A battery powered bodysuit based on Australia's most iconic landmarks could set Miss Universe Australia Monika Radulovic apart on the world stage – if it makes it through airport security, that is.
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Former Canberra Institute of Technology student Jyoti Chandra, 28, designed the LED and fibre-optic rendition of Sydney Harbour's New Year's Eve fireworks as a part of a national costume competition to deck out Australia's representative at the Miss Universe international final at the end of the year.
The Melbourne-based make-up artist said she wanted to recreate Australia's internationally renowned iconography so there would be no doubt which country Ms Radulovic was representing.
Wearing an oval back brace, the city skyline is portrayed on a shield Miss Universe Australia will hold up with two poles, "like butterfly wings", Ms Chandra said.
"What I wanted to encompass through my costume was to show people how free-spirited Australians are [and] remind people how fun and exciting we can be and that we can put on a really great show in Australia," she said.
"I wanted it to be quite flamboyant because South America came out with massive feathers [for their national costume] and Canada came out with hockey sticks and I wanted to make something that was really cool and that people would remember."
But her creative vision was hampered by some unexpectedly practical considerations.
"Trying to get the battery through security at the airport was hard; because it's a corrosive it was classified as a dangerous good," Ms Chandra said.
"We couldn't go with lithium batteries because then it wouldn't have gotten through security at all. But because [the battery] was so small they were like, it's fine, and I was like, thank goodness."
Each of the top four designs weaves in the Sydney Opera House sails.
Darlinghurst designer Timothy Cubbo married Dame Edna's wig and glasses with the architecture of the performing arts centre and the natural beauty of the Great Barrier Reef.
Sarah Kalwy from Brisbane also created a bodysuit by handcrafting and sewing 100 tiny wattle leaves and flowers from neck to toe paired with thermoplastic sails.
Raf Matta of Wollert in Victoria used wiring, fusing and fabric stiffener to create an evening gown depicting the sails and the waters of the harbour.
Public voting closed 9am AEST on October 2.
The winning design will be announced live on Sunrise.
