Mary (Granville) Delany, 1700-1788, was an English artist, letter-writer, and author. She was born at Coulston, Wiltshire to Colonel Bernard Granville and Mary Westcombe on May 14, 1700. After losing the opportunity to serve as a lady-in-waiting, Delany was married to Member of Parliament Alexander Pendarves in 1718 for political and financial reasons. Their marriage was an unhappy one, and she was widowed in 1725. After her first husband's death, Delany continued to cultivate her own interests and hobbies, including needlework, botany, drawing, and painting. On a trip to Ireland, she met her second husband, Dr. Patrick Delany, and they married in June 1743. After 25 years of marriage, she was widowed a second time when Dr. Delany died in 1768. Her second widowhood allowed Delany to hone her skills in botany and her talent for creating elaborate botanical decoupage. She is most well-known for these works of decoupage, which she called her "paper mosaicks," and for her lively and extensive correspondence.