My first attempt at piecing was with "friendship" blocks to be shared with others in a group of co-workers. Well, everyone had different blocks (all 12 1/2 inches). We exchanged blocks and made quilts adding our own "style." Well of course I had no style, so I arranged them in a way that was acceptable to me and used a neutral (khaki) sashing. That really broke up the mismatch of colors. I used a backing that contained a lot of the colors in the blocks. I love my "first quilt" that reminds me of the awesome people who worked along side me. It's still around and being used.