Synopses & Reviews
A Primer for the Fabulous Girl in Training"You know the Fabulous Girl, don't you? She's Holly Golightly, the girl you must have at your cocktail party. She's smart, fun, stylish, and of course, beautifully well mannered. She's the friend who always knows when you need a shoe-shopping expedition to lift your spirits. She's the one who calls you after your disastrous dinner party and insists that she had a marvellous time. She's the girl you admire, the girl you want to be."
From etiquette experts Kim Izzo and Ceri March comes the perfect book for perfect manners. Witty and playful, The Fabulous Girl's Guide to Decorum provides invaluable advice for the thoroughly modern woman.
The Fabulous Girl's Guide to Decorum recognized the importance that work now plays in women's lives. Advice is offered on how to present yourself at an interview, how to socialize with workmates without breaching professional barriers, how to remain poised when overlooked for promotion, and how to maintain the respect and admiration of colleagues after you become the boss.
Outside of the workplace, in a tart yet helpful tone, Izzo and Marsh address issues of urban life, friendship, family, entertaining, romance and sex (because we all know romance and sex are not the same). There are rules for conducting one-night stands, tips for balancing the demands of old friends and new lovers, suggestions for throwing the perfect dinner party and what to do when it all goes horribly wrong.
Woven throughout the book is the story of the Fabulous Girl as she learns to glide gracefully through her days, vividly bringing to life the principles of decorum.
As essential as her little black dress, and as elegant and practical, The Fabulous Girl's Guide to Decorum is something no woman should be without.
Beautifully designed in original trade paperback format with spot illustrations throughout, The Fabulous Girl's Guide to Decorum is an ideal gift for weddings, graduations or celebrations of friendship.
About the Author
Kim Izzo is a freelance writer and frequent contributor to various newspapers and magazines including
The Globe and Mail,
Report on Business magazine,
Style,
FASHION magazine and
Flare. She has also worked in television as a field producer for several years on series such as
Harrowsmith Country Life,
Flare TV,
Entertainment Tonight and
Access Hollywood. Kim currently divides her time between Los Angeles and Toronto.
Ceri Marsh is the fashion news director at FASHION magazine, and was previously fashion editor at The Globe and Mail. Her articles have appeared frequently in magazines such as Toronto Life, Saturday Night, Report on Business magazine and Flare.
Marsh and Izzo currently write a weekly etiquette column for The Globe and Mail entitled "Urban Decorum."
Table of Contents
Contents
Introduction
The Workplace
“I was praying this morning that you wouldnt ...”
Work
Entering the Workforce
Jill Jobs
Be Nice to the Little People
On-the-Job Etiquette
Promotion Etiquette
Moving Up
Socializing with Colleagues and Co-workers
Office Romances
What Youre Worth and When Its Not Enough
Bidding Adieu
“I wasnt sure, but I think it bugged Missy that ...”
Society
“So, yay me! I had this great new job. I could ...”
Society
Your People
The Fabulous Girl Aesthetic
Nice and Rude
Funerals
Introductions, Salutations and Social Intercourse
Street Etiquette
The Well-Mannered Traveller
Shopping
The Telephone
Restaurants
Pregnant Women
The Haves and Have-nots: Children
Famous Friends
Events
People in your Neighbourhood
The Nouveau Riche
“The following weekend was the National Magazine Award party ...”
Friendship
“Cardboard. No, not cardboard. Another C. Carpet ...”
Friendship
Girl Time
Troubleshooting
FGs like Gilt not Guilt
Ending Hold-Over Friendships
Mo Money
Soap Dish
Relationships and Friendships
Fair-Weather Friends
Kill the Messenger: Gossip
Three Musketeers?
Married Friends and Their Little Angels
Stalking and Other Bad Ideas
Men Friends
The Fabulous Girls Perfect Day Shopping with her best FG
“I knocked on Missys door at around 11:30 that night ...”
Sex and Courtship
“When youre only seeing someone on the weekend ...”
Sex and Courtship
The Art of Flirting
First Dates
Post-First Date
Cancelling a Date
When to Move from Supper to Sex
Admitting Important Facts
Sex, Sex, Sex
Dating Variations
“I wondered if there would be a message from G.G. ...”
Couples
“There we all were, about to partake in our first ...”
Couples
The Real Rules
Jealousy and the “X” Factor
His Issues
Gift-Giving
Family and Friends
Living Together
Breaking Up
“Things were cooking along until I noticed that Groovy ...”
Weddings and Divorce
“Suddenly Missy was the coolest girl ...”
Weddings
Divorces
“A couple of weeks after the wedding I started ...”
Home
“Of course, Missys marriage had also meant yet ...”
Home
Roommates
What the Fabulous Girl Needs
Housework
Decorating
House Guests
Cooking
Music
Buying Your First Home
Budgeting
“I just hate it when I have to wait around here ...”
Entertaining
“After so much fun living like a grown-up...”
The Zen of Hostessing
The Guest List
Invitations
The Dinner Party
The Cocktail Party
Accidents and Other Fiascoes
Dress Codes
The End
The Gracious Guest
Dealing with the Press at Your Parties
“Six months went by and I attended many dinner parties ...”
Fabulous Girl Epilogue
“The next day Missy rang up Elenor at work ...”
Acknowledgements