Martha Moments Readers Celebrate Thanksgiving

Every year, I am so impressed by the talent and vision of the creative members of the Martha Moments Facebook Group, the @martha_moments Instagram page, and readers of this blog - particularly at holiday time. I usually ask the members of the group to share their photographs of their Thanksgiving and Christmas decor, table settings and food to create galleries of inspiration, which I then turn into posts on the blog for posterity. Below are some of the Thanksgiving photos that were submitted this year on the Facebook group page. There were many photos posted and I cannot share them all with you, but here are a few to enjoy! 

Anthony Picozzi always sets an elegant and festive table. 

This pumpkin pie that Anthony baked looks utterly perfect! (And you may recognize the small, colourful turkey from the cover of the November, 2002, issue of Martha Stewart Living!)

Christopher Spitzmiller set a wonderfully dynamic table this year! I love the mix of prints, textures and colours. 

Brian Utz has been a reader of this blog almost since the beginning! He always sets a beautiful Thanksgiving table. This year, his guests were seated on chairs once owned by Martha. he purchased these chairs at the Martha Stewart Tag Sale. 

Here is a closer look at the chairs. You will also notice the wagon in the background - another purchase from the tag sale. This wagon was used in the original Buffet Special Martha produced for PBS in 1987.

Here is a nice shot of the wagon. Brian filled with pine boughs festooned with fairy lights. 

You can clearly see the influence Martha had on Todd Hall when he set his table for Thanksgiving this year: potted begonias on wooden trivets, glass turkey dishes and salt cellars. Beautiful!

Delicious looking dinner rolls baked by Jennifer Doherty in Detroit.

A must for any Thanksgiving table!

This beautiful centerpiece of roses by Julie Gortemaker was inspired by Martha.

Noreen Daniello set two long tables for her Thanksgiving gathering. The long table runners with multiple centerpieces and small groupings of gourds and corn husks feels very Martha!

Trellis Smith always makes Martha's famed (spiked!) eggnog for visiting friends and family.

A delicious look plateful courtesy of Susan Kellen. I hope everyone in the U.S. had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday! 

Martha's New Safety and Mobility Aids with Medline

When a friend of my mother's, who had recently undergone knee replacement surgery, informed me that she had just ordered a Martha Stewart cane, I was left a little stunned: "A what? A Martha Stewart cane?" I am usually so on top of Martha's product launches that I was more shocked at myself for not realizing she had issued a new line of safety and mobility aids with Medline back in April. Shame on me!This new line, of course, plays perfectly well into Martha's focus on healthy living; the Martha Stewart Center for Living at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York City is just one of the many initiatives she has taken to help a rapidly-growing population of aging individuals find the care they need and deserve. Her book, Living The Good Long Life, is an excellent compendium of information in this field. Now, of course, she is bringing her signature style to an area where style has never really been welcome: canes, walkers, shower chairs, over-bed tables and bath mats. 

Offered in pretty designs and colours, such as gingham and plaid, faux-bois and her signature turquoise and gray, seniors who require mobility aids at home, or those recovering from injury, now have style choices that reach beyond the metallic, chrome and black. Click here to see the full line of Medline products with Martha Stewart designs. Below is a small selection. 

This offset aluminum walking cane is 3/4" in diameter and provides strong, sturdy support for partial weight-bearing users with a rubber tip on the bottom for slip-resistant balance; supports 300 lbs. Shown above in Plaid. Shown below in Faux-Bois.

This premium quality rollator upright walker features a padded memory foam seat and backrest for all-day comfort with 6 smooth-rolling wheels for various terrain. Neoprene under the seat ensures easier cleaning. Foldable with a lightweight high-quality frame for ease of use and durable with a weight capacity supporting individuals up to 250 lbs.

This compressed foam lumbar cushion provides lower back support and relief with a comfortable ergonomic shape that maintains its original thickness, even after multiple uses.

This overbed table brings style and function together with a beautiful faux-woodgrain top, seamless "T" mold edge, and side basket for convenient storage. Adjustable height from 30” – 42” to rest over bed or sofa, faux-wood table tray measures 15” x 28” across. Rolling base measures 15” x 23", with 3" wheels. Able to fit most spaces. Easy to assemble, and can be used as a standing desk for laptop workers, bedside tray for safely and cleanly eating, or TV tray above couch or bed.

This slip-resistant bath mat has a textured, geometric pattern & 300-plus suction cups to keep the mat firmly attached to the tub for added stability, confidence & safety in the bathtub, shower or bathroom. The mat features Microban, a multi-layer antimicrobial protection that prevents the growth of stains and odors caused by bacteria. For anti-mold and mildew resistance to keep your bath mat cleaner between cleanings. Comfortable for daily use in the shower, tub, or bathroom with gentle, massaging texture and exfoliating foot scrubbers that provide a soothing experience on your skin.

Meeting David at Terrain

 I have known David Pantoja for approximately 20 years. We 'met' when I was writing for SaveMartha.com in 2002. He wrote to me to say he enjoyed my columns and we've kept in touch ever since. David has always been very supportive of this blog and I consider him to be the foremost expert in the collection of Martha by Mail items: he has an enormous selection of goods that were sold through Martha's famous mail-order catalog and he knows everything about everything he has collected. He even created a Martha by Mail Cookie Cutter Index, which I feel is invaluable to collectors. David has a beautiful blog called Good Things By David. Longtime readers of this blog will know it well. Please be sure to visit it!

When my husband and I decided to travel to Philadelphia this month for my nephew's high school graduation, I knew I had to set some time aside to meet David, who lives just outside the city. We decided that Terrain at Styers was the place to meet; I had always wanted to see Terrain, since it is affiliated with Anthropologie, where I work. It is the company's garden concept store, selling trees, plants, flowers and  home decor items, such as dinnerware, glassware, candles and planters. Martha also encouraged me to visit Terrain during our conversation on her podcast. It seemed like a no-brainer! 

When I met David, we felt immediately comfortable together, even though this was our first time meeting face to face! We share a similar, somewhat dark sense of humour and like so many of the same things, with similar tastes in many areas of life. We hit it off instantly. It was as if we had spent years together - and I suppose in some respect we have.

David made these beautiful "Martha Moments" cookies for me and my husband, plus two lady-bug cookies not shown for members of Tomas's family, who met up with us a little later. David is the best baker and decorator of cookies that I know of and I was honoured to be given such a special treat. 

We had lunch at the Terrain cafe, in the greenhouse, surrounded by climbing vines and beautiful sunlight. He recommended I order the harvest bowl, which I readily agreed upon. It was filling, but healthy and so delicious. 

I loved how the bread at the Terrain Cafe is baked and brought to the table: in a terracotta flower pot! Ingenious! 

The Terrain store itself is a wonderland, full of treasures to discover amid all manner of greenery. It was a spectacular space and so inspiring. I've included some of my photographs of Terrain below. If you ever have the chance to visit this location in Glen Mills, Pennsylvania, just outside of Philadelphia, please do! There are several other locations around the United States, including one in Westport, Connecticut. 

I'm still amazed how this blog and its social media branches have created such a strong community of friendships across so many thousands of miles. Thank you, David, for a beautiful day at Terrain! Looking forward to next time!

Turkey Hill, Revisited

 On Thursday, June 1, 2023, Martha returned to Turkey Hill to host a tour of the garden and grounds that she so tirelessly sowed over the decades. The new owner of Turkey Hill, Casey Berg, is a member of the board of directors of an organization called Positive Directions, a non-profit behavioral health organization providing a continuum of prevention, counseling, and recovery supports to individuals and families struggling with mental health or substance use disorders. The group was founded over 50 years ago and today serves the towns of Fairfield, Weston, Norwalk and Westport, where it is based. Proceeds of the tickets sold for the tour supported Positive Directions, and 40 lucky people followed Martha through the grounds and gardens as she recounted memories and gave gardening advice. Below are photographs of the tour, kindly submitted by friends of mine who were lucky enough to attend.

Martha began the tour in the barn - a large structure she built in the late 1970s to use as an entertaining space. Martha gave a slide slow with photographs of the garden through the years and discussed her book, "Martha Stewart's Gardening", which documents the planting and caring of this particular garden. 

The gardens today still look spectacular, wonderfully maintained by the new owners. 

My friend Jennifer Zimmerman got to spend a little bit of time with Martha on the patio during the cocktail hour.

Jennifer also met with Kevin Sharkey, someone we have both admired for his decorating advice and style suggestions in the magazine over the years. 

The driveway gate that Martha designed several decades ago is still in operation at Turkey Hill.

My friend Steven Thorne posed for this selfie with Martha on the patio.

The barns and one of the garden sheds viewed from a distance across the lawn.

A view of the pool, which Martha installed in 1980.

Stone steps leading up from the pool to the glazed porch.

A group of ten people who paid a little extra for their tickets were treated to a sit-down dinner with Martha and Kevin at a nearby restaurant after the tour. My friends Jeff, Jason and Carey were all in attendance. 

To learn more about Positive Directions and the excellent work they do, please click here.

Thank you to Jennifer, Steven Thorne, Emily Sposetta, Jeff Schneider and Kemp Harper for the photographs. 

Martha in Sports Illustrated

 I have never in my life purchased a copy of Sports Illustrated magazine. I don't play sports or enjoy watching them. And women in swimsuits have never really piqued my interest, so to speak. Now, however, I'm plotting the best way to snag a copy of the 2023 annual swimsuit issue of the magazine, which comes out on May 18th featuring a cover portrait of Martha looking astonishing, ravishing and confident in a bathing suit at age 81. 

Martha is now the oldest woman to be featured on a cover of Sports Illustrated. The editors of the magazine contacted her to be among four models chosen for the cover of this year's annual swimsuit issue; Megan Fox, Kim Petras and Brooks Nader are the other three. All four covers will be in circulation on newsstands, but my bet is that Martha's will be most in demand. 

Martha was photographed by Ruven Afanador in the Dominican Republic last November for the cover and feature spread. The photographs depict Martha in several fashion bathing suits, looking glamorous and confident. Martha unveiled the cover live on the Today Show on May 15th and spoke with the hosts about the importance of showing women over a certain age in areas of media where they are often cast aside. Martha also spoke about fearlessness and encouraged other women to feel confident about themselves, their bodies and their ambitions. "When you're through changing, you're through," she reiterated, and implored women never to let their inhibitions get the better of them. 

I love these photographs and how they speak to the joy that's possible in our lives as we age. Way to go, Martha!