The funny thing about that thrift store top is I have many of the fabrics in it -- including the bright yellow with mushrooms that was early 70s (look towards the bottom right)... I actually have that one in two colorways! Yellow background as well as red. Looking at it some more, I think I will add 2-2 more rows to make it more rectangular. It will still be a little short for a twin quilt but close.
The point was, though, sometimes you just throw everything together and it all works out. Scale, theme, etc. not so important in some ways. It's easier for me (at least) to go hog wild with something I'm not sure of with gifted fabric!
Scrappy is hard on many of us for many reasons. I went for a long time without appreciating scrap quilts, most of which I had seen were "use" quilts and just plain ugly. When Judy Martin came out with her book Scrap Quilts, it changed my view and at this point of my life, most of my quilts are scrappy in some way. The directions are outdated now, but the projects pictures and discussions are still valuable.
https://www.amazon.com/Scrap-Quilts-.../dp/096029709X
This year I've been pushing myself to accept that scrappy happens and to just let it happen. It is not natural to my normal control freak style of quilting where each fabric is carefully placed and cut to best effect. I did a couple of quilts this past year from a box of pre-cut squares that was given to me, part of that exercise was to use the difficult fabrics. The real purpose was for me to let go a bit.
This one was with Juvenile Prints:
2019 Fabric Moratorium
I got lost a couple of times with this project, reminded myself that it was not about making the best ever juvenile top, it was about using up fabric. Went back to the brighter "adult" prints and I don't think they stand out.
Then this one is a real mix of stuff. I don't think it is so easily appreciated, but I like it and that is what counts
2019 Fabric Moratorium