Behind Scenes + step images | Thorn Seasons 💐 (Patreon)

Hey there, my stars!!

A closer look at my illustration for Thorn Season 🌸✨Here you’ll find access to the full process and some extra behind-the-scenes moments as well 🌷💫I had the pleasure of collaborating with @fairyloot on this exclusive endpaper. It was a challenging piece, but there’s nothing I love more than nature and romantic, dreamy gardens like the one portrayed here.🌷💐🪻🌻🌱

From the very beginning, I paid close attention to the composition — the rule of thirds, visual quadrants, and especially the fact that this piece would be a two-page endpaper 📖✨. I wanted to make sure the book’s center fold wouldn’t interrupt any important elements of the characters and that the overall flow would remain harmonious. This was a key priority for me 🌿.

There were many details involved, and I found a lot of inspiration while painting the background — one of the most challenging parts of the piece, and definitely one of those moments where you keep telling yourself “trust the process” 🌿🎨. But it all came together in the end 💫.

As you can see, I initially started with a warm, summery color palette ☀️, using vibrant tones to intensify both the flowers and the protagonist’s dress 🌸👗. As the process evolved, we played more with the palette and noticed the piece naturally leaning toward violet hues 💜 — likely to enhance its mystical and romantic atmosphere. With the help of Photoshop, I fine-tuned the colors until everything felt balanced and cohesive, and I chose to give the protagonist a more olive, sun-kissed skin tone ✨.

I also created a separate layer for the foil effect, which appears as a golden finish in the physical book ✨💛.

Final✨

I truly hope you enjoy this illustration as much as the book itself 📚💖. I’ll be sharing more pieces I created for Thorn Season very soon ✨🌸.