Gown Re-do

I'm itching to sew but I'm not quite ready to cut into that green wool yet. I've decided to get warmed up by re-doing the bodice of the light gold brocade gown I made last summer. There are a couple of things I wasn't really happy with that I hope to improve. I knew I didn't want the extremely long front waist that the Elizabethan pattern called for but, rather than just softening the curve and shortening it a little, I ended up with pretty much a straight waistline which might have been appropriate for an earlier style but not for a gown inspired by an Eleanora di Toledo portrait. The other thing is that following the instuctions to finish all of the edges with piping and a self bias binding let me with unattractive bulky edges. I've spent the morning with the seam ripper taking the bodice apart. Now I am off to find the leftover fabric to cut a new bodice front and praying that I can get the fabric design centered the way the way it should be.
Here's what it looked like when I wore it to MIRF last summer: