frustratedquilter, I think its personal choice. No, I haven't made mine yet, trying to talk dh into paper piecing for me with the problem of 'seeing' right now. If you are putting them into a quilt, then yes, the background needs to be the same. Place mats, no, you can change the background in each one. I think, I would keep the same background, a light neutral color for a quilt. Place mats, I think, you could go wild and crazy with color. We will see what the 3rd brings, and you can see what the others have done in two more days!
Thank you for the kind words about my quilts. I love designing for the person, and not do a 'kit' or set pattern. 'Especially, the kids and babies, I love designing for them on what they like to see or colors the parents of a baby chose to use in the nursery.I did them in Rockford, Ill., and in Corpus Christi, Texas. So many and no pictures of any of them. I did have one staff member who left, and returned on a visit some 12 years later, to "look me up" to show me how much his baby son, had grown up into a teenager looking down at his 6 foot Father. Never charged for the quilts, they were just 'gifted'.