people do both...you have to look online and at shows and in books and decide for yourself which look appeals to you... personally, i like a little color definition, so i sort them by colors when storing... then when i'm in the mood for a few donor blocks (my 'watching TV while sewing in the evening' project), I just grab the blue bag and the yellow bag and go have fun... but that's JUST me.... the very next person may want to sew whatever comes out the bag next... my neighbor and quilting buddy has a regular trash barrel with all her scraps and she literally stirs the barrel till a nice piece comes up on top and calls to her.... to each his/her own....