Ronnie's Collection of Spoons

As I move forward with the blog, I want to highlight the talents and interests of its many readers. Over the years I've gotten to know many of you and I continue to be inspired and delighted by the diverstiy and skill of your myriad accomplishments in the fields we so closely associate with Martha Stewart: cooking, baking, decorating, collecting, gardening, designing, crafting, sewing and more. At the bottom of this post you will find a list of the Martha Moments readers I have highlighted so far. So many creative people!

This post is dedicated to Ronnie Elgavish and his collection of spoons! Ronnie lives in Tel Aviv, Israel, and we've been friends for over a year now. He first contacted me about Martha Stewart's ventures in Israel (she once published a Hebrew editon of Living) and from there we recognized how many similarities and interests we shared: architecture, design, photography, travel, and many others. Another shared interest is collecting. I have a mild obsession with antique and unique tea cups (and a growing collection, although I am really selective) and Ronnie's fascination is with spoons. He has over 500 spoons in his collection! Each one is measured, numbered, named and photographed and then cataloged for reference. (I love his devotion!) Below are some examples from Ronnie's collection and his description of how his love of spoons developed. I hope his story and his photographs inspire you to start your own collection!

Ronnie Elgavish, shown above, shares his story about how his passion for collecting spoons began:

"Back when I was in Architecture school, one of my teachers said that one knows a certain design is good if he is willing to steal it in order to make it his own. A few years later while sitting in a coffee shop in New york, I was reminded of this when a coffee cup was served to me with a spoon I just couldn't live without. I looked at the spoon, which was elaborate and full of details, and realized that so many variations exist to such a small and basic tool that we use every day. And at that moment I decided to start the collection.

"Every spoon brings with it the story of its origin: the family or its geographical source, which makes it worth collecting. Wherever I travel, I bring spoons back with me. Today the collection consists of more than 500 spoons, some were purchased by me, others were given to me by friends, family and even people who found the collection online and wanted to take part in it. Throughout the past 5 years I found how sentimental this collection is, to the extent that every person relates to it immediately. I especially like those spoons with family stories, and some in the collection are a missing piece of a whole set that crossed generations in heritage. One of them dates back to the 18th century in Italy."

If you have questions about the origins, dates or measurements of the any of the specific spoons shown above, click here for details. To contribute a spoon to his collection please contact Ronnie.

OTHER TALENTED MARTHA MOMENTS READERS:

David Pantoja

Brian Utz

Aynsley Amy

David Jimenez

David Bondarchuck

Rowaida Flahan

Kenn LaFramboise

Winnie Yeung

Lots more to come!

Martha's Magazines for the iPad

With the release today of the digital edition of Martha Stewart Weddings, we can now happily say that all four of Martha's magazines are now available on iPad! All of the iPad editions are available free to subscribers of Martha's regular magazines. Each of the digital issues contain bonus material, including how-to videos and behind-the-scenes features, plus special graphics and animation. Click here for subscription services. 

The Homekeeping Bibles

One of my top five books by Martha Stewart is the Homekeeping Handbook. I refer to it constantly in my own pursuit of domestic organization, and I recommend it to all new homeowners, including friends of mine who are moving into their first home or apartment. Put simply, the book has all the answers to all the questions any homeowner or renter might conceivably have about the maintenance, layout and function of a home's interior and exterior spaces. It contains specific, detailed instructions and how-tos, checklists and time-tested techniques that are beautifully presented in an organized, well-formated book - encyclopedic in scope and size.

It's been nearly six years since its release (hard to believe) but at more than 700 pages in length it is obvious that this is a subject Martha is extremely passionate about. Her passion is evident in her introduction:

"I started compiling my research and information for this book many years ago, when I first realized that homekeeping, homemaking, and housekeeping were my favorite subjects. Every day I was faced with the myriad challenges of running and maintaining my home on Turkey Hill Road, a complex old house set on four very lush and landscaped acres. There were always problems - puzzles to be solved and solutions to be discovered. ... I knew that I was like so many of you, wanting to do many of these small chores myself, not wanting to call in a handyman, knowing I could not rely 100 percent on my husband to do every little thing that popped up many times a day. I knew that if I needed a modern Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management, so did you."

This is Martha's mud room at Lily Pond Lane. A series of vintage ceramic basins make cleaning up a cinch.

The book Martha is referring to was one of the first and most celebrated volumes on domestic advice ever written. Martha received her edition of Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management in 1961, the year she was married, and has used it ever since. It was the primary inspiration for her own book on homekeeping. Published in England in 1861 and written by Isabella Beeton, the wife of a prominent publisher, the book was a compendium of useful recipes and household facts for the legions of upper- and middle-class housewives who were tasked with running the family household. The first edition was more than 1,600 pages long - nearly 1000 pages longer than Martha's tome, The Homekeeping Handbook. Every topic was covered: recipes for each meal of the day, laundry, general housework, chapters on medicine and common family illnesses, sections on cookery from other cultures (Jewish, Indian and French among them), how a children's nursery should be set up, how to garden, social etiquette, setting a table for various occasions, etc. It is a fascinating insight into the culture of the time with advice that is still relevant today.

First editions of the book, like the one shown above, are extremely difficult to come by but there is still an abridged edition available.

In the introduction to the Book of Household Management, the seriousness of the subject of homemaking is made very clear, a seriousness that Martha herself admired and replicated in the tone of her own domestic manuals and magazines. Mrs. Isabella Beeton writes:

"As with the commander of an army, or the leader of any enterprise, so is it with the mistress of the house. Her spirit will be seen through the whole establishment; and just in proportion as she performs her duties intelligently and thoroughly, so will her domestics follow in her path. Of all those acquirements, which more particularly belong to the feminine character, there are none which take a higher rank, in our estimation, than such as enter a knowledge of household duties; for on these are perpetually dependent the happiness, comfort and well-being of the family."

What I admire about the passage above is the level of empowerment that shines through the text. It is not didactic or dictatorial; it is encouraging and helpful while still imparting a sense of seriousness about the duties that must be carried out in a well-maintained, happily-functioning household. The language is scholastic and the sheer magnitude of information that is contained within the book must have imparted a sense of authority and dignity to the woman who was reading it, planning her days and weeks with duties and appointments just as her husband was.

Today, of course, men and women share the upkeep of a house or apartment. Housework is no longer strictly the domain of women.  I, for one, love homekeeping (a term Martha coined, by the way) and there are days when I relish the tranquility and almost meditative sense of 'Zen' a good house cleaning brings me. It is humbling work, but also rewarding work; work that instills pride in myself and in my surroundings. I mostly credit Martha with instilling those values in me and for making me see the benefits of a well-kept home. Below is a list of six tasks to complete each day, taken from the Homekeeping Handbook. I adhere to these guidelines, religiously. Each week I'll bring you more tips from this amazing book.  I hope you find them useful too! 

LINKS:
Martha's checklists and do-to lists. They are truly helpful!
Order the Homekeeping Handbook
Order the abridged edition of Mrs. Beeton's Book of Household Management

Guest Blog: Sunset Orange

The following post is brought to you by Arcadian Lighting, a longtime supporter of Martha Moments. John Moore of Arcadian Home was kind enough to reach out to me about doing a guest post for the blog, which you can read below, written by one of his assistants, Jessica.

Hello, I'm Jessica! I'm a writing for Arcadian Lighting, a wonderful online resource for affordable lighting fixtures in all styles and sizes. Part of my job includes looking for inspiring interior designs and then sharing them with lovely blogs, like Martha Moments. I've been thinking about all the different places that we draw inspiration from, and I think the best place is nature. That's why I've compiled some very beautiful rooms that feature the vibrant orange color of sunsets. In many of the photos above, orange is used as a bold accent in otherwise neutral rooms. The effect can be both modern or traditional, but the visual impact is always impressive. To help bring the vibrance of summer indoors this season, try experimenting with hits of orange in your favourite rooms in the home. And don't worry about committing to the color. You can get the same enjoyment from orange with a set of bowls, an orange lamp, a cushion, a print, a bedspread, any form of interior accent that can be swapped out for something more subdued when you're ready for a change. Visit Arcadian Home for more décor ideas!

