Got some extra fabric and want to make something that will help others and enrich lives? Have you heard about Little Dresses for Africa? It is an organization founded by Rachel O’Neill in 2008 that has provided over 9 million dresses to girls in Africa. Nancy’s Notions became involved in 2011 and helped spread the word about these dresses and provided a very simple pattern for a dress. (Check out the free pdf at the bottom of this page.) Through providing so many dresses for the girls in Malawi, Africa, Little Dresses for Africa has also been able to provide clean water through digging new wells and has improved education opportunities by building two schools. This organization does way more than just provide dresses for girls (Pssst. They also provide britches for boys.)
Check out this simple tutorial on how to make a pillowcase dress to send to Little Dresses for Africa.
If you would like more information on the organization, please click here to learn more about their work. Besides the pdf shown below, you can find other dress patterns here.
If you have made a dress and are now wondering how to get it to Little Dresses for Africa, it’s as simple as mailing it to Little Dresses for Africa, 24614 Curtis Drive, Brownstown, MI 48134.
I have made many pillowcase dresses for charity. I love creating and then sharing with others. Years ago I made 50 dresses for this charity, Little Dresses for Africa, and boxed them up according to their specific instructions and mailed them to the US address given.
I received a thank you letter from them that had a request that next time, along with the dresses, I also send postage to cover the shipping to forward the dresses to their destination. To be honest, I was offended and haven’t given to them since. If I am going to the trouble and expense of buying the material and notions, then spending my time making the dresses, boxing and shipping them to the US address, why would they expect me to pay more?
They should have others donate for the shipping.