mostly just use scraps. did one with Christmas prints....made sure the center was a 'picture'...like a deer, drum, angel, whatever. did one once with fancy fabrics and did the embroidery work on it, then gave to a couple in their 70's who had just married. i noticed it on their bed, when we went to visit.
did another for a couple who had stayed on a ranch.....we embroidered objects found on the ranch: a spur, the dog, deer, flowers, mountain, etc. then added the date, their name, name of the ranch, etc on the blocks. it was a fun project.