Remembering: Martha Stewart Kids

I've wanted to bring this post to Martha Moments for a very long time: the complete collection of covers of Martha Stewart Kids, pictured in order of issue. Serious collectors of Martha Stewart's magazines know how valuable these magazines are today - not in terms of cost, but in sheer sentiment. Below are scans of each cover followed by some information about this sadly-missed magazine:



I first started buying the Kids magazine because of my young nephew - a new introduction to our family in 1999 and a new source of inspiration for creative crafts. I do not have all 21 issues of the magazine, since many of the issues were given away to Jacob (my nephew) or were used to the point of disintegration! I did manage to keep eight of the issues in pristine condition and I cherish them today. Many of the covers here were scanned by a Martha Moments reader in Brazil, a very generous woman named Heidi who took time out of her weekend to scan most of the covers for the blog. I am truly grateful to her, since archiving for the sake of posterity is a fundamental feature of Martha Moments. Below is a bit of history about the magazine.

KIDS: A HISTORY

Martha Stewart Kids was launched in the fall of 2001 as a special-issue publication. It was issued quarterly at first and then became available for subscription, publishing six times a year by 2004. The magazine underwent numerous design changes in its five years on newsstands, from a change in size to a new title in 2003: Kids - Fun Stuff To Do Together. The editor of the magazine was Jodi Levine, a longtime editor and product designer at Omnimedia. Celia Barbour, editor of Martha Stewart Baby, also contributed.

Kids won numerous awards in its short time on newsstands. It was named Magazine of the Year by the Society of Publication Designers in 2004 and it won the National Magazine Award for best design in 2005. Filled with wonderful photography and imaginative craft ideas, Kids became a leader in its category. Its layout was spectacular and filled with information for both parents and kids regarding all manner of topics, from pets to science to nature to cooking to crafting to sports to parties to decorating, and on and on it goes! The magazine contained recipes, craft workbooks and a very unique "How-Now" section: a detatchable booklet for the young reader filled with puzzles, quizzes and games. This section usually focused on a specific animal and the activities in the booklet (mazes, jokes, etc.) centered around this animal theme. Kids published its last issue with the Spring 2006 edition.

Candy, vintage party hats, crepe paper in every hue, paper bowls from Bali, and old crafts magazines are all fodder for the imagination of Kids editorial director Jodi Levine, who also designs for the company's crafts line. Her office is pictured below.

"I look in funny places to find ideas," she says. "Everyday detritus inspires me. It might be the beautiful stripe on a sugar packet or the lovely rose printed on a plastic bag. I tend to hoard stuff like that. Once, the swirl on a kids' lollipop inspired a whole story."

One of the covers of the "How-Now" section - a detachable booklet that came inside each issue of Kids. The illustrations were done by Calef Brown; games and riddles were by Puzzability.

COMPILATIONS:

Between 2003 and 2008, Martha Stewart Living published 10 "Good Things" digest magazines, featuring the best ideas from its magazines. Four of them (shown above) were compilations of kids projects and recipes taken from the pages of Martha Stewart Kids magazine.

In 2013, Martha Stewart published the best 175 projects for kids that had been featured in the Kids magazine. "Martha Stewart's Favorite Crafts for Kids" became a New York Times Bestseller!

Four Books for Urban Gardeners

While I'm not a whiner by nature, I have admittedly lamented to gardener friends in the past how difficult it is to allow my green thumb to express itself in an urban setting. Like a caged greyhound ready to run, I feel the frustration of limited space. Since I love the conveniences and opportunities of big cities, I cannot seem to exchange these benefits for a big yard out in the country. Still, the natural gardener in me is perpetually pounding at the proverbial gate, so desperate to plant, grow, reap and sow.

My outlet has been my collection of many books on gardening, which I feel are preparing me for the eventual plot of land I will one day tend with my bare hands. Ever the conscientious student, I'm reading up on all the how-tos and whys and whens and wheres of gardening. Below I've selected four new books that will delight any urban gardener. Any gardener with a balcony or a very small plot of city land will find these books not only useful but deeply inspiring. Beyond I've shared some inspiring photos of beautifully-designed urban gardens that delight the eyes and prove what is possible, even in tight quarters.

