Hi everybody, I'm back! While I was away, I flew to CA and back, then to Minnesota and back, and then I had some energy left over so I decided to finish organizing my new craft room. So finally, I am able to share some shots of this blog's namesake, my Manhattan Craft Room!

This is my peg board with some sewing tools.

Here are just a few of my drawers, where I keep (from left) my hole punches, arranged according to size, my label maker, spare label maker, and other labeling accoutrements, and a small selection of scissors.


Fabrics, ribbons and buttons, color-coordinated, of course.

A bit of glitter, some rubber stamps, and just a few spools of thread...


HA! Gotcha! I *wish* this was my craft room. Who do we know who would arrange their craft supplies so artfully and perfectly? Who, I ask you, would have an entire drawer just for hole punches, and another drawer that's actually labeled labeling? For the love of God, who would keep their glitter so neatly stacked?

That's right folks. The one, the only...



The Martha.

I'm still so excited I could pee. This afternoon I was treated to second-row seats at a knitting-themed episode of the Martha Show, complete with a behind-the-scenes tour of her craft studio, test kitchen and greenhouse. The lights and the glamour! The throngs of assistants! The sets of ten identical everything, from Le Crueset casseroles to orchids in bloom! Where to begin?



All audience members were asked to bring one knitted project they'd completed, and another they were working on. I wore my yellow scarf, but couldn't find anything easy to bring that I knew I'd be able to knit while looking up at the taping. So I chose an acrylic camo scarf?



The audience was all women (except for one guy), which was freaky and awesome. Everyone else was knitting away as fast as they could. You could just hear their clicking needles softly saying, Look at me, Martha! Look at me!




The set was big, pretty and surreal. Those aren't real windows.



By far, the best part of the day was during the cooking segment when they busted out this blue colander. Look familiar? I can't believe Martha and I have the same colander. What are the chances?

I was pretty sure that Martha was going to notice me in the audience (attracted perhaps by my yellow scarf?), speak to me on air, take me under her wing and make me her Mini Martha. Unfortunately, she still doesn't know I'm alive. Although I think we did make eye contact once during a break in the taping, that was the closest we got. She was whisked away immediately after the taping to go do the Top Ten List for Letterman.

But that's when the cool backstage tour began. I got to learn about making step-outs for risotto, I saw the special greenhouse lights in the functioning greenhouse, I petted the All Clad, and oh man did I drool in the craft room.




Everything was so pretty that even I could take a pretty picture.


Ooh I just remembered the really best part of the day. In some hallway there was a display of old pictures of Martha from her modeling days. I had read that she used to model, but in all my Martha-stalking, I had never seen any of the images.






Martha, you are the coolest.