Oh, I should perhaps have noticed this a bit earlier.

I realized late last night that the wobbly oddness of the ribbing in the not-so-cashmere Lace Blouse may not be caused by me suffering from a rare lack of rib-knitting ability as much as my using one 3½ mm and one 3 mm needle, when I really, really meant to use two 3 mm needles.
And in yarn this fine it really does make a difference.
But my big fat fingers don't quite feel that same difference.
And I wonder if this ranks next to the pea on the list of signs you're not a princess.
I'll just start over.