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Real or Artificial? The Christmas tree debate.

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Replies

  • rosebette
    rosebette Posts: 1,660 Member
    For those posting house pictures, they are gorgeous. When can I move in? Seriously, I have been doing artificial since my husband started traveling, and my grown sons, who are still home with me, started working unpredictable shifts. Plus, we got rid of a minivan that died, which we used to use to transport the tree. I'm not sorry. I just have one son bring it upstairs, and we put it together, and then decorate. We used to fight over how straight the real one was, keeping it from tilting, fall over, etc. Plus, I'd be sweeping needles up into May.
  • kpop82
    kpop82 Posts: 139 Member
    Artificial! The real ones hurt when you step on fallen needles and frankly, I freak out about fire hazards.
    Plus pre-lit is a pretty amazing thing.
  • Benjinkan
    Benjinkan Posts: 1,107 Member
    Artificial for the house, but a real one in the garden B)
  • Joannah700
    Joannah700 Posts: 2,665 Member
    I'm not only going for real...but living.

    There are several different companies that do it, but they keep the trees in pots, deliver it to you (because it's so heavy) you keep it a month, they pick it up and grow the trees for the upcoming year and it will be someone else's tree next year.

    It's my first year doing it, but it's supposed to have far fewer needles shedding, its good for the environment..and it's kinda awesome.

    http://www.livingchristmas.com/
  • Joannah700
    Joannah700 Posts: 2,665 Member
    Gawanne79 wrote: »
    Does anybody still make the pre Christmas tree old English kissing boughs? Two large hoops, made into a ball shape, each one wound with holly and fir, suspended from the ceiling with a red/green tartan ribbon and with real mistletoe at the bottom. Great if you have a big hall, and what an excuse for dear old uncle as he comes in.

    No...but that sounds awesome!

    Do you have a picture you could post? Or is there a picture on the internet that is similar? I saw a few different versions when I searched.
  • mojohowitz
    mojohowitz Posts: 900 Member
    Like most guys, I don't care if they are real or fake. I may say I don't like fake ones but that is only to appear less superficial in an effort to convince you to show me your real one(s). Occasionally the real ones are messy and get droopy while the fake ones are pretty obvious but no less appealing.

    For the record, I've only experienced real ones but I would not turn down a chance to check out some fake ones.

  • Gawanne79
    Gawanne79 Posts: 11 Member
    Hi joannah700 I'm so sorry I don't have a picture, but they are really pretty and you can find how to make them on the Internet under Christmas kissing bough-home-city of Pickering. I'm new to the Internet and not very good at it! Anyway I believe they were originally Celt or Druid in origin and it would have been a great way to sneak a crafty kiss in more decorous times before queen Victoria's husband introduced the Christmas tree. Once the hoops are covered in greenery you can hang glass ornaments or anything you fancy from them, and I have a light inside mine. The important bit though is the mistletoe and it was believed if you grabbed a berry whilst kissing that would be the one you married. Worked for me! LOL
  • randomtai
    randomtai Posts: 9,003 Member
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    randomtai wrote: »

    Because fake trees are fake. Real ones smell like Christmas.
    Lol, I have redwood and fir trees all around my yard. Heck when I rake it smells like Christmas all year around.
    All I have to do is open a window.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    9285851.png


    Lol if we all can only be so lucky to have your credentials and outside decor. :laugh:
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,028 Member
    randomtai wrote: »
    ninerbuff wrote: »
    randomtai wrote: »

    Because fake trees are fake. Real ones smell like Christmas.
    Lol, I have redwood and fir trees all around my yard. Heck when I rake it smells like Christmas all year around.
    All I have to do is open a window.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    9285851.png


    Lol if we all can only be so lucky to have your credentials and outside decor. :laugh:
    I'd trade my credentials for the Mega Millions winning lotto numbers.

