An Unexpected Athens Yarn Store

Sometimes yarn stores appear out of nowhere, as if through the wardrobe into Narnia! No sooner than I started out on a food tour of Athens this summer, suddenly we were walking through a fabric district. Although most stores were for everyday textiles, one yarn store appeared on my route.

My excursion was taking a quick pit stop to taste something, which was going to take a few minutes, so I had a chance to run back the couple of blocks to see if the yarn store was still open, as it was coming up to lunchtime.

There were a couple of customers trickling in and out. The store is quite big and is a jumble of textiles, yarns, cottons and embroidery thread.

The main yarn stash was in a separate room on the right of the main door. The help desk was in a different room where two women were helping another customer.

I was looking for some sock yarn as it has multiple purposes for me: not only socks, but also simple mitre-squared blankets and an extendable all-in-one granny square blanket (I just love the task of making blankets/afghans). The women serving appeared to be slightly taken aback that a solo male was in the store (rather than a guy there supporting his wife). However, one of them rallied and came to help me find the stock they had of sock yarns.

There was a really gorgeous olive green cashmere-inspired sock yarn in large balls, sufficient for a decent pair of large socks. While I was there, I had a quick rummage through the deals and found two smaller balls of sock yarn that will suffice for a blanket square or two.

I felt I was dealt with politely at all times; just that perhaps a guy showing up to buy sock yarn on a 95 degree summer afternoon was less than usual.

This store is worth checking out if you're in Athens for a visit. It's the kind of place that probably has everything, but you will need help to find specific items beyond the main yarns on display.

If you're planning a trip, my Athens city guide covers where to stay and what else is worth your time, and I've written up how to get in from the airport too.