Basically, I had pretty much completely screwed up how I'd marked the overapron: I'd started the flair for the A-shaping too high (I'd also miscalculated the position of the fell). So, I yanked all of the basting, ironed the apron (with damp cloth between the iron and the apron), and remeasured and re-marked it.

Suddenly everything fits together much better than it had.

I'll try to post a few pics once I get a half a dozen pleats stitched.

I also decided to try one experiment: I made a feeler gauge out of a thin piece of plastic, and marked the pleat width at the hips and waist on the gauge. That way, I just have to pick up the gauge rather than trying to wrestle with a tape measure.

Thanks again to all for the ideas and help.

Brian