Monday, October 22, 2018

Baitrageous Bait Humor.....

Okay, I went overboard this time on the baitrageous cartoons. This is the most that I have put on the blog all at once. I must admit it, I love bobbers! Anyway, enjoy....














Need a gift for the fisherman? Best gift for the fishermen, and beautiful decor map of his or her favorite place to fish! I have over two hundred lake, river and bay maps on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes lake, river or bay maps, too. I have maps of Lake Winnipesaukee, Table Rock Lake, Greers Ferry, Lake Lanier, Gaston Lake, Choctawhatchee Bay, Toledo Bend, Raystown, and many others. Oh yeah, I hide a tiny mermaid in the waters of all my maps that folks love to search for. Find out more interesting facts about my treasured maps by going to LeoLakes.com

Oh yeah, this is part of my studio!



Tuesday, October 16, 2018

Bee Attack...

A few years ago, I decided to do a little kayaking on a lake near my home. As normal, I loaded up the kayak on top of my SUV and headed out on a beautiful early spring morning. The SUV hadn't been driven in a few days and when I looked down at the gas gauge, I found that it was almost empty. I made it to the nearby gas station with ease and pulled next to a gas pump. 
Interesting, I did not know that this was going to be a life or death situation. I hopped out of the vehicle that I call Abe. Oh yeah, I name my vehicles.  Why is it named Abe? Well, my daughter named it Abe, after Abraham Lincoln because it's the color of a shiny new penny. I've had seven vehicles in my life, Old Blue, Red, Comanche, Runner, Goldilocks, Sliver Bullet and Abe. Anyway, back to the life and death situation. I slide my card in the card reader and selected the type of gas, while lifting the gas nozzle and opening the gas door on Abe.  

All that I heard was Buzz, buzz, buzz, buzzzzzzzzzzz…… and all of a sudden, big, ugly, yellow jackets were zooming out from behind the gas door. Angry and looking to sting something like me. I quickly realized what was happening. My big problem, I'm highly allergic to bee stings. The only questions that I have, how many stings will I get and can I make it to the hospital before my throat closes? I dropped the gas nozzle and started evasive maneuvers, bobbing and weaving like Muhamad Ali, no rope-a-dope here!



Dang, I made it about 30 feet away with no stings, wasps were flying everywhere. I began to scheme on how in the world am I going to get my vehicle back. I worried about others who might get stung.  

Near by, from behind a rusty old pickup truck, an white haired farmer that resembled Santa Claus sort of, but dressed in overalls, was watching. He looked over at me and smiled, while walking over to my SUV. He approached the gas door and reached in with his bare hand and grabbed the wasp nest tossing it to the ground. Wasps were flying all around him. He stepped on the wasp nest with his boot and started smashing yellow jackets against my SVU. Suddenly, almost all wasps where dead with no one being stung. He waved at me and got in his truck and drove off before I got a chance to thank him. Lucky me, no trip to the hospital and still on schedule for the lake.

Check out my Maps. They can be customized and personalized. I try to make the maps as much "a piece of art" as they are a map. In fact, my large maps (16x32 and over) are numbered and come with a Certificate of Authenticity, which also includes a letter that details some other neat things about the map, such as the 'tiny hidden mermaid." Interestingly, I have sold almost 2000 thousand maps ranging in size from 10in x 20in  to 4ft x 8ft. Believe it or not, I have kept the purchase information (Who, When, Map, etc..) for all those purchases. Check-out my website LeoLakes.com. The best Christmas Gift for the Lake House.
Check-it out Leolakes.com

Tuesday, October 9, 2018

Lake Decor Maps

Here's a custom lake decor map that I did for a customer in Pennsylvania. This paintings is printed on canvas and is 16x32. For a special touch, I actually hand paint/touch-up the waterfowl and other areas after printing. This makes the print pop when hanging on the wall. Oh Yeah, I hide things in the waters, but more that later. The print shown here is before touch-up.

Cheat Lake is located on the states line between Pennsylvania and West Virginia and it's a fairly small lake. I do all size lakes and shapes. This map turned out great and is now hanging in a lake house overlooking Cheat Lake. I sometimes place a star at the location of the lake house which folks really enjoy. Also, I have had folks request this poem that my wife dreamed up. I place it around the map or insert it in the map somewhere. I love the poem.

"I Love this lake, The most amazing scenes appear in its wake, The sun arises just above the shore, Giving grace and beauty to this place I adore." LKO


What do I hide in the waters of my lake painting? I hide a tiny mermaid/fish in the waters of all my lake map paintings that folks love to search for. I call my maps treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. These maps make great gifts for the lake house owner, lake lover, or fisherman. I have over two hundred on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalized lake, river or bay maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoLakes.com

As you can see, my maps make a great gift. To see more of my work click 
See more at www.LeoLakes.com