October is where summer and autumn meet, a seam where one season gives way to the other—a threshold between seasons. Here in Western Washington, autumn unfolds in flashes of color through the blanket of evergreens. This month’s inspiration looks at transition—not as an ending, but as a shifting and reordering of what is already there.

Element	Notes
Birth Flower	Marigold
Symbolism	Resilience, remembrance, protection, warmth
Background Motif	Loose, labyrinth-like turquoise lines suggest paths and movement, while layered paper strips and scattered gold marks create a sense of fragments gathered and rearranged.

Shaping the October Art Piece

The background combines soft turquoise with loose, labyrinth-like lines that wander, turn, and double back. Layered paper strips in turquoise, lavender, white, and gold interrupt the paths, suggesting the turns and rearrangements that come with transition. The eclectic color palette is also a nod to October’s beautiful birthstone, opal, with its shifting flashes of color.

At the center, a bold orange marigold rises in three-dimensional embroidery using the buttonhole bar stitch, with a stem worked in double chain stitch and small leaves in sage green stem stitch. A second, smaller marigold echoes the larger bloom below.

I appreciate marigolds—understated, yet a garden powerhouse, attracting pollinators and helping deter garden pests. Their beauty, usefulness, and ability to thrive in varied conditions add another dimension to their symbolism: resilience isn’t always about standing alone. Sometimes it means being part of a larger system and contributing to what grows around you.

Closing Reflection

October reminds me that transition doesn’t happen all at once. It unfolds gradually, through small changes and adjustments. Making this piece became a small exercise in that process—layering, rearranging, stitching, and seeing what emerged.

#mixedmedia #embroidery #watercolor #embroideryonpaper #slowstitch #birthflowers

Page photo:Image by me, Fall City Washington 💛