Welcome to Blockheads 6 – Week 15: “Petal Pusher” by Crystal Manning!

Happy Blockheads Wednesday! This week we’re excited to share Block 15: Petal Pusher, designed by Crystal Manning. Anna Dineen is walking us through the construction of this fun, retro-inspired block in the video tutorial below.

You can find this week’s pattern here: BH6 – Block 15 – Petal Pusher by Crystal Manning

Follow along with Crystal!

Instagram: @cmanningsews
https://www.crystalmanningart.com

If you’re new to Blockheads, here are a couple of quick things to know:

• This is a free quilt-along. No sign-ups are required. Just download the pattern and you’re ready to sew!
• The PDF patterns will be posted on the Moda blog and in the official Facebook group every Wednesday by 8:00 AM CDT.
• You can also bookmark this page: Blockheads 6 main page to find a convenient list of all the patterns as they are released.
• If you’d like to sign up for our blog newsletter to get blog posts delivered to your inbox, you can sign up here: Blog Newsletter Sign-Up 
• If you want to sew along with a virtual Blockheads community, head over to Facebook and join our official Moda Blockheads Facebook group. Our group is an active and vibrant community of 82,000 quilters and counting! It’s a great place to be inspired and share pictures of your Blockheads progress.
• If Instagram is where you prefer to hang out, be sure to follow us (@modafabrics) and the hashtags #modablockheads and #modablockheads6 to see the latest blocks from our designers and other Blockheads.

(Looking for a little more information about Blockheads? You can check out the Blockheads 6 archive HERE.)

If you haven’t already, make sure you download the pattern from our blog or the official Blockheads Facebook group. You’ll want the full set of cutting instructions, templates, and the coloring sheet handy as you sew along.

Building the Block

The Petal Pusher block combines several classic quilt units:

• Triangle-in-a-Square Units (Peaky and Spike)
• Half-Square Triangles
• Square-in-a-Square Center Unit

Our pattern includes templates and instructions for making the triangle-in-a-square units using foundation paper piecing (FPP). In the tutorial, Anna demonstrates an alternative method with the Tri Recs Ruler, which is a handy tool to keep in your quilting toolbox if you like versatility and precision.

She shares cutting tips for the center and side triangles, including why it’s helpful to cut fabrics right sides together to create mirror-image pieces. Pay attention to the little notches on the ruler—they make alignment easier when sewing.

Sewing & Pressing Tips

Once the pieces are cut and laid out, Anna walks through sewing the triangle-in-a-square units step by step. She offers tips for managing bias edges, pressing seams for accuracy, and trimming blocks to the correct size.

For the center square-in-a-square unit, careful placement and a scant quarter-inch seam are key to ending up with a true 3½″ unit.

The half-square triangles are straightforward but need that same scant seam allowance to make sure everything finishes at size.

Lessons Learned

Anna also shares a few lessons from her own block-making experience:

• Starch or press your fabric first—it makes a big difference in accuracy.
• A scant quarter-inch seam really matters for both the HSTs and the square-in-a-square center.
• Don’t worry if your block isn’t perfect. Small adjustments, like trimming uneven edges, will give you a block that sews together beautifully in the final quilt.

Ready to sew your Pedal Pusher block? Follow along with this week’s video tutorial below:

See It Come Together

With its playful movement and retro vibe, Petal Pusher is a standout addition to the Blockheads 6 sampler. Watch the full video tutorial above for step-by-step guidance, and then dive in to make your own.

We can’t wait to see your blocks! Share them in the Moda Blockheads Facebook group, or post on Instagram with the hashtag #modablockheads6.

Thank you to Crystal Manning for this wonderful design!

— The Moda Team