The cocktail party is probably America's greatest contribution to the world of entertaining.

I don't think there's any company that has the same tools as Martha Stewart Living does, and people know that. They really love the tools and, if you have the tools, you can pretty much do the craft.

To entertain at home is both a relief and a rediscovery - of rooms and settings, of your favorite things, and particularly of your own tastes and ideas.

Write the book you'd want to read.

Getting over those unexpected hurdles may not be exactly enjoyable, but ultimately I believe that such challenges and the solutions we find give us more confidence.They teach us with common sense and determination we can turn what looks like a disaster into a triumph.

I adore summer entertaining. For a dinner party at the farm, I might prepare homemade fettuccine with porcini mushrooms, soft-shell crabs, spinach from the garden, and lemon tarts with fraises des bois for dessert.

My dream... was to be an eclectic knowledge-gathering person.