Leaving a party is easy if, like Cinderella, you know you need to depart prematurely. “Just tell the hostess as soon as you can,” says Dorothy Cann Hamilton, founder and CEO of the French Culinary Institute, in New York City. But what if you're at a party that makes purgatory feel like Disneyland? There's no polite way to duck out of a dinner party. However, for less intimate affairs, “assume it's going to be boring, and lay your groundwork for escape,” says Robert Verdi of the E! channel's Fashion Police. Talk with the hostess right away, and whether or not you say a proper good-bye, “send flowers with a thank-you note the next day,” says Julie Pryor, owner of Personalized Parties & Events, in Los Angeles.