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Emo Drawing Ideas

Three emo subjects per press, each with its level and how to build it.

Emo Drawing Ideas

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  1. Messenger bag covered in pin badgesMedium. The flap is a big rectangle. Scatter fifteen small circles on it with a different doodle in each.
  2. Setlist taped down beside a mic standMedium. A sheet of paper in perspective with tape at the corners. Invent ten song titles for it.
  3. Mismatched laces, one neon and one blackEasy. A matching pair of shoes laced in two colors. Color is the whole idea, so pick two that clash.

Next step More outfits: fashion drawing ideasMore music things to draw

All 80 ideas

Clothes and hair 20

  • Back view of choppy layered hair Medium. Layers end in points like overlapping leaves: short and spiky at the crown, long at the nape.
  • Beanie pulled low with hair poking out Easy. The ribbed band is short vertical lines. Hair escapes in pointed clumps at both sides.
  • Canvas high-tops with doodles on the toe caps Easy. Each toe cap is a half circle. Fill it with stars and checks in pen; the laces cross five times.
  • Checkerboard belt with its tail hanging loose Medium. A long strap of small black and white squares through a plain buckle. The loose end hangs past the hip.
  • Checkerboard slip-on shoes, one tipped on its side Medium. The checks curve over the toe and shrink toward the heel. The rubber sole stays bare paper.
  • Folded bandana tied to a bag strap Easy. A folded band, a small knot and two pointed tails. Add a paisley teardrop or two.
  • Jet-black hair with one bright streak Easy. Draw the hair as flat black clumps, leave one clump bare, then color it with a single marker.
  • Messenger bag covered in pin badges Medium. The flap is a big rectangle. Scatter fifteen small circles on it with a different doodle in each.
  • Mismatched laces, one neon and one black Easy. A matching pair of shoes laced in two colors. Color is the whole idea, so pick two that clash.
  • Plaid pants with zippers at the knees Hard. Draw the folds first, then run the plaid over them. Zippers are ladders of tiny dashes.
  • Rubber wristbands stacked on a drumstick Easy. A stick held upright with eight bands slid down it. Leave some bare, fill some black and letter one.
  • Skinny jeans with a wallet chain at the pocket Medium. The chain is a row of small ovals in a U shape. The legs are two narrow tubes creased at the knee.
  • Skinny tie loosened over a T-shirt Medium. The knot hangs low and crooked. Stripe the tie on the diagonal and keep the shirt plain.
  • Striped hoodie laid flat, thumb holes in the cuffs Medium. Nobody in it. Each cuff ends in a small stitched slot. Stripe the sleeves and fill the body black.
  • Striped scarf with fringed ends Easy. A long rectangle looped once. The stripes follow every fold; the fringe is short flicks.
  • Tee, jeans, belt and shoes arranged as if worn Hard. Lay the whole outfit flat with nobody in it. Keep it to black, white and one accent color.
  • Thick-rimmed glasses under long bangs Medium. Rectangular frames, filled black. The hair crosses one lens, so draw it over the frame last.
  • Three star clips holding back a side part Easy. Three five-point stars in a row. The hair sweeps under them in long curves.
  • Two-tone hair, black on top and blond beneath Medium. Draw the top layer as a dark cap ending in points. The pale layer shows below it.
  • Zip hoodie with a star-print lining Medium. Hood down, zipper half open. The lining shows only inside the hood: small stars, evenly spaced.

