Burda dress 104-5-2008, but not a knit

I made this dress from the May 2008 issue - if you follow the link, you'll note that all the pattern links are now gone.  Along with all the other changes, I'm seeing this as the writing on the wall for B.  Burda, Burda, you're broken what didn't need fixing, and are destroying your loyal readership, link by precious link.  And I was so unimpressed by your May and June issues, I didn't even buy them. 

I can only thank Pattern Review for continuing to exist. Here are all the 17 versions so far of the dress.  If you want to see the dress design, go to my Burda Archive, at left.

My version's not made out of a knit, but a woven.  When I first modeled it for my husband - last summer -  he delicately suggested it's not the most flattering look.  I think frumpy was the word, actually.  I think I can see why - that bow thing at the waist eclipses my normal womanly violin shape (Christian Dior exploits it so well in his exaggerated X-shaped garments), and the pull of the fabric gives what's above a vaguely droopy mien.  It all makes me kind of blah shaped.

Could this fix the problem? 

Still I continue to wear the dress, with a white jacket over it to mask its blahness, because the fabric - a cotton-silk from Fabric Mart - is to die for:  soft, cool, practically wrinkle-free, I love its feel against my skin so much that I ordered more - in a different print, of course - for another summer frock.
 
As a final thought, I have a very nice rayon knit in a black&white print, just enough for another version of this little item.  Maybe I should just try it, just to see whether it'll mitigate the blah factor.

Nah.  Another day, another pattern.  Moving on....