What a crazy thing to ask! 2015 is long gone. But I have discovered that the days of the week correspond with the 2026 calendar. So, January 1 in 2026 falls on a Thursday. So did January 1 in 2015, so you can enjoy the blocks and quilt patterns again! 2015 Block and Pattern a Day Calendar There are almost 250 quilt blocks for 68 quilting projects! That is a BIG wow, don't you think? I began creating these block a day calendars in 2006 and my last one (like this) was 2020. Of course, I've just released my 19th block a day calendar with C&T Publishing and that is what's called a perpetual calendar. That means it is not tied to any one year. The one pictured above is - but now it's being recycled for 2026! There are several projects that were created by my former senior editor Jean Ann Wright. We did this together for a few years and then I went solo again. The first quilt "out of the box" is the Kaleidoscope. It's one I designed for Benartex fabrics and ...

Nope. It's not a block in my new calendar. This is a quilt pattern that needs a template or ruler to cut the shape. Not hard - just makes things go so much faster! But each of the FREE patterns has a very usable template. I turned the page on my wall calendar and this is the quilt that's featured (from 2014, but the days are the same in both years!) The Kaleidoscope is a pattern I've used for at least a dozen quilts - small, large, table runners. I've used it to create designs with the collections of a few fabric companies. Here's the one I did for Benartex in 2011 (and the FREE pattern link). There's a lot of "fool the eye" coloring going on here! Merry Go Round Kaleidoscope Quilt : 40" x 40". 12" block And one I made with a fun kids' print with some Sockey fabrics. I donated this to my guild for our kids' charity outreach. Here's one I did using a Windham Feedsack collection (and the link to FREE pattern). Feedsack Kaleidos...

As I showed you on Thursday, it is fun to use stripped fabrics to make more interesting kaleidoscope blocks. Here is one I made about 10 years ago. Two fabrics for the kaleidoscope triangle Remember that very complicated looking quilt from the other day? I discovered my colored diagram from when it published 20+ years ago. Same simple block, but some amazing coloring going on!  And the quilt again . . . Yes, it's hard to believe what you can do with colors! Kaleidoscope of Illusions I made some blocks using plain black fabric and warm, Autumn prints. I turned it into a table runner. This fabric is from 2012! Autumn Leaves table runner And one more kaleidoscope quilt made using 1930s prints. It's not a very good photo, but this actually is a real quilt! This goes to show that you can make these blocks very, very scrappy and still get super looking blocks! This was made in 2007. Feedsack Kaleidoscope . 50" x 50". 10" blocks Patterns for BOTH block sizes are include...

Playing with novelty prints and the kaleidoscope shape has been fun. I used some Sockey Monkey prints and made several, as well as my friend Jeannine D. Here is one I finished in early 2022 and donated to my local quilt guild's charity efforts. Monkeys and bananas are a fun combo for little kids! Sockey Kaleidoscope Quilt : 12" blocks Here's one my friend Jeannine made using my pattern and ruler (which I no longer carry). She has the dancing monkeys in the borders! Sockey Kaleidoscope Quilt by Jeannine D. Let's see the steps to cutting and stitching kaleidoscope blocks. I first ran this in 2012 (10 years ago) and figured it might be interesting to cover it again! This is scrap friendly, too. Making these blocks I used both single fabric and stripped fabric. Here are two blocks: Don't confuse this with the 60 degree Spiderweb ruler. The kaleidoscope is a 45" ruler, and is based on the radiating lines coming out from the center of a circle. Go look it up in you...

We all have so many different rulers and sometimes what they can do - really! I love my kaleidoscope rulers because they play very nicely with my fabrics, especially strips and scraps. Let's see a kaleidoscope quilt first. This is one from about 12 years ago when I taught this workshop for the Sewing Expo. Days to Remember Kaleidoscope (2010) using 4 fabrics One of the very first ones I made was published in Quilt Magazine in 1996. This isn't a very good photo, but the coloring of the patches is much more sophisticated than what you see above. Kaleidoscope quilt from 1996 Let's see another older one made from 4 blocks and a matching single block pillow. This was made with some vintage Kaffe Fassett fabrics. Very simple use of 2 colors for the blocks. Kaleidoscope 4 Block Quilt using 2 fabrics Let's see it lying flat and you can see how the fabrics are swapped out on the patches from block to block. A kaleidoscope ruler is an elongated triangle that has a 45 degree angl...

