Victoria Beckham has revealed that a recent trip to South Africa, after an invitation from Vogue Editor, Anna Wintour, inspired her decision to sell off more than 600 items from her own wardrobe in aid of charity Mothers2mothers. In association with The Outnet, sister site to Net-A-Porter.com, – and with the support of Christie’s, which valued the items including costume pieces, coats and evening dresses – the sale will take place from August 20 to 25, if the pieces last that long. (!)

Speaking about the cause, and her time with the founder of Mothers2Mothers – which employs and trains mothers living with HIV to help raise awareness among other women – the singer turned fashion designer said the trip had changed her life: “After spending just a few days with these remarkable women and learning more about the charity from Mitch, and his lovely wife Annie Lennox, I wanted to do as much as I could. It really was a life-changing experience; I’ve never experienced anything like it.”

Victoria Beckham is touted as one of the world’s most stylish women with a wardrobe full to the brim of designer garments and with help from her mother and sister, Victoria carefully selected iconic pieces from her wardrobe – pieces from her early days with the Spice Girls, that she wore out with David Beckham, and from catwalk appearances, parties, awards shows and other events that have been heavily documented and photographed by the world’s press.

The white Dolce & Gabbana dress Victoria Becham weas for the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards will be part of the auction.

Victoria felt that a sale of items from her wardrobe could be an incredibly powerful way to raise both money and awareness. She told Grazia magazine: ‘I have never met such strong women in my entire life. The work they are doing is nothing short of absolutely remarkable.’

The fluorescent yellow Roberto Cavalli gown worn for the pre-World Cup party in 2006 at David and Victoria Beckham’s country house will be part of the auction.

“I laughed a lot when we were going through my wardrobe as the pieces hold so many happy memories for me, David and the children,” Beckham said. “A lot of the clothes have been specially designed for me by the most talented designers and I’ve loved wearing them, however I now feel it’s someone else’s turn to enjoy them. We approached The Outnet as they have an incredible global reputation and are the perfect partner for us to build awareness and raise as much money as possible for Mothers2mothers.”

Dr. Mitch Besser, mothers2mothers (m2m) founder, said: ‘We are honored and extremely grateful to Victoria Beckham and The Outnet for their very generous support of mothers2mothers.