One of the worst dangers of summer (any) vacation is getting sick! Nobody will like you and you'll miss out on tons of fun. To aid in a speedy recover, I've devised the Get-Well-Soon plush... or MediCareBear... if you will. Ok. That was terrible. But staying in a good mood still makes you get better faster!

On one side, he has a nasty tummy ache. On the other... BIG SACK OF SUNSHINE!

Let's get going.

Step 1: Design and Patterns

First, sketch out some concepts from which you'll make your patterns.

Here I've shown the patterns I used. You don't have to use the same design. In fact, it's even better if you come up with your own!

Some tips:

Draw out the design full size on a sheet of paper. Cut this out and then trace around it with roughly a half-inch (~1 cm) margin onto card stock or, as in my case, some file folders you liberated from your corporate place of work. The margin gives you some comfy-room while sewing and helps account for the fact that your guy will end up a bit 3D.
One pattern is used for both the front and back halves. You just flip it over :)
Take good care of your patterns. If you don't like the end product, you can go back and make changes to the patterns in the problem areas.
You can use a single pattern for multiple parts, if applicable. I did this for the top of the head.

Here I've shown the three major pieces for my guy. The body shows the two faces drawn on with the overlaps in dotted lines. You'll see how that works in a sec.

For colors, I chose a sickly palette and a happy palette. Make sure you have enough fabric before you start. Also take note of which is the "right" side and which is the "wrong" side. Fleece may seem like it's the same on both sides at first, but there are usually subtle differences that make one side preferable.

Step 2: Cut Out the Pieces

I like to get everything all cut out before-hand to help with layout and such.

With the fleece I used, I don't like to cut more than two layers at a time with my rotary cutter. This works out well because I only need two of each item for this guy.

Since the pattern you will lay on top of the fabric is only in one orientation, make sure that your fabrics are not both "right" side up. Make one of them "wrong" side up so that the finished product will all be right-side-out.

Step 3: Sew the Heads

This part can be a little tricky. The basic idea is that we will overlap the fabric so that the overall head doesn't change shape, but there's a seam in the middle for the mouth.

For the Sick face, we want the tongue sticking down, which means the upper lip is over the tongue and the tongue is over the body piece. With the body Right side up, lay the pattern down on the fabric and mark where the mouth line is right at the edge of the fabric only. We have to make sure that the tongue gets caught under this line when we sew it on. Lay the tongue Right side up on the body, positioned so that it falls on the mouth line you marked the edges of just a sec ago. Then place the head piece Right side up on top. It will be covering more of the tongue than we want, but we'll trim excess fabric off after we sew.

Pin the head and tongue to the body and sew the mouth line that we marked off. I used the straight inline stitch setting for this. No zig-zag. I chose to use kelly green thread for the entire Sick side of this guy for a nice contrast effect.

Trim the lip off, taking care not to cut off the pretty tongue you just sandwiched. Leave about a 1/4" of lip. The exposed edge will not fray because of the way of the fleece. One of the upsides to using fleece or felt. Flip him over and trim the excess head off of the body piece above the mouth line.

Repeating this process for the Happy side of him is very similar. Keep in mind that we want the teeth pointing up instead of down, like the tongue. To achieve this, we'll have to give him a lower lip instead of an upper lip. When you stack the fabric, your head piece will now be under the teeth under the body (Right side up). Pin and sew like you did on the Sick half. When you trim, remember the teeth are on the outside pointing up. You will remove part of the body piece in front of the teeth above the mouth line and part of the head piece behind the body below the mouth line.

He's starting to have some personality! Moving on to the belly...

Step 4: Sew the Tummies

This part is very similar in concept to the faces.

The stomach shape will be the "deepest" layer, while the body will be the shallowest, with the belly layer in between. I picked a gross, pukey green for the infected stomach and a lovely deep purple for the nominal stomach.

Lay the stomach pieces Wrong side up on their respective belly pieces, which are also Wrong side up. Pin them down, and sew along the stomach shape. Flip it over so that the whole thing is right side up and trim out the center of the belly piece, exposing the stomach piece in all it glory. Leave 1/8" to 1/4" of fabric when you trim.

Now you can lay out the entire belly assembly onto the body, with everything Wrong side up. Pin and Sew just like you did with the stomach pieces. Cut out the center of the body piece to expose your magnificently diseased and blissfully regular stomachs. Use a needle to pull the exposed threads to the back of the body and tie them to their corresponding end in back.

Step 5: Sew the Sick to the Happy

So close!

Sandwich the two whole pieces Right side together. Pin and Sew along the outer edge, leaving the area between his legs open. We'll invert him and stuff him here.

After you invert him, roll the seams between your thumb and index finger a few times to settle the stitching. He'll stuff better this way. I used a medium zig-zag around the body so that the thread will show a little.

Stuff him, making sure to get your fluff into each ear and arm. I packed him pretty full, so he's very squeezable and pillowy. Use a finishing stitch along the area you didn't sew to close him up!

Step 6: Eyes!

This part gives him that extra kick of awesomeness. The Sick side has droopy eyes and the Happy side is just beaming. Just top-stitch around the edge of the eye pieces, which I used fleece for. The pupils are black felt squares I cut out -- also top-stitched on. You can hide the initial knot for these under the eyes themselves. After your final knot, stick the needle through to the back and pull it through. Cut the thread off close to the fabric and the recoil of the stuffing should pull the exposed end back into the creature! Hidden and Secure.

Step 7: Hug Him Goodbye :(

Since you made him for your sick friend, you'll have to part ways. Give him a hug and be happy knowing that you're aiding in the speedy recovery of a fellow human.

Be happy with the world.

Oh... and SMILE!