Five suspected nail bombs put west London on major alert, before a woman walked into a police station claiming they were her "works of art".
Police helicopters and bomb squad officers were scrambled to Shepherd's Bush and Hammersmith on Wednesday morning, to examine the packages.
Some of the packages were cardboard boxes containing soft toys and training shoes with nails sticking out of them.
A 36-year-old local woman was held on suspicion of causing a public nuisance.
She has since been released on bail.
The emergency services were called to the area shortly after 0800 GMT.
"Your absence has gone through us like thread through a needle"
BBC home affairs correspondent Daniel Sandford said the packages - cardboard boxes and cylinders - were "all of a similar appearance and all quite prominently placed".
One, in Charecroft Way, Shepherd's Bush, consisted of three cardboard tubes supporting a polystyrene "altar" on which stood some flowers and a note which talked about the loss of a "Pelagius".
It read: "Your absence has gone through us like thread through a needle. Everything we do is stitched with its colour."
As a precaution police closed roads around the area, many used by commuters getting into central London, and people in local buildings were told to keep away from windows.
Jonathan Boakes, who lives near the police cordon, said he and neighbours were left waiting for an hour for the situation to clear.
"There were lots of helicopters in the sky, lots of ambulances and sirens going off," he said.
Police later confirmed no explosives were found and all the roads were re-opened after a woman claimed to be responsible for placing the suspect objects.
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