Category Archives: Dressember

Dressember 2018

It’s that time of year again. Dressember is the month of the year when I will join thousands of advocates around the world in a campaign to make a difference in the fight to end modern day slavery.

This is the third year I have participated in Dressember and, although it is a cold month to be wearing a dress every day it ends up being a simple choice for me. If I can make a difference in the fight against human trafficking by pulling out dresses instead of jeans then I will. I need your help though. I have a fundraising page where you can donate to the campaign. I am posting about the campaign here on my blog as well as on instagram and pinterest; please share my posts with others who might be want to be involved.

In 2014 I raised $1200, in 2017 I raised just over $1500 and in 2018 I am aiming for $1800! This year, just to mix things up a little I am going to wear the same dress for several days in a row, styling it a little differently each day until I run out of ideas and switch to another dress. We will see how that goes. I’m starting with a dress I made in Australia so it must be about twenty years old. That doesn’t make it vintage but perhaps it counts as retro!

Dressember update #2

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I have less than a week of Dressember left and I am thrilled to announce that my fundraising is now at 107%. I am so excited to have reached my goal but would love to keep adding to the total for as long as the campaign continues. Anything I raise will help my team reach its $2500 goal so please think about getting involved. Thank you so much to all who have contributed. I have been encouraged by family, friends near and far, from my current connections in Canada and my roots in Australia. I have also been thrilled to see the response from the crafting community both those I know from live classes and those I know only online. I have had several anonymous donations; I am not able to thank you personally but please know I am very grateful for your generosity. I appreciate all donor’s support of my fundraising efforts but more importantly I am excited that you are making a difference in the lives of victims of human trafficking around the world.

To donate please visit my fundraising page
https://support.dressemberfoundation.org/fundraiser/heather-telford

or my team fundraising page
https://support.dressemberfoundation.org/team/fancy-a-dress

As I mentioned in my previous post the money raised in this campaign is given as grants to organizations, namely International Justice Mission, A21 and the McMahon/Ryan Child Advocacy Centre. Please check out the work they are doing if you would like to know more.

As you can imagine it has got a little chillier as December has progressed. Some days Alexandra and I have snapped photos out in the snow but other days it is definitely an indoor task! To check whether I am completing the challenge you can see my daily dresses posted on Instagram and Pinterest but here are a couple of favourite photos from the last few weeks.

One of the Dressember catch cries is #youcandoanythinginadress and on December 14th in -15°C I successfully jumpstarted a car!

The next day I got all fancy and spent part of a night at the museum for Andrew’s work Christmas party.

I’ve cleared the car and shovelled the driveway in a dress.

Thank you for your interest and involvement. Thank you for visiting here; I’ll be back with a wrap up in January.

Dressember 2017 update

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I am excited to update you about my Dressember 2017 campaign. I have been wearing dresses for ten days now and have already raised over $600! I am hoping to not only reach my goal but surpass it. Modern day slavery is a problem all over the world. Individuals and whole families have their freedom taken away and are forced to work for someone else’s gain.

Organizations like the International Justice Mission and A21 are working around the world to free victims, bring perpetrators to justice and restore survivors to new living situations with the liberty to work and thrive in safety.

I have been very encouraged by the support I have received from family, friends, anonymous donors, blog readers and fellow artists and crafters. I am approaching my fundraising goal of $1000 and hoping to exceed it before my donation page closes at the end of January. THANK YOU to those of you have donated. If you would like to donate to help end human trafficking please visit my page here

It is fun doing the challenge with my daughter Alexandra, I don’t need to take selfies, we raid each other’s wardrobes and we celebrate each other fundraising achievements. If you are wondering whether I have worn a dress each day on December, here are the first 10 day’s pics.

Dressember 2017

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Back in 2014 I participated in Dressember, a campaign to raise funds to end human trafficking. Once again I have committed to wear dresses every day of December for the same worthy cause. Wearing a dress every day can get a little chilly here in Canada and tends to look a little fancier than my usual jeans and sweaters so it does prompt some conversation. Wearing dresses all month is my kind of a challenge though; I like fashion, I make dresses, so combined with such an vital cause, it’s a good fit for me. This year my daughter, Alexandra and our friend, Nan have teamed up with me and our goal is to raise $2500

The challenge is certainly not to wear a different dress everyday, some participants wear the same dress all 31 days! The campaign is about freedom and justice.

Dressember equips a community of advocates to fight for the dignity of all people, leading to the protection and freedom of millions.

Check back here during the month to see how I am going with my fundraising or click over to my fundraising page to help me meet my goal. Right now our team has raised 13% of our $2500.

I am updating my instagram and pinterest accounts to show ‘proof of dress’ and will be back to post some photos here on the blog also.

