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Jack, after kissing Rose’s hand: “I saw that in a nickelodeon once and I always wanted to do it.” — Titanic (1997) Dear Etiquetteer: What are the considerations relating to kissing a woman’s hand? ...

Dear Etiquetteer: I should start this letter by saying that I am a very picky eater. While I have grown to eat and even like some foods that I would not touch as a child, I still do not like a v...

Etiquetteer adores a good seating plan, and wishes more people took the trouble. The success of any dinner party — of any meal with guests, really, even if breakfast — depends on the table talk. And ...

Everyone else seems to be allowed to have opinions, so why shouldn’t Etiquetteer? Two recent news stories have blown up the internet, and a third, of more passing interest, represents How Things Chang...

A renowned copyeditor, fulminating against what is Idiotic, Uninformed, and Dull, posed the question “Wouldn’t it be much more fun to write, and read, Ten Books I Adore That Odds Are Good You’ve Never...

Ah, Labor Day! That seasonal marker that sets off a series of fashion rules that People Who Don’t Care About Such Things enjoy twitting, and traditionalists like Etiquetteer infuse with a sense of whi...

Dear Etiquetteer: I will be having a dinner party next weekend. Wine and sweet apple cider will be offered. My guests include: a couple whose religion forbids alcoholic beverages (but I do not know i...

Many people are celebrating this year’s “extra week of summer,” since Labor Day is at late as it can possibly be. And while Etiquetteer loves an extra week of white shoes, that also means one less wee...

Dear Etiquetteer: I hope some day you publish etiquette rules for naturists. That would be fresh and international! Most people do not know how to behave at a naturist venue. Dear Naturist: Thank ...

Hell is other people. — Jean-Paul Sartre Dear Etiquetteer: I’m sure you’ve addressed this at some point in your storied etiquette career, but if not, I’d like to know how to address the subject of ...

Like many people the world over, Etiquetteer was surprised and saddened by the news yesterday of the death of Dolly Parton, a lady whose gospel was Kindness, and whose example of acceptance of all peo...

Dear Etiquetteer: I would love to hear more about rules that have changed through your 25 years of writing Etiquetteer. Perhaps cell phone usage or social media. Dear New Reader: The single biggest...

Good underwear, like good housekeeping, is what you don't notice . . . at least not out in the streets, where it could frighten the horses. Etiquetteer only just learned that August 5 is National Und...

Etiquetteer has had a lot of experience with hotel breakfast buffets this summer, and there are a few things seasoned travelers ought to know to start the day on a note of Perfect Propriety: Do not...

Dear Etiquetteer: I have followed you on social media for some time, and I’m messaging you now for some help. I consistently get bad reviews for my [small luxury] shop in the heart of [Insert Easte...

“We tolerate about anything here. Prejudice, fanaticism, demagoguery, anything. That’s what the Senate’s for, to tolerate freedom.” — Walter Pidgeon as US Senate Majority Leader Bob Munson in Advise...

“We mustn’t despair. Above all things we mustn’t despair.” — Charles Coburn as Sir Simon in The Paradine Case (1947) To say that Perfect Propriety has taken a beating in the last few weeks would b...

Gilda: “Mrs. Ballin Mundson, Mr. Farrell. Is that all right?” Johnny: “Congratulations.” Ballin: “Oh, you don’t congratulate the bride, Johnny. You congratulate the husband.” Johnny: “Really!...

Dear Etiquetteer: I’m getting ready to fly again and found your blog about Airborne Perfect Propriety . However, that was from seven years ago, and you certainly have new followers since then who ha...

June 23 is National Pink Day because . . . because . . . well, who knows? Because the internet! Let’s eat, drink, wear, and use pink, and celebrate its symbolism. These days it is traditional to a...

Something nuptial must be in the air, because not one but two readers just forwarded different articles about wedding etiquette . . . and Etiquetteer has views. “ When Wedding Guests Don’t Bring a Gi...

The epic tantrum - thrown by the grown man - left Southwest passengers in hysterics as he screamed about the baby's crying for 45 minutes, before being apprehended by authorities at the airport.

Dear Etiquetteer: I witnessed an individual announce to an event director, a promoter for one of the bar groups in town, that he cannot attend an event because of the price point. For context, these ...

Last week a Great Lady (who shall remain nameless — no, don’t ask, and no, not Lady Pamela Hicks , though she was an Undeniably Great Lady) left this world, and left it a better place. Her departure ...

Cast thy bread upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days. — Ecclesiastes 11:1 Dear Etiquetteer: Will you please address the proper way to share birth announcements? Apparently I am th...

An unusual amount of interest has been generated in the recent decisions handed down by the United States Supreme Court. Many citizens have been, or should be, prompted to express their opinions to th...

Dear Etiquetteer: Have you covered people saying '“Can I get . . .” instead of “May I have . . .” when ordering food? A friend of mind did it, and I had trouble not saying “I know your parents, how c...

“Neither a borrower nor a lender be; For loan oft loses both itself and friend, And borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.” — Hamlet, Act I, scene iii Dear Etiquetteer: My life partner is a real es...

Dear Etiquetteer: Recently I was talking with my sister who asked, “Why haven’t you responded to [Insert Name of Young Relative Here]’s wedding invitation? I responded that I hadn’t received one. I w...

“Can you see through this?” “I’m afraid you can, miss.” “[Then] I’ll wear it.” — Jean Harlow and a saleswoman in Red-Headed Woman

The movies are not, and have never been, a reliable guide to Perfect Propriety. What we see on screen is not always good manners, though it may be relevant to the plot. In this case it has to do with ...

Please, dear Etiquetteer: Address not wishing every woman a Happy Mother’s Day. Not all of us are mothers, not everyone ever wanted to be one, and some who desperately wanted to become one were not a...

Yesterday Etiquetteer entered a subway car over halfway full, featuring a child about eight years old lying face down across three seats, deeply absorbed in a video game. The accompanying parent was a...

“Perfect speed, my son, is being there . . . it’s kind of fun.” — Jonathan Livingston Seagull , by Richard Bach It’s useless to deny that letter writing and handwritten correspondence have a differ...

Dear Etiquetteer: It happened again. I was invited out to dinner by friends of mine, showed up at the restaurant, and found out as we were handed the menus that they only had small plates. Etiquettee...