Lake House Tornado

Last year, a number of tornadoes hit Kentucky and did massive damage. One particular tornado completely destroyed a lake house located on Kentucky Lake. Luckily, no one in the family was hurt. The family who owned this lake house had purchased a map from me a few months earlier. 

Not long ago, I got a phone call from the daugther of the family. She told me that her father loved that map and she wanted to surpise him with a new map. I insisted on replacing that map free of charge, it's the least that I could do. I replaced the map and she was so happy. 

I thought that would be the end of the story, however there is more. About two weeks ago, I recieved a call from a lady about a map that she found. It was discovered on their farm and they thought that it may be from one of the tonadoes. She sent me a photo and the map number. I quickly looked up who had purchased this map. Interesting, it was from the folks who's home was destroyed by the tornadoes. I informed the lady that this map was from a lake house that was destroyed by the earlier tornadoes. In fact, the owners had contacted me about a new map. She wanted the daughter's email address to see if they may want the map back. I gave her the email and told her to let me know if they want the map. A day later. I got an email from her and she said they definately would like to have the map. 

Amazingly, this map traveled from near the Kentucky Lake Dam to approximately the center of the state of Kentucky. It was airborn for 75 miles before landing on the farm. Luckily, it was found and tracked back to its owners. I'm sure that this map will be a conversation piece.  

Here's a little bit about me. I've been doing lake, river and bay maps for approximately eleven years. Over the years, I have experimented with different elements of map art in order to provide the best and most unique map on the market. Folks will be drawn to the map like a crackling fire on a cold winter night.  I try very hard to make my maps special by adding interest to the maps. LeoLakes.com

Also, each framed map or map over 16x32, comes with a certificate of authenticity, lake poem, and interesting facts abut the map. 

I have hundreds of maps on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalized vintage style lake maps, too. Lake maps will add beauty to your Lake House Decor! Find out more interesting facts about my treasured maps by going to LeoLakes.com. 

Large Lake House map for the lake house

BIG LAKE MAPS for the lake House, I did this big map of Greers FerryLake for a customer that has a lake house overlooking the lake. Ain't she pretty! She's 2 feet by 4 feet, and all dressed up in a beautiful frame, ready to go to the lake house warming party. You will be so proud when you walk in with her on your arm, prettiest gift at the party.

Paddle over to my website, LeoLakes.com. I paint beautiful lake, river and bay decor maps. 

Folks are discovering that these decor maps are wonderfully unique gifts that become family heirlooms. Oh yeah, I hide things in the lake waters, such as a tiny mermaid/fish. Folks love to search for them. I call my maps, treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. My treasured maps make a great Christmas gifts for the fisherman, lake lover, or Lake house. 

As you can see, my maps make a great gift.  Orders will picking up during the holidays, so order soon. Click here www.LeoLakes.com for more information.

Just remember: "Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream".

Best Idea for the Lake House

 Best Idea for The Lake House! Think about it, if you have a lake house, what's better than having a beautiful vintage style lake map hanging in the great room!  How better to show folks where the lake house is located on the lake. Guests will be drawn to the map.

I've been doing lake, river and bay maps for approximately six years. Over the years, I have experimented with different elements of map art in order to provide the best and most unique map on the market. Folks will be drawn to the map like a crackling fire on a cold winter night.  I try very hard to make my maps special by adding interest to the maps.

You will find no road names, county, or state lines on my maps. I have found that folks enjoy traveling the roads with their eyes, while trying to get their bearing. I call this the "Leo Lakes gaze." 
You can add a star or symbol with a few words to mark that special place, it maybe the location of the lake house, the spot where you caught that trophy fish or some grand view. This will make a very special gift for the lake lover. I hide a few fish and even a tiny mermaid in the waters of my lakes. Yep, but they're very shy and don't want to be found. Folks just love'm, especially the kids. You might even think they move around overtime.

Did you know that you can always tell if its morning or evening on a Leo Lakes map? Just look at the shadows cast by the wildlife, is the shadow on the east or west? If it's on the west, then it’s morning time. Oh yeah, I have had folks tell me that they change through the day, but don't believe them.