1. GARDEN ANYWHERE
Master British gardener Alys Fowler guides those with small spaces through simple steps to create a bountiful, thriving garden. After covering the processes of planning, composting, pruning, harvesting, propagating and even rescuing neglected plants, every reader, no matter how minute their space is, can create a gorgeous oasis. Paperback: 192 pages.

2. HOME GROUND: SANCTUARY IN THE CITY
Ten years ago, one of the world's most respected gardeners, British-bred Dan Pearson, discovered a neglected city plot and sought to turn it into a thriving garden space. Written as a compelling essay, Home Ground documents that inspiring project, complete with Pearson's successes, failures and gorgeous, full-page photos. Hardover: 272 pages.

3. THE BALCONY GARDENER
An expert gardener for small, urban spaces, Isabelle Palmer, founder of The Balcony Gardener, offers unique ideas that will have every city dweller itching to exercise their green thumb. This user-friendly guide features innovative ideas like an herb box dedicated to seasoning fish that will elevate city abode into a thriving, creative landscape. Hardcover: 144 pages.

4. GROW YOUR OWN VEGETABLES IN POTS
British author Deborah Schneebeli-Morrell guides readers to a flourishing, potted garden whether you have a snug window ledge or a spacious patio to use. Focused on innovative methods that utilize household materials like woven sacks, laundry baskets and colanders to contain your peppers and potatoes, Grow Your Own Vegetables In Pots features thirty-five ways to cultivate your vegetables, herbs and fruit from scratch. Featuring step-by-step photos and fail-proof instructions, even the novice gardener will have the neighbors stopping by for salad fixings. Paperback: 144 pages.

Martha's First Caregiving Handbook

Early next year (January 29, 2013) Martha will release her first book on caregiving: Living The Good Long Life: A Practical Guide To Caring For Yourself And Others. The 432-page hardcover book will be the first book by Martha that focuses, specifically, on healthy living and caregiving. Several years ago Martha mentioned that she was working on this book. It was a project inspired by her mother's longevity and active lifestyle, as well as the difficulties surrounding her eventual decline at the age of 93. Martha was surprised to learn that there was no practical book out there to help people deal with the logistics and very real challenges that come with caring for aging relatives and vowed to write that book herself.

Martha with her mother, Martha Kostyra, and Martha's neice, Sophie Herbert, at the Martha Stewart Center For Living at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.

Martha wrote a wonderful column for the Huffington Post a couple years ago examining the looming spectre of an aging American population and its likely strain on the healthcare system. Martha is also the founder of a unique geriatric center at Mount Sinai in Manhattan (The Martha Stewart Center for Living) which is devoted to facilitating access to healthcare resources for the elderly and to raise awareness about healthy aging.

At the moment there is no official description of the book, but its title speaks volumes about its aim. I imagine it will be similar in style to the Homekeeping Handbook with concrete solutions to everyday questions and challenges regarding healthy living and caregiving: the best methods for keeping track of an elderly parent's prescriptions, for example, the best power foods, the importance of exercise and continued learning, etc.

Having so many aging relatives in my own family - with parents swiftly making the climb into old-age - it is a book I am eagerly anticipating.

Martha on Law & Order

Be sure to watch Martha guest star on Law & Order SVU tonight! Martha plays Eleanor Hastings, the headmaster of a private school. Hastings is interviewed by Officer Olivia Benson (played by Mariska Hargitay) about allegations regarding a former teacher's innapropriate relationship with one of the students. The episode airs at 10PM EST on NBC. Martha also guest starred on an episode of 2 Broke Girls (playing herself) and was featured on the PBS series Finding Your Roots, which I watched Sunday night. It was a very informative look at Martha's ancestral past. The findings of the show revealed that Martha's great grandparents may have been killed in Poland by invading Bolsheviks. As an orphan, Martha's grandmother journeyed by ship to New York when she was just 16 with only $2 to her name. There is also evidence that Martha may have had Muslim ancestors dating back to the time of Genghis Khan! You can see excerpts here.

