New Look 6103 Drop Waist Dress

I made this about 10-12 years ago, wore it a couple of times, and have pretty much ignored it since. Two words: drop waist.

Turns out, there’s never a day when I wake up and say, “You know what? I really want to obscure my waistline today and make my torso look disproportionately long. That sounds awesome!” So I belted this one day and DUDE IT’S SO MUCH CUTER! Sure, there’s a bit of puckering at the waist, but the shape is completely transformed and actually flattering to the human figure. So glad I made this in a twill-like cotton because the skirt has the perfect amount of body and hangs beautifully. (Fair warning: it has so much body that I almost pulled a Seven Year Itch steam grate moment coming down some stairs outside.)

Seriously, isn’t the full skirt the best part about this dress?

 

This is New Look 6103 — one of those patterns whose cover art really sells it more than the actual design itself. Oh, yes, those sassy sketches promise you Gatsby style that hugs the figure. But what it actually delivers is a big ol’ box on top, with a salvageably cute skirt on the bottom. I haven’t made the coat; that number looks promising, too. (Fool me once?)

 

I don’t remember many details from this make, which means it was probably easy. Noted, though, that my hem on this dress is impossibly tiny. Like, 1/8″ tiny. Like, pinked the edge, folded once and hoped for the best tiny. If I made it again (pfft), I’d cut additional length to get the same look with a more, er, proper hem.

 

PS – This pattern is old enough that the number (6103) has been recycled into some Suede Says horror.

PPS — This is how most of my photos actually turn out: