Martha Stewart has apologised for a Halloween costume that went over badly with almost everyone who saw it. The 85-year-old lifestyle mogul dressed as a homeless person for Halloween, posted the photo on Instagram alongside a promotion for her candles, and then spent Sunday walking it back.

Her final word on the matter was blunt. “It’s hard to admit when you’ve really screwed up,” she wrote, according to the BBC. Here is how the weekend unfolded.

The costume and the caption

On Halloween, Saturday, October 31, Stewart shared an Instagram carousel promoting her candle collection on QVC. According to NBC News, the third slide showed Stewart in tattered clothing, with makeup meant to look like dirt on her face and a tired expression, holding a clipboard that read: “I AM HUNGRY HELP ME!!”

The caption read: “My QVC candles are perfect for Halloween!!!”

The post was removed shortly afterward, but screenshots of the costume kept circulating online, and so did the criticism.

The backlash

Many people read the costume as mocking the poor. NBC News reported that some commenters called it “out of touch” and “dystopian.” The BBC quoted PR expert Molly McPherson, who wrote: “This sartorial take on a homeless person is a lot. Insulting? Demeaning? Confusing? All of the above.”

Others on social media were more direct, asking why anyone would think the outfit was a good idea for a costume at all, let alone one paired with a product promotion.

The first statement

On Sunday, Stewart issued a statement to NBC News. “I am distressed that my Halloween costume yesterday, which was intended to bring more awareness to the very serious subject of homelessness, has offended people, which was never my intention,” she said.

She added that homelessness “continues to remain one of America’s greatest challenges and ongoing crises, something that I care deeply about,” and said she had spent significant time and effort supporting charities working on the issue. “I am committed to continuing to make a difference,” she said.

The fuller apology

That first statement did not land, and Stewart appeared to recognise it. She followed up with a shorter and more direct apology, reported by the BBC and The Guardian.

“It’s hard to admit when you’ve really screwed up. My earlier statement didn’t go far enough. I know many people are suffering economically. Wearing a costume like I did was insensitive and not funny. I am very sorry.”

The second message dropped the framing about raising awareness and simply owned the mistake, which is usually what audiences are looking for in a celebrity apology.

She wasn’t the only one

Stewart was not the only public figure to face criticism over a Halloween costume this year. NBC News reported that content creator McCall DaPron, who is set to appear in an upcoming Orange County spinoff of “The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” drew backlash after her family dressed as the Kennedys, with DaPron in the pink suit Jackie Kennedy wore on the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. That post was also deleted.

A long career, a rare misstep

Stewart is arguably the original lifestyle influencer. As the BBC recalled, she started a catering business in the 1970s, became famous in the 1990s with Martha Stewart Living magazine, and briefly became a billionaire when her media company went public in 1999. She served a prison sentence in 2004 after being found guilty on charges related to an insider trading case, then rebuilt her brand through television, food products and a popular series with her friend Snoop Dogg.

That comeback has relied heavily on her sense of humour and her willingness to poke fun at herself. This time, the joke missed.

The takeaway

The episode is a reminder of how quickly a costume can turn into a controversy when it touches a real-world hardship, especially when it shares a post with a sales pitch. Stewart’s second apology was short, direct and free of excuses, which may help the story fade faster than the first statement would have.

Image: Pumpkins with candles (Unsplash) by freestocks.org freestocks via Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0