Also, each framed map or map over 16x32, comes with a certificate of authenticity, lake poem, and interesting facts abut the map.

I have hundreds of maps on my website that can be purchased right from the site, or I can do custom and personalizes vintage style lake maps, too. I have maps, such as Lake Bob Sandlin Vintage Style map, Lake Logan Martin Vintage Style Map, Center Hill Lake vintage style map, Lake Texoma vintage style map, Gaston Lake, Choctawhatchee Bay vintage style map, Toledo Bend Lake Vintage style map, Raystown Lake vintage style map. Lake maps will add beauty to your Lake House Decor! Find out more interesting facts about my treasured maps by going to LeoMaps.com. 

Beautiful Lake Map for the Lake House

 A beautiful lake map for the lake house of your favorite lake, such as Great Sacandaga Lake, Greers Ferry Lake, Lake Tahoe, Lake Winnipesaukee, Table Rock Lake, or Pickwick Lake, will look great hanging in your home, lake house or office. Makes the best Gift!

Unlike most maps, There’s a tiny mermaid hidden in the waters which folks love to search for and some say she moves around! You'll love the waterfowl which are hand painted (touched up) on the canvas prints to give that original look and each map is hand signed by Leo. For a personal touch, you can even add a small star to the location of your lake house or special place and add a few words such as "Evan's Lake House, Est. 2014" or be creative. The signatured Ruby Meridian, waterfowl and vintage plane have a story that’s included in the signed Certificate of Authenticity.  Leo Lakes treasured maps will make a cherished gift for that special someone. 

Visit my website to see more. 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 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 here www.LeoLakes.com. 

"As I look over this lake, The most amazing scenes appears in it wake,The sun arises just above the shore, Giving grace and beauty to this place that I adore." LKO

Lake Winnipesaukee Canvas Map

Check out this canvas map of Lake Winnipesaukee that I just finished.  It turned beautiful! If you look closely, you may find the tiny, hidden mermaid in the waters.

I always add the local waterfowl flying over and a few fish jumping in the water, and that little mermaid  They say the children really enjoy hunting for her and are thrilled when they spot her in the waters. Oh yeah, some folks tell me that she moves, but I'm not sure that I believe that. 

Also, I do custom maps too. If you have a body of water that I don't have painted, I can paint it just like the map below.

Most folks add a star to a special place on the lake such as a lake house or where they caught that big fish. I've been doing lake, river and bay maps for over ten years. Over the years, I have experimented with different elements of map art in order to provide the best and most unique map on the market. Folks will be drawn to the map like a crackling fire on a cold winter night.  I try very hard to make my maps special by adding interest to the maps. Paddle over to my website for more information: LeoLakes.com

 My two girls just graduated from college and I must give them some accolades.

Dr. Callie Oldfield has recently graduated from UGA with a Phd in Biology. She is the Director of Research at the Phinizy Swamp and Nature Park, located in Augusta, GA.

Sarah recently graduated from University of Arkansas with a Master's Degree in Mathematics. She works for the Department of Defense as an Operation Analyst at Ft Rucker, AL. Callie and Sarah, you girls are amazing!!!

Hey, paddle over to my website, LeoLakes.com for a beautiful lake, river, or bay maps. We have lake maps from California to Texas to Georgia. Folks are discovering that these decor maps are wonderfully unique gifts that become family heirlooms. Oh yeah, I hide things in the lake waters, such as a tiny mermaid/fish. Folks love to search for them. I call my maps, treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. My treasured maps make a great gifts for the fisherman, lake lover, or Lake house. 

As you can see, my maps make a great gift.  Click here www.LeoLakes.com for more information.

Lake Keowee and Gull Lake custom maps

Just finished these two custom maps, Lake Keowee located in South Carolina and Gull Lake in Minnesota. I do lots of custom maps for folks that want to have a map of their beloved lake. 

ITake a look at my website, LeoLakes.com to find other maps that I have already completed. 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 three hundred maps on my website. 

 If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoLakes.com. There's a hidden mermaid in every maps!

