-- Shares Facebook Twitter Reddit Email This article was originally published on The Conversation . From showing us how to cook the perfect turkey to mastering the art of folding a fitted sheet, Martha Stewart's name has long been a byword for doing things well at home – "how very 'Martha Stewart' of you". New Netflix documentary, Martha , promises insights into her extraordinary life – from a teenage model to the original influencer and America's first self-made female billionaire, with a prison stay and friendship with Snoop Dogg along the way.
Behind the expertly folded linens and immaculately set tables lies something more. Martha Stewart created a brand empire that redefined the domestic lifestyle, monetized it and paved the way for others. Beginnings and barriers Stewart's connection to the domestic arts began early.
Raised in New Jersey, she learned essential homemaking skills like cooking and sewing from her mother, while her father introduced her to gardening. She studied art and architectural history yet Stewart started her career as a stockbroker. But her passion for the domestic realm led her to entrepreneurship.
As she once reflected , "the life of the homemaker was more interesting to me than the life of Wall Street". In 1972, she launched a catering business from the suburbs of Connecticut. It soon gained recognition for its elegant food presentations.
A publisher client led to her 1982 book, Entertaining . It included notes for how to prepare a clambake fo.