Tina Knowles

Célestine Ann Beyoncé (born January 4, 1954), known as Tina Knowles, is an American businesswoman and fashion designer known for her House of Deréon and Miss Tina by Tina Knowles fashion brands. She is the mother of singers Beyoncé Knowles and Solange Knowles, and, until 2011, was married to their father Mathew Knowles, the manager of Destiny's Child.

Personal life

Tina Knowles was born Célestine Ann Beyoncé in Galveston, Texas, in 1954, the last of seven siblings. She is of Louisiana Creole of color (French, Native American, and African),ancestry. Her family roots are from Boutte, Louisiana. She is a descendant of Acadian leader Joseph Broussard. While in high school, Knowles was a part of a singing group called the Veltones, inspired by The Supremes. She married Mathew Knowles in 1980. Filing for divorce in 2009, she dropped the matter in 2010, then refiled in August 2011, stating "discord or conflict of personalities" which prevented them from "reasonable expectation of reconciliation" as the reason. The divorce was finalized in November 2011.

Knowles has four grandchildren; granddaughters Blue Ivy and Rumi Carter and grandsons Daniel Julez J. Smith, Jr. and Sir Carter. She started dating actor Richard Lawson in the summer of 2013. The couple got married on April 12, 2015. Through this marriage, Knowles became stepmother to Lawson's daughter, actress Bianca Lawson.

Career

Tina Knowles started her career at 19 when she relocated to California to work as a makeup artist for Shiseido. However, she returned home when her parents fell ill. Knowles worked as a dance choreographer for UAB in Birmingham, Alabama before working as a beautician until 1990 when she opened the salon Headliners, located in Houston. The salon went on to become one of the most famous hair businesses in Houston. Tina's rise to prominence came as costume designer for Destiny's Child. In the early days of her daughter's career, when money was limited, she created outfits that the members wore on-stage and to events. In 2002, she published a book titled Destiny's Style: Bootylicious Fashion, Beauty and Lifestyle Secrets From Destiny's Child in which she discussed how fashion affected Destiny's Child's success. The book was published through the company HarperCollins.

In 2004, Tina Knowles launched the clothing line House of Deréon alongside Beyoncé, naming it after her mother Agnes Deréon. On November 22, 2010, Knowles appeared with Beyoncé on The View to promote her clothing line called "Miss Tina by Tina Knowles". In 2010, she expanded the line to Walmart after it was previously being sold on the Home Shopping Network. Discussing her style of designing for the line, Knowles revealed she aimed to "hide flaws and create a slimming silhouette", adding, "Everything is created like a foundation garment, even the dresses. The pieces are designed to make the woman look leaner and taller." In 2010, Tina Knowles again collaborated with Beyoncé to open the Beyoncé Cosmetology Center at the Phoenix House in Brooklyn.