Respect your elders. Call anyone you meet "Ma'am" and "Sir", unless told to do otherwise.
Add the nicknames "Sugar", "Sweetheart", "Darling'", "Lamb", and "Baby", to your vocabulary, and start calling your friends that. Don't overdo it though!
Make sure you always dress well, and are presentable at all times. Do not wear clothes that are too revealing. Southern belles love wearing dresses, pearls, heels, and nice jackets. Invest in a few nice, casual dresses if you can.
Keep yourself looking clean and neat. Bathe everyday, wear a light perfume, keep your hair looking nice and clean, keep your nails manicured and polished, and never cake on the make up!
Southern Belle's are very family oriented. Always help out your family, spend quality time with them, and love them. Call your Mother, "Momma", and call your Father, "Daddy", regardless of how old you are!
Take compliments well. When you're complimented, do not try to shoot down the compliment. When someone says "You look very pretty today!", smile warmly and say "Thank you! I love your ---!". Complimenting them back shows that
you're a sweet, kind person.
Smile! A southern belle always has a bright, warm smile on her face.
Have Southern hospitality. A southern belle is sweet, kind, and generous to everyone they come across. This is where "Southern Hospitality" comes in to play. If you don't like someone, still be polite and sweet. And if you can't, simply do not say anything!
Learn how to make sweet tea! Offer it to everyone who visits your home. It's a Southern staple, and tastes delicious!
Do your mother a favor, and clean the house for her a few times a month. Doing chores for your mother shows that you care, and respect all the sacrifices she does for you!
Finish school. A southern belle has an education, and a good head on her shoulders.
Don't drink excessive amounts of alcohol. A Southern belle would never be caught singing drunk in her panties.
Never swear. Use euphemisms instead. Say "Darn" instead of "Damn", and so on. Swearing shows a lack of intelligence, it sounds dirty, and it's completely unnecessary. Even the word "crap" sounds vulgar.
Never speak of using the restroom to anyone. If you need to use the restroom, simply excuse yourself.
Southern belles are very religious. Respect your religion, and those of others, as well. God is your number one go-to advice-giver.
Have genuine, sweet, down-to-earth attitude.
Pay attention to how you present yourself. Hold your head up high, sit up straight, and have a neat, groomed
appearance.
White shoes should never be worn before Easter or after Labor Day, unless it is your own wedding. Then it is okay to wear but when you change out of your bridal wear, you will need to change your shoes or you will be seen as "tacky".
Regardless of how many trips down the aisle a Belle has made, a Southern bride always wears white.
Cleavage is reserved for evenings.
Chewing gum in public is just plain "tacky".
A modern Southern Belle may smoke or drink but they should never walk around with cigarette or a drink in hand.
Know how to accessorize without being tacky. If in doubt, remove one item before leaving the house. In the South, this is called "understated elegance".
Never gossip. When you have something to say that isn't nice, always start out with "Bless her heart" or "Please pray for her". You can pretty much get away with anything with those statements before it.
When someone is sick or passes away, bring food to the family. People get hungry when taking care of an invalid and after losing a loved one, but they don't have time to cook. Most belles have a favorite casserole that others eventually come to expect. When they receive it, they get concerned that you may be sick, and you just might find other people showing up at your door with food.
A Southern Belle breaks rules all of the time and she does so in good humor. However, as she skips along with an armful of stacked bracelets and white shoes the week before Thanksgiving, you can count on her looking over her shoulder to make sure her Mama isn't looking!
Never show anger in public. Smile and always act like a lady.
Act helpless and confused when it is to your advantage; never let them know how clever and capable you really are!
Charm, charm. charm!
Be elegant and graceful!
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