I love taking my workshop and blog samples and getting them quilted (for free) by my quilt guild friend. I bind them and off they go to local charity groups. We donate hundreds of quilts each year and my 2 dozen or so is a drop in the bucket! Here is the lineup for May/June. The first is a very pink, girlie quilt. The center block was part of my Beginner's Mariner's Compass workshop (which I've retired). I pulled pink and more of that heart fabric and finished it off (after Jeannie C. quilted it) Valentine's Mariner's Compass: 38" x 38" The next is a quilt top I stitched about 10 years ago from the Coverlets Collection by Windham Fabrics. I decided I had waited long enough. It is a bit more sophisticated and will probably become a lap quilt for a wheelchair bound person. This is my version of Stack 'n Whack, letting the rotary cutter and ruler decide where they should land. I used a 60 degree triangle ruler for this. Coverlets wheelchair lap quilt: 41...

Forget stopping with twins! I typically make 3, 4 - even a dozen of a particular pattern if the fabrics are speaking to me. This is true with my Kaleidoscope pattern. This is a traditional, vintage pattern that is made so much easier with a set of acrylic templates. There are several on the market these days. When I taught this class for the Sewing Expo in 2010-11, I had my own rulers laser cut. I no longer sell them, but here's what you can do with them. First, a simple block. The large triangles are 45 degrees at the tips. The blue corners are your average, run-of-the-middle half-square triangles. Kaleidoscope Block But they are TWO different angles and you can play around with color so you get some amazing visuals going on. What do I mean? Do you see curves with the center blues? Kaleidoscope in traditional browns How about one done with novelty prints? This was done by my friend Jeannine using my pattern and templates. Sockeye Kaleidoscope by Jeannine D. Then I did one for Bena...

Who says it always has to be on Friday? I was looking for one quilt and came upon the pictures of another. It's my kaleidoscope quilt done with Kaffe Fassett fabrics back in 2006 and published in Quilt magazine. Purple Kaleidoscope child's quilt and pillow Here is a flat shot: Same quilt And then I realized I also patterned this for Windham Fabrics using their reproduction feedsack collection (2007). This is a poor picture, but you can see this better online . Feedsack Kaleidoscope . 10" blocks. 50" x 50" quilt So very scrappy! But fun to make. Full size paper templates are included, but I bet you have one of those multi-sized kaleidoscope rulers in your sewing room! A kaleidoscope ruler is 45 degrees at the tip. It is NOT a Tri-Recs ruler. It is NOT a 60 degree spiderweb ruler. What else do you have to do today than sew, right? I've just pulled out my only kaleidoscope ruler and want to make a few blocks. And I have a few extras from thi...

Do you remember the blocks I did to celebrate the first day of Winter? Not that I like winter, but for me that means that the days get 1 more minute of sunshine from then on! Here are the two blocks I made using Paula Nadelstern's Fabracadabra Collection for Benartex: Winter Solstice Block (I've since removed those borders)  And, Here Comes the Sun ! (click the link and you can see the steps to make this block) Here Comes the Sun ! Paula's panels with the large kaleidoscopes also have smaller motifs at the selvedge ends. Let me show you what I did with those! Fabracadabra panel showing large and small motifs Some Grandmother's Flower Garden blocks made with 1-3/4" hexie papers Six GFG blocks with a fussy cut motif in the center Then I got to thinking about stars (since I'm a Block Star, ha ha). And I wanted to rotary cut some 6 pointed stars and here is what I got: Circle of Stars That center motif is one of the larger ones in the ...