Maria Lydaki was born and raised in Heraklion. She studied Pedagogy and worked for the Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation S.A.

She started taking icon painting lessons at the Hellenic Telecommunications Organisation S.A. cultural department under Emmanouil Stylianakis and then under Manolis and Rania Kiagiadakis (2 years) and at the icon painting school of the Saint Titus church under Georgios Cheirakakis (three years). In 2000 – 2001 she held a solo exhibition at the Androgeo Hall of the Municipality of Heraklion.