Pretty {little} Pouch Swap and Skillbuilding

Recently I have been helping my sister, M, who lives 7 minutes away (at least until August) with a quilt. I've been working on various projects while helping her--my pouch (and a demo) for the Pretty {little} Pouch Swap, cathedral windows for Meagan for A Notion or Two, etc. She laughs at me a little bit, asking why I make things for people I don't know, saying she can't keep the swaps and bees and whatever else straight.  My answer is two-fold. First, it is fun to sew things for people who appreciate it, and second? Skill-building. These swaps and quilting bees challenge me to improve my sewing skills. They also forces me to branch out a little bit in my sewing, and learn skills that may be easy for some, but were completely new to me: putting in a zipper, cathedral windows, sewing curves, sewing with linen and voile, and learning which interfacing is best for which project. It has been fun, and I've liked the results. This pouch, made with linen and Flea Market Fancy scraps (the lining is an Alexander Henry Print, Farmdale Blossom in gray), is headed to my partner in the swap today. I have a feeling she will like it.