Mary Louise creates colorful textile art inspired by memories of world travel and living on Saipan (in the Marianna Islands), Quito, Ecuador, and most recently, Kathmandu and Nepal. She has created fiber art based on the changes in the traditional life of indigenous people that have resulted from development. Since returning from Nepal in 2003 and retiring, she has been a docent at the Portland Art Museum.

Mary Louise has taken fiber art classes and workshops at the Oregon College of Art and Craft. She has exhibited her work at the Sixth Street Gallery and the North Bank Gallery in Vancouver, as well as, the Artreach Gallery and Docent Art Shows in Portland.