"It was a long struggle and more work than anything I'd ever done," Mary admits. "But I didn't concentrate on all the things that were missing. When I shined a flashlight inside and saw a Creole ceiling with exposed beams overhead, it took my breath away and carried me through."

The two-story Creole cottage she rescued with Tomio Thomann in the Bywater neighborhood wasn't her first old-house project. She lived a few blocks away in a beautifully restored home overlooking the Mississippi River when her daughter purchased the Creole cottage, struggled to stabilize it, and finally gave up. That's when Mary took over and sold her own house—in just 10 days.

About the same time, Tomio came back into Mary's life after 32 years. They'd known each other in art school, but the day she almost ran over him on her bicycle signaled the beginning of a partnership that would bring vitality and unerring style into a house that hadn't seen much care since its construction in the early 1800s.

The first and lasting impression this house makes is a bold one. "The house is the color of limoncello, the Italian liqueur," explains Mary, who makes and serves it. "I wanted something that would rock people's world. I'm sick to death of pastels." Guests transition from the shock of the exterior hue and sunlight into a restful palette of unexpected room colors that would seem impossible to anyone holding chips in a paint store. Unusual trim and ceiling colors pique interest and add an emphasis so natural that they recede into the overall impression.

photography: Minh + Wass The upstairs hall serves as a sitting room where Mary displays her collection of Shearwater Pottery. As a child she lived across the street from that pottery studio in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.

photography: Minh + Wass The upstairs bedroom, with a 19th-century bed, has Mary’s signature painted ceiling. She painted the fan blades the same hue to camouflage them.