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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Garden to Go

    A cluster of potted zinnias adds charm to the table at a country or casual wedding. A sign next to the display asks guests to "Please pick one." The pots are painted with acrylic paint to match the flowers. The theme that inspires the favor continues at each place setting: Seeds packaged in glassine bags are attached to each of the tented place cards with yellow twine that is inserted through two small punched holes, then tied in a bow. Directions for planting are printed inside the cards.

    Next: Stacked Favor Centerpiece

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Stacked Favor Centerpiece

    This display is a centerpiece, a stack of party favors, and a table-number indicator all in one. Fill small cardboard boxes with cookies or candies, wrap them with bands of paper and slender ribbon, and stack them on a silver compote in the shape of a pyramid. Attach a table number to the topmost box.

    Next: Tuscan Takeaway

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Tuscan Takeaway

    Ripe fruits symbolize abundance and fertility -- and make delicious favors. Tomatoes look beautiful and enticing in this rustic Italian display.

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    Next: Stamped Glass Candleholders

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Stamped Glass Candleholders

    For the reception, re-create the beauty of etching with ease. All you need is a rubber stamp, white ink, and glass candleholders -- frosted glass holds ink best. One stamp can form a single motif or an allover pattern. (For a custom design, such as your monogram, have a stamp made at an office-supply store.) To use a large stamp on a cylindrical container, carefully roll it from side to side. Allow a day or two for ink to fully dry.

    Next: Floral Favor Centerpieces

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Floral Favor Centerpieces

    Wedding favors allow guests to take a little piece of the celebration home. Though often presented at place settings or displayed on a table by the door, favors can be offered in another way that is both impressive and economical: grouped together as centerpieces.

    Next: Fancy Candy

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Fancy Candy

    Humble supplies can take on an elegant air: Monogrammed stickers and crepe paper decorate clear plastic tubes filled with champagne-bubble candies. They're then piled into a glass compote around a smaller compote of crepe-paper flowers.

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    Next: Boxed Groom's Cake

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Boxed Groom's Cake

    Assembled in the shape of a three-tier layer cake, store-bought boxes hold individual slices of the groom's cake, ready for the guests to take home; tucked between the white boxes are ranunculuses, sweet peas, hyancinths, and lilies of the valley.

    Next: Potted Orchids

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Potted Orchids

    As a centerpiece for the party and favors for the guests (perhaps at a shower), orchids are presented in terra-cotta pots painted white and arranged on a saucer; a butterfly-shaped tag on a thin wire holder hovers over each plant.

    Next: Flower Boxes

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Flower Boxes

    Boxes topped with flowers make a beautiful centerpiece; a table number is embroidered onto ribbon encircling the largest box. Inside, the stems sit in water bottles stabilized by crumpled paper. Favor boxes, which contain nonpareils, double as place cards.

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    Next: Fruit Baskets

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Fruit Baskets

    Baskets brimming with fruit imbue a reception with rustic charm. We filled Nantucket baskets in various sizes with warm-toned fruits: pears, apricots, and two kinds of apples. Small baskets laden with blond cherries are arranged at place settings for guests to take home; tiny bows are a graceful touch.

    Next: Trees to Go

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Trees to Go

    Give a favor that symbolizes love growing and becoming stronger with time. Many seedlings are available at online nurseries -- these are foot-tall Norway spruces.

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    Next: Moss and Rose Centerpiece

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Moss and Rose Centerpiece

    This unusual, lush display is rustic and modern at once -- and inexpensive and easy enough to make yourself.

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    Next: Tea Tin Centerpiece

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Tea Tin Centerpiece

    With their beautiful ornamentation and lettering, biscuit and tea tins bring old-fashioned charm to a reception table. New or vintage, the containers are inexpensive and easy to find at specialty-food stores, tag sales, and online auctions. Test tins to make sure they're watertight before filling with single-flower arrangements. If any do leak, use plastic bags as liners.

    Next: Paper Bag Centerpiece

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Paper Bag Centerpiece

    Vases of varying sizes, shapes, and materials can be unified with mere paper bags to serve as fresh, bright centerpieces at a casual wedding. Slip the plain white lunch bags over the containers and cinch the tops loosely with ribbons tied in bows.

    Next: Paper Cones

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    Favors as Centerpieces

    Paper Cones

    These whimsical dragee cones standing in a galvanized tray will delight even adults.

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    Favors as Centerpieces

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