DEAR MISS MANNERS: Is it appropriate for the first wife to take back the name of a former spouse?... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: At a formal dinner party, we were served cream soup in double handled cream soup bowls, complete with liner plate. With no apparent soup spoon on the table, I lifted the bowl by bot... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I have two in-law relations who don't think twice about asking you to return a gift. They have done it on several occasions. Whether it be the wrong size, style, fragrance or they j... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Every year my mother-in-law buys us bags of Christmas decorations and candies. Last year she gave me 12 boxes of red balls for the tree, which I gave to Good Will, and enough candy ... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Is it appropriate to request "Black Tie or Holiday Festive" dress on Christmas party invitations? It seems to me that either Black Tie OR Holiday Festive Attire would be better rece... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: OK, what is really wrong with Christmas letters? I know a lot of people make disparaging remarks about them, but suppose you have a lot of friends and can't possibly sit down and wr... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I am hoping that you can help me deal with a problem that has plagued me since I was a little girl. At that age, the problem was how to deal with the question, "What did you get for... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My husband and I decided to forego a larger wedding next year for an intimate, immediate family-only wedding this past June. We were both in school at the time, and now he is in the... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Our father just passed away a couple of months ago. Now that Christmas is coming, we'll be sending our mother cards. One sister wants to address the card to both our parents, but I ... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: We have two large (40-50 guests) casual parties at the same time each year and have done so for over five years, so invitees know that these events are coming up and many plan aroun... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My two best friends are engaged to be married. Most of the group we hang out with all agree that these two should not be getting married.... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I know that it is incorrect to brag about our children, but what about our grandchildren? Mine are so wonderful and I am so proud of them that sometimes I cannot contain myself. Am ... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: How is one supposed to respond when the company Christmas gift to its employees is a donation to a charity in "our" name?... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: As the manager of a restaurant, I witness appalling behavior from customers (and yes, I do admit from my staff as well) on a regular basis. However, nothing irks me more than when p... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My significant other who I have been together with for two years has recently moved in with me and put his own house up for sale.... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Is it appropriate to wear a formal traditional wedding gown for the bride's second wedding?... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My exchange student and I were at a local chain eatery, and I was asking him to notice how friendly Americans are with each other, as compared to his native country of India, where ... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: When we host the Thanksgiving dinner, my sister-in-law is in the habit of asking to take home leftovers. In the beginning I didn't mind too much because she was a young single paren... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My sister-in-law always serves white potatoes for Thanksgiving. She already knows that my husband and I don't eat white potatoes, and we don't eat stuffing because it contains white... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: We hold open house every Christmas, inviting some people in advance and bringing others back from church with us -- just people we happen to see but hadn't thought of beforehand.... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I'm desperate. Please help.... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: My wife greets many male houseguests and friends with kisses on their lips, and I am uncomfortable with this. I don't greet our female guests and friends that way.... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: What is the earliest date one can send a Christmas card without "rushing the season?"... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: We are supposed to go to a relative's house for Thanksgiving, and I am tired of people making derogatory remarks to me about us vegetarians. Since when is it all right for someone t... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: A friend and I went out to eat at a barbecue place, a nice one with waiters and cloth napkins. When we were finished eating but still at the table, my friend said he was looking for... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Help. After bestowing much diamond jewelry on a woman for five years and being engaged for the last year of that five, she broke up with me.... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: I hate to sound like a child who was born with a silver spoon, but it often distresses me when my boyfriend goes on and on about how poor he was when growing up. Mind you, my boyfri... more

DEAR MISS MANNERS: Please explain why there is apparently a now-universal compulsion to answer the phone, whether cell or landline, under any or all circumstances, and, having once answered it, to dea... more