Most difficult homework ever (again)

Here's what we're supposed to draft a pattern for:

When this was handed out I already knew it would give me headaches. The thing is a monster. My analysis:

It's a dress with a very narrow skirt. We were told not to take out more than 1 cm at the bottom.

There's a seam at the waist, but it doesn't go all the way to center front.

The buttonhole strip is cut into one piece with the skirt

The top looks to have two pleats

The skirt part has one dart (outside) and a pleat (near center front).

The skirt is cut on the fold... but the buttonhole strip makes this nigh impossible.

The sleeve is cut in one with the bodice in the front.

The tricky part is not so much the pleats in the bodice or the kimono sleeve cut in one with the bodice. I actually got the top darts in pretty easily. The vertical dart coming from the underbust seam is easy enough as well.
No, what I don't understand about this homework is where to get the fabric from the pleat (or drape, it's the same word in Dutch) under the buttonhole strip.

What I *think* happens is that the front skirt is cut on the fold, and the thing angles off, fans out away from the fold, to create room for that pleat and the buttonhole strip at the front. You can't cut a front opening on a fold. There's just no room. So I probably need to open up the dart far enough to be able to cut the buttonhole strip next to the fold. This might (will) also make the skirt smaller at the bottom.

Just a wild guess, of course, but we'll find out how it will be next week.
Whoever said you didn't need any 3D insight to be able to finish this study is lying through his teeth.