Robin Sena

Witch Hunter Robin

Robin Sena from the anime Witch Hunter Robin was the first cosplay I did back around 2005-2006. My college roommate at the time helped me make it. It got me into cosplay and costuming in general. Now thirteen years later I’m remaking it with considerably more skill but just as much enthusiasm. I love costuming. It’s been a hobby and home for me. I’ve made an enormous number of friends, learned new skills (and not just sewing!), and gained a lot of self confidence.

I’ve remade Robin in time for Costume Con 37, which is being held in Salem this year. (Ok, Danvers but no one knows Danvers!) This past year has been an uphill climb for me. I’ve been fighting with depression and since the fall I’ve been struggling with the motivation to even get out of bed somedays. So when the DC Cosplay Photoshoots group’s January photoshoot was creeping closer and closer, I struggled to figure out what to wear. Then a week before the shoot I had a burst of energy and inspiration.

I decided to tackle Robin again. Her black dress is pretty simple. Floor+ length circle skirt, blouse, pinafore, and wig. Easily do-able in a week with a little motivation! G Street’s $2.95 bin provided sufficient black fabric (though my skirt isn’t quite a full circle, more like almost 7/8ths and I had to use every inch of fabric and piece scraps for the waistband.) and I pulled a fluffy petticoat from a different costume to go under it. I started on Monday and was 99% done by Wednesday- but I needed to go pick up a couple buttons to finish off the pinafore. That’s when I found the gorgeous red fabric that was spot on for the coat. It’s the perfect weight and perfect color, and there was plenty of it in that same $2.95/yard room. I love G Street. Seriously. So with the photoshoot planned for Sunday, I had two and a half days to finish that too. Which I did! It felt good to just work straight through a relatively simple project again. Just as I finished the coat and was about to start the gloves on Saturday, however, the photoshoot got cancelled due to snow. 🙁 We’re rescheduled for April though, and now it’s all done with plenty of time before Costume Con. Except the gloves… I decided to get some decent sleep instead of staying up until 2am again.

Robin’s Blouse! The dress in the anime is extremely flat and black. It’s not a highly detailed art style and I wanted to incorporate more texture so I chose B6598 with a gathered center front seam detail. ONE reference image hints that there might be something like this, but it could also be a bit of shading just to show that she actually does have a chest. Time to finish: 1 day.
A final fitting on the pinafore. It’s a simple enough shape that I just pin-fit it and sewed it from there. I also dug out the pendant I’d made from a rock and a bit of wire the first time I did this cosplay! Glasses are a set of cheap amazon reading glasses. Time to finish: 1.5 days. (I needed to go buy buttons and have my husband help me pin the placement for the straps in back, otherwise I’d have just stayed up late to finish it.)

When I popped over to G Street Fabrics to get buttons for my pinafore I found this gorgeous maroon fabric in just the right color and weight. It’s a soft microsuede and they have yards and yards and yards of it in their $2.95 room. I hadn’t been PLANNING on making the coat during the one week before the photoshoot but it was too perfect to pass up!
I finished the coat in two days! Please excuse the midnight work-hair.

This is a cheap Amazon wig but with a one week deadline I needed the fast shipping. It’s not the best quality but it was easy to work with and while the color isn’t perfect (it should be a dark blond or lighter brown) it’s close enough for now! Time to finish: 3 hours

Starting on the gloves! This is my first draft and not my final pair, but it’s my first time and I wanted a practice set! The real ones are still in progress.