If you’ve been following my blog for awhile, you know that I love checking out yarn shops when I travel. In fact, I’ve started to make lists of all the available yarn shops on my planning spreadsheet.
When my daughter and I were in Dublin, it was no different We may have spent a little too much time at the yarn shop and had to forego other things that were on our list – but if we were to do it again, we wouldn’t change a thing.
Powerscourt Center
The yarn shop was located in the Powerscourt Centre – a Georgian mansion that has been rehabbed into a unique shopping experience.
We looked up the address – 59 Grafton Street – and saw that the city center location was within easy walking distance from the B & B where we were staying. We set out one morning to try to find it. We nearly walked past the building, since we were looking for a small yarn shop – not a mansion. Eventually, we realized the large building housed many smaller stores, including the one were were searching for.
We spent a little time browsing the yarn shop, but decided to peruse the rest of the center before shopping there. After a bit of window-shopping in some of the other unique stores – there are antiques, fashions, jewelry stores, and more on the first floor – we climbed the old wooden stairs to the second floor. A wide walkway encircled the open interior, so we could still hear the piano music coming from the floor below.
After looking into a few more shops, we took a break for lunch. We had noticed a little place called The Pepper Pot, and decided to try it out. A row of small tables had been placed along the railing of the walkway with the kitchen in one of the nearby rooms.
The menu offered sandwiches and soups; we chose the latter. We also enjoyed the scones that were as beautiful to look at as they were delicious. A cup of tea followed. As we ate, a new pianist sat down at the instrument and entertained us – what an enjoyable, relaxing lunch!
This is Knit
After lunch we went back to the yarn shop for some serious shopping – too bad we were at the end of our trip and had already spent nearly all of our yarn budgets.
The name of the shop is This is Knit and although it is a bit small, there was a nice variety of yarn. Highlights for my daughter and I were the locally produced yarn – local to the country of Ireland, and local to this particular shop.
The shop is operated by a mother and daughter team, Jacqui and Lisa. They carry imported yarn – from Europe and beyond. They stock a large selection of Irish yarn – proud to support their countrymen and women. They even have their own line of yarn – Townhouse Yarns – some of which is hand-dyed by their in-house dyer, Jenny.
My daughter purchased some beautiful green (her favorite color) Irish wool. I bought some Hedgehog Fibers sock yarn (from Cork, Ireland). I also purchased some “Grafton,” one of the Townhouse Yarns – hand dyed by Jenny.
The many store samples that were on display were an inspiration. I love shawls and several caught my eye. I took notes, and just a couple weeks ago (at Stitches South), purchased yarn to duplicate one that I saw (Fragile Heart by Boo Knits). My daughter also has a list. Will we ever have the time to knit them all?
Other Shops
A quick internet search gave me a list of other shops in Dublin. Although I haven’t visited these shops, I look forward to returning to Dublin to check them out.
The Constant Knitter is located at 88 Francis Street. This shop carries a full range of Irish yarn and several lines of hand dyes yarn, in addition to internationally known yarns. The website is cheery and easy to navigate. Online shopping is available, although patrons should be aware of shipping costs. (I found them reasonable in my sample orders).
Springwools carries several lines of yarn, focusing on Irish brands. Their yarn is reasonably priced and they have a low shipping rate of €3.99 worldwide.
Blanchardstown Village Wool Shop and Loza Wool are shops that look interesting, but are located a little further from the center of Dublin. If you have access to a car, they should bot be a problem. The Blanchardstown shop does not have a regular website, but uses FaceBook to communicate. Loza Wool offers online shopping on their website.
In addition to these shops, there are several listed on the Ravelry site. Many of these, however, have 0 shoppers, meaning they have not been recommended by the sites users – yet. If anyone who lives in Ireland or has shopped there has recommendations, please comment below.
Bottom Line
We were pleasantly surprised by the Powerscourt Centre, and our delightful lunch. We loved This is Knit and will make a point of visiting and shopping there the next time we are in Dublin (we’ll reserve more of our yarn budget).
We enjoyed Dublin and plan to return. This is only a glimpse of the city. Personally, I look forward to visiting again so I can check out additional yarn shops or attend a fiber festival in this friendly country.
Have you been to Dublin? Or other places in Ireland? Have you shopped for yarn or attended a fiber festival? Leave your comments below.