Music and gig things 20

  • Amps and cases stacked by a back door Hard. An amp, two guitar cases and a pile of drum cases. Draw each as a plain box first, then round the corners.
  • Backstage pass on a lanyard Easy. A rounded rectangle with a slot at the top. A big invented band name, and the word CREW small.
  • Bass guitar propped in a corner Hard. Four strings, a long neck and four big tuning pegs. The body's two horns are unequal.
  • Bus window seat with a guitar case in the next seat Hard. The case stands upright in its seat. The window is a pale rectangle crossed by streaks of passing lights.
  • Capo, tuner and a spare set of strings Medium. Three small things in a row: a spring clamp, a clip with a tiny screen and a square packet to letter.
  • Chord box with finger dots on the strings Easy. Six upright lines for the strings and four across for the frets. Three filled dots show where fingers go.
  • Drumstick twirling between two fingers Easy. Draw the stick three times in a fan, the last one darkest. Curved lines join the tips.
  • Earbud cord wrapped around an old music player Medium. A small rounded slab with one round control pad. Wind the cord around it five times.
  • Effects pedals cabled together on a board Hard. Each pedal is a small box with a row of knobs and a foot switch. Short cables link them.
  • Guitar pick on a ball chain Easy. A rounded triangle with a hole near the top. The chain is a row of dots. Doodle a star on the pick.
  • Keyboard with one key marked in tape Medium. Rule the white keys evenly and sit the black ones in twos and threes. A tape square marks one.
  • Merch table with three shirt designs Hard. A folding table seen front-on. Design three shirts for one invented band and pin them up behind.
  • Microphone wrapped in tape at the grip Medium. The mesh head is a ball of cross-hatching. Tape winds around the handle in overlapping bands.
  • Paper wristband kept after a show Easy. A loop of paper tape with a sticky tab. Print a date and a made-up venue along it.
  • Practice amp the size of a shoebox Easy. A small box, one speaker circle and three knobs on top. The cable snakes off the page.
  • Setlist taped down beside a mic stand Medium. A sheet of paper in perspective with tape at the corners. Invent ten song titles for it.
  • Stack of gig stubs in a binder clip Easy. Five rectangles a little out of line, each with one torn end. Letter only the top one: a date and a door time.
  • Sticker-plastered acoustic guitar body Medium. A figure-eight body with a round hole. Cluster six different stickers on the lower half.
  • Tour van with stickers across the back doors Hard. A boxy van seen from behind. Fill both doors with sticker shapes and invent every one.
  • Worn drumsticks resting across a practice pad Medium. The pad is a flat disc seen at an angle. Chew up the stick tips with short rough strokes.

Notebook doodles and lettering 20

  • A loud word in spiky capitals Medium. Every stroke ends in a point and every corner is sharp. Add a second outline, offset to the right.
  • A word where every O is a star Easy. Pick a word with two Os. Thick block letters, with a star sitting where each O would be.
  • Bat-winged star, filled solid black Easy. A five-point star with a wing each side. Each wing is three scallops hanging from a curved arm.
  • Border of stars and music notes by turns Easy. Run it down the margin, a finger apart. Fill the note heads and leave the stars bare.
  • Calendar counting down to a gig Medium. A grid of squares with an X through most. Circle the last one and put a star in it.
  • Eight pin badge designs, one symbol each Easy. Eight circles: a star, a bolt, a note, a bat, a check, a heart, a cat and your initial.
  • Frame of alternating black and white squares Easy. Two rows of small squares all the way around the page. Make the corners meet cleanly.
  • Lightning bolts repeated into a pattern Easy. Rows of small zigzag bolts, every second row upside down. Fill alternate bolts black.
  • Monogram filled in like a chessboard Medium. Outline your initials as fat capitals, rule a tilted grid across them and fill alternate squares.
  • Music note with a lightning bolt for its stem Easy. A filled oval note head. The stem is a zigzag bolt with a thick outline and a flag at the top.
  • Nautical star, half of every point filled black Medium. A five-point star split from the center to every tip and notch. Fill every second triangle black.
  • Padlock doodle with a star-shaped keyhole Easy. A rounded square with a thick shackle. The keyhole is a small five-point star, filled black.
  • Page margin filled with stars of five sizes Easy. Draw each star without lifting the pen. Fill the biggest black and leave the smallest open.
  • Page packed with stars, bolts and checks, no gaps Hard. Start with five big shapes, then fit smaller ones into every gap. Fill half of them black as you go.
  • Row of tiny hearts, every other one filled black Easy. One small shape repeated along a ruled line. Fill alternate ones solid and leave the rest as outlines.
  • Speaker doodle blasting stars and notes Medium. A box with two circles. Stars, bolts and notes fly out of it, big near the cone and tiny at the page edge.
  • Spiky shout bubble with ENCORE inside Easy. Block capitals inside a jagged outline. Or swap in another word about noise: LOUD, AGAIN.
  • Stick-figure band on a notebook corner Easy. Four figures: one at the drums, two with guitars, one at a mic. Give each a different haircut.
  • Upside-down bat perched on a ruled notebook line Easy. It hangs under the line by its feet. Wings folded like a closed umbrella, two dot eyes.
  • Your name as a band logo Medium. All capitals with the letters touching. Turn one letter backward or swap it for a star.

