I see that most of you agree with me to follow the fabric's call. Where we disagree is the color of the thread. In my recent practicing with FMQ I found that it looked the nicest (even when there were mistakes) when there was contrast between the thread color and the fabric. Otherwise, the quilting simply doesn't do anything for the quilt. That's why I'm suggesting the dark brown. I'll have to think about this some more because I value all of your experience.