Check us out at click here: LeoLakes.com

Lake House Humor

Most may not know, but I do fistnig cartoons on occasion. Basically, I try to make bobbers fun again, like when you were a kid. Here's a few old, a few new, some good, some bad, but all in good taste..... sort of.   "Make Bobbers Fun, Again". 

This Bobber is for you.............enjoy.

Also, I paint beautiful lake, river and bay decor maps. Folks are discovering that these decor maps are wonderfully unique gifts that become family heirlooms. Oh yeah, I hide things in the lake waters, such as a tiny mermaid/fish. Folks love to search for them. I call my maps, treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. My treasured maps makes the best gift for the fisherman, lake lover, or Lake house. Check my website out: LEOLAKES.COM

Photos Lake House Maps

Believe it or not, I have a lot of customers that send me photos of their maps hanging in their lake or beach house. I have added a few to my blog. 

They are beautiful! Hey, paddle over to my website, LeoLakes.com for a beautiful lake, river, or bay map by me. Folks are discovering that these decor maps are wonderfully unique gifts that become family heirlooms. Oh yeah, I hide things in the lake waters, such as a tiny mermaid/fish. Folks love to search for them. I call my maps, treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. My treasured maps make a great gifts for the fisherman, lake lover, or Lake house. 

As you can see, my maps make a great gift.  Click here www.LeoLakes.com for more information.

The tiny little mermaid story.......

Why did I start adding a tiny mermaid to LeoLakes Treasured Map? It all started with a canoe trip down a beautiful river in Florida named the Weeki Wachee. The waters are so, so crystal clear, you could see the bottom down 15 feet deep or more, which makes it very easy to spot manatees. The water temperature averages in the mid seventies year round and the canoe trip is approximately seven miles long and takes about 3 hours. Also, you go with the flow. I like going with the flow.  

                                                              

I began by paddling down the Weeki Wachee with the family. One thing that I did learn, my wife can barely paddle and my two daughters don't have a clue, which actually made the trip very fun. Two canoes and only one person that can paddle properly, now that’s an adventure! 

My immediate thought was, paddle faster. But it took awhile because I had to help the other canoe. "Miss Can’t Paddle At All" and "Mrs. Can Hardly Paddle", spent most of their time too close to the shoreline. It seemed to me that they were cleaning and inspecting every tree limp and collecting spiders on their clothing as most beginning paddlers do. Finally, after much struggle we made it to where the manatees hang-out.  It was so cool, two adults and one manatee calf. They are just chilling under the water and every once in a while they come up for air. This was nearly as good as seeing "Mermaids", which gave me an idea. I decided that it would be cool to add a tiny mermaid to my lake, river and bay maps. So, that's what I have done! In 2011, i started adding a tiny, little, happy mermaid to all my maps and the idea came on a canoe trip down the Weeki Wachee.

I have recieved much feedback since I started adding the tiny mermaid, and it has been a grand-slam. Folks just love to search for her in the waters of the map. What a great Outdoor Adventure back in 2011!  Remember "What’s in your woods, lake, river, or bay?" Get out and find out! LEO.

Check-out my website, www.Leolakes.com to see if we have your map. We have many popular lake maps such as the Lake Winnipesaukee, Great Sacandaga Lake, Lewis Smith Lake, Pickwick Lake, Greer's Ferry Lake, Lake Sidney Lanier, Lake Sinclair, Table Rock Lake, and Lake Wallenpaupack. Also, we paint custom maps and have personalized maps for that special someone. Leo Lakes Treasured maps, makes a great Christmas Gift the lake house, boater, fisherman, and lake lover.

Lake Clown Photo...

Wow, I was walking on a trail near a lake the other day taking photos and I felt like someone was watching me.

If you look closely, real closely, you may see the clown or am I paranoid? Oh Yea, Paddle over to my website, LEOLAKES.com. I paint beautiful lake, river and bay decor maps. Folks are discovering that these decor maps are wonderfully unique gifts that become family heirlooms. I hide things in the lake waters, such as a tiny mermaid/fish. Folks love to search for them. I call my maps, treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. My treasured maps makes the best 2016 Christmas gifts for the fisherman, lake lover, or Lake house. 

