Steampunk Harley Quinn: Sketched

As my previous post said, "On a moment of divine inspiration (and after enjoying my harlequin outfit so immensely), I decided to do a scrapper steampunk-ish version of 'Harley Quinn' from the Batman cartoons." My husband and I thought that it would make sense for Harley and the Joker to get dressed up to enjoy some Wicked (Festival) fun at the Mad Hatter's Tea Party.

I sketched out a few ideas and this is the result of several attempts and alterations. I wanted something that captured the feel of Harley Quinn, sexy but without losing the extremely cute and naive feel, while being more Victorian or steampunk in nature.

Main Outfit:
Fitted long overcoat; Halter or sleeveless top; High-waisted bloomers (as the pants) with ruffled bottoms and short suspenders or straps (as part of the bloomers) to hold them up.

Accessories:
Diamond shaped fake 'tattoos' to be applied to the skin; Lace pieces to be applied to skin for the mask; Mini-jester hat with white pom-poms; Four-sided 'cravat' consisting of three layers of ruffle on each 'flap'; Gloves with attached ruffles; Appropriate shoes or shoe covers; bi-colored stockings, tights, leggings, or long socks.

Any other accessories will be added later, if desired or necessary and time allows.

My husband's outfit will likely be much more a "dapper" style outfit, which will counter my scrapper style well, me thinks. I'm not really sure if he's finished his sketch yet.

The downside to having the sketch done is that I want to start work on the outfit, but really shouldn't unless I do it in small pieces at a time. I need to work on my Victorian Mourning Outfit some more, and I am already getting inspiration on the next part to make on that project.

Projects and Victorian Mourning Outfit Update

Oh why does inspiration strike as a flood rather than a trickle? Not that I'm complaining. It's actually great to feel the draw of doing more than speculating on tasks and actually starting the projects... and completing them again.

I've drawn a new idea for an outfit to use at the Wicked Renaissance Faire: Mad Hatter Tea Party this February. On a moment of divine inspiration (and after enjoying my harlequin outfit so immensely), I decided to do a scrapper steampunk-ish version of "Harley Quinn" from the Batman cartoons. She's incredibly cute, but I haven't seen many people pull off a stylized version of her successfully. They always seem to miss the mark, either making her too cutesy or too sexy, and not finding the balance between the two that the cartoon managed to capture. So this is my challenge to myself for that event. I've drawn up the sketch, but haven't inked or colored it yet.

My husband decided to follow the theme and make a dapper Joker outfit, inspired by the Batman comics as well. I think this should be interesting.

Unfortunately, as I was gearing myself up for the Harley Quinn outfit, my hubby reminded me that I still have yet to finish my Olivia (Victorian Mourning) outfit. Oi! Definitely heard the brakes screeching to a halt with that reminder! There was a chance that Brimsteam would have a game this month, but it was tenative at best. Still uncertain if that will happen or when the next game will be, which makes me less than motivated to start work on this outfit... though I really ought to get a few more bits done given how much needs to be accomplished with it. I can definitely have enough done to make it wearable regardless.

I also have a family portrait I'm being commissioned to work on, which I will start sketching out soon.

Lastly, I hope to be able to perform in the the 2010 Rakkasah Caravan (which I believe is in May). Call-in starts sometime in February, and it's a pot shot in the dark if we'll actually get in. Would be great though. My husband and I plan on doing a comedy type bellydance skit. He'd be a steampunk inventor and I'd be his cutesy dancing doll. I have some ideas sketched out for the outfit, though I'm still not satisfied, and we are working on ideas for music, props, and choreography. If we don't get in, we'll try for the next event which would be a month later in Long Island.

As a side note, there is apparently a Clockwork Ball that is starting up in Piscataway, NJ. The plan is that it will be held one Tuesday of every month for $15 per person. I'm seriously thinking about that too... and my Olivia outfit should possibly work for a few times! Hm... guess that might help inspire me.

So much to do... so much to do... :-)

Halloween 2009: Completed Harlequins!

Halloween is over, and the costumes were completed in time for Trick-or-Treating. Our son wore his costume in several stages of completion... once for our visit to Fright Fest at 6 Flags (an amusement park) and once for the Pre-Trick-or-Treat Party my mother and I held for the children in our family. He looked adorable each time, but the pom-poms that we added on Halloween morning was an absolutely adorable touch that really completed the outfit.

Anyways, my husband made his entire outfit, except the hat and the cummerbund.

I accepted help from him with the baby's and my outfits, mainly because I was running out of time. I made the body of the baby and mommy costumes and my hat. My husband made the neck ruffs and the baby's hat. The fabric pom poms were a joint effort. He measured, cut, and serged the edges. I gathered them, rolled them into "flowers", and then stitched them to the costumes.

As can be seen in the photos, my design changed slightly. I chose not to have pom poms down the front of my shirt. I felt they would get lost in the polkadots and might be awkward for carrying my son. Instead, I put a pom pom "flower" on my hat near where my ear would be. It really added a whimsical, feminine touch that balanced out the look perfectly.

Anyways, without further ado... pictures of the finished outfits. :-)

Halloween 2009: Baby Harlequin Jumper

I finished the Jumper part of my son's Harlequin costume. It's pretty much a perfect fit! I might make a few changes later, if I have time before Halloween.

