My 'pet hate' about Christmas trees (other people's)!

[BillHadersNewWife]

I have nothing against artificial trees...we have one ourselves...have done for two years now...what I keep seeing though, is pics of people's beautifully decorated artificial trees with BARE STANDS!



Why?? Do people just look at the ugly bases and think "Oh yes, that looks lovely!" ??

Or have they not noticed it's detracting from the rest of their efforts? You don't have to buy a tree skirt...you can just ruffle some fabric or tulle or hessian or even paper around it! Or hide the base with gifts...why have the stand on show?

Petty yes. But genuinely curious too.

[Skyejuly]

I have a bare stand...mainly because I dont care about what it looks like and it's only up for a few weeks.

[ShadowsInTheDarkness]

Well I have no issue with bare stands but have a thing about fairy lights. If you have an artificial tree you have to twist the lights into the branches properly. You can't just wrap them round like a ribbon with all the wire right on the ends of the branches! It gets in the way of the decorations, and makes the middle of the tree look all dark! You have to wind them through the branches. I also twist the closest branches round the wire but that's a safety thing as our cats like to climb our trees and kept getting their heads stuck in loops of wire

I have themed trees too and no skirts. But we don't do tinsel so ... each to their own!

[ExpletiveFairylighted]

Yes, tree skirts / toilet seat covers is a good analogy.

[AllstarIsBrightbySmashMouth]

Hmm... I've never thought about it. But usually mine is only bare for a short while until I get gifts to put under it. Not a fan of a tree skirt myself.

[areyouafraidofthedark]

I have a bare stand too, doesn't bother me about looking "unfinished" to me it looks finished lol.

[MyHeartIsBrokeButIHaveSomeGlue]

Tree skirts definitely in the same category as toilet seat covers! But I also agree that a bare stand looks unfinished. I've been hunting for an alternative to my artificial tree and have decided one of the baskets would look better.

[Onesnowballshort]

I hide all the Christmas noise-making objects (musical Santa, musical snowman, musical elf - you get the picture) under the tree.
What I need help with is how to fix the jeffing star on the top. I can never make the tree fit the whole in the star

[BillHadersNewWife]

You can't compare tree stands to pissy toilet covers! 🤣

[ASqueakingInTheShrubbery]

I'm not loving the blue lights. I can only assume DH got them in the January sales. It looks like Mr Plod's Christmas tree.

[GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER]

I used to have a super-style-conscious neighbour who'd buy a whole new set in a different colour scheme each year - and endlessly complain that she was hard up!
She once asked me what colour tree we were having that year.
Er, green?
Having once seen our tree, with its rainbow mish-mash of decorations and coloured lights, she went to lie down in a darkened room and never asked again.

[MyHeartIsBrokeButIHaveSomeGlue]

Not as dirty @BillHadersNewWife but definitely as naff!!!

[BillHadersNewWife]

🤣 I know! My sister says she thinks I must be of a different family bloodline to her...I'm so tacky! This thread just confirms it.

[MyHeartIsBrokeButIHaveSomeGlue]

I don't judge anyone for their decorations really - only the Scrooge's who don't like Christmas 😜

[UnapologeticallyUnhinged]

I have an artificial tree and have always had a bare base as the presents hide it. BUT this year I was tempted by one of those huge white fluffy 'skirts'. BIG mistake. It's now covered in cats. No room for the gifts.

[UnapologeticallyUnhinged]

Oh and FYI I make toilet roll dolls. I currently have one of a Christmas tree with an angel on top. All good retro fun.

[BillHadersNewWife]

Yes! Lovely! I love things like that.

[TreestumpsAndTrampolines]

I way prefer a bare stand/trunk (then presents in front of it)

Those tree skirts are just really odd looking to my mind - the emphasis is on the tree, not the bit holding the tree up.

[Whatsnewpussyhat]

I leave the stand bare.

Not fussed on cold white lights but cannot stand stobe style flashing fuckers. Ones that draw you in with a gentle twinkle then suddenly go off on one like a 90's rave.

[Whatsnewpussyhat]

There seems to be a trend for giant upside down basket style tree skirts now.

[pictish]

The blue lights that have become popular now are my pet hate. They’re a cold, starey blue and nothing to do with the sparkle and twinkle of Christmas. They are reminiscent of the emergency services attending an incident.

[IfNot]

I like your tree skirt Bill.
Clearly I am a tacky fucker though as I love a bit of tinsel, I have those coloured lights with petals on them AND I just bought a Christmas village complete with moving train, lights and music! (I have always wanted one of these.)
Other than that one daft purchase we are having a very low key, waste-free xmas though, honest!

[LifeInAHamsterWheel]

I'm with you OP, I hate to see the stand at the bottom of the tree.

We have a skirt, red felt with embroidery on it and then tinsel wrapped around the 'neck' if that makes sense?! I think it's lovely but I saw a wicker tree skirt recently and decided that would be even nicer, bought it, nearly did DH back in getting him to lift the entire decorated tree so I could insert the base into the wicker skirt and then found that it doesn't fit!! So beware, skirts aren't a 'standard' size. Or maybe the bases aren't.... Well, either way make sure you measure first. And also don't try to put it on after your tree is up and fully decorated

[wanderings]

I too dislike the blue LEDs - not just on Christmas trees, but absolutely everywhere. (Blue ones used to be very rare and expensive, so when they became cheaper, designers wanted to make up for lost time with them.)

We had German au pairs, who were horrified by the coloured lights on our tree, and were insistent that anything but white lights was quite improper.

[ExpletiveFairylighted]

Warm white are ok, so long as they are with multi coloured decorations. I'm not keen on the warm white