Etiquette Boss: On soup and good impressions

BY PHILLIPA MORRISH

YOUR BEST INVESTMENT:   Etiquette for Children

Soup Etiquette — “It’s all about choices,” I say to teenagers. “If you know the correct way to do things, you can choose whether or not to do them. However, if you don’t know, you are at a disadvantage because you have no choice.”

They usually agree, and are attentive when I demonstrate that though sweet foods (ice cream, etc.)  are scooped inward, savories (soups) are scooped outward.

When drinking soup, smaller children pretend the spoon is a little boat they are sending out to sea. They skim the spoon away from them and bring it back, sipping noiselessly from the side of the spoon except for particles, which are eaten from the front of the spoon. They tilt the bowl outward to drink the last of the soup.

Teens observe these two important differences: a soup bowl is used only for lunch or an informal meal but a formal meal requires a soup plate. If drinking from a soup bowl, the spoon is rested on the underlying plate during or after the meal. However, a soup plate is treated as a dinner plate, and the spoon stays in the plate.

YOUR BEST APPEARANCE:  Face Forward

Lift Your Eyes Naturally — Not only are the “eyes the windows of the soul,” but they also indicate health and age. If your eyelids cause you to look tired and older, it’s because your forehead muscles have stretched.

A brow lift may not in your budget, but take heart, you can still lift and smooth out brow lines plus tighten those sagging eyelids. Place three middle fingertips from each hand to push eyebrows straight up and slightly outward.

Keep your eyes open and use your forehead muscles to push down into your fingertips. Hold the contraction for a count of five and release. Repeat 10 times. In two months, you will ‘love how you look’ if you clean and moisturize daily before doing exercises.

Phillipa Morrish is the President of Etiquette Training International.