My husband made the bias tape out of the original sleeves I cut (which were too short). I used that bias tape around the wrists and ankles as a casing for the elastic gathers. They are barely visible in some of the pictures below.

I part of the bottom inseam open so we can pull the outfit on over his head and to allow us easy diaper changes. The front has a short opening that closes with snaps, just for extra ease and comfort.

My mother has most of the pictures we took of him in the costume thus far. He was so cute, running round and squealing. Me thinks he likes the bright colors!

The jumper looks cuter and poofier (and longer) when he's walking around on his own. The pictures below don't really show that, but they do show how absolutely adorable the jumper is and how much fun my baby had in it.

So... I have his hat, neck ruffle, and pom-poms to finish to complete this outfit. I'm also thinking about making a quicky outfit for his monkey harness, which would be way too cute.

For now, I'm working on the base of my outfit, which I hope to finish cutting tonight and maybe even mostly stitch together by tomorrow night. My husband's outfit, on the other hand, is mostly done, though we don't have pics of it yet.

Anyways, off I go to finish cutting out my top and my pants. :-)

Halloween 2009: Baby Harlequin Update

My son's outfit is mostly cut out. All I have left to cut is his hat and the neck ruffle. I used an animal/devil/angel pattern that I altered to have the appropriate bagginess. We plan to have snap opennings along the inseam of the legs for easy diaper changes and the outfit should be baggy enough to allow him to wear warm clothing underneath.

I hope to have the body of the outfit done tonight (except maybe the snaps) and the rest done by tomorrow night. Then I can start my outfit, which I'm far less concerned about since I can through something appropriate together from the renfest costumes I've gathered over the years. I'd rather not, but I do feel that the costumes for my husband and my son are far more important.


On a side note: Joann's has a fairly nice sale going on until Monday. Simplicity patterns are $0.99, interfacing is 50% off, and so on. I fell into temptation and got some patterns, interfacing, and several rolls of 'salvage bin' cloth cuts (under 1 yard... but enough to make small things with... like a baby blanket, an apron, etc). My husband also got three of the four books he ordered from Amazon on Victorian and Edwardian fashions. I can't wait to look at them. :-)

Halloween 2009: Family Sketches

"Hi" from the happy harlequins!

Halloween 2009: Harlequin Clowns

My husband and I decided to put our Brimsteam steampunk character projects on hold temporarily in preparation for our son's second Halloween. Last year was a fairly laid back affair since our son was so young and we, as new parents, were... well... new parents. The costumes were fun, but very simple, inexpensive, and much enjoyed.

(The baby's outfit was a skeleton sweatsuit w/ hoodie on sale from Babies R Us, while my husband and I wore some of my old goth stuff, which included men's pants, and some skeleton-rib T-shirts I got for free from Old Navy.)

Well, we are fairly adjusted to being parents (which includes the constant need to be flexible, work around the baby/toddler's schedule, and being ever so worn out). This year, we are going to make our outfits.

I always adored old fashioned harlequin clowns. My mother made my a couple my older sister and my youngest brother this type of clown costume and I always think they were adorable whenever I see the pictures. I also always wanted to make myself an old fashioned, baggy harlequin outfit. So... We decided that we would do so this year! What better time than when my son is so small and running all over the place with huge giggles and smiles! :-)

We already have the materials. I bought them last year on a super After Halloween sale from Hancock Fabrics. I bought them because I knew I'd want to make something with them... either Halloween gift aprons, comedic victorian outfits, or so forth. But when I saw them sitting unused I knew that they were destined to become this year's Halloween outfits!

Below is my first concept drawing. I liked how the child outfit looked, but my costume wasn't quite right. I wanted something femme but flattering and old fashioned. Something like the swimwear from the Victorian era. This was far too fitted and not really pulling together well.

Next, I resketched my son's outfit-to-be, coloring it in to get an idea of how the striped material would look. I love how it looks. I found instructions on how to make the hat, the fabric ruffle pom-poms, and the neck ruff, all of which I can't wait to try. I'll put links to the instructions on here later, if ours turn out well. My costume, however was still not on par. I reworked the sketch a number of times, erasing and redrawing parts, but I just kept coming back to the thought that it was too complex and too shapely. I didn't like the idea of my costume being more difficult than my son's. That just seemed to defeat the purpose. I started steering away from the Victorian swimwear idea and was leaning more towards just bloomers and a baggy top with a sash, but it just didn't feel right to me.

Then, in a moment of clarity I drew the costume below. It's perfect. Baggy but femme. Old fashioned but flattering. Simple and cute. A proper French Clown but with harlequin leanings! I also have a pattern that should work pretty well for the base while I use the instructions I found for the ruffs and pom-poms.

Next time, I hope to post pictures of the cloth, but if not, at least pictures of the progress. I'm so excited by these projects and can't wait to start planning out how I'm going to cut my son's material... and my own. My husband is going to take care of his own outfit, which will be loosely based on the harlequin outfit Lord Peter Wimsey wore in "Murder Must Advertise". His progress will be able to be followed on the blog I set up for him: Sgt. Steampunk.