Hidden Figures: Vanilla Beane #BlackHERstoryMonth 20/28 (Patreon)

Hidden Figures: Vanilla Beane #BlackHERstoryMonth 20/28

If you enjoy my work, please consider supporting! CashApp: $SerenSensei Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/seren_sensei Vanilla Beane is a milliner or hatmaker, known for her custom-made pieces, especially those worn by civil rights activist Dorothy Height.⁣ Born Vanilla Powell in Wilson, North Carolina in 1919, Beane is the daughter of a sharecropper and the youngest of seven children. In 1942, at the age of 23, she followed her sister to Washington, D.C., where she met and married a man named Willie Beane. She held a variety of jobs throughout the years, including working as an elevator operator. In the 50s, she secured a job working in the downtown Washington Millinery Supply, owned by Richard Dietrick, Sr, as a seamstress and supply clerk. This is where she first began to learn the art of hatmaking, and her first hat was a simple buckram frame that she covered in fabric. After leaving the Washington Millinery Supply, she continued to create hats as a hobby while working as a mail clerk for the General Services Administration. But in 1979, Dietrick retired, selling her his line of millinery supplies. Later that year, she opened Bene’ Millinery & Bridal Supplies on Third Street in Northwest Washington, in order to create special hats for church and other occasions in the Black American community. She became known as ‘DC’s Hat Lady.’ Pre-covid, she sold custom-made hats for six decades at Bene’ Millinery and Bridal Supplies, making headwear for church goers, derby attendees, socialites and community leaders. Her custom-made designs could cost up to $500. Beane also became a civic leader in the Washington community, at one point even elected president of the National Council for Negro Women, an organization whose mission was to advance the opportunities and quality of life for Black American women, their families, and communities. Other presidents would include founder Mary McCleod Bethune and activist Dorothy Height, whom Beane considered a friend. Height also became a regular client, becoming known for her iconic, one-of-a-kind hats made by Beane. When Height was honored on a US Postal Service Stamp as a civil rights leader, she was pictured wearing one of her signature Beane hats. Another famous client included Maya Angelou. Beane turned 100 in 2019, and was celebrated in her hometown with September 13th declared ‘Vanilla Beane Day’ in the District of Columbia. She wears a hat every day of the week, especially for service on Sundays at Gethsemene Baptist Church, where she’s been worshiping for more than 50 years. Her favorite turban is part of Google’s 3-D interactive exhibit curated at the National Museum of African-American History and Culture. In 1954, she was inducted into the National Association of Fashion and Accessory Designers (NAFAD) Hall of Fame. #HiddenFigures #VanillaBeane ****************** Merchandise! MAKE SURE U GETTA SHIRT!! https://www.teepublic.com/user/sssseren https://www.shophouseof950.com/embroidery-tees/theblackamericans https://www.shophouseof950.com/embroidery-tees/dacs?rq=d.a.c.s Follow me on social media! Instagram: @sensei_aishitemasu Personal Tumblr: http://sensei-aishitemasu.tumblr.com Tumblr for my work: https://sssseren.tumblr.com Snapchat: sssseren GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/tc5wh7q ****************** Did you know I wrote a book? ☺️ 'So, About That... A Year of Contemporary Essays on Race and Pop Culture' Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/About-That-Contemporary-Essays-Culture-ebook/dp/B013V0CHK6 Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013V0CHK6 Digital download (e-book): https://gumroad.com/l/IkUa ****************** Links: https://nmaahc.si.edu/explore/collection/search?edan_q=vanilla%20beane&edan_local=1&op=Search Meet Vanilla Beane, the 100-Year-Old Milliner Behind Washington D.C.’s Prettiest Hats: https://www.southernliving.com/culture/vanilla-beane-washington-dc-milliner Celebrating Vanilla Beane, ‘D.C.’s Hat Lady,’ The Milliner Who Paved The Way For Black Female Entrepreneurs: https://www.bet.com/news/national/2019/09/02/hats-off-to-vanilla-beane--washington--dcs-famed-milliner-turns-.html 100-Year-Old "DC Hat Lady" Lives a Fulfilled Life: https://www1.cbn.com/100-year-old-dc-hat-lady-lives-fulfilled-life VANILLA BEANE, MILLINER EXTRAORDINAIRE: https://afamwilsonnc.com/2016/09/28/vanilla-beane-milliner-extraordinaire/ This 100-Year-Old Woman Is Still Making Hats—and They’re Amazing: https://www.washingtonian.com/2019/09/13/vanilla-beane-100-year-old-womanl-making-amazing-hats/ DC's hat lady, Ms. Vanilla Beane turns 100: https://www.wusa9.com/article/features/producers-picks/dchatlady/65-012a3d54-117c-4caa-a78d-5091b650a140 100-year-old D.C. hat maker still loving her craft, 40 years after opening her shop: https://wjla.com/news/local/vanilla-beane-hat-maker-dc Vanilla Beane and Leonard Green Join Babson Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs: https://entrepreneurship.babson.edu/vanilla-beane-leonard-green-join-ade/