~When making a first impression, a simple gesture can go a long way.

Between the summer party season and being introduced to a slew of friends and kin connected to my banjo player, I'm right in the middle of a mess of impressing.

And every good Southern girl worth her weight in grits knows two things: 1. Never arrive to a house unless you've been specifically invited; and 2. Never arrive to a house empty-handed.

As a lesson learned, I'll also throw in an extra rule for free: Never trust a banjo player to know the dress code.

But I digress. A strong step toward impressing those relations as well as arriving with something in hand is to have hostess gifts in the house for any last minute invites.

So, take a Sunday afternoon to tackle one of these ideas and never fear meeting the folks again.

Tea towels/napkins

Being decent doesn't have to be difficult. One of the easiest tricks for making a good impression is to combine store bought with hand made. You can purchase tea towels in the craft section of many department stores, and I've found great deals on plain napkin sets at many discount stores.

In an earlier column I wrote a little about embellishing through embroidery. That's one of the easiest ways to spiff up your store-bought wonders. And, if you want to be completely hands-off, you can take them to a store to be machine-embroidered. Another trick is to take some fabric paint and gently stencil a design on the edge of your gift.

These simple touches make the gift more personal and, with just a little time investment, you can always be an impressive guest.

Scented sachets

Perfume might give your hostess the impression that she smells. Flowers may make her sneeze. But scented sachets are a great gift that strikes that fine line between something feminine and something useful.

The basic setup: For each sachet cut two 4-inch squares of fabric (I prefer to use linen or satin). Place right sides together and sew a quarter-inch hem around three sides of the fabric. Then sew the remaining side of the square leaving a half-inch opening.

Now you have a pocket. Flip the pocket right-side out and get ready to add your smell 'em goods. To make your own smell 'em goods, pour a 12-ounce bag of dry rice into a plastic bowl. Add three to four drops of essence oil in a scent of your preference and mix (I recommend lavender, rose or sandalwood).

Make a funnel out of a rolled-up piece of paper and fill your pocket with the rice. You want to put just enough rice into your pocket so that it feels like a beanbag. This gives you enough room to run the bunny through the tunnel (an old home economics expression) and sew up the opening to your pocket. Basically, you're going to take a needle and thread and, starting from right behind the end of your machine stitching, run the needle back and forth to close up your pocket.

Tunes for the festivities

The mix tape isn't a new phenomenon, but the plethora of online music available (legally, Mom, no music stealing for me) takes the humble mix tape to a whole new level. Going to a dinner party with your peers? There's an iTunes jazz mix for that. An evening outdoors? Try some ambient music from Max's MixMaster Online. Playing all afternoon at a family affair? Even Hokey Pokey and Baby Balooga can be bought and sold online these days. Add a nice label and thank you liner notes and you've got a gift that works for any group in any environment.

So pick your pleasure to avoid the poison of a poor first impression.

Vanessa Cook is a former copy editor for the Southeast Missourian who dabbles in decorating.