Dressember Wrap Up

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Dressember has come to an end so I wanted to let you know how I went with my challenge and campaign. I was successful in wearing dresses every day in December. I wore many of my own and borrowed from friends and family also. It did not end up being too hard, the winter weather was pretty kind in December. I would have definitely found it much colder during January.

I have not yet reached my fundraising goal but there are a few weeks left so a reminder post here and a reminder email might get me a little closer. I am thrilled to have raised $940 and am so thankful to have such supportive friends and family members along with some donors I don’t know. Thank you all.

During Dressember and since it ended I have read updates and newsletters from the International Justice Mission, the organization which will receive the funds and put them to use around the world. The stories are both encouraging and heartbreaking. Men, women and children are being helped, freed and given hope but there are so many more still to be reached and impacted. If you would still like to contribute please click over here to my fundraising page.

I’ll wrap up with the dresses for Dressember 19-27:and the final four of the month, the year and the challenge:

10 days of Dressember left

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To read earlier posts about my Dressember campaign visit here and here A few fun facts about my Dressember so far

consecutive days spent wearing dresses = 21
different dresses worn =18
people whose closets I have raided = 4 (thanks girls)
things I wouldn’t usually have done in a dress – shovel snow, stack wood, take a carol singing hayride!
already raised 42% of my Dressember goal (I’d love to reach 100%)

Far more important facts which should help you see why I am wearing dresses all month and raising money for the International Justice Mission

It costs $20,000 to cover a IJM lawyer’s salary for a year
$4500 will cover trial fees for a victim’s case
$200,000 would provide 100,000 hours of individual trauma therapy for trafficking survivors.
Over $270K has been raised so far this Dressember
The total goal is $500,000

If you would like to support the International Justice Mission in working to end human trafficking, if you would like to see dignity restored to all women, if you would like to see justice for the poor, then donating to my Dressember campaign is a chance to be involved.

Thank you to those who have donated to the campaign and encouraged me as I have participated. To see the daily dresses you can check out my Pinterest board or Instagram.

Dressember 9

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We are almost one third of the way through Dressember and I am happy to report that I have reached over a third of my fundraising goal. My goal is $1240 which is $40 a day for the month of December. Thank you to those of you who have checked out the sites I linked to at the beginning of the month and thank you to those who have already donated.

Last year the Dressember campaign raised $165,000; this year’s campaign has already past that milestone. As of today, 2,510 Dressember advocates around the world have raised $170,144.

I have to admit it has not been too much of a challenge wearing a dress for the last nine days. The biggest thing is of course keeping warm as the temperature has ranged from +5°C to -16°C. Most of my time has been spent inside but even when I’m outside I have a collection of warm boots and cosy tights to keep the chill off! Both my girls and a couple of friends have allowed me to raid their closets. I didn’t set out to wear a different dress every day in December but it has been fun to have such variety.

The point is to make a difference and to make change possible for women, men and children living against their will in desperate, illegal and hopeless circumstances. The money raised for the International Justice Mission funds rescue missions and system reform as well as programs to equip and support those who have been rescued. Read some of the stories of hope here.

If you would like to the work of the International Justice Mission please visit my fundraising page. For updates check back here on my blog; to see the daily dress visit my Pinterest board or my Instagram

Thanks for caring.

Dressember 1st

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Today I begin my Dressember challenge to wear a dress every day in December and raise awareness and funds for the work of the International Justice Mission. To donate please visit my fundraising page.

The heart of Dressember is dignity for all women so I hope you will get involved some how. The money raised will help stop human trafficking. I would love you to share my fundraising page or blog address and if you are able, donate to the work of the International Justice Misson which works all over the world to rescue thousands, protect millions and prove that justice for the poor is possible.

I will update you regularly here on my blog as well as post my daily dress on Instagram and Pinterest.

Today’s dress is an oldie; I made it at least fifteen years ago, maybe more. I recently shortened it as it hadn’t been worn for years.

Dressember 2014

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I have taken on a challenge. I will wear a dress every day in December in order to raise money and awareness for the International Justice Mission. To support me in my campaign visit my Dressember page. I will post updates here on my blog and document each day’s dress on Instagram and Pinterest.

Dressember is a collaborative movement leveraging fashion and creativity to restore dignity to all women.

Dressember uses fashion to advocate for women who’ve been exploited for their femininity. As women take on the creative challenge of wearing a dress for the 31 days of December, they are advocating for the inherent dignity of all women. Dressember exists to inspire and empower a global community of like-minded women who are locking arms to face one of the greatest injustices of our time.

The heart of Dressember is freedom– that every woman has the right to live a vibrant and autonomous life.