Costume Notes: Makoto Nijima (Persona 5)

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Photographer Credits: Ash Snap ‘Em

Completed: 

• Summer Uniform: June 2017
• Winter Uniform: November 2017

Hours Spent: 20-ish

Debuted:

• Summer Uniform: AX 2017
• Winter Uniform: Technically not yet? I’ve only worn it for a photoshoot.

Why This Costume:

I’ve been interested in Persona 5 ever since Atlus started teasing its release. When the concept art came out, I was certain that Futaba was going to be my main girl. I was mildly surprised when Makoto quickly snatched my heart (hehehe).

After my husband finished his run-through, I immediately started playing and got Koholint back for dragging me into Code Geass hell. AdventTraitor Cosplay also got into P5 around the same time, so we decided to bust out summer uniforms as chill costumes for Anime Expo!

But because one P5 costume isn’t enough, we also decided to make the winter uniforms once the craziness of summer con season was over.

Purchased Pieces: 

• Contacts: Etia Coeur
• Wig: Arda Magnum in Spanish Brown with clip-in braid
• Loafers: Wal-Mart
• Boots: Amazon
• Turtleneck: Amazon
• Patch: Etsy
• Fabric: Spoonflower
• Black leggings: Target
• Black tights: Target
• Shujin fabric: Luluko on Spoonflower

Patterns Used: 

• Halter: McCall’s 7373 (heavily modified)

How I Made it: 

Let’s start with the skirt since that was the first piece I knocked out with this build. Koholint and I sampled several different fabric types from Spoonflower before ultimately settling on a heavy twill. We pre-shrunk the fabric by steaming to prevent crocking and dye fading, which is a common issue with Spoonflower prints.

One of the things I absolutely love about this fabric is that the grid lines create a great template for measuring and pressing pleats. It was really just a matter of matching up the stripes! I wanted a curved waistband for a better fit, so I snatched the waistband from the Colette Juniper pants.

My belt was a really quick project. I had some leftover black vinyl, so I folded the ends over, topstitched the lines (visible in some of the art books), and sewed it onto a fashion belt buckle that I spray painted gold.

For the summer top, I pulled a white button up top from my closet, hacked off the long sleeves and used the remaining sleeve to create cuffs. I made the neck logo out of some scrap vinyl and attacked it with fusible web. It was a little clunky, so I ordered a more accurate patch off of Etsy for future wears.

To create Makoto’s winter uniform, I purchased a white turtleneck and made the vest using materials generously donated by Koholint Cosplay. I snagged the bodice portion off of McCall’s 7373, which has basically become my go-to pattern for a princess seam top. I also extended center front side over for the button holes. To make the top more accurate, I lopped off the halter piece and added the gold buttons and connectors.

Thoughts on this build: 

Persona owns me LOL. This was such a nice break after the madness that was our Cosmic Coterie Madoka build last year. It was nice to have a project that was simple for AX, since we only had about 3 weeks between A-Kon and AX.

I’m also happy that we were able to cosplay from P5! This game has quickly become one of my top JRPGs (I’m about 120-ish hours in on NG+), and we have LOTS more cosplay plans for this coming year! To keep up with all of mine and Koholint’s P5 plans, be sure to check out our new duo account: Caffeine Schemes Cosplay. Now to start on the Phantom Thieves outfits… *panic sweats*

Have you played Persona 5? Who’s your favorite character?