Welcome to Blockheads 6 – Block 6: “Moonbeam” by Robin Pickens!

Welcome to Week 7 of Blockheads 6! This week’s featured block is Moonbeam, a bold and beautiful 18" block designed by Robin Pickens. With its structured layout, clever use of angles, and eye-catching center, Moonbeam is packed with opportunities to showcase your piecing skills and play with fabric placement.

You can find this week’s pattern here: BH6 – Block 6 – Moonbeam by Robin Pickens

Follow along with Robin!

Instagram: @robinpickens
https://www.robinpickens.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 81,000 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.)

 

Our video tutorial this week is hosted by Moda friend Sarah, who walks you through each step of assembling this block—offering tips, tools, and a few clever tricks along the way. Be sure to watch the video tutorial embedded below for all the details!

Before You Sew

This is a large block with several different units, so it helps to stay organized from the start. Sarah recommends labeling all your cut pieces with Post-it notes (bonus tip: cut them in half with your rotary cutter to fit smaller pieces). She also marks how many of each piece to cut and what size—helpful references as you assemble the block.

Constructing the Block Units

Snowball Blocks

You'll begin by making four snowball blocks using your B, C, and A squares. Pay close attention to color placement—those small details really shape the final look of the block. Sarah sews just a scant inside the drawn diagonal line to help the corners flip out cleanly, then presses before trimming to help the corners stay neat.

Bonus Tip: Add a second stitch line ¼" away from the first and trim between them—this gives you extra half square triangles you can save for another project!

Center Nine-Patch

Next is a simple but effective nine-patch block using more B and C squares. Sarah lays out her pieces before sewing to make sure all her fabrics are facing the right way—especially helpful when working with reversible prints. After sewing the rows, she alternates pressing directions to help the seams nest perfectly.

Flip & Sew Units

This block features two types of “flip and sew” corner units:

• Double stitch & flip units made with D squares and A squares
• Single stitch & flip units with larger A and smaller D squares

Both follow the same technique—sew, flip, press, and trim—but the variety adds visual interest to the final layout.

Quarter Log Cabin Corners

The final unit is a quarter log cabin block made with small A and D rectangles and squares. Sarah constructs four of these and then begins laying out the full block in a nine-patch format: center nine-patch, snowballs in the middle of each side, and the “arrow” corner units.

The Final Layout

As you piece your Moonbeam block together, be sure to double-check the orientation of each unit—those corner “arrows” really shape the look of the block and help form a secondary star pattern in the center.

At 18", this is a larger block than the others so far, but the layout is still based on familiar 6" sections. Once you sew your rows and join them together, give it a final press and admire your Moonbeam!

Color Play Inspiration

A special thanks to Robin Pickens for this gorgeous block! If you follow Robin on social media, you may have seen her weekly color studies—they’re a must-see if you want ideas on how to make your block shine through thoughtful fabric placement.

Ready to make your own Moonbeam block? Grab your pattern and follow along with Sarah in this week's video tutorial!

Be sure to share your finished Moonbeam block with us in the Blockheads Facebook Group or on Instagram using the hashtag #modablockheads6. We can’t wait to see your version!

— The Moda Team