Meet the designer: Val Pierce

Name: Val Pierce

Speciality: Toys

Website or blog: www.crossedneedles.co.uk

Tea or coffee: Tea

Guilty pleasure: Buying new charms for my bracelet

Favourite song: Theme from A Summer Place by the Percy Faith Orchestra

Favourite dessert: Crème brûlée with shortbread and raspberries

Perfect day: Browsing yarn stores and a nice lunch out

Favourite yarn: Any pure wool yarns, they give such beautiful definition to stitch patterns.

Favourite pattern: The very first toy I made, Shirley Bear in her little bed/bag. I began with a bear and then decided on a bag to put her in, which progressed into a patchwork creation complete with little pillow and cover to match, that, when closed up, formed a pretty carry bag.  That was over four years ago and today the pattern is till probably one of the most popular ones I have ever designed in my toy range.

The pattern for Shirley can be found at www.crossedneedles.co.uk

Best knitting memory: Knitting a complex Fair Isle ladies’ cardigan, using hand-dyed and handspun yarn, then seeing its picture in Vogue Magazine.

First ever knit: A doll’s dress that had quite the intricate lacy pattern on it - made by my dropping and picking up stitches!

Best knitting tip: Never join yarns in the middle of the row.

Number of projects on the go: Too many for comfort sometimes!

Biggest knitting disaster: Too many to count when I first started knitting! I used to look longingly through knitting patterns wishing I could make elaborate sweaters and crochet something that actually looked like the picture - I never dreamed that one day I would be writing my own books of designs and teaching other people to knit!