Hosting your own Buy My Dress Event
Plan in advance
- Start collecting dresses – ask friends and colleagues to give up their unwanted (but once loved) dresses for a great cause and if they have some fabulous accessories to complete an outfit (bags, hats, wraps, jewellery) then please donate them too!
- Choose your date – you can host your Buy My Dress event anytime during the year
- Recruit some friends to help collect the dresses and help you out at the event
- Ask local boutiques and businesses to support your event by donating dresses or prizes for a raffle (completely optional)
Promote your event
- Spread the word! Perhaps ask a school or club if you could get a BMD message out through their mailing lists to request dress donations and notify people about your event
- Drop into local shops and businesses – place our BMD posters in strategic places like noticeboards in supermarkets, libraries, local convenience stores, local community centre, schools, clubs, gyms etc.
- Go online – give your BMD event a mention on all of your social media platforms and ask your friends to share the details. Upload photos of any particularly special dresses that have been donated to raise people’s interest and create a bit of a buzz
Local Press & Radio
- Contact your local radio station and ask them to give you event a mention
Send a ‘Save the Date’ to local newspapers, free newspapers, parish newsletters etc
Preparing the Dresses
- Check all dresses to make sure they’re in good condition, some dresses may need to be hung up (to get rid of wrinkles)
- Dresses will need to be marked with their size and price, you can do this with our print off dress labels and a box of pins
- If you are holding a larger event you could separate the dresses by size and arrange them in order of colour, from white to lighter colours to darker colours
- If you are selling accessories then it would be a good idea to provide separate areas / tables for each type of accessories
- Prices for dresses are usually between €20 – €30, with higher end dresses going for €50 +
Submit your funds
- After your BMD event is over you can donate online, by bank transfer or by calling our office on 01 661 8000
- If you’re nearby or fancy a visit to our centre, then why not pop in with your funds – we’d be delighted to meet you and thank you in person and maybe take a few photos for our website and social media.
Lastly and most importantly thank you so much for coming on board and hosting a BMD event, we hope your event goes really well and everyone enjoys some guilt free shopping while supporting children with Down syndrome at the same time!
For more advice or information please contact Lorraine on the fundraising team – lorraine@downsyndromecentre.ie
Thank You
Thank you so much for choosing to make a donation to The Down Syndrome Centre, we really appreciate it! It is thanks to the generosity of our donors that we can continue to help children with Down syndrome reach their milestones.
Funding
We need to raise €500,000 annually to continue to provide vital early-intervention services to children with Down syndrome and to their families. As we receive no funding at all from the Irish Government, this income is raised 100% through fundraising and donations.
How to Donate
Online Donations
Please choose the amount that you would like to donate from the Shining Suns above.
If you would like to donate an amount that isn’t listed click on the ‘donate here’ link below the shining suns!
Lodge a Donation
If you would prefer to make a donation through a bank lodgement or via online banking then all you need from us are our centre’s bank details which are:
Account Name: The Down Syndrome Centre
Bank: AIB, Cornelscourt, Dublin 18
Account Number: 31976077
Sort Code: 93-33-92
IBAN: IE68 AIBK 93339231976077
BIC: AIBKIE2D
Post a Donation
Alternatively if you would like to send a cheque or money order, please make it payable to The Down Syndrome Centre and post it to:
The Down Syndrome Centre
Shrewsbury House
Old Bray Road
Cabinteely
Dublin 18
Please make a note of your name and address as part of your cheque payment or lodgement so we can acknowledge your generosity!
Your donation could qualify for tax relief!
There is a way to make your donation count for even more – at no extra cost to you! If you are an Irish taxpayer and you donate a total of €250 or more in a calendar year, we can claim back tax on your donation – at no extra cost to you.
All you have to do is complete and return a CHY4 Cert and we can do the rest.
Thank you for helping us build a brighter future for people with Down syndrome.
Buy My Dress (BMD) is a fabulously fun fashion event and a great excuse to get together with the girls. This year for the first time we are asking women to host a BMD event in their own home, workplace or at a club they attend, to ask all of the ladies they know to donate their once loved dresses and fabulous accessories, and to come along and bag a few amazing bargains in aid of The Down Syndrome Centre.
Festoon your BMD event with these fantastic downloads:
Downloads
Suggestions
- The event can take place anytime, morning, afternoon or evening depending on your target audience
- You will need to provide a room, a bathroom, bedroom or office where women can try on dresses
- A good idea would be to provide tea, coffee and refreshments for your guests and maybe ask them to make a small contribution
- Another option would be to organise a raffle – you could create a girlie hamper with scented candles, beauty products, hair and beauty vouchers – asking local businesses to provide the prizes
- If you’re short on hangers why not ask your local Dry Cleaners to lend a few
- If possible ask friends for a loan of a clothes rail or two – and if you don’t have rails dresses could be laid out on tables or across seats (there are no rules!)