How to be a gentleman, by Tom Ford

Tom Ford possesses a preternatural ability to remain unruffled amid scenes that would send anyone else OMGing and jumping up and down.

By ELLE UK and NonePublished: 25 March 2011

Unknown

His trademark tuxedos (never wrinkled), bowties (perfectly crisp), facial hair (manicured) and considerable degrees of accomplishment (film, fashion, retail, life) all bespeak him as a true gentleman.

So men could do worse than to follow Fords lead on the matter of gentlemanliness. He conveyed five rules for ideal masculine comportment to editor Jefferson Hack in the latest issue of AnOther Magazine.

His advice can be summarised as: dress well, work, comport yourself with excellent manners, and never, ever wear shorts off the tennis court or the beach. (Eds note: Can we add flip-flops and excessive hair gel to the do-not-wear list too?)

Ladies, show these to your men. Aspiring gentlemen, imprint these easy-to-follow rules in your minds:

1. You should put on the best version of yourself when you go out in the world because that is a show of respect to the other people around you.

2. A gentleman today has to work. People who do not work are so boring and are usually bored. You have to be passionate, you have to be engaged and you have to be contributing to the world.

3. Manners are very important and actually knowing when things are appropriate. I always open doors for women, I carry their coat, I make sure that they're walking on the inside of the street. Stand up when people arrive at and leave the dinner table.

4. Don't be pretentious or racist or sexist or judge people by their background.

5. A man should never wear shorts in the city. Flip-flops and shorts in the city are never appropriate. Shorts should only be worn on the tennis court or on the b

Advertisement - Continue Reading Below