Harley Quinn

Fall 2022

This costume was featured at the C2E2 Cosplay Central Crown Championships in 2023. It was also awarded the Stumpf Student Research Fund from the University of Illinois School of Art+Design in 2022. This costume began construction in 2020, but due to COVID was postponed until 2022 when it was finished.

Full video from The Popverse originally streamed here.

The costume is completely custom patterned and uses a variety of materials such as: pleather, foam, batting, studs, spandex, lace, and metal rings. It features 15 feet custom strapping and 12 feet of ruffles on the skirt as well as 80+ metal studs throughout.

Bolero Pattern

Corset Pattern

Bralette Pattern

Props and Weapons

Initially I was set on making Harley Quinn’s staple machine gun in the game Arkham Knight, however after 3D modeling it in Blender I decided to make her bat instead. A much simpler and easier prop given the weeks leading up to the Championships.

Initial Sketches

Before I built anything I started by sketching out the entire outfit. This helped me understand the various layers of clothing I would need to make and allowed me to make notes as I went. Doing this character sketch study put to paper how much detail I wanted on the final product.

Final Photos