Here is one thing I keep in mind, If you have a quilt made up of 1.5" squares (1" finished) you have 2.25 sq inches of fabric for every 1 sq inch you see, so there is more fabric in the seam allowance then the front side.
I was going to stick with Bonnie's colors - however I'm not warming up to them much. The odd part is it's the way the neutrals look with them that does not appeal to me. it's good that we have two more weeks before the first clue!