TV's new "good thing": drag domestic diva Brini Maxwell swears she's not out to be the new Martha, Tell that to the devotees of her cable show.

She's blond, smiling, eminently tasteful--a living treasure trove of handy home hints, expert with a sewing machine, kitchen implements, and tools--and she hosts her own TV show. But something sets Brini Maxwell apart from that other guru of good living, Martha Stewart. "I don't play the market," Maxwell coos in her signature honeyed register. "I prefer to invest in vintage."

Star of the Style Network's The Brini Maxwell Show, the alter ego of 34-year-old New Yorker Ben Sander arguably owes Stewart a debt for Brini's sudden thrust into the limelight, fueled by the media's frenzied search for the "new Martha." In May, Access Hollywood aired an attention-getting profile, while she's also been featured on CNN and ABC's World News Tonight.

"I don't consider myself the next Martha Stewart," Sander protests. "l consider myself the next Sue Ann Nivens! I just think it's like comparing apples and oranges. We talk to different types of people--my audience tends to be very urban, and I think that Martha's audience is more suburban."

The son of a Hofstra University theater department head, Sander moved to New York in 1988 and studied fashion design. Obsessed with 1950s vintage items found in thrift stores and on eBay, and fueled by a desire to "help the world and find a more gracious way to express that," Sander created an effervescent female alter ego and launched her eponymous public access program in 1998.

Taping in his small, retro-deco Chelsea studio apartment, Sander quickly garnered a devoted audience. Since its 2004 pickup by Style, the show is now recorded on Unitel Studio's former Sally Jessy Raphael stage. In a typical, themed episode, Brini makes over a room, takes a field trip--her visit to and perky sprucing-up of a Manhattan public restroom further distinguished her from Stewart--and chats with guests like Helen Gurley Brown and a survivalist who "showed me how to survive with the contents of my purse, in the wild."

Brini also dishes up numerous, ingeniously simple "Why Didn't You Think of That?" hints and tips, most of which Sander culls from vintage homemaking books. "If you find yourself with a hangover, split a lemon and rob the halves in your armpits," he notes, laughing, of a more obscure (albeit practical) discovery. "For some reason it seems to work! My friend Mary Ellen tried it out, and she's been very pleased." Future episodes may be themed around camping, improving studio apartments, "family game night and how to bring that back," and collections.

Gay marriage may also be an episode's focus, Sander reveals. Any tips for altar-bound couples today? "Throw birdseed because rice will swell in the birds' stomachs," he notes. "Glitter is fun but takes a while to wash off. There are so many wonderful wedding planners out there, so take what you want from them, but don't consider yourself bound to their suggestions. Prod shoving the cake in your mate's face is not a great idea."

Oh--and let's not forget some advice for poor ol' Martha. "Buck up, dear," Sander offers, adding hopefully, "she may have gotten herself into a pickle, but Martha's the one who can make relish out of that pickle."

Ferber has also written for Entertainment Weekly and Time Out New York