Real tree Vs artificial tree? Is it a status symbol?

[CatsWhiskers1976]

Just putting up our artificial tree and having some thoughts.
At work the other day we got to discussing Christmas trees, and the old real vs artificial debate. It seemed to me that there was a bit of 'snobbery' against those who had artificial trees (maybe that's just where I work!). There were those who said artificial trees were just TERRIBLE for the environment. Given that most people I know have had their tree for many years (our family one was about 40 years old before it was replaced) is this really true? Cutting down live trees is okay for the environment? I have never had a real tree, growing up I didn't know anyone who had a real tree and in our circles it was usually only the slightly more well off people who ever had real trees. Apologies if this offends anyone, it was just my experience as a child growing up in working class Scotland.
Some people at work looked horrified at the thought of having a 'plastic' tree (mind, they were going off to cut the perfect one down on their 'estate').
So what do you think? Real Vs artificial? I spent a fair bit a few years ago to get a really nice realistic looking artificial tree which I hope will last years. At the time we had cats and I was afraid they would get hurt/never leave the real tree alone so I have stuck with artificial.
What does everyone else have? Do you judge people with fake trees?

I never had an artificial tree , never will ,for me Christmas is a lot about smell and you don’t get that from plastic .

So my real tree has vintage style coloured lights 😱 but real mercury glass baubles that used to belong to my mum, & glass ones collected over the years. Finished with a couple of fun ones from John Lewis & Paperchase thrown in. It's very confused what class it belongs too!

I just think a real tree looks better, and love the process of going to chose one each year.

I too don’t have themed decs, just load of random crap collected over many years. It’s like a Christmas explosion (no tinsel though! It is hideous)

What's with all the bows that celebs seem to put on their trees? I've never really seen that in real life.

I have both, as we did when I was a child.

We had a very tall one in the hall (and in my memories it was full and bushy and glorious. Photos tell me that it was spindly and twiggy ). Then there was a silver tinsel one in the dining room, which I adored.

Like others we love the family ritual of going to choose the tree, I don't mind a bit of muck in the car. I don't have any needle-dropping issues, even though we get the bog standard Norway Spruce ; you just have to make sure it's a far away as possible from the room's heat source, and make sure you keep it topped up with water. After Christmas it gets taken outside and cut into logs for the fire (I also keep some of the twigs because throwing pine needles onto the fire is fun)

I have a silver tinsel tree for the landing, although this year I gave into my yearnings and got a white one which is themed and I did when the boys were out. The main tree we all decorate together and is loosely red, gold and green but has ornaments from holidays plus the boys' special, buy-one-each-year ones.

I love both kinds for different reasons but I would never not have a real one, no matter how small I had to go to get one.

@naughtyelfs

What's with all the bows that celebs seem to put on their trees? I've never really seen that in real life.

Looking at a few sleb's Instagram pages it's a huge deal to decorate your front door way, or even put a bow on that. What happened to just a tasteful wreath?

I think you can get people in and pay them to do this for you.

This doesn't even look like a tree?

@Sparklingbrook wtf. Don't get me wrong the Home alone house is #goals but that stuff? not for me!

We have an artificial tree, never had a real one. Growing up my mum had this artificial tree with fake snow, coloured lights, mismatched decorations and an Eeyore dressed as an angel to go on the top. I loved it, still do, my sister is staying with her this year so I'm hoping she can convince her to put the tree up, she often doesn't bother anymore.

I have a pre-lit one, it has white lights but I try not to hold that against it. I still have tinsel and a glittery star on the top. We get a bobble with the year on it every year so none of those match either. Tree cost £17, it was reduced in Argos in the January sales and is happily on year 3.

I'd say we are probably working class. DH's family are a bit more upmarket than mine but we are now firmly skint together.

[quote naughtyelfs]@Sparklingbrook wtf. Don't get me wrong the Home alone house is #goals but that stuff? not for me! [/quote]
Huge baubles.

Artificial tree here. Real tree doesn’t survive long with under floor heating. I don’t really care what others think or the projections of class that might entail.

These creepy Nutcracker things are everywhere this year too.

Always a real tree for Yule.

The symbolism is important and a fake tree would be completely pointless.

I live in the desert and a real tree costs and 10 legs. I look at all the the real trees on my social media with utter envy! So much more romantic, traditional and perfectly imperfect! Mine's pimped up to the fake fur cones with overpriced tat to make it look 'perfect'. Come the 2nd of Jan, it and all it's sparkly belongings will be up for sale on some local website ready for the great repatriation! Can't wait!

Is it a status symbol?

No.

[quote JustAnotherUserinParadise]@Coquohvan what my MIL does (and we also now do) is put a big old blanket under the tree - it catches most of the needles that fall so after the tree comes down you just take it out and shake it - simple! You don't even really see it because all the presents cover it.[/quote]
Why have I never thought of that?

We're miserable gits about Christmas here so have compromised on chucking a bit of tinsel on the existing houseplants.
Fuck knows where that puts us class wise.

I've been renting the same real tree for four years and had a different one before but it got too tall. It is delivered and collected and has a chart to tell you when it likes its drinks and how much to give it in accordance to how warm the room is. It's the greenest way I can have a real tree at Christmas in my opinion.

@Sparklingbrook

I think you can get people in and pay them to do this for you.

Have they not heard that less is more? That is truly horrible.

I love a real tree but dh is allergic to them. It took several years for us to realize though 🤦🏼‍♀️ So we have a very good expensive artificial tree that looks very convincing and we’ve had it for about 10 years now.

We bought a fake tree 22 years ago as real trees were a bit expensive for 2 recent ex-students. It's lasted pretty well so we've got out money's worth out of it and we sometime get a real tree instead. We've stayed with the fake this year as we got tree sap on the carpet last year that never did come out. New carpet now so DH suggested we stay fake this time

I don't much like the idea of chopping a tree down and then spending weeks watching it die in my living room.

We have both. Fake tree about 20year old downstairs and a real one in our dining room. Expect the fake one is more ecologically friendly as it has been going so long. Both trees look like victims of an explosion in a Christmas factory so absolutely no class here!

We have a real tree because we have no space to store an artificial one. Surely if you had less income you are more likely not to have the storage space? I do think it feels more luxurious to have a real tree because you go out and choose one and they smell lovely.