A Pearl Girl Knows

Day 2: A Pearl Girl Knows

**Stirring a packet of sugar into a glass of cold tea won't give you real Southern iced tea flavor. Always add your sweetener when the tea is still as warm as the heart of a Southern belle.

**Southern enternating begins in the home, and we Pearl Girls know that the best compliment we can receive is to be invited into the home of a new friend.

**E-mail has replaced letters. Television has replaced conversation. There will never be a replacement for home. Value your traditions and what you have learned from your family.

**A Southern hostess always remembers names. If she forgets, though, it's no problem. No Pearl Girl ever minded being called sugah, dah'lin, or sweetheart!

**Gentlemen know what makes a Southern belle ring--diamonds, emeralds, rubies, sapphires, and, of course, pearls. And Southern ladies know that it doesn't take a gentleman for them to sparkle. If you've got the money, sugar, there's nothing wrong with buying a little something to make yourself shine like that star you are.

**Never accept an invitation from someone you wouldn't want to have back at your own house.

**One rule of thumb to follow )aside from not wearing white after Labor Day, but that's not something I need to tell Pearl Girls) is that the earlier the party starts, the more conservative the dress. That sequined gold lame' halter top may show off your tan perfectly, but it would be out of place at a bridal luncheon.

**If your hostess is pregnant, nursing, or a Baptist, a bottle of nonalcoholic cider or grape juice is a thoughtful way to let her sip a cocktail at her own party.

**Your last impression should be as good as your first. Make sure that the heels of your shoes are in good shape, as they are the last thing they'll see as you walk out the door.

**A Southern Girl knows that the best way to approach a party is to imagine that her mother-in-law (and all of her ex- and future mothers-in-law) are coming.

**A Pearl Girl without lipstick is like a Yankee without his lawyer. At cocktail parties, try to keep the nibbles small enough so the ladies won't have to ruin their lipstick.

**Want to take all the anticipation and joy from an invitation? Use an e-invitation! There's only one proper way to use e-mail to invite your friends to a party--don't.

**Be a true Southern belle, and use your silver every day. The more it's used, the more appealing its patina.

**Moonshine can be served in your grandmother's old fruit jars, though remember to put the lid on after each service or the dog might pass out from the fumes.

**Remember to alternate alcoholic with nonalcoholic beverages, drink slowly, and eat some food along with the liquor. Pearl Girls would rather be Botox-icated than intoxicated!

**Never eat more than you can lift. --Miss Piggy

**The best way to thaw a turkey...blow in his ear.

**Character is what you are, reputation is what you try to make people think you are.

--Anonymous

***All excerpts are taken from Puttin' on the GRITS: A Guide to Southern Entertaining, by Deborah Ford.

***I am sorry that this post is so jumbled up. I've tried over and over to put spacing between the quotes, and it just will not work!