Martha Stewart Shared Holiday Etiquette Tips with Andy Cohen, and This Is Her One Fail-Safe Host Gift
How would we get through the holiday season without Martha Stewart? She’s taught us the secret ingredients for making the best cinnamon rolls and pancakes, and showed us how to organize our kitchens with innovative storage containers and surprising trash cans.
Last week, the Queen of, well, Pretty Much Everything dropped some startling new etiquette tips when she visited Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live. Appearing on the episode alongside Christian Siriano, Martha had all the right answers to Andy’s questions about holiday dos and don’ts. You might want to start implementing some of these, if you aren’t already.
The perfect host gift
While you may think that a host gift has to be elaborate or something like a nice bottle of wine, Martha assured Andy that it doesn’t have to be. So, what’s her fail-safe host gift? “A dozen eggs from my own chicken coop.” Cohen’s response? “Okay, that’s fairly relatable.”
Regifting
Thinking about regifting a host gift or old Christmas gift you got yourself? Martha’s advice: Don’t do it. “You always get caught,” Martha warned. “Always.”
“No gifts”
Even if the host says, “No gifts,” Martha said you must bring one. Period.
Guests who overstay their welcome
How do you politely get rid of guests who won’t leave? According to Martha, “You just say, ‘I’m going to bed now, so I’ll see you at the next party.’” How simple is that?
When to arrive at a party
If you live by the motto that it’s “better late than never,” you may be on to something. Although Martha doesn’t suggest showing up to parties two hours late, she does say that not showing up at the time it is scheduled to start is just fine. “A little past call time is always nice for the host because they’re never quite ready,” Martha suggested.
How long you should wait for a tardy guest before serving dinner
“Not too long,” said Martha. “Just leave the plates — actually, push their plates to the end of the table.” (Note to self: Do not arrive late to Martha’s party.)
If you can move place cards if you don’t like the person you’re seated next to
“No,” warned Martha. “You’re not allowed to. On Thanksgiving, my daughter moved all the place cards without my knowledge. That didn’t go over so well.”
Check out the full segment below, along with Martha’s recipe for molasses-ginger crisps. We think they make a thoughtful gift, even if the eggs you use come from the grocery store.