Fi Webster's photos with the keyword: Texas

Cut-paper collage postcard created for Kollage Kit theme "A Journey." This collage is autobiographical: the journey depicted, from Los Fresnos, Texas, around the Laguna Atascosa ("lah-GOO-nuh ah-tahs-KOH-suh"), and back again, actually happened, In late February, 2005, my husband and I drove down from Houston, stayed in a little motel in Los Fresnos, and spent several days exploring, observing plants & wildlife, and soaking up the atmosphere of this beautiful area, the southernmost tip of Texas. The weather was fabulous: clear blue skies, bright sun, and temperature around 70 degrees F. (21 degrees C.). We went to a number of places, including the Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge—which isn't on this road map published in 1948, 'cause the refuge didn't exist yet. To get you oriented: the Gulf of Mexico is to the east, on the righthand side of the map, the snaky blue line at the bottom is the Rio Grande, and the blank area underneath it is Mexico. We saw lots of different species: the five in this collage are particular favorites of mine. Starting in the upper left and going counter-clockwise, you're looking at (1) Spanish dagger (AKA trecul yucca) (2) green jay (bright green on its back & tail) (3) chacalaca (named for its loud repeating call at dawn and dusk: "CHOCK-uh-LOCK-uh") (4) javelina ("hah-vuh-LEE-nuh") (AKA collared peccary; a small wild pig) (5) aplomado ("ah-ploh-MAH-doh") falcon (once prevalent throughout Texas and nearby states, then it was wiped out; now, through the efforts of people from the Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge, who brought eggs up from Mexico and re-introduced it, it's rebounding) The aplomado falcon is a gorgeous bird from all angles: the photo doesn't really do it justice. See those black-and-white bars inside its wing? When it takes flight, you see those striking bars all over the feathers of its wings and tail. I grew up in Houston, and spent a lot of time all up and down the Gulf Coast of Texas. So this is indeed my home stomping ground. =smile=

Cut-paper collage postcard created for Kollage Kit theme "Put a Frame Around It." The water oaks with Spanish moss inside the frame were photographed in the Laguna Atascosa Wildlife Refuge in far southern coastal Texas.

Cut-paper collage postcard. Don't worry: this wasn't prompted by anything in my personal life, just by the fact that these Charles Rennie Mackintosh chairs are facing in opposite directions. The background is from a series of 1948 Texas highway maps.

Cut-paper collage postcard created for Kollage Kit theme: "Fairy Tales." I'm from Texas. I say "howdy" and "y'all." I grew up riding horses in a western saddle, and I love chili peppers, especially jalapeños. So this is my take on "Jack and the Beanstalk." I don't mind admitting it: that pepper plant was a nightmare. Cutting it out took a lot of time-- no problema . But when I went to glue it down, it fell into a jillion pieces, and I nearly went crazy figuring out which leaf went where. I think I did OK, though, 'cause my botanist husband says it looks all right to him. If I ever do something like this again, I'm going to make a printed copy of it before I cut it out, just for reference when disaster strikes.

Cut-paper collage postcard created for scrapiteria weekly challenge: "Summer." I'm afraid this one is pretty corny. But hey--sometimes life is corny. Especially my many joyful summers sailing Sunfish up & down the Gulf Coast of Texas--in bays, behind barrier islands, and yes, even venturing out into the ocean itself. The poem is John Masefield's well-known "Sea Fever" (1901). (I dickered a bit with the third line to adapt it to sailing Sunfish.) The map is a 1943 Texas Transportation Map of the area around Matagorda Island: you can see part of the Aransas Wildlife Refuge (orange-y color)--the summer breeding grounds of America's largest bird, the whooping crane. Some people think of the Sunfish as a toy, but for me, it's always been a serious sailboat. I've logged so many hours of my life in Sunfish, I could say a lot about them...but I won't. Just read the poem: every word of it is true.

Cut-&-paste collage on a business-size envelope, front (above) & back (below). I made 4 in all for a swap partner. She likes birds, especially crows/ravens, swans & peacocks, so I went with a crow/raven theme on the first one--at least what crows & ravens make me think about. Noisemaker image, egg cup plus egg and the 2 round buttons are from wackystuff's fabulous stream . Comic-strip clips on front are from "Dennis the Menace" & "Gordo." Typewriter from Rossi papers. Stickers from Cavallini, Dover & Gama-Go. Raven image & info from the Smithsonian's Natural History tome. Rubber stamps from Meer Image & Sideshow Stamps. Map is a 1940s Texas road map. Plus the usual unattributed clippings...and my own Pisceana artistamp.