A neutral baby: where to start

There are few more thrilling pieces of news a friend can share with me than that they're expecting a baby. Prior to my crafting days (B.C.!) I just shared in the excitement of a new addition to the family and the joy of someone I cared about becoming a mother or father.

These days there is the additional thrill of being able to plan a handmade gift to welcome a new baby to the world. And of course, what a perfect excuse to shop for some delicious modern baby fabrics.

But what do you do if mom and dad have decided not to find out if it's a girl or a boy? That was my dilemma when a good friend of mine recently announced she was having another baby. Luckily inspiration hit pretty quickly in the form of this little guy who'd been on my to-do list for a while:

This adorable little pattern is by Artisania and I couldn't resist him when I spotted it. With this cutie as a starting point a woodlands theme soon came to mind. Of course a theme is all very well but that still leaves a whole world of fabric to choose a neutral palette from - a big challenge for a novice quilter!

I've picked out a couple of perfect prints so far and the color scheme is coming together. But what would you choose?