These Are The Most Scandalous Martha Stewart Outfits

If the documentary "Martha" taught us anything about Martha Stewart, it's that she's the queen of reinvention. However, some things about the world's most famous homemaker have never changed — like her style. And, while we're of the mind that Stewart's style lives up to her perfectly perfect standards, some have questioned whether she's always age-appropriate. Martha's take? So what?

Asked by Page Six about dressing appropriately for her age in 2023, Stewart didn't mince her words. "Dressing for whose age? I don't think about age. I think people are more and more and more [fabulous] than they've ever been in their senior years, and I applaud every one of them," she said. The very first self-made female billionaire added that her signature look had been pretty consistent from the time she was 17 years old — and sure enough, just as Stewart was stunningly beautiful when she was younger, her history-making Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover is testament to the fact that she can rock all her longtime favorite pieces with ease. Speaking of those favorite pieces, Stewart told Today that her love for shorter skirts, tighter pants, and oversized jackets has never waned over the years. 

We've got to say, we love it for her — especially, it should be said, because said consistency has given us a ton of fashion moments over the decades. What's more, even when haters haven't been able to keep their thoughts to themselves, it's really only added to Stewart's icon status. 

"Martha" viewers may have been shocked by one throwback pic of Martha Stewart tending to her farm in a micro-mini dungaree set and kitten heels, but it turns out that was actually the norm for her around the 1960s and early 70s. Case in point: Stewart shared with Harper's Bazaar that hotpants were part of her day-to-day office OOTDs. 

Describing just how tiny her office shorts were, Stewart explained, "You see plenty of leg and a little of your butt." Her particular favorites were velvet, which she'd pair with a tight sweater, a belt, and heels — boots for the colder days. "That's what we wore to work," she shrugged. Stewart also hinted that her Harper's Bazaar interviewer might be too young to understand that that wasn't particularly eyebrow-raising at the time. "You're too young; you don't know anything," she quipped.

Perhaps Stewart was right in saying that. After all, the pic of Stewart herding her geese in teensy denim dungarees, a striped top, sunnies, and kitten heels was a little jarring for us. Even so, there's no question that Stewart gave off movie star vibes. A movie star tending to her farm, granted, but old-Hollywood-esque, nonetheless. 

Sticking with Martha Stewart's leggy style moments, no conversation about her most scandalous lewks would be complete without mentioning the black dress she picked for the 2020 Vanity Fair Oscars Party. The dress in question was a '60s-silhouette minidress with sheer batwing sleeves, and for most people, it was a serious fashion hit. However, not everyone was on board. Possibly as was to be expected, a number of haters complained about Stewart going for such a "young" choice, and one Instagram commenter even wrote that the businesswoman was, "Trying too hard!" We'd argue that most people probably try to look good at the Oscars, but we digress. 

Other haters whose thoughts leaned a little (read: a lot) on the ageist end of the spectrum lamented that Stewart wasn't aging gracefully. "I guess this is what pushing 80 looks like in a smoky reflection," they grumbled. As an aside, when it comes to Stewart's approach to aging, she's been pretty vocal about her stance on plastic surgery, and she says the only cosmetic procedures she's gotten have been facials, filler, and Botox — and she's long avoided the latter.  

Our take? Stewart looked phenomenal in her pick for the evening. What's more, other than the length — which wasn't even that short — it wasn't even particularly revealing. More importantly, Stewart seemed to find all the comments about her legs, which were mostly positive, rather amusing. Taking to Instagram in the wake of all the chatter, she shared a tongue-in-cheek caption: "Horseback riding weekly is very good for one's legs." Duly noted!

Martha Stewart broke records when she graced the cover of Sports Illustrated in May 2023. However, as with her Vanity Fair Oscars Party dress, she had a bunch of detractors for her swimsuit photoshoot, too. Critiques came from all sides: that Stewart was simply being hypersexualized, that unrealistic standards were being put in place for other older women, that Stewart was rich and that meant her being able to look a certain way stemmed exclusively from that, and that Stewart's spread was problematic because it presented the homemaker as youthful, rather than celebrating her age, which shouldn't be a problem in the first place.

Even with all the many ways some chose to view the shoot, Stewart was far from bothered. In fact, she shared that she was relieved that the specific swimsuits set aside for her were to her taste. "I wasn't going to wear a fuddy-duddy bathing suits with bows and drapery and all that stuff. I was not going to wear anything like that because I don't wear stuff like that," she told Variety.

As for those who accused Sports Illustrated of airbrushing her, Stewart clarified that that wasn't the case. Speaking to Variety of the snaps, she said, "They're not. They are incredibly accurate pictures. I was really pleased that there was not much airbrushing." As for the rest of the criticism, it seems she hadn't seen much of it. If she had, it certainly didn't move her to issue a response. 

A few months after her Sports Illustrated cover was released, Martha Stewart took to Instagram to share a snap she'd taken in her own time. This time, it was a sparkly number with a very daring split. Seemingly reminding her followers of the benefits of horseback riding, Stewart also stuck her leg through the slit dramatically, emphasizing it. As with most of her more scandalous looks, public opinion was in her favor for the most part. Once again, though, there were some who felt a type of way about it. 

In particular, Stewart's detractors decided to (inaccurately) claim her body wasn't in great shape and revealed her age. Complaints about how she seemingly has changed were present, too. One critic caviled, "What in the hell has gotten into this woman?? I'm sorry but this is not the vibe! Just be you!!" We'd argue that the icon is doing just that — Stewart may have undergone a transformation in some ways, but as she said on Today, her style has remained pretty consistent throughout all the decades she's spent in the spotlight. Those who haven't noticed that probably just haven't been paying attention.

Like we said, the vast majority of commenters responding to Stewart's post had good things to say. Plus, some even pointed out that Stewart probably wasn't bothered by her haters, anyway. As one fan wrote, "The icon of Martha Stewart does what she wants." We're inclined to agree, there!

Okay, so it may not count as an outfit proper, but since Martha Stewart shared it and she did get a ton of comments, we can't not talk about the time she shared a snap of herself in her silky pajamas and seemingly without any makeup on. Also in tow was a sultry facial expression ... and comments in three, two, one. 

Though a large portion of Stewart's followers praised her for being confident enough to post the snap, as always, a number of haters weren't quite as impressed. Some complained that she didn't look like herself anymore, while others slated her for what they saw as attention-seeking behavior. One commenter even went as far as "advising" Stewart to be less out-there. "This is so sad. Keep your dignity Martha!!!" they exclaimed. 

Again, something tells us Stewart wasn't especially affected by her fault-finders. For starters, she hasn't removed the snap. On top of that, it's hardly an untold truth that Stewart lives the way she wants to and is unbothered by others' opinions. After all her time in the spotlight, she certainly deserves not to care what anyone else thinks. Not that she needs a permission statement from us, either.