Advent Children

Once upon a time when I was young and impressionable and prone to relentless fangirling, back then when LiveJournal was still a thing, I had a huge crush on Sephiroth. Like, a GINORMOUS crush. And this picture from the "FF7: Advent Children" poster (original image here: vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/b…) was my long-term desktop wallpaper. But - lo and behold - not on my home computer (home wallpaper was that famous screenshot in flames, you know the one), but at work. It was my first steady job - early 2000s, Serbia just recovering from a decade of crisis, me landing a post in the European Agency for Reconstruction, a major success for a girl straight out of college - and of course I had to go full geek and adorn my workplace with my current fangirl obsession. 

I'll never forget the moment when I realized that my boss - a charming, elderly Belgian who'd only talked about his wish to retire and go back home to grow vineyards - was staring at my screen behind my back, head tilted, lost in thoughts.

"Oh," he said, realizing he'd been caught. "What a well-dressed lady. You would look really good in her coat."

Whenever I was told that I'm not "manly enough" to cosplay Sephiroth (and god knows there was many a doubting Thomas this time around) I'd remember my old boss recommending me the coat of the "well-dressed lady", and I'd think - never mind the unbelievers, I could totally pull off this one. For if there ever was one defining Sephiroth's trait, that would be the blend between the athletic, manly built (which can be achieved with all sorts of tricks), and a beautiful, androgynous face (which I already have, thankyouverymuch). 

Turns out, I was right. I hope you're enjoying your vineyards, sir.

By the way, Tenshi deserves a special round of applause for this one. If you wonder how she managed to nail the beehive matrix just like in the original image, the answer is: bathroom floor tiles

Credits:

Main project supporter and chief crafter: Endymion Craftsmanship & Cosplay
Wing designed and constructed by Dragan Lisica:www.facebook.com/craftmaster.l…
Shoulder armor by Shunak and yours truly
Coat by Ana&Marina: www.facebook.com/sheandshedesi…
Makeup by Ljubica Mirkovic Make up Artist

Masamune by Ender (there's a very funny story about the sword, I'll tell it to you one of these days)

Pic by Aleksandar Jovković for Marшal foto studio, edited by Tenshi-CosplayArts