I was one of the lucky bloggers who received tickets to attend Martha Stewart's long-awaited blogger show!  This morning I was seated in a studio audience surrounded by bloggers from all across the country!  It's always been a dream of mine to visit "The Martha Stewart" show (and not an unrealistic one, since it's taped right here in New York City), as she so beautifully exemplifies skills that are near and dear to me: crafting, culinary arts, entertaining, cake decorating, home making, and the list goes on. Martha is my muse, if you will, and admittedly I am so not anywhere near her level of home making finesse.  She makes it look so easy, doesn't she?  Needless to say, I was just completely tickled to be a part of the studio audience. 

You see, I sincerely appreciate Martha's pleasant, always lady-like yet no-nonsense, demeanor and dry wit.  She's a business woman, foremost, who defies the stereotypes of the soft, slightly scattered, passive homemaker.  When Martha announced that she was doing a show dedicated to bloggers I knew this was the opportunity I'd been waiting for! (By the way, Martha is an avid blogger as well!) I applied for tickets (we had to answer several detailed questions, including what our blog was about, the premise of the blog, our unique skills as a crafter, etc) and was excited to learn that I'd been picked to attend the show!

Upon arriving (at 8:30 am) the bloggers congregated in two waiting room areas, where we had the opportunity to mingle and schmooze.  It was wonderful to meet new bloggers and also reconnect with many of my old blogger pals! 

Me with @JusticeFergie of MamaLaw.com  She took the train up from DC to be there – very cool!

Me with Linda @NYCSingleMom

We were finally allowed into the studio and I gasped in astonishment and delight!  Martha's studio looked more like the photo shoot for a Better Homes and Gardens magazine spread than a talk show studio.  Oh good heavens – it was a homemakers dream!  There was a gorgeous kitchen, green room, crafting studio… beautiful!  But then, I wouldn't have expected anything less from Martha.  You know what I mean?

Once we were seated tech crew helped audience members set up their wi-fi, as audience members were encouraged to blog and tweet throughout the show!  Internet was lightening fast in the studio, so I was quickly able to get set up on TweetChat, which I used during the taping (hashtag #blogshow). If you follow me on Twitter than you were likely keeping up as I live tweeted throughout the show.

Just before the show went live (at 10:00 am) one of the producers came up to where I was seated and informed me that they'd been watching me and really "liked my energy."  So she wanted to know if it was alright if the camera panned to me and zoomed in when the show opened.  Oh wow, how neat is that!?  Didn't even know I was exuding "good energy."   I told her that of course it was okay!

Check me out at .02 seconds into the video.  It was very funny when folks were tweeting me from home that they'd just seen me on TV.  Hehe – my 15 minutes of fame (okay, fine, my 4 seconds of fame).

 

Martha is just as lovely and poised in person as she is on the show. She was also quite warm and personable, which was a pleasant surprise for me.  It really was a pleasure to see her "in vivo" after watching her all these years.  I'd always felt it wasn't the best idea to meet those "legends" we idolize in our mind – it's often a disappointment when people don't measure up to the fantasies you've enjoyed all the years.  I remember idolizing Big Bird for years and years on Sesame Street growing up – he was so big and tall and bright!  When I had the chance to meet Big Bird years later…  *sigh* ummm, not so much.  However, Martha met (and exceeded) every single expectation that I had.  So it was a really wonderful experience, made only that much greater by being surrounded by like-minded social media enthusiasts.

The show was tons of fun, with a bevy of awesome guests including the "Whatever" girls Alexis Stewart and  Jennifer Koppelman-Hutt, chef Pim Techamuanvivit, journalist Brian Williams, and actor Jeff Blumenkrantz.  After the show ended Martha graciously stayed around to answer audience questions.  One of the questions was where did she get her very sexy stilettos she was effortlessly cooking and crafting in throughout the show?!!  The answer: Yves Saint Laurent.  

Yes, priceless.

After the show I met Derek at his job in mid-town to get the car and also run a few errands.  We enjoyed an impromptu, romantic lunch date at a quaint little Italian restaurant and I also got to meet a few of his co-workers who I didn't know.  I learned that some of them enjoy reading my blog, which was a wonderful surprise to me!

You can click here to view the entire show.  And here is the list of all the bloggers in attendance.  Also, be sure to check out my Blogger Events photo album for more pictures from the day!