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    9285851.png

  • Joannah700
    Joannah700 Posts: 2,665 Member
    Gawanne79 wrote: »
    Hi joannah700 I'm so sorry I don't have a picture, but they are really pretty and you can find how to make them on the Internet under Christmas kissing bough-home-city of Pickering. I'm new to the Internet and not very good at it! Anyway I believe they were originally Celt or Druid in origin and it would have been a great way to sneak a crafty kiss in more decorous times before queen Victoria's husband introduced the Christmas tree. Once the hoops are covered in greenery you can hang glass ornaments or anything you fancy from them, and I have a light inside mine. The important bit though is the mistletoe and it was believed if you grabbed a berry whilst kissing that would be the one you married. Worked for me! LOL

    Love it! I found a few online.

    And if you do find a picture you can right-click on the photo, and select "copy image url". You can then paste that in the forums here. To make sure it shows up though you need to include [*img] before the url (no spaces) and [*/img] after the url (no spaces).

    But take out the * symbol. I only included that here because otherwise you wouldn't be able to see my explanation.
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  • rbfdac
    rbfdac Posts: 1,057 Member
    Artificial here! Easier all the way around. No pine needles, no sap, no strong smell. And they come pre-lit! Hello, lazy!
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  • Timshel_
    Timshel_ Posts: 22,834 Member
    I don't care what other do. For me, only real in the house. It is the BEST quality time with my family and friends, and I LOVE being outdoors.

    Just back Sunday from our annual trip.

    10802554_1508385109411814_710598286_n.jpg

    Pre-trimmed, just letting it settle a few days.
    10802781_1510300985918767_1312239089_n.jpg



  • jenmarie2012
    jenmarie2012 Posts: 180 Member
    Real all the way!! The smell of pine I love
  • njitaliana
    njitaliana Posts: 809 Member
    Artificial. Allergies. Achoo.
  • laurasuzie3
    laurasuzie3 Posts: 493 Member
    Artificial. I hate bugs and the smell of pine.
  • perfekta
    perfekta Posts: 331 Member
    Fake all the way! Fake with flocked snow, and two little tinsel trees (themed). I love Xmas! (didn't get it growing up). Everyone freaked out that I never used real trees, so I caved and got one , one year. I picked it out at night and didn't know you need to make sure it's straight, (DOH). The friggin thing was awful, the needles dropped everywhere, and it was tippy as heck, and then ended up falling over and killing half my ornament collection (which I admit was due to my own stupidity). So fake, fake, fake. Plus, I feel kinda bad that a tree got cut down just for me. I'm tenderhearted like that.
  • MarziPanda95
    MarziPanda95 Posts: 1,326 Member
    We had a few years of real when I was a kid (not so long ago, as I'm 19) but we've only had artificial for a long time. The same one, it stayed in the attic when we had the real ones. It's more environmentally friendly even if it's falling apart after 14 years! The pine needles were always a pain to hoover even if I liked the smell, and then it goes all brown after Christmas which makes me sad :c
  • jayheyjay
    jayheyjay Posts: 16 Member
    Real 100%
  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,646 Member
    I like fake ones if they're done well.
  • lmr0528
    lmr0528 Posts: 427 Member
    Real for sure. My husband and I have started a tradition with some friends of ours. Every year at the beginning of December we all go out about an hour away from home to a tree farm to cut it down. Then we get a good dinner out. It's become our thing. Can't wait til a few years from now when we all bring our kids along :-)
  • mave34
    mave34 Posts: 109 Member
    I too grew up with the same artificial tree, it came in three boxes and it was exciting to me to go into the storage and get out the ginormous boxes and find the color coded branches. I would sort them pile them and then begin building. To me the smell of Christmas is a musty old tree from sears in three beat up original boxes. (my father claimed allergies but he also conveniently developed an allergy to cats and dogs when we started wanting pets) That tree is long gone and as a young adult I wanted my children to grow up with a real tree. Now, my children are a little older and I am a single parent and the thoughts of going to a lot, trying to find a tree that has a reasonable shape for my liking, spending 40-50 bucks on it, throwing it on top of my new car and dragging it inside, making a mess remembering to water the damn thing (a reason I can't keep houseplants) I don't have the time or the money when I have three artificial trees in my basement (which all are going up and will be decorated) So why bother? This has been a difficult decision for me this year..silly I know but I have decided to go back to fake for now :D
  • Joannah700
    Joannah700 Posts: 2,665 Member
    mave34 wrote: »
    I too grew up with the same artificial tree, it came in three boxes and it was exciting to me to go into the storage and get out the ginormous boxes and find the color coded branches. I would sort them pile them and then begin building. To me the smell of Christmas is a musty old tree from sears in three beat up original boxes. (my father claimed allergies but he also conveniently developed an allergy to cats and dogs when we started wanting pets) That tree is long gone and as a young adult I wanted my children to grow up with a real tree. Now, my children are a little older and I am a single parent and the thoughts of going to a lot, trying to find a tree that has a reasonable shape for my liking, spending 40-50 bucks on it, throwing it on top of my new car and dragging it inside, making a mess remembering to water the damn thing (a reason I can't keep houseplants) I don't have the time or the money when I have three artificial trees in my basement (which all are going up and will be decorated) So why bother? This has been a difficult decision for me this year..silly I know but I have decided to go back to fake for now :D

