Hallo you Gents!

My father has frequently been described by friends and family alike as "the last gentleman." It's true fellows, the bar's been set rather high, but I still think you can get there. Enter the website Fashion156 - an impressive online magazine that completely renews itself every 156 hours. Ambitious? Probably much more so than trying to become a gentleman from scratch, but let them do the hard work for you! The current issue of Fashion156 is entitled "The Bespoke Issue" - detailing everything you ever wanted to know about English tailoring and all that goes with it, including how to be the man, not just the suit.

Just as Eliza Doolittle's station was raised by being a little "experiment" between Professor Higgins and Colonel Pickering, so too was Alfie Doolittle forced to straighten up and fly right by association. Yes, by the end of the play, there he is in full morning dress, insisting he be called "Alfred P." and ready to get married like a good gent.  

With Alfred P. as your inspiration, follow these simple rules to live by offered by John Hoad at Fashion156, and you'll be a gentleman in no time. Wouldn't it be loverly?...:

So how does one move from a Dandy to a Gent? It's all in the manners and behaviour. They cost nothing and there are ten to which I always try to adhere:

• Save swearing for when alone and NEVER in front of a lady.
• Remember please and thank you. Small words but you should never forget them
• Always let the lady order first at dinner, tell her she looks nice and pay the bill. Women are terrible at taking compliments but they will be terribly flattered.
• Training shoes are for the gym and for the gym only. The younger gent can get away with wearing converse. He has The Stokes to thank for that one.
• Always iron your shirt and press your trousers and always see a trusted hairdresser.
• The suit jacket and combat trouser combo was officially made illegal somewhere at the start of 2001.
• Ignorance is never bliss. Read the papers. A true chap needs to keep abreast of current affairs.
• Try to avoid any food stuffs which say “oven ready”.
• Always open doors for people and give up your seat on public transport to those least able than you.
• While it is perfectly fine for a Gent to "make merry" he should not get too drunk as this is the way of the common thug. And besides, La Stella Artois is a difficult stain to remove from ones dinner shirt.

Try to adhere to these rules, they are not too hard to follow and no amount of money can buy class. As Clarence Thomas, a Justice at Supreme Court of the United States once said "Good manners will open doors that the best education cannot."

PS - Gentlemen are always welcome here at Poetic & Chic...love 'em! 

Comments

[maura]

because clarence thomas was such a gentleman?? he of the sexual harassment anita hill fiasco? I think not.

[Annie Wilson]

Yes, I thought twice about including that, but it's a good quote and I found it to be nicely ironic.

[Robb Scharetg]

Annie

I know your father and I'd have to agree-the bar IS indeed set very high for the rest of us. But Aspiration is inspiration, and a goal is a good thing.

Robb

[Randall]

In the fourth grade, I read an old mystery that took place in a restaurant. The crime was a burglary orchestrated by a married couple who would only have succeeded had they not broken a rule of etiquette unnoticed by other veteran detectives working the case. The crime was solved when the sleuth realized the man sat with a superior view of the dining room while the woman was seated with an inferior view. Their lack of etiquette did them in. It's funny how I've never forgotten this rule, even though I may be inconsisten with others. The only other detail I recall is the name of the sleuth: Encyclopedia Brown.