If you had said to me that you were doing a quilt that was black and brown (only), I might caution to pick fabrics carefully so you didn't lose the design/pattern. You tossed alot of fabric with white background. That made ALL the difference. It looks incredible. I wouldn't change anything. Enjoy the process... oh and if you can chain piece for the 9 square blocks and then use the tube method for the HST to make it all go a bit faster and easier, especially based on the size of the quilt. It won't make the quilt look better. It will just make it go faster.