Nina Mouritzen
Style Idols: Bebban Stenborg
Issue #35
The Shout Out Louds’ keyboardist-accordionist’s style channels Led Zeppelin by way of Little House on the Prairie
By Robin Lee
Published: March 1st, 2008 | 2:57pm
Bebban Stenborg is as retro chic as it gets. As a member of the Swedish band the Shout Out Louds, Stenborg is known not only for her skills on keys and reeds but also for an eclectic wardrobe in a style that she calls “attic.” She likes her clothes from decades past and likely discovered in trunks and boxes. Taking cues from movies like Out of Africa, photographs of ’60s and ’70s music festivals, free spirits like Joni Mitchell, Stenborg’s look is classic vintage with a contemporary twist.
“I’d mix Robert Plant and Laura Ingalls,” Stenborg says of her style icons. She’s fond of Plant’s high-waisted, circulation-cutting jeans and Ingalls’ frolicy dresses — Stenborg would probably wear them together and with several strands of vintage beads.
Though describes herself as “not all that fashionable,” we beg to differ. Stenborg has shopped in thrift stores all over Europe and the U.S., with a secret spot in Kansas that, she promises, has the best in vintage finds. She scored her favorite pair of shoes in Chile and her best denim jeans while on tour. From cute bags and pegged pants found in Stockholm to her favorite tent dress she wears onstage, Stenborg’s attic seems to be very international.
And when it comes to shows, Stenborg says function is more important than fashion. “I’m sensitive to what I wear and I don’t like to dress in things that are too tight,” she says. “Normally loose-fitting dresses work but nothing that will get caught in any instrument,” she reasons, citing one unfortunate mishap involving an article of clothing and her accordion.
Though she’s not one to shop exclusively at designer stores, the Stenborg admires their styles. Marc Jacobs and Anna Sui catch her eye, as do Ben Sherman’s collared shirts and cuffed jeans.
While Stenborg might be an avid shopper, she prefers to dig for clothing that has history than simply stroll to a popular store to find her style. With her polyester scooter dresses, wedge heels, and knitted sweaters, Stenborg would never trade her “attic” style, a hand-picked mix of vintage finds from across the globe, for the more accessible, yet run-of-the-mill fashion.
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