Turn Your Guy into a Gentleman — 10 Tips to Make Him a Classy Guy

Article contribution by Love Delusions

(Picture: Eddie Redmayne and his wife, Hannah Bagshawe @gettyimages)

Three hundred years ago men were gentleman by nature. Even the art of war was gentlemanly. To be honest, men were still gentlemen in the 1960’s. Society has changed a lot over the past few decades, and while some of those changes have been wonderfully helpful to women everywhere…some of those changes have not. The fact that men don’t feel the need to be “gentlemen” anymore is definitely not a good change.

While it might seem like your belching, tank top wearing, frat boy of a boyfriend will never be classy enough to introduce to your dad, there are ways you can make him into a gentleman. The ten tips will not only turn your guy into a more refined person, but he won’t even realize you’re doing it.

1. Force Him to Dress Up

My first love wore shirts that were held together with safety pins. No joke, ladies. It was horrifying trying to take him out in public. You have to put your foot down and make him wear nice clothes. Okay, he might not be willing (or possibly even capable) of looking like he stepped right out of a J. Crew catalog, but he should at least own pants without holes and shirts that aren’t flannel. When he tries to go out with you looking like he just stepped out of a hard Rock concert, tell him he has to change his clothes or go on without him. Don’t accept his terrible wardrobe, and if he doesn’t have anything good then you might have to go get him something.

2. Wait for Him to Open the Door

Don’t walk in front of him, walk beside him and make sure he opens the door for you. Pause in front of the door and smile at him sweetly and ask if he’ll open the door for you please. Start out doing this when your hands are full and then eventually he’ll start opening the door even when you’re hands are free. My mom has all of us trained (even me) to open the car door for her, she’ll stand there and wait until one of us actually opens the passenger side door. We learned quickly she hates waiting.

3. Remind Him to Say Please

If your guy is the kind to say “Honey, grab me a sandwich, will you?”, then take it upon yourself to make him into more of a gentleman by telling him to “say please”. Do it in a cute, teasing manner the first few times, then smile and lift an eyebrow at him until it just becomes second nature to the man.

4. Remind Him to Say Thank You

Getting a man to say thank you is a little different, usually it takes trickery. I don’t recommend forcefully reminding your guy to say thank you until he’s reached the point of using the above manners automatically, and then you shouldn’t tell him to say the words, you should remind him that you would “just like a little appreciation once in a while for all the things you do for him”. Lay some soft guilt on the man.

5. Hold Fancy Dinner Parties

If you want to bring out the best in your man, you have to show him some gentlemanly examples. Host some serious dinner parties with your friends where your man has to dress his bast and can be around other guys who are on their “best behavior”.