A prickly pear cactus with flat, segmented green paddles rises against a warm beige ground, crowned with two blooming orange-red flowers and dotted with ripening buds in shades of coral and deep red. The botanical illustration captures the plant with precise detail and soft watercolor rendering, balancing the spiky geometry of the cacti against the delicate, ruffled petals of its blossoms. Bound with 52 pages of 70lb paper, lined or unlined, behind an anti-scuff matte cover with wraparound artwork, made to order. Notes and sketches kept behind an independent artist's work, not a plain composition cover.