Horrible Harold was my final project for my Introduction to Soft Goods class. He was created using an original pattern and is mostly machine-sewn with some hand-sewn details.
Harold's story goes like this: Harold was well-loved by a little boy named Jimmy, who received Harold on his fourth birthday. When most children grow up, they abandon their stuffed toys, but Jimmy was different. He took good care of Harold throughout his teens and understood that teddy bears need to be spoken to daily. When Jimmy got drafted into the army at 18, he left Harold behind, promising he wouldn’t be gone long. But Jimmy was shot in the stomach on the first day of battle, and Harold felt the bullet in his own gut, despite being miles away. In a magical moment of pure desperation, Harold grew the organs that were failing in Jimmy’s body, hoping Jimmy would be able to return and harvest them. Harold never saw Jimmy again, but still waits, forever hopeful, with organs ripe for the plucking.