As you can see, my maps make a great gift.  Orders pick-up during the holiday's, so order soon. Click here www.LeoLakes.com for more information.

Leo Lakes Treasured Maps 9 years in business

Not many businesses last nine years, but I have. October 2007, I started Old Field Studio. In the beginning, Old Field Studio was focused only on wildlife art, mostly waterfowl. I painted in acrylics on Masonite Art Board. My art had a blurred background, which was done with an airbrush. This gave the picture a 3-D look.

Folks enjoyed my wildlife art, but I discovered that the market was over saturated with wildlife art. During this time, I wanted a decor map of a river that I grew up on as a kid. After some research, I found that nice decor maps of waterways didn’t exist. There were navigation, road, and topography maps, but not a really nice, vintage style lake, river or bay map that would look great hanging in a home or office. 


Luckily, with my artistic talent and creativity, I decided to paint my own map of that treasured river. I experimented with different colors and styles to finally settle on a vintage style that gave the painting a golden look. I added a few symbols such as the ruby meridian, wildlife and vintage plane.  


Once completed, I found that others liked the map so much that they asked for copies. This gave me the idea to paint additional rivers, lakes and bays for others to treasure their favorite waters. After a year and a half of experimenting, Leo Lakes Treasured Maps was born, which is part of Old Field Studio. It's hard to believe that its been nine years and I'm still in business. That's pretty much the story of Old Field Studio in a nutshell.

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 over one 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

Lake House Maps

I just shipped this 2ft X 4ft map of Old Hickory Lake for a customers lake house. Here's a recent comment from one of my customers!

"Hi Larry, Just wanted you to know we gave him the map for Father's Day and it was a HUGE hit! He is an avid OHL fisherman and he loved this gift! Thanks for the quick turnaround time. From the time I placed the order it arrived on my porch within a few days. Thanks so much!"

The map turned out very nice with the golden color. I try to make my 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 over one 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. 

Anyway, I do have one wish and I think that it will come true some day, and that is, to stubble upon one of my maps hanging in a restaurant, business or home. 

I call my maps treasured maps because most folks have that special body of water that they treasure. These decor 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 vintage style maps, too. If you would like to see more and read about my treasured maps go to LeoLakes.com. 
 

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

Vintage style map of Cook Inlet

I just complete a new map of Cook Inlet located in Alaska and if you look closely you may find a hidden mermaid in the waters of Cook Inlet below. What's the most interesting feature about Cook Inlet, I will tell you, but first a little about the inlet? The inlet stretches for about 180 miles with Anchorage located near the north end.

There are two active volcanoes located near Cook Inlet, Augustine and Mount Redoubt. There is an abundance of  oil and gas deposits around the Cook Inlet basin and many platforms dot the land and seascape.

Interestingly, Beluga whales can be seen in the inlet. Its been determined that these are an isolated stock that are genetically distinct and are on the endangered species list. As you can see, there's a lot of interesting features on Cook Inlet, but to me, the most interesting is Tidal bores. What are Tidal Bores, bugs, holes, caves? Nope, but it only happens in a few places on earth, one of these being Turnagain Arm near Anchorage.

A Tidal Bore is a large wave, up to 10 feet,  or many waves that move down the Turnagain Arm. Unlike most tides, Tidal Bores happen quickly. The largest bores occur after the lowest tides, due to the large amount of water rushing back into the inlet. There are scheduled times each day to see the bore. 

Folks actually surf on the incoming bore, but I bet it's a bit chilly. The best place to see a Tidal Bore is Beluga Point. If you are ever visiting Cook Inlet, check out the Tidal Bore.

See more of my treasured map www.LeoLakes.com. Read what my customers are saying. "I was finally able to give my husband the map I bought for his birthday last night. I want you to know how beautiful it was and how touched he was by it. He loves this Lake. His family has a home there and when we are lucky we get away for a few days, it’s the only place we want to be. He actually had tears in his eyes. Thank you for the beautiful art work."

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 Christmas 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. 
 

Remember: Life is short, get away from the big screen and get on a big stream, or at least enjoy one on the wall.