Here’s how to spot them:
Clothes: Wayfarers, nerd glasses, buffalo plaid, beyond skinny jeans (jeggings?), vintage-y shoes, fedoras, bowler hats, scarves. Frequents American Apparel/Urban Outfitters and/or spends lots of money on up-and-coming/independent designer items to pass off as “vintage.” Sometimes actually buys vintage. Clothes are generally unflattering. Most street interviews featured here are an excellent example of classic hipster style.
Body type: Skinny – all the better to rock jeggings with, m’dear. Not lithe or lean – think borderline anemic (usually a result of cigarettes and/or cocaine). Boys look like girls and vice versa. Androgyny is the key. Hair - teased, dirty and damaged. Also, I've recently noticed an abundance of Colonel Custer-style facial hair patterns amongst the male variety.
Culture: Politically – left of left. Enjoys (or maintains to) independent music, film, art, news, fashion. Looks homeless but likely lives off parentals/trust funds.
Resides/Frequents: Downtown, Silverlake and Venice. Prefers grungy, dim, cigarette-smoke-filled bars. Wouldn’t be caught dead in a dance-y club, especially one in Hollywood.
Drinks: Anything, and often.
Eats: Doesn’t.
Despite the fact that the majority of hipsters are straight up douchey, they’re actually a good crowd to be a part on in LA. The reason being, despite their homeless appearance and rejection of all things corporate or mainstream, the average hipster is spawned from an upper (or at least middle) class background. Therefore, by befriending hipsters or even infiltrating the hipster crowd, there’s a good chance that you’ll gain connections to some of the most powerful people in Los Angeles (and the industry, for all you Hollywood-bound transplants out there).
Here are a few tips on how to navigate around hipsters:
1. Never call a hipster a hipster. My friend from upstate New York made this mistake this past Saturday when he told a guy that he “looks like Q-Tip in hipster clothes.” Which was hilarious, but the hipster in question was not amused. Also, a hipster will never actually cop to being one.
2. Look bored. Make fun of others and generally act snotty.
3. If you’re Republican or even somewhere near the middle, keep it to yourself, at the risk of being tarred and feathered. Or sneered at – which, in this city, may be worse.
4. All topics of conversation must be obscure. If there’s a chance that the average person eavesdropping on your conversation would be familiar with the band/movie/designer that you’re discussing, you need to step your game up and acquaint yourself with topics that bear no relevance or connection to the real world. If aforementioned eavesdropper would suspect recent consumption of LSD or mushrooms, you’re doing a good job.
5. Smoke often, eat nothing.
Please feel free to add you own tips on how to navigate the hipster scene in the comments section.
