Someone who could afford first-class seats but elects to save money by flying coach, for instance, is merely being cost-conscious, Farley says. "It's a very fine line," says Thomas Farley, an etiquette expert and keynote speaker known as Mister Manners. "Obviously, cheapskate is pejorative for I think 100% of the population, whereas frugality is definitely considered a virtue." But if you're coming across as cheap to other people, you're likely breaching the rules of good etiquette. Read the roomTo avoid looking cheap around your friends, it's important to take the temperature of how they usually behave with money, Farley says.

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Persons: Farley, Thomas Farley, Mister Manners, laud, That's, you'll, we're Organizations: laud savers, CNBC