Martha with Mariska Hargitay on the set of Law & Order SVU. Photo: The Martha Blog

Signs of Spring

When most people think of Toronto, they think of skyscrapers, the CN Tower and a lot of traffic. Often overlooked are the many city parks in the city, tucked into downtown neighbourhoods not far from the hustle and bustle. I am lucky enough to live right next to a really pretty park in the city's north end. It is tended to with so much care. Last Sunday was a beautiful spring day: not a cloud in the sky. I went to explore the garden across the street with my camera and found beautiful treasures everywhere I looked.

The June Issue: Restructuring Content

The June issue of Martha Stewart Living arrived at my doorstep just in time for weekend reading: perfect timing! The weather is cooperating, too, with temperatures that feel divinely summery. June heralds some notable changes from issues past and offers some restructuring changes, delivering its front-of-issue content in a new format. First, it should be noted that this June the issue is devoted almost entirely to food and summer cooking. It was even named on the front cover as "The Summer Food Issue." This may well be an annual tribute to summer sustenance, joining the ranks of the seasonal special issues: the Gardening Issue (March), the Entertaining Issue (July), the Decorating Issue (September) and the Holiday Issue (December).

The magazine also has two new sections that group various stories at the front of the magazine by theme: Food and Entertaining and Good Living. The former is fairly self-explanitory. It contains the 'What's For Dinner' column, the 'Fit To Eat' recipe section, the 'Cookie of the Month' and a new page about wine and spirits. Following this is the Good Living section, which houses content about making a house a home: decorating, gardening and collecting articles. (No article by Kevin Sharkey in this issue...) So, there are now four main content sections at the front of the issue: Our Finds, Beauty & Style, Good Things, Food & Entertaining and Good Living. As a reader, I enjoy the categorization. I love compartments and departments. It keeps my attention focused on the theme at hand and allows me to explore a subject in-depth.

The back of the issue serves up delicious summer fare that will make you want to eat al-fresco, go berry picking and invite all your friends over for a casual feast. Food editor Jennifer Aaronson takes us 'clamming' in Rhode Island; Martha shows us her berry patches at her Bedford farm and gives us some gorgeous ideas for summer berry desserts. Try your hand at some new and innovative dressings, dips and summer sauces. A Korean-born hostess in Connecticut mixes salumi with bulgogi and pickles with parmigiano for a multicultural feast with friends. Plus, a fisherman and forager in Oregon shows us how to make the best of the season's offerings

Looking Back to Move Forward: Vol. 5 (May)

In her letter to readers in the March, 2012, issue of the magazine, Martha Stewart Living editor-in-chief Pilar Guzman makes an intriguing comment about looking back to former issues of the magazine in order to move forward. She writes: "...we will feature images on this page that inspire us from the magazine's archives. Sometimes it's important to look back in order to move forward." As a longtime subscriber, I felt like playing along! I'll be raiding the archives each month to showcase my favourite issue.

MY FAVOURITE MAY ISSUE: 2000
May is a beautiful month - one of my favourites. It is warm enough to forego any heavy outerwear but cool enough to be comfortable, even in full sunshine. Flowering trees and blossoming bulbs are everywhere in evidence and there are celebrations, too, like May Day, Mother's Day, Cinqo de Mayo, Memorial Day and Victoria Day in Canada. What's not to like?

The May 2000 issue of Martha Stewart Living brilliantly sums up everything May stands for. In its pages we find pinatas, Mother's Day crafts, breakfast ideas and the gentle reminder to invite the outdoors back into our lives. We learn that not all geraniums are created equally with a tour of Margaret Roach's fancy-leaf varieties at her home in the Catskills. We venture to Maine to visit the summer home of one of Martha's Skylands neighbours on Mount Desert Island. The rambling, three-story home is bright with floral wallpaper and children's artwork, summer-hued palettes and casual coverlets in its many guest bedrooms, ready for seasonal visitors. The value and collectibility of vintage plastic dinnerware is examined thoroughly, as are its beautiful designs through glorious photographs by Stephen Lewis. We stroll through an artist's garden, organize our sewing drawers and learn how to make whites whitest.

The magazine has always succeeded in distilling the essence of a month's domestic subjects to their most beautiful and informative presentations. The May 2000 issue ranks as my favourite May issue of all time for its understanding of the mood and themes of the month in question and the inherent interests of its readers.