Martha Who?
It is going to be fun watching who shakes out.
"What made Martha's empire really zoom is her stubborn, unwavering great style and good taste," says McEvoy. "Without both, no one will have a legendary 'lifestyle expert' career."
Meanwhile, on a recent Larry King Live show on CNN, King asked Martha Stewart's younger sister Laura Plimpton what she thought of all the speculation on who would be the new Martha.
"I think Martha is going to be a very hard person to replace," said Plimpton. "There's so much Martha in the world of domestic arts that I was comparing it to the name Tupperware the other day."
KATIE BROWN
Background: Brown's first decorating project was her own New York loft apartment, furnished partly with curbside pickups. She decorates with affordable materials on ABC's "Good Morning America" appearances. Books/TV: Two books, "Katie Brown Decorates" and "Katie Brown Entertains," demonstrate the 39-year-old's down-home taste. She's had several cable shows -- at present "All Year Round With Katie Brown" on A&E (www.katiebrownworkshop.com).
Products: None yet.
McEvoy's view: "She could be America's next design sweetheart, but one of her featured styling tricks, a 'cheesecloth shawl' around the shoulders of a dining chair, gave me pause."
SUSIE COELHO
Background: Bethesda-bred Coelho, 50, is the perky host of a backyard-makeover show on cable TV, a spokeswoman for eBay's home category and author of two lifestyle/home decor books (www.susiecoelho.com). Before her divorce from Sonny Bono, the London-born former fashion model designed and helped run Bono's two California restaurants.
Books/TV: She currently hosts HGTV's "Outer Spaces," after hosting "Secret Gardens." Her books are "Susie Coelho's Everyday Styling" and "Susie Coelho's Styling for Entertaining."
Products: None yet.
McEvoy's view: "She's a real cutie with a frisky Web site, but she seems to be happier in the garden than in the kitchen."
NIGELLA LAWSON
© 2004 The Washington Post Company
|
|
Clockwise, from left to right: Christopher Lowell, Kathy Ireland, Colin Cowie, Katie Brown, Barbara Smith, Chris Casson Madden, the Fab Five.
(File photos)
|
|
