Inspired by the life of Dorcas in the Bible and her commitment to daily discipleship, Maria Skoyles used her experience as a textile designer to develop the Dorcas Dress Project, helping to protect craftsmanship and empower the voiceless in the fashion industry.
The Dorcas Dress Project, based in Oxfordshire, runs training and discipleship programmes in communities across the country, providing skilled seamstress training and empowerment to help people into employment whilst producing dresses that reduce waste and help tackle fast-fashion practices and the poor treatment of garment factory workers.
The project model is to set up sewing hubs connected to local churches offering a small group of volunteers to provide a network of skills support, friendship, and discipleship. Each hub is formed of four core people - two trainers to coach the sewing and two mentors providing pastoral care and support to the trainees. Trainees and their families are welcomed into the church, with the focus on helping them find a place in their local community.
Maria Skoyles, CEO and Founder of the Dorcas Dress Project, shares how the project supports garment workers:
“We are on a mission to see the global fashion industry transformed to be one that lifts people out of poverty, rather than holding them in it. We ensure that 30% of the retail price goes to the dress maker compared to many garment workers in the UK and around the world often receiving less than 3% of the retail price.”
The dress is used as an enterprise to help people into employment, build people up, form new friendships and bridge cultural divides. For the majority of garment workers in factories across the country, English is not their first language, so an important part of the project is language support. This helps to break down some of the barriers for workers struggling to integrate into their communities.
Maria describes how environmental responsibility fits into the project:
“The environmental impact of the dresses is part of the vision to create clothing that is high quality and can be used again and again. We have to the honour the resources that God has given to us. We select fabric considering sustainable and ethical credentials: using fabrics that have been recycled from waste or unused factory end of lines, that would otherwise go to landfill, and fairly traded or locally produced fabric to reduce carbon emissions and support local textile designers and growers.”
“The dress is designed to fit all sizes and is suitable for wearing through all seasons of a woman’s life, including pregnancy and nursing. We don’t grow out of it, and it doesn’t go out of ‘on trend’ fashion. The pattern uses a single stitch, meaning that sewing hubs can be set up across the world including those areas where access to electricity and resources is scarce, such as our hub in Uganda.”
Get involved
Maria has started a training programme for jewellery making in Witney and Chipping Norton with designs produced by students at the Abingdon and Witney College. She is also looking to form a new sewing hub in Oxfordshire to support those living in poverty, with mental health challenges and employment issues. Could you or your church be part of a sewing hub, supporting people who want to learn or improve their interest in dressmaking, and provide them with a community welcome?
Find out more on the Dorcas Dress Project website and where you can purchase the Dorcas dresses.