We've all seen the typical scene kids; The boys and girls at music shows with the skinny jeans and oversized sunglasses. If you would like to learn how to look like this crowd, read on!
How to be a scene kid
- Work on your self-confidence. No matter where you are, people will criticise you. There will always be someone who doesn't like you; it's impossible to please everyone. You need to know that you're pretty and learn to embrace your flaws. Its important to know who you are and know what you want. Stand out to be confident. Remember, you may be scene, but everyone you're trying to please is also human.
- Don't get overconfident. Nobody wants to interact with someone who puts them down, or acts like a jerk. But don't let people walk all over you, either. You need to know just the right balance.
- Be nice. People often mistake scene kids for horrible, nasty little teenagers who spread mean rumours about others, and are very harsh to other people they know. You don't need to fit this trend. Instead, make a good effort to be kind to others, and have an understanding that everyone has their own problems, not just you.
- Become active on social networking sites. Myspace, Facebook, and Twitter are the main ones. Accept any friend request you get, and remember: the more sites you're on, the more popular you are.
- Take pictures for your page. Only upload images if they look good, and only take pictures if you know how. Taking pictures from the bottom angle, (taking it from your hips with the camera looking up), is unflattering. Instead, take an overhead picture with you looking up, or a mirror shot. To spice up your picture, add something flavourful; a colorful boa, shutter shades, or big and bulky rings. Feel free to edit your picture to take out imperfections, such as acne, a mole, or blackheads.
- Add scene music. Bands like Metro Station, M.I.A., Tokio Hotel, Lily Allen, The Medic Droid and Cute is What We Aim For all fall in that category. Change your song every week to prevent playing an old song. Scene music has a large range; it involves most music except country and most rap. Anything techno, random, or unique will work. If you can't think of a good song, check out what other scene kids are listening to.
- Having a cool online name is an option. Make sure that it's original. If you can't think of anything, have a friend give you an adjective that describes you that starts with the first letter of your name. Once you've found one that you like, try putting it and the beginning or end of your name. User whichever one you like best! If your friend doesn't help, try looking up a word that describes you in a thesaurus. Find a word that isn't heard often, and then add it to your name.
- Take up the scene writing style.
- When you type on things like AIM or Myspace, add extra letters to your words. Type things such as "hii", "babyy", "heyy", or ":]]". If you're saying goodbye to someone, type something like "xoxo", "ttyl <3",>Everyone has been using it, if you want, use it sparingly. Don't use the typos such as lyke, sexi, gawd, etc. Scene kids are growing up and don't like people who talk "lyke dis nd th3y g3t r3lly" mad when someone types like a 4 year old child.Use abbreviations if you're comfortable, but always make sure that no one knows what they mean. Ex; "I'm going to the mall" would be IGTTM. You have to know what HxC and SxE means. If you don't, then learn. SxE means straight edge, (someone who refrains from drinking and drugs, and casual sex), and HxC means hardcore. If you think a particular thing is funny, type "lol @ [insert particular humorous thing]. Find different variations of spelling in a word and use them, examples being and "poseur" rather than "poser."
- On the phone or in person. Tell someone that their clothes are "so Marie Claire", as Marie Claire is a huge fashion icon. Some other things scene kids say are; "betch", "you are the shag", "that's golden", "you're too cute STFU", or "Oh-em-gee". Don't use irritating abbreviations in person. Saying "lol" is acceptable, but "rofl" and "lmao" are best left to typing conversations. Say new terms. Using words like "stellar", "rad", or "yar" are all important aspects. However, don't say what everyone else around you is saying. If you need some inspiration, try Urban Dictionary, or even coining up your own word. If you do choose to make your own word, make sure that it's original, and sounds good.
- Go to shows. Shows are important, and if there is a show playing within a ten mile radius of you, you're there. Always know when your favourite bands are playing, and go to a show at least once a week. Bring your other scene friends, and become familiar with the artist as a person. Talk to your friends about how you met them, and be very knowledgable about them.
- Get the attitude right. It's a mix of the sullen teenage lethargia that comes with the emo scene, and the anger and saucy-ness that comes with hardcore scene. That's not to say that many scene kids aren't happy-go-lucky, but they are often a strange combination of randomness and angst. Whatever you do, make sure it works and you don't completely overdo it.
- Try starting a new trend. Several scene queens have become famous by inventing new trends. Only try to start a new trend if you are familiar with the scene culture, and have some credibility in your social clique. If you try to start a new fad when you aren't popular or have a good reputation, people will think you are being a wannabe and will ignore you.
Scene Guys
- Get scene Hair. Hair is one of the most important aspects of being scene. One of the most popular choices is to dye your hair black, and then add in neon or bright coloured streaks. Bangs also look very good. However, all scene hair has layers. Your hair should be big, and should stick out in a crowd. To be unique from other scene kids, think about what you'd like your hair to be like before you dye it. Try something new that you haven't seen before, as long as it looks good! The scene guy mohawk is very risky but in the end can look rad. To assure you aren't confused with those dastardly emo's, have your hair long in the back too but keep it choppy and voluminous.
- Wear eyeliner. Black eyeliner is a must for all scene kids. Start out with the pencil eyeliner, as it is easier to apply and doesn't get as messy if you make a mistake. Once you get better at applying this, you can gradually start using liquid liner. Liquid is good for getting that cat-eye look, and looks very neat - but be warned, it's easy to mess up. There are many variations of eyeliner; wings on the outside of the eye tend to be popular. Make sure that you know what you're doing before you experiment with liquid eyeliner. Be light on the eyeliner since you're a boy; less is more.
- Wear skinny jeans. Guys should wear tight skinny jeans that embrace their legs, but should be loose on the back area. Washes such as red, black, gray, or white are the most flattering on a boy. Make sure that the jeans remain tight! If they get loose, give them a quick run in the dryer for them to regain their elastic and shrink a bit. If you can't find any jeans designed for guys, buy a pair of decent fitting girl jeans. You may feel embarrassed, but you'll feel great as soon as you see how good you look in them. On the side of your skinny jeans, hook up a carabiner and then clip on your keys. Let them dangle and clink when you walk!
- Stock up on band shirts and graphic shirts. If you've done your music research, load up on classic band t-shirts (e.g. Shiny Toy Guns). Get the tightest fitting t-shirt, within reason. Don't wear crew necks often, as they can be very unflattering. Make sure that you know what bands are scene before advertising your shirt, as the band may be old. Vintage band shirts have never done any harm either. Shirts with birds, animal prints, and skulls have also grown to be a new fad.
- However, shirts with Pokémon and foil print have become overused. Make sure that when you go shopping, you steer clear of these old styles.
- Get classic shoes. Start with Vans Classics, or some Converse, then branch out to any style you want. If you decide to get converse, make sure that they're bright! Colors like black and gray look good on anyone, but it takes a lot of confidence to step into the halls in neon red shoes. They may look strange at first, but they look great and stand out in any crowd.
- Accessories. Belts, piercings, sunglasses, and the like all play a huge role in your scene appearance. Bright belts with random prints on them add style to any outfit. Oversized sunglasses look the best, and piercings are good too. Remember, a couple piercings look good, but don't get so many that you scare people out of your sight! The white stud belt is about as classic as it gets for recognizing a scene guy.
Scene Girls
Get the hair. Your hair should be layered and colourful!If you decide to dye your hair black, add a couple neon highlights. If your hair is naturally dark, consider dying it platinum blonde, or a funky colour like purple or pink. Bangs look good on any face, and your hair can be straight, curly, long, or short. You can never go wrong, as long as you're original!- As for clips, things like kiddie clips or clunky pins have began to be overused. Hot Topic and Claires are the best place to get them. You can wear them if you'd like, but it may be best to play it safe and just use bobby pins if your school is already crowded with these styles.
- Dress appropriately. Scene girls wear bright coloured t-shirts with popular band names on them. Don't be shy to wearing animal print skinny jeans, or wearing print leggings under ripped pants. Things like Hello Kitty, Invader Zim, and Pokémon are getting a little dated, so if you choose to wear these, don't wear them often. Puffy tutus look stylish on any girl.
- Shoes. As a scene girl, you should wear shoes such as vans, ballet flats, Converse, or high heels. As long as it's bright and eye-catching, it will look great. For customisation, add things like neon shoelaces or get your friends to sign them. Make sure it looks personalised.
- Accesorise. Things like clunky, oversized necklaces, big rings, or huge bracelets all are at home with being scene. Have a jewelry supply with random things in bright colours. Earrings should be big and noticeable. This also goes with belts, which should be large and where everyone can see them. Always be listening to your mp3, and instead of having tiny earbuds, wear big, old-fashioned head phones. If you're talking to someone, move the headphones down to your neck so you can still hear the music. Pyramid stud belts are a must. Piercings are also good, but don't get too many. If your face is buried in piercings, people will most likely mistake you for being Emo. Recognise the difference between the groups. White stud belt white stud belt! classic and its as good a trademark for scene kids as the hair!!
- Wear eye makeup. Your eye makeup should be colourful; eye shadows such as green, pink, or blue all look great. Put on fake eyelashes to elongate yours, and define your eye colour with appropriate liquid eyeliner. Make sure that you only put makeup on if you know what to do with it. If you use a base colour for your face, it should look natural and not abnormally pale or tan. If you wear glasses you have the ultimate advantage to go huge on the eyes because they're not so noticed if you don't.
Tips
- Be random, but never overdo it. You may sound cool if you blurt out something out of context once in a while, but no one wants someone who screams "Purple hippos!" every ten seconds.
- Make sure your scene hair isn't too wild, or you won't get enough adds on MySpace. Although most scene hair is known for being outlandish, if you go overboard, you may be labeled a poser.
- Some people will hate you. Those people include punks, ska kids, and most members of the scene or local visitors of the local venue that are not scene kids. Don't label people, and then they might not hate you. You are all people, not separate species.
- Don't limit yourself to one scene style, as there are many; glamour scene and glamcore are also scene. They just have more to do with designer labels.
- Use popular scene queens for inspiration on how to look and dress. Examples of these would be Raquel Reed, Audrey Kitching, Philfingerbang, Zui Suicide, Kiki Kannibal&&Hammy Horror.
- Don't use scene language that is outdated, like "rawr".
- Make sure that you are very careful with your hair. It's good to use a thermal protection spray applied in your hair before your straigten or curl. It's also nice to buy lots of hairspray. Brands like Bed Head,Sexy Hair, or Beyond Zone are all reputable brands.
- When adding yourself to social networking sites, stay away from Stardoll. Stardoll contains a lot of posers trying to get a reputation in the scene world.
Warnings
- The first rule of being scene is not to talk about being scene.
- Don't change to scene in one day. You will be labeled as a poser, and will look like a wannabe. It should be a gradual process, one that could range from a month to a year. I know you are so impatient but keep it on the DL and study up on the attitudes of other scene kids.
- Don't copy off other people.
- Don't dye your hair too often or else you will damage it. If you ignore this your hair will become wiry and damaged.
- Avoid stereotypes about the scene scene and the emo scene. This will only distract you from becoming a good scene kid/person.
- As soon as you decide to start acting scene, don't automatically label yourself as such. People will think you are trying too hard, and you will most likely be excluded.
- Understand what a Kandi Kid is and make sure that isn't who you are before going for this. Kandi kid guys are the ultimate heartthrobs of many so watch out.
- If you buy every single bit of your clothing from Hot Topic, people will be able to tell. You don't necessarily need to know how to match colors but in extreme cases go easy on mixing the patterns.
- Damaged hair is not cool. Kiki Kannibal said it herself, "If you're going to have hair you might as well have it nice!"
Things You'll Need to Be a Scene Kid
- Money
- Cell Phone
- Scene clothes (basically skinny jeans, band shirt, sweater)
- Hairspray (not needed if you have hair wax/gel for your roots to keep it up, plus it looks less sticky)
- Eyeliner
- Confidence (or be the shy sweet scene, adorable in scene guys so you don't get labeled as emo and whatnot)
- Choppy layers
- Combs
- Huge sunglasses
- Camera
- Myspace, Bebo, Buzznet, etc.
- Makeup
- Scene kid lingo knowledge
- Flats
- Music
- Friends
Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Be a Scene Kid.
