid about $123.00 for the postage. Well, I lost the $123.00 and the time and effort I spent on this parcel but got these dresses back and the donors of these dresses should be happy that their dresses did not go to waste. 

 I will now re-allocate these dresses to Dress Distribution #100 for Easter Distribution in March 2016. I was not in the best of health late last year so I was not able to include them in the Christmas distribution. For individual images and donors of the above dresses, please click here.

Peasant dresses added to my Dress Sponsorship Program

These peasant dresses were added to my Dress Sponsorship program and are looking for sponsors. For $10.00 per sponsorship, proceeds will be used to pay for the cost of distributing dresses and Dress A Girl Australia Activities for the year 2016. Anyone who wants to make a difference this year, all you have to do is click on the image below - Thank you.

Dress Collections for Easter Distribution Instructions

To those who are intending to donate dresses between the sizes of 8 to 10 for the Easter distribution, please make sure you send me a message including number of dresses to donate at dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com. There will be no pickups at the postbox so make sure you follow instructions and guidelines on how to make and donate dresses are taken into consideration. 

Please see below original message re first collection of the year 2016 - "Collecting Dresses for Easter Distribution" posted 19-Jan-2016 at 12:56pm
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To anyone interested to donate dresses for Easter Distribution. I am collecting 85 dresses between the sizes of 8 to 10 only for Easter distribution. If you would like to donate, please send a message including number of dresses to donate and contact details to dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com. 

All dresses need to be posted on or before the 15th of February as the parcel needs to be sent by the end of February month. Please note that sending parcels via Australia Post now takes a minimum of one week for regular delivery so will appreciate if you consider the timing of your parcels. For this particular distribution, postal address will be different so I do not have to go to the postoffice to pick up your parcels so make sure you include your contact details. There will be no pickups from the postal box so make sure you follow the instructions on how to donate dresses. Thank you.

Now would also be a great time to sponsor a dress for anyone who wants to make a difference at Easter but do not sew or do not have the time to sew. To sponsor a dress, all you have to do is click on the link below - Dress Sponsorship will help pay for the cost of sending the 100 dresses for Easter distribution. Thank you.

Dress Sponsorship Program

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Dresses sewn for Sponsorships and Easter Distribution

It is at this time of the year when I try to find ways to raise funds to help run and sustain the activities of Dress A Girl Australia for the year (in this case for the year 2016).  The following dresses were added to my Dress Sponsorship Program - Great for those who do not sew or do not have the time to sew but wants to help make a difference this year. To check them out, just click on the image below -

Also, I did some sewing from donated fabrics from the Millhouse Collections to include in the upcoming Easter Distribution (Dress Distribution #100) -

What a way to spend a hot day!

Collecting Dresses for Easter Distribution

To anyone interested to donate dresses for Easter Distribution. I am collecting 85 dresses between the sizes of 8 to 10 only for Easter distribution. If you would like to donate, please send a message including number of dresses to donate and contact details to dressagirlaustralia@gmail.com. 

All dresses need to be posted on or before the 15th of February as the parcel needs to be sent by the end of February month. Please note that sending parcels via Australia Post now takes a minimum of one week for regular delivery so will appreciate if you consider the timing of your parcels. For this particular distribution, postal address will be different so I do not have to go to the postoffice to pick up your parcels so make sure you include your contact details. There will be no pickups from the postal box so make sure you follow the instructions on how to donate dresses. Thank you.

Now would also be a great time to sponsor a dress for anyone who wants to make a difference at Easter but do not sew or do not have the time to sew. To sponsor a dress, all you have to do is click on the link below - Dress Sponsorship will help pay for the cost of sending the 100 dresses for Easter distribution. Thank you.

Dress Sponsorship Program

First donation acknowledgement for the year 2016

It is time to acknowledge donations made for the first two collection projects for 2016. The collection for the Kijji Mission Kenya is very limited and mostly sewn by me from donated fabrics received the past few years. I make it a point that for this particular distribution which I schedule every year, at the beginning of the new year in fact comes from fabric donations to ensure that even those who donate fabrics are given the chance to make a difference (although I am not accepting fabric donations at this time). I needed t-shirts for the girls and this was generously provided by Monika Osvald who does a lot of t-shirt sewing. 
1) 32 t-shirts and one pair of leggings from Monika Osvald -

2) Five dresses from Julie Nielsen in time for the collection of the first official distribution project for the year 2016 for Easter distribution.

