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Backhanded compliment? The things men say (lighthearted!)

(119 Posts)
nannafizz Wed 20-Jan-21 08:02:06

A few days ago I came downstairs and DH said ‘you smell nice . I thanked him & thought it must be hand cream or moisturiser as I hadn’t used any perfume. This morning he said over breakfast ‘you smell lovely’ , what is it? I held my hand out and asked if it was my hand cream . No , it wasn’t . Later he came into the bathroom as I was cleaning the bath . ‘That’s it , he said , the lovely smell . Turns out I often smell lovely , just like the bathroom cleaner?

Jane10 Wed 20-Jan-21 08:20:54

Could be worse!

sodapop Wed 20-Jan-21 08:40:16

Not my husband but my daughter when asked if a top suited me said " well it's alright for you mother but I wouldn't wear it "hmm

shysal Wed 20-Jan-21 09:02:04

The young man who later became my husband once told me that I wasn't bad looking in the dark!

dragonfly46 Wed 20-Jan-21 09:06:37

shysal ??

Roddi3363 Wed 20-Jan-21 09:26:04

My mother in law used to say "You stink nice!" She was German.

Oopsadaisy1 Wed 20-Jan-21 09:29:05

Reminds me of a joke

Wife says to husband ‘ I think my bum looks big in this dress what do you think?’
Husband says ‘ I think you’re right, it does’

Wife says ‘ you never say anything nice about me, isn’t there anything good you can say?’

Husband thinks for a bit and then says ‘ you’ve still got excellent eyesight’

Loulou54 Wed 20-Jan-21 09:29:43

When I was about 43 and waiting for my friend to arrive to meet me for a drink, a man walked from behind me, had a look at me and said ‘you must’ve have been good looking back in the day’!! grin I must’ve looked better from the back than the front!! Ha!

Evie66 Wed 20-Jan-21 09:30:29

My m-i-l had it down to a fine art, at a wedding she said to me, lovely suit dear, I didn't know they made them that big.?

Kiwigramz Wed 20-Jan-21 09:31:46

When I was at school,many years ago a friend said to me “your hair looks nice today, what went wrong?” ?

Grannygrumps1 Wed 20-Jan-21 09:33:37

Thank you for making me laugh Nanafizz.

GrammarGrandma Wed 20-Jan-21 09:34:00

My husband used to say of a particular outfit that I looked as if I was something dug up at Pompeii! It was a lovely terracotta top and trousers with a cream design and he is an ardent classicist so I took it as a compliment.

Georgesgran Wed 20-Jan-21 09:35:43

We had a builder in some years ago - I was always in jeans and jumpers. One morning I had to ‘dress’ for an appointment and as I came downstairs, he looked up and said ‘bloody hell, you don’t half scrub up well!’
M-in-L also had a way with words - whatever I showed her she always said ‘well, as long as you like it’. Not a nice person.

Grandmabatty Wed 20-Jan-21 09:38:27

I worked with a colleague who was notorious for her 'compliments'. "Your hair looks nice- from the back." " That outfit is lovely. I wouldn't have the nerve to wear it if I was that big." "You can't be 40. I thought you were much older" and many, many more!

Mumsyface Wed 20-Jan-21 09:40:20

Maybe the correct response would be “have you looked in the mirror recently?”

Aepgirl Wed 20-Jan-21 09:43:21

Back in the seventies (big should pad time) I bought a really expensive trouser suit. When I first put it on my husband said 'Victoria Wood' would look good in that!

Aepgirl Wed 20-Jan-21 09:43:40

'should pad' should be 'shoulder pad'.

grandMattie Wed 20-Jan-21 09:50:39

DH is always saying about anything I’ve made or done, “Not bad. Considering,”.... Grrrr. I could cheerfully knife him!

Lyndylou Wed 20-Jan-21 09:57:40

Loulou54 I must have been a similar age when I called in on a man I used to work for about 10 years previously. He walked back to my car with me still chatting and said "I used to fancy you, you know" Well I had known and I think he meant it as a compliment, but I was left thinking "Used to? What's wrong with me now?"

jaylucy Wed 20-Jan-21 09:57:43

An ex boyfriend's standard comments were "I like that dress, really suits you. Was it expensive? You could have bought a new one for that" or
"Lovely top. It will be nice when it's finished!"

Foxglove77 Wed 20-Jan-21 09:59:19

Years ago when we went to Butlins my hubby popped into the bar whilst I entertained the kids. He came out and said they are holding a beauty contest in there and they are all a bit rough. You should enter you might come third or something....

nipsmum Wed 20-Jan-21 10:05:55

When I asked my Dad once if my skirt was too long, he very diplomatically told me, " it is okay, a blind man running for a bus will never notice it" he said. I commented I'm not going out with a blind man though.

Classic Wed 20-Jan-21 10:09:52

My husband won't compliment me, if I go to a lot of trouble getting ready (years ago when we did go out) he would say "that's a nice dress" and when I make a lovely meal and ask him if he likes it he says " its alright" to which I might reply along the lines of "I can see you like it, eating that fast, don't lick the pattern off the plate" but if he puts on new clothes or does anything I am expected to praise it like its the best ever

Urmstongran Wed 20-Jan-21 10:11:33

Himself is king of the one-liners & he does make me laugh. Occasionally when I get in from the hairdresser’s he will glance over and say ‘so they cancelled your appointment then’.
?

cc Wed 20-Jan-21 10:15:35

Classic

My husband won't compliment me, if I go to a lot of trouble getting ready (years ago when we did go out) he would say "that's a nice dress" and when I make a lovely meal and ask him if he likes it he says " its alright" to which I might reply along the lines of "I can see you like it, eating that fast, don't lick the pattern off the plate" but if he puts on new clothes or does anything I am expected to praise it like its the best ever

My husband also says "Alright" when I ask how I look, its his highest form of compliment!