In this paper, we study quasiconformal extensions of harmonic mappings. Utilizing a complex parameter, we build a bridge between the quasiconformal extension theorem for locally analytic functions given by Ahlfors [‘Sufficient conditions for quasiconformal extension’, Ann. of Math. Stud.79 (1974), 23–29] and the one for harmonic mappings recently given by Hernández and Martín [‘Quasiconformal extension of harmonic mappings in the plane’, Ann. Acad. Sci. Fenn. Math.38 (2) (2013), 617–630]. We also give a quasiconformal extension of a harmonic Teichmüller mapping, whose maximal dilatation estimate is asymptotically sharp.