Thank you for your donations. Much appreciated.

Looking for a sponsor for Project Undies for Kenya

I sew these two dresses tonight and looking for a sponsor. Proceeds from the sponsorship will be used to purchase 22 undies between the sizes of 4 to 6 for the little girls of the Kijji Mission in Kenya. I am sending 30 dresses next week but I only have 8 undies. I need 22 pieces more to match the rest of the 22 dresses with new undies. To sponsor just click on the link below. Thank you.

Final Numbers for 2015

These are the final numbers for the year 2015 in terms of donations received, sponsored dresses and dresses distributed. Statistics also includes boys' shorts and t-shirts.

Donations received for the year 2015 were as follows :

Dresses - 1782

Shorts for the Boys - 178

T-shirts - 237

Of the 1,782 dresses, 173 dresses were sponsored. More information such as projects sponsored by my Dress Sponsorship program will be made available soon.

Distribution of dresses were made to the following locations - 

Due to fund restrictions, this year lesser distributions were made in far locations such as Uganda, Kenya and South Africa.

Thank you to everyone, donors and sponsors alike for making this distribution possible in 2015. Much appreciated.

Break from distributions and accepting dress donations

To everyone, just to let you know that I am currently on a break from distributing dresses so am not accepting donation of dresses at the moment. I have no space in the house to store boxes of dresses. Next collection and plans for 2016 will be published on this page and in my blog once I have finalized them. Thank you for your understanding.

Leggings for the kids of Kijji Mission Kenya

I have been keeping myself busy the past few days trying to learn how to sew a pair of leggings. The first attempt did not look like leggings and after about an hour I finally was able to make a perfect pair. Then the stripes took longer than expected. And once you learn something new to make you never stop making and guess how many I ended up with. Nine pairs! And the only reason why I stop is because I run out of cotton spandex material.

These leggings will be given to the kids of the Kijji Mission in Kenya who loves to wear leggings underneath their dresses especially during the early mornings.

Last dress received in December from an 11-year old

The parcel containing this dress was picked up by my sister sometime last month since I have not been to the post office for quite a while now to avoid lifting parcels. This dress was made by 11-year old Sarah Sherwood as part of a Junior Action Service Programmme (JASP) in her school.

And here is Sarah holding the dress she made.

To Sarah, thank you so much for the dress. Thank you for helping make a difference. Much appreciated.

More Feedback from Christmas Distributions - 12/2015

Here are more pictures from distributions made last Christmas 2015 -

For larger and individual images, please click here.

Thank you to everyone for making this distribution possible. Much appreciated.

New dresses for the new year for sponsorships

I hope everyone had a great day welcoming the new year and look forward to challenging good times ahead and lots of good stuff to make 2016 a fun and enjoyable year for everyone. 

I normally spend the first two months of the new year trying to raise money to help pay for the cost of Dress A Girl Australia's activities for the year ( it does not pay for all of it but it does help my pocket and I cannot complain) so to open the new year I did a lot of sewing and have added almost 3 dozen of dresses including ones for the boys to choose from for those who would like to sponsor and support Dress A Girl Australia'a projects and distributions for the year 2016. I can smell what a challenging year 2016 will be for this campaign but with passion and determination am sure I will be able to overcome any obstacle that will be coming my way. Here are the dresses that I have sewn and added and are now available for sponsorship - 

Lots of choices to select from depending on which project you would like to support. Each project is indicated on each item available for sponsorship. To sponsor, all you have to do is click on the image above or click on the link below -

Dress Sponsorship Program 2016

I will soon be releasing the final numbers for 2015 and plans for 2016 and will be posting them here in my blog and in my facebook page. So watch out for it.

As usual, thank you for your support and looking forward to making more difference to the lives of the disadvantaged kids in the new year.

Happy New Year everyone!

 celebrating New Year's Day.

A timeless wish for the new year 
that the future bring you all 
healh, happiness and fulfillment. 

Happy New Year everyone!