Room and keepsakes 20

  • Bed with a checkered blanket and a star cushion Medium. The checks bend over the edge of the mattress. One cushion breaks the pattern.
  • Bookshelf where every spine is black but one Easy. Rule fifteen spines of different widths. Fill all but one black, then color that one.
  • Cat curled up inside a discarded hoodie Medium. The cat is one curled black shape with two ear points. Drawstrings trail from under it.
  • CD tower leaning to one side Easy. A tall thin rack of thin boxes, tilted a little. Pull three cases halfway out.
  • Clock radio showing a late hour Easy. A box with block digits of seven strokes each. Use the hour you finish the drawing.
  • Desk drawer full of pens with chewed caps Medium. A shallow box in perspective, pulled half open. Twenty pens at every angle, three without caps.
  • Gig poster curling away from its tape Medium. The corner curls forward as a triangle with a shadow under it. Tape squares stay on the wall.
  • Homework desk under a clip-on lamp, earbuds trailing Medium. One pool of lamplight on the desk. Everything outside it is hatched darker.
  • Hoodie on a hook behind a door Easy. The hood droops forward and the sleeves hang straight. Flat black, with two white drawstrings.
  • Jar full of guitar picks Easy. The jar is a cylinder with an ellipse at the top. Fill it with rounded triangles at every angle.
  • Journal bulging with paper, held by an elastic band Medium. A thick book whose pages fan at the edge. Ticket corners and a pressed leaf poke out.
  • KNOCK FIRST sign lettered in marker capitals Medium. A card taped to a door at a slight tilt. Uneven capitals, with a star for the period.
  • Laptop lid covered in stickers Medium. A rounded rectangle in perspective. Pack it edge to edge with invented stickers that overlap.
  • Mirror with photos tucked into its frame Medium. A plain rectangle. Small photos lean in at the corners; sketch only a shape or two in each.
  • Music magazines tied in a bundle Easy. A stack of thin slabs with string crossed over the top. Invent the title on the uppermost cover.
  • Nightstand with a tangled charger cable Medium. A small cube with a lamp on it. The cable loops over the edge and down to the floor.
  • Shoebox of ticket stubs and wristbands Medium. A box in two-point view with the lid off. Six stubs stick up at angles, each with a torn end.
  • Signed drumhead hung on a wall Medium. A circle with a rim. Invent four signatures and a date and write them across it in marker.
  • Slice of bedroom seen from the hallway Hard. A tall strip of room between door and frame: a bed corner, a guitar on a stand, posters. The door is a dark band.
  • T-shirts folded in a stack, a star on the top one Easy. Five flat slabs with rounded edges, black and white by turns. A star print shows on the top fold.

How it works

Choppy black hair, checkerboard shoes, a gig ticket kept for years: these 80 emo drawing ideas stay with the look that went mainstream in the early 2000s. Every hint opens with Easy, Medium or Hard.

Read the full guide

Black, white and one color

Most of this list works in black pen on white paper with a single accent: one hair streak, one pair of laces, one book spine. Fill the blacks solid and flat. Checks and stars are the two patterns that keep coming back, so try both small in a margin first.

Four kinds of subject

Clothes and hair is the look itself: skinny jeans, choppy layers, canvas high-tops. Music and gig things are the kit and the keepsakes of a show. Notebook doodles and lettering fit beside lined notes. Room and keepsakes is the bedroom the rest lives in. No band is named, so every name and logo is yours to invent.

  • Rule a checkerboard lightly in pencil before you ink it. Freehand squares drift.
  • Draw a five-point star in one stroke, then thicken its outline.

Questions and answers

What are easy emo things to draw?

Press once, then choose Easy in the list under the button. Guitar pick on a ball chain is a rounded triangle and a row of dots; Row of tiny hearts, every other one filled black is one small shape repeated.

What do I need to draw in an emo style?

A black fine liner, a thicker black marker for fills and one bright marker or pencil. The style is flat: solid black shapes, thick outlines and a single color used in one place.

What can I doodle in a notebook?

Choose Notebook doodles and lettering. Page margin filled with stars of five sizes, Monogram filled in like a chessboard and Upside-down bat perched on a ruled notebook line all fit beside lined notes.

How is emo different from gothic drawing?

Gothic drawing ideas is pointed arches, iron scrolls and wilting roses in heavy ink. This list is everyday things from a music scene: shoes, hair, tickets, notebooks and bedrooms.

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