    Not silly at all. Part of the reason I'm getting a living Christmas tree is because I know they will deliver inside my house and pick it up at the end of the month. I don't want to haul in a tree! And because it's living...fewer pine needles fall.
  • ninerbuff
    ninerbuff Posts: 49,028 Member
    mave34 wrote: »
    I too grew up with the same artificial tree, it came in three boxes and it was exciting to me to go into the storage and get out the ginormous boxes and find the color coded branches. I would sort them pile them and then begin building. To me the smell of Christmas is a musty old tree from sears in three beat up original boxes. (my father claimed allergies but he also conveniently developed an allergy to cats and dogs when we started wanting pets) That tree is long gone and as a young adult I wanted my children to grow up with a real tree. Now, my children are a little older and I am a single parent and the thoughts of going to a lot, trying to find a tree that has a reasonable shape for my liking, spending 40-50 bucks on it, throwing it on top of my new car and dragging it inside, making a mess remembering to water the damn thing (a reason I can't keep houseplants) I don't have the time or the money when I have three artificial trees in my basement (which all are going up and will be decorated) So why bother? This has been a difficult decision for me this year..silly I know but I have decided to go back to fake for now :D
    Lol, I totally remember (and I think my mom and dad still put this tree up) where you unboxed each "branch" and they were color coded on the end of each wire that you stuck into the pole that corresponded with that color!!!!
    It's so much easier now with just 3 pieces, put them together and then just "fluffing" out the branches with pre lit lights. Only thing you have to put on it the ornaments and voila, tree done in an hour!!!

    A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
    IDEA Fitness member
    Kickboxing Certified Instructor
    Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

    9285851.png
  • slomo22
    slomo22 Posts: 125 Member
    I like real because they are bouncier. Artificial look amazing but are less satisfying
  • klbaierwalter
    klbaierwalter Posts: 308 Member
    Artificial. I am highly allergic to the real trees and wind up with sinus issues, vomiting, and diarrhea. Yeah, I love the real trees because they are really beautiful. However, my body appreciates the artificial trees.
  • Legs_McGee
    Legs_McGee Posts: 845 Member
    I prefer real. That's what I grew up with. And I like the whole experience of going out to the tree farm, picking out the perfect tree, cutting it down.
  • hollyk57
    hollyk57 Posts: 520 Member
    I love the smell of real trees, but I refuse to buy a real tree because I disagree with the unnecessary death of a live tree... such a waste of something that could have lived a long, beautiful life. Not a fan of watching a tree slowly die and drop it's needles until it's tossed aside like rubbish. My artificial tree is gorgeous and looks real.
  • klkarlen
    klkarlen Posts: 4,366 Member
    edited December 2014
    I love a real tree. But I have not had one since my dogs took dumps under the last real tree I bought - I guess they thought it was like a doggy litter box :s

    So I go with the smaller artificial tree that I can put up on a table so the dogs won't eat the ornaments.