Lifestyle guru Martha Stewart has apologised again for dressing as a homeless person on Halloween after her initial apology was slammed as “insulting”.

In a since-deleted photo shared on Instagram, the American television host was seen wearing ripped jeans and make-up that gave the illusion of dirt on her face.

She also held up a sign that read: “I am hungry help me.”

“My QVC candles are perfect for Halloween!!!” the multimillionaire businesswoman captioned the post.

After the costume sparked considerable backlash online, the 85-year-old said she had dressed that way to “bring more awareness to the very serious subject of homelessness”.

She later deleted the apology and shared another one after inflaming the backlash.

“It’s hard to admit when you’ve really screwed up,” it read. “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”.

Martha Stewart apologised again after her first one fell flat. Photo: Instagram

Actor Indya Moore from the TV series Pose said Stewart’s initial apology was a “manipulative counter-attack”.

“Most of the people following you are not wealthy. They are far closer to poverty than you are”.

“So when they question the intentions of a wealthy white woman wearing poverty as a costume, that is a fair question. Flipping it back on them is passive-aggressive and insulting”.

Moore added that a rich woman dressing up as a hungry, homeless person showed how “out of touch and apathetic” wealth makes people.

“If you were serious about poverty, you’d use your platform to back policies that tax the rich, put free food in front of people who are hungry and homeless and provide free healthcare and education.”

A few hours earlier, the American lifestyle icon said in a statement to Page Six that her costume was “intended to bring more awareness to the very serious subject of homelessness”.

“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.

“Homelessness continues to remain one of America’s greatest challenges and ongoing crises, something that I care deeply about, and I have spent a significant amount of time and effort supporting charities that combat this ongoing social epidemic. I am committed to continuing to make a difference.”

The Emmy Award winner founded her highly successful Martha Stewart Living magazine in 1990, which led to the launch of her eponymous lifestyle TV show, establishing her as a household name in the US.

She has written more than 100 books and opened multiple restaurants during her decades in the spotlight.

In 2004 she was sentenced to five months in prison after she was found guilty of lying about the nature of a stock sale three years prior.

-with AAP