Creative visions are the gift of a select few. For Mary Hastings, empty rooms summon substance and energy. Plain walls seek the stroke of a brush, and tired furniture awaits revival. Interior spaces are a canvas for her intrinsic sense of desire for composition and color. Mary's purest talent lies in her ability to see potential where other might see confusion. 

Background

Her design aptitudes were born early and nurtured through her love for drawing and painting. A trained fine artist with a bachelor of fine arts degree, Mary has always honored her passion for creating while raising her three children over the past 25 years. Her initial zeal for working with interior spaces in informal and often spontaneous settings; family gatherings frequently evolved into the rearrangement of a room's entire inventory. Vigorous debates over color and materials, comfort and practicality were a normal part of her family's dialogue. 

Style

Equipped with the passion and natural sense of color and composition that brought incredible emotional energy to her landscapes and still lifes, Mary seeks the traditional, but with flair. Come to her for elegance, charm, and whimsy and you won't be disappointed. Mary deliberately works to make rooms look like they have evolved over time, integrating both the old and the new. The opportunity to layer client's inherited pieces or personal collections with new elements defines and celebrates a family's unique history and style. In an era when houses are often stocked overnight from the pages of a catalog, Mary's ability to blend the old and the new is a gift indeed.

With years of studying the breadth and juxtaposition of colors that emerged on her palette and canvases, it is no wonder that color continues to be Mary's calling card. She is passionate about color and the impact it has on a room's mood. Every color on its own can be evocative, but it can be brought to a new level when it is paired with the right complement. Crisp, clear shades induce immediate delight and comfort. Mary uses color to makes the dull brilliant and inviting.

For a gala at the Marketplace Design Center in Philadelphia, Mary transformed a dining room into a fresh, sophisticated vignette using a striking collection of Straffordshire perched on tomato red brackets against a black wall. To Mary's secret delight, one guest remarked that her work roused images of Sister Parish, a comparison she'll accept any day.  

Mary loves using her drawing and design skills to create what doesn't exist. If she can't find the perfect solution for her client, whether a sideboard, headboard, valence or some other piece of furniture, she'll design it. It gives her immense enjoyment to use her creativity in such a resourceful way.

Clients

Today, her clients span from Philadelphia's Main Line, Bucks County to Manhattan, and assignments can be as modest as choosing paint colors to renovating a bathroom or totally designing a home. Mary understands that the design process can only succeed with a strong client relationship that encourages active collaboration driven by a mutual trust and respect. She feels that she is an interpreter - she listens to her client's visions and desires and transforms them into a glorious, practical, and durable reality. As a room evolves from thoughts to a living space where a family will spend time together or a child will sleep and dream, Mary feels a tremendous sense of satisfaction as well as responsibility in her work.

Mary is part visionary and part cheerleader, using her talent for design and love for working with people to make the process successful as well as fun. When it's all said and done, she wants to bring beauty into people's lives.