Simple and Useful Party Centerpieces

My newborn son's baptism was last weekend and we hosted a small luncheon afterwards for our guests in one of the church meeting rooms. Now, I'm not a frivolous spender so I wasn't keen on spending $10+ a centerpiece for flowers that would die or balloons that would just end up in the trash.

After some brainstorming with my mother, we settled on a pillar candle inside a small hurricane glass. The candles were $7 for two and the small hurricanes were $2.75 each.

When we got home, I used my StoryBook Creator software from Creative Memories to create a custom wrap for the candles that included a picture of my son, a clip art cross, and a sentiment. You could also use Microsoft Publisher or even a word processing program to create this wrap. (Note: Other than being a happy customer, I am in no way affiliated with Creative Memories.) Wrap the paper around the candle, adhere it with some Scotch tape or scrapbooking adhesive and, ta-da, your centerpiece is complete! Just don't forget matches or a lighter!

The finished product!

The end result was a simple yet attractive centerpiece for my tables that also serves a practical purpose that cost me only $6.25 each. The best part? They also provided me with nice and useful favors to give to special people at the baptism, including his godparents.

Please note that I've altered the picture to protect my child's identity.