Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Personalized Maps

Have you ever wished that you had a decor map of that little lake you live or grew up on. Well maybe not, but there are a few people that really treasure those small lake gems. Here's one such lake, Lake Winnibigoshish. Makes a great gift...
Most folks personalize these lakes by adding photos, poems, cherished locations and special notes, which is the plan for this map. The best part of painting these lakes is personalizing their treasured map. You can feel the love for the lake as they discuss those golden memories and how to display them on the map.

I to have a special lake (actually a river), in fact, that is how I started painting rivers, lakes and bays. If you are a lake lover or need a gift for a lake lover, and want to create a family heirloom, then checkout my website at www.LeoLakes.com

Friday, February 8, 2013

I paint good memories

This great blue heron is probably thinking,"Maybe I should try artificial bait." I painted this back in 2007 and use it for a topper image on another blog.
The original painting has long been sold to a contractor in Alabama to hang in his office. What do you think drew him to this picture? He said "it was the lure. When I was younger, I had a lure just like the one in the painting. I caught many fish with that lure. After seeing it in the painting, good memories flooded back."
I too had a lure like this one when I was a kid, in fact I used it as the model for the painting. I remember catching lots of fish on the Duck River with it. I guess you could say that I paint good memories.
Oh yeah, what do you think I called this painting? I named it "Blue Monday Heron" because if you look closely, you can tell the heron is not having a good day fishing on a cold, windy Monday.


Monday, February 4, 2013

A Musical Lake


What is lake music? Well, there is a lake near Music City (Nashville) that has a long history of lake music. There must be music in the waters because many, many country music stars and song writers live on or near the lake. Stars like Johnny Cash lived on the lake, Taylor Swift lived near the lake while going to high school and this is just to name a few.  The lake didn't create the stars, but it certainly seems to have helped. It must be those foggy mornings with a blue heron flying over and the sun just rising over the water that is a catalyst for great songs and music.  I just finished this beautiful art decor map of Old Hickory Lake the “Music Lake”. 

The lake is actually named after Andrew Jackson “Old Hickory” the 7th president of the United States, but could have just as well been called the music lake. In fact, I hide a musical note in the waters to emphasis the lake’s music heritage. The lake is printed on canvas from a watercolor painting and the waterfowl is hand painted.

I don't hide snapping turtles, but I do 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 personalizes lake, river or bay maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoMaps.com
 




"Life is short, reduce screen time and increase stream time, get on a big stream."