During her high school years, Martha decided to head to New York City to launch a modeling career. She eventually appeared in a television commercial and several print ads, all while attending high school and excelling in her studies. Martha graduated in the top ten of her class and decided to attend Barnard College in New York. Here she majored in history and architectural history. She also met her future husband, Andy Stewart, here.
When Martha married Andy in 1961, she and her mother, predictably, made her wedding dress. Martha and Andy lived in an apartment in New York. The apartment needed work, so the couple renovated and decorated it. This was Martha's first real introduction to home décor.
After their only child, Alexis, was born n 1965, Martha and Andy decided to buy a house. They bought a one-room schoolhouse and renovated it from top to bottom. When Martha's modeling career began to falter, the family moved to Westport, CT, and renovated another old house. During this renovation, Martha decided to try her hand at catering. She started small, but the business and the publicity surrounding it soon grew.
In 1981, Martha catered a party for her husband's publishing firm and met many of the editors. It was this party that launched her career as a homemaking expert. Martha was offered the opportunity to write a book on catering. The book became a bestseller and still sells today. She followed up with two cookbooks and began appearing on television. She even hosted her own Thanksgiving show on public television. People either loved her or hated her.
Martha's marriage began to suffer as she became more successful. In 1990, after 29 years of marriage, Martha and Andy divorced. She went on to become the K-Mart spokesperson, she wrote more books, launched her own magazine, her own media corporation, and she hosts her own TV show.
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