Folks often think of a scrappy quilt as random, when in practice they actually require a lot of thought and placement! I like to make scrappy blocks and try not to think about the whole top until I have made a bunch of the blocks. When putting them on my design wall it becomes pretty clear if one of the blocks should wait for the next top and if a particular color needs more play. Then I only have to stress over a couple color blocks to fill out the top. And I always have a couple blocks waiting for the next project. As I have mentioned before, I keep my orphan blocks in stacked pizza boxes. The cardboard is great for preventing any moisture problems (from handling) and I can write on the outside what is in it - and they are free from my local pizza place!