![](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/NMAAHC-2013_141_1_001-1673x1254.jpg)
![The metal hat, seen in Washington Friday, June 11, 2010, will be part of a memorial to Dorothy Height, longtime president of the National Council of Negro Women the leading female voice of the 1960s civil rights movement. It is a metal replica of a hat created by Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, who created the hats worn by Height, which were known far and wide as a statement of her dignity and grace. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100611133891-1880x1254.jpg)
![In this April 27, 2010, file photo milliner Vanilla P. Beane, 90, left, talks about her friendship with the late Dorothy Height, the leading female voice of the 1960s civil rights movement, outside the National Council of Negro Women building in Washington, where Height's casket arrived for public viewing. When Height died at age 98 this spring, some of her friends and admirers wore hats to her funeral as a final tribute, Beane among them. And many of the women also wore purple, Height's favorite color. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP000101029494-1750x1254.jpg)
![In this March 24, 2004, file photo civil rights advocate Dorothy Height, wearing one of her signature hats created by Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, is applauded after receiving the Congressional Gold Medal during a ceremony at the Capitol Rotunda in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP040324012349.jpg)
![Washington milliner Vanilla Beane poses in front of creations in her shop, Bene', in Washington Saturday, May 29, 2010. The ninety-year-old knows that a hat can be so much more than mere headgear. Look no further than Beane's favorite customer: civil rights pioneer Dorothy Height, whose hats were known far and wide as a statement of her dignity and grace. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100529153072-1880x1254.jpg)
![Hats are seen inside of the Washington hat shop, Bene', of 90-year-old Washington milliner Vanilla Beane Saturday, May 29, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100529018853-1880x1254.jpg)
![Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, 90, works on a hat design in her shop, Bene', in Washington, Thursday, June 10, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100610139733-1880x1213.jpg)
![Hats by Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, 90, are on display inside of her shop, Bene', in Washington on Saturday, May 29, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100529153080-1880x1243.jpg)
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![](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/NMAAHC-2013_141_1_001-260x174.jpg)
![The metal hat, seen in Washington Friday, June 11, 2010, will be part of a memorial to Dorothy Height, longtime president of the National Council of Negro Women the leading female voice of the 1960s civil rights movement. It is a metal replica of a hat created by Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, who created the hats worn by Height, which were known far and wide as a statement of her dignity and grace. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100611133891-260x174.jpg)
![In this April 27, 2010, file photo milliner Vanilla P. Beane, 90, left, talks about her friendship with the late Dorothy Height, the leading female voice of the 1960s civil rights movement, outside the National Council of Negro Women building in Washington, where Height's casket arrived for public viewing. When Height died at age 98 this spring, some of her friends and admirers wore hats to her funeral as a final tribute, Beane among them. And many of the women also wore purple, Height's favorite color. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP000101029494-260x174.jpg)
![In this March 24, 2004, file photo civil rights advocate Dorothy Height, wearing one of her signature hats created by Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, is applauded after receiving the Congressional Gold Medal during a ceremony at the Capitol Rotunda in Washington. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP040324012349-260x174.jpg)
![Washington milliner Vanilla Beane poses in front of creations in her shop, Bene', in Washington Saturday, May 29, 2010. The ninety-year-old knows that a hat can be so much more than mere headgear. Look no further than Beane's favorite customer: civil rights pioneer Dorothy Height, whose hats were known far and wide as a statement of her dignity and grace. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100529153072-260x174.jpg)
![Hats are seen inside of the Washington hat shop, Bene', of 90-year-old Washington milliner Vanilla Beane Saturday, May 29, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100529018853-260x174.jpg)
![Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, 90, works on a hat design in her shop, Bene', in Washington, Thursday, June 10, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100610139733-260x174.jpg)
![Hats by Washington milliner Vanilla Beane, 90, are on display inside of her shop, Bene', in Washington on Saturday, May 29, 2010. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/AP100529153080-260x174.jpg)
![](https://wtop.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/smithsonian-260x174.jpeg)
Vanilla Beane, who was nicknamed “the hat lady,” in D.C. has died at 103. Beane became known as a fashion icon and created unique hats for women.
Vanilla Beane opened Bené Millinery & Bridal Supplies in Ward 4 in 1979. In the decades since, she served “the African American community that kept the tradition of ornate hats alive, especially in church,” according to a news release from D.C.
Her custom-made hats could cost up to $500 and among her customers was civil rights activist Dorothy Height. That particular hat ended up on a U.S. Postal Stamp.
But the world of glamour and high fashion wasn’t one she was born into — it was one she built for herself over decades.
Born on Sept. 13, 1919 in Wilson, Carolina, Beane was the second youngest of nine children. Far from the world of fashion design, Beane worked on a farm where she picked tobacco and cotton and also babysat. As a kid, she attended classes in a one-room schoolhouse in Nash County.
She moved to D.C. to be near her sisters and eventually married Willie George Beane on Jan. 3, 1942, giving her the sweet name.
The couple married before Willie’s tour abroad with the U.S. Army during World War II, according to her website. She worked as a seamstress in the 1940s, gaining experience in design.
In 1956, Beane was working as an elevator operator in a building where the Washington Millinery & Supply, Co. was located. There, she bought a hat frame and some supplies to design her own hat.
The owners of the shop were impressed with her talent and eventually she was offered a job with the company.
She left the company and worked as a mail clerk but continued making hats as a hobby. Later on, that pastime became her career when Beane opened her own store in 1979.
Even after turning 100, Beane continued making hats of all sizes and colors. Her regulars ranged from church ladies to derby-attendees to D.C.’s elite, according to her website.
Though many of her designs were exuberant, Beane had a conservative style and said she preferred to wear a turban herself.
Serving D.C. in fashion
Beane’s bold hats didn’t go unnoticed. She received many awards both for her service to the community and for her business achievements.
She was inducted into the National Association of Fashion and Accessory Designers’ Hall of Fame in 1975.
D.C. celebrated her on “Vanilla Beane Day” on Nov. 22, 2003 and again on her 100th birthday in September 2019.
Her designs were curated in an exhibit in the National Museum of African-American History & Culture when it opened in September 2016. One mid-century design, a green circular hat, was archived as a 3D model online.
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser presented Beane with the Mayor’s Arts Award for Distinguished Honor on her 103rd birthday in September 2022.
Bowser issued the following statement about Beane after learning about her death:
Combining grace, elegance, and longevity, Ms. Vanilla Beane embodied Black excellence. Her talents have been on display in our city since I was just a little girl. No matter the occasion or the outfit, whether she was designing for a neighbor or a civil rights icon like Dorothy Height, Ms. Beane always knew how to make the perfect hat. I was honored to celebrate her at this year’s Mayor’s Arts Awards, and now her story is a part of DC’s story. She was DC’s Hat Lady. She was a mother, a grandmother, and a great grandmother. She was an inspiration for generations of Black women and for anyone who ever thought about turning their talent into a business that you love so much you stay at it into your hundreds. Rest in heaven, Ms. Beane. We will miss your beautiful soul and the beauty you brought to this world. Today, we send our love and prayers to Ms. Beane’s family and all who will miss her.”
Beane had three children: Margaret L. Seymour, Esq., Linda R. Jefferson, and Willie G. Beane, Jr. She also had seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Her first child, Willie G. Beane Jr. died in 1980 and her husband died in 1993.