Fun Christmas Tree Alternatives
Written by Urban Sherp on December 16th, 2009
Growing up, my family always had a fake Christmas Tree and as much as I begged my parents to let me have a sweet smelling glorious real Christmas Tree just once, pretty please? They never gave in to my pleas – something about my brothers and allergies and the hospital….. but all I heard was “NO, you can’t have one…”
I have grown to love the ritual of stacking up our parents Christmas Tree layer by layer, fluffing each branch to make it look as real as possible, and have got to admit it looks pretty good – and this year we got to pass on the torch to my niece. She is a natural….. And now that I’ve got my own place, I still go back and forth on which is better real or fake? Which is more eco-friendly, real or fake? Real ones are farmed using pesticides and then discarded, but fake ones can be made of some pretty nasty materials even though they are reused again and again… and I still get sad when I all those lonely abandoned pine trees lying on the curb after the holidays. What’s a girl to do?
Here are some alternatives to fake trees and real, but dead, trees…..
1) The Mini-Potted Tree – this is what we did this year, an adorable little pine tree roots and all that we bought from a landscaping company, decorated and put up on the mantle. Then we’ll just plant it in the back yard, I figure after a few Christmases we’ll have a nice little forest out back.
2) The Charlie Brown Christmas Tree
– this replica of the Charlie Brown classic, complete with one red bulb and Linus’ blanket for $19.95. Or better yet get the real deal and snip a bough from a nearby pine and make your own base.
3) The 3ft. Modern Tennanbaum – this incredibly hip design is by silvercocoon. Set up is a breeze and no messy needles to clean up. Something about this simple design is incredibly appealing. You can have a lot of fun planning out the decorating strategy. ($255)
4) Lazy-Fish Dr. Seuss-Like Trees – Add some color to your holiday with this whimsical trees from LazyFish, available in pink, blue or green in sizes ranging from 4-5′ feet. Love the trio look pictured. ($39-$69)