Harley Quinn
HBO Costume
Batman, DC Comics, Latex
Did anyone else absolutely fall in love with Harley Quinn’s new look in her HBO show? Because I did! I love how it’s drawn, and the fact that it’s so shiny in the show seemed to suggest it was made from latex. I love working with latex, so I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to do this costume.
Making cosplays with latex is unique, because while it’s the same sort of pattern-making as sewing… there’s not actually any sewing involved. Latex is glued together, not sewed. As someone who doesn’t like sewing machines, that really appeals to me.
It’s also really fun to wear latex cosplays. If you’ve never worn it, latex grips very tightly to skin. It doesn’t like to shift or move once it’s in place, so it can sorta be like wearing a second skin. It’s very secure once it’s on, but it can also be really hard to put on because it tries to grip to you the whole way.
I also made the bat, too! Well, it’s a used aluminum bat that I found at a thrift store. I specifically chose one that was well used, with a lot of its original paint already worn off. I then taped off a lot of that original paint damage, and painted the whole thing black, with the red stars and diamonds to match Harley’s bat from the show. The result looks like Harley’s bat has seen a lot of combat, and I’m really happy with it.
I loved making Harley Quinn’s costume, and working with latex is a lot of fun. I hope to do many more latex cosplays in the future! It’s perfect for all these skintight outfits!