Draw Yourself as a Teenager
May 6, 2008 12:00 AM Subscribe
I think my favorite was Valeza's original, which was featured on Drawn!.
posted by hjo3 at 2:15 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by hjo3 at 2:15 AM on May 6, 2008
Someone on my LJ friendslist did this over the weekend, but I didn't realize how many other people have done it so far. It prompted me to pull out my yearbooks, but nothing I can upload yet. I'll have to carve out a little space in my finals prep (ugh) to finish this.
I like the "now and then" pictures, and the ones that showcase how dorky/awkward the artist was at that age.
posted by kosher_jenny at 2:25 AM on May 6, 2008
I like the "now and then" pictures, and the ones that showcase how dorky/awkward the artist was at that age.
posted by kosher_jenny at 2:25 AM on May 6, 2008
I wish I could draw better. I was pretty good as a kid but never developed that skill.
posted by delmoi at 3:57 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by delmoi at 3:57 AM on May 6, 2008
Some of these are pretty sweet. I like the ones that have a greater age differential than just five or ten years, especially.
posted by maxwelton at 4:28 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by maxwelton at 4:28 AM on May 6, 2008
Ah!, hey my Flickr buddy OhArlene is in there. (In a "check her out she's awesome" kind of way.)
posted by Jofus at 4:29 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by Jofus at 4:29 AM on May 6, 2008
I wish I could draw better. I was pretty good as a kid but never developed that skill.
Amen to that. I have a good friend who is an amazing illustrator. The sort of person who starts drawing and you have no idea what's taking shape, the all of a sudden an incredibly competent image will appear. I asked him once "how do you do that?" (I used to like drawing a lot) His reply was - "Hmmm, it's just practice". I suppose that's true for so many things.
posted by mattoxic at 4:32 AM on May 6, 2008
Amen to that. I have a good friend who is an amazing illustrator. The sort of person who starts drawing and you have no idea what's taking shape, the all of a sudden an incredibly competent image will appear. I asked him once "how do you do that?" (I used to like drawing a lot) His reply was - "Hmmm, it's just practice". I suppose that's true for so many things.
posted by mattoxic at 4:32 AM on May 6, 2008
This looked like so much fun, I wish I had some sort of drawing skill. Then again, looking at this and thinking about what I would have looked like made me realise that 14 year old me and 19 year old me aren't really that different. 14yo - super baggy band shirts, baggy jeans, chucks. 19yo - bands shirts that fit, skinny leg jeans, chucks (but minus 15kg and looking a lot less like Ozzy Osbourne due to shorter, styled hair and loss of round purple sunglasses). Wow, boring.
posted by cholly at 4:39 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by cholly at 4:39 AM on May 6, 2008
is it just me or is it mostly girls that have taken the opportunity?
posted by Dillonlikescookies at 5:22 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by Dillonlikescookies at 5:22 AM on May 6, 2008
If I were gonna draw one it would be of my pre-hiphop/pre-teen years of JNCO's and No Fear shirts.
posted by MNDZ at 5:44 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by MNDZ at 5:44 AM on May 6, 2008
Sad thing is, I still dress more or less the same as I did a 16.
posted by jonmc at 6:07 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by jonmc at 6:07 AM on May 6, 2008
This kept me looking and admiring for a while, and thanks for the Drawn! link, which is now bookmarked. My son, looking over my shoulder, said, "You should do one!"
I'm itching to give it a try.
posted by misha at 6:15 AM on May 6, 2008
I'm itching to give it a try.
posted by misha at 6:15 AM on May 6, 2008
I'm trying to recall what a typical outfit was for me in my teen years. I was nowhere near as goth/trendy as the folks in most of these. Of course, most of these were teens in the 90's and 00's. Circa 1988, I had long hair with big (but not gigantic) bangs, big glasses, and a habit of dressing for comfort.
posted by Karmakaze at 6:19 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by Karmakaze at 6:19 AM on May 6, 2008
I think if I could do artistic justice to the flock of seagulls hair I could extrapolate from there.
posted by rongorongo at 7:20 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by rongorongo at 7:20 AM on May 6, 2008
Why are these kids so trendy????
I was so NOT trendy at 16. I had a mullet and wore Poison t-shirts. And I rocked a porn star mustache. When is that look going to come back into vogue?
posted by lyam at 7:44 AM on May 6, 2008
I was so NOT trendy at 16. I had a mullet and wore Poison t-shirts. And I rocked a porn star mustache. When is that look going to come back into vogue?
posted by lyam at 7:44 AM on May 6, 2008
Maybe people should wait until they're not fucking 23 to be going on about how wack it was back in the old days when they were 16.
Damn kids. Get off my lawn.
posted by Naberius at 7:45 AM on May 6, 2008 [1 favorite]
Damn kids. Get off my lawn.
posted by Naberius at 7:45 AM on May 6, 2008 [1 favorite]
Eleven years ago I was listening to postpunk, in a pirate-themed joke-metal band that barely got to the practice stage, laughing at King Diamond, and wasting most of my life on the internet. Over the next ten years everything I was became de rigueur memetic accessories for every sixteen year old in America. I don't know if I should be amazed or ashamed.
I don't want to try to draw it, but I also looked like Ozzy Osbourne in baggy jeans and band shirts.
posted by bunnytricks at 8:16 AM on May 6, 2008
I don't want to try to draw it, but I also looked like Ozzy Osbourne in baggy jeans and band shirts.
posted by bunnytricks at 8:16 AM on May 6, 2008
This would be fun, and I'm a good artist, but jeez -- I haven't been a teenager for 39 years, so I am not sure I want to draw attention (ah ha ha) to the old me... hairbag that I was.
OTOH I have a series of a dozen or so post-it self-portraits stuck up in my cube, all done this year. Narcissism is what you make of it.
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 8:21 AM on May 6, 2008
OTOH I have a series of a dozen or so post-it self-portraits stuck up in my cube, all done this year. Narcissism is what you make of it.
posted by Guy_Inamonkeysuit at 8:21 AM on May 6, 2008
My wife did this and I like her results. My attempts would probably look like hesher blobs.
posted by drezdn at 8:44 AM on May 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by drezdn at 8:44 AM on May 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
Bookmarked. I have to write a paper by 3pm and this is totally distracting me! I'd love to do one of myself
...after finals!
posted by saxamo at 8:49 AM on May 6, 2008
...after finals!
posted by saxamo at 8:49 AM on May 6, 2008
In lieu of a drawing, let me give you the textual quin experience:
Age 17; Long greasy hair; shaved on the sides. Band T-shirt (probably AC/DC or Metallica), Jeans or BDUs, Levis Jacket with lots of buttons, pins and Sharpie artwork covering it. Combat boots (dirty). Pocket: Sunglasses, lighter, cigarettes, pocket-knife, $10.
Age 37; Short greasy hair; spiky (sometimes). T-shirt (probably AC/DC or Invader Zim), Jeans or BDUs, Dress shirt; left untucked. Combat boots (polished); Pocket: Sunglasses, flashlight, pocket-knife, $20.
Overall differences: 15 pounds heavier, better facial hair, smells less of smoke and more of booze. Still uses old Levis Jacket as a handy source of safety pins.
posted by quin at 8:51 AM on May 6, 2008
Age 17; Long greasy hair; shaved on the sides. Band T-shirt (probably AC/DC or Metallica), Jeans or BDUs, Levis Jacket with lots of buttons, pins and Sharpie artwork covering it. Combat boots (dirty). Pocket: Sunglasses, lighter, cigarettes, pocket-knife, $10.
Age 37; Short greasy hair; spiky (sometimes). T-shirt (probably AC/DC or Invader Zim), Jeans or BDUs, Dress shirt; left untucked. Combat boots (polished); Pocket: Sunglasses, flashlight, pocket-knife, $20.
Overall differences: 15 pounds heavier, better facial hair, smells less of smoke and more of booze. Still uses old Levis Jacket as a handy source of safety pins.
posted by quin at 8:51 AM on May 6, 2008
I love these.
posted by the littlest brussels sprout at 10:17 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by the littlest brussels sprout at 10:17 AM on May 6, 2008
omg, am i like the oldest person on mefi at 30 years old? did NO ONE else have the two can hair minimum hairstyle?
posted by eatdonuts at 10:21 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by eatdonuts at 10:21 AM on May 6, 2008
Hmm... I used to have a self-portrait of me as a teenager drawn when I was a teenager. I wonder if I can find it, because I was a better artist then. Cool post!
posted by oneirodynia at 11:10 AM on May 6, 2008
posted by oneirodynia at 11:10 AM on May 6, 2008
ok, that annoyed me being old so much I actually made on in about five minutes.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ohnonichole/2470928945/
posted by eatdonuts at 11:56 AM on May 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ohnonichole/2470928945/
posted by eatdonuts at 11:56 AM on May 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
Oh, I'm so doing this when I get home.
And eatdonuts, you're not the oldest MeFite here.
posted by grabbingsand at 12:41 PM on May 6, 2008
And eatdonuts, you're not the oldest MeFite here.
posted by grabbingsand at 12:41 PM on May 6, 2008
Too much 'The Crow' + too much 'Type O Negative' = Here I was.
posted by dgaicun at 3:36 PM on May 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
posted by dgaicun at 3:36 PM on May 6, 2008 [2 favorites]
So I'm a bit late to the table, but hey - Jilder at 16.
I'd cringe, but I still think of those manky old jeans with fondness. By the time they disintegrated they were closer to 25% hole, 25% drawings, 10% denim and 40% unspeakable filth.
posted by Jilder at 5:57 AM on May 7, 2008
I'd cringe, but I still think of those manky old jeans with fondness. By the time they disintegrated they were closer to 25% hole, 25% drawings, 10% denim and 40% unspeakable filth.
posted by Jilder at 5:57 AM on May 7, 2008
Well, that certainly raised a few issues I'd forgotten about...
You can see mine here.
posted by 1f2frfbf at 11:29 AM on May 7, 2008
You can see mine here.
posted by 1f2frfbf at 11:29 AM on May 7, 2008
1f2frfbf: "Well, that certainly raised a few issues I'd forgotten about...
You have no idea how ridiculously proud I am that I figured out your Seussian name the second I saw it. One of my favorites from him (I like your sketches, too).
posted by misha at 7:23 PM on May 7, 2008
You have no idea how ridiculously proud I am that I figured out your Seussian name the second I saw it. One of my favorites from him (I like your sketches, too).
posted by misha at 7:23 PM on May 7, 2008
biggest difference between me and my teen self: I have braces now.
posted by heeeraldo at 4:30 PM on May 12, 2008
posted by heeeraldo at 4:30 PM on May 12, 2008
Finally downloaded the sketch and captioned it after a week of injured kids and encroaching forest fires!
So, anyway, here's mine (self-link):
Teen Me
posted by misha at 8:28 AM on May 13, 2008
So, anyway, here's mine (self-link):
Teen Me
posted by misha at 8:28 AM on May 13, 2008
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posted by wendell at 1:28 AM on May 6, 2008