New plant store, tattoo shop opens in downtown LH
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LOCK HAVEN -- A new tattoo shop is calling one Water Street storefront home... but this one has a twist.
Located across from the Lock Haven YMCA, tattoo artist and plant enthusiast Dave Lohr has made it out on his own in the industry. With a combined 17 years of tattooing experience, he was ready to set out and open his aptly named shop, The Tattoo Garden.
"I've worked at another local tattoo shop and at various tattoo shops throughout my career -- I've moved around a lot. That was one of the things I was looking for when I became a tattoo artist was the freedom to go wherever I want," Lohr said.
Outside of his art in inking, his passions lie in nature and the outdoors. For his new business, he wanted to spice up his space with a secondary outlet -- selling houseplants. Lohr has held an adoration for plant life since he was a kid.
"My grandfather owned a nursery when I was a kid. I used to spend my weekends there. He had all these giant plants everywhere and stuff like that. There were always giant house plants around. It was a really cool environment to be around," he expressed. "I just like being able to take care of plants a little bit everyday, drink some coffee and water my plants."
Plants, both houseplant and tropical varieties, fill the front portion of the shop. Overhanging vines, small and colossal potted plants help bring the space to life.
On the tattooing side of the shop, Lohr deals in a ton of linework, traditional styles of tattooing and especially floral and foliage designs.
"I do a lot of foliage type work - a lot of nature inspired work seems to come my way which is perfect because when I'm not normally here, I'm outside," he said.
And when Lohr is not in the shop, he added he is normally out in the woods, hitting the running/hiking trails of the PA wilds.
"I do a lot of trail running and hiking, so I like to spend a lot of time outdoors," he said.
Along with his love of the outdoors, his space shares another passion of his. Being a "giant" standup fan - outside of the framed flash tattoo sheets - stand up comedy posters hang along the shop's walls. Memorabilia from comedians such as Tom Segura, Bert Kreischer and Stavros Halkias bring a personal edge to his lively space.
"I go see a ton of live standup comedy shows. I just went to see Theo Von in Harrisburg... I have tickets to see Shane Gillis coming up... I go to Pittsburgh a lot for the improv and stand up scene there," he said.
The Tattoo Garden originally opened in May, and since then, Lohr has seen steady business with local support.
"It's been a couple of months and it's been good. It's been pretty steady and I really appreciate the community supporting me," he said.
The Tattoo Garden is located at 142 E. Water St., Lock Haven. It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m. and/or by appointment. Lohr also offers free consultations for clients. Reach out to him via social media through the shop's Facebook or his Instagram at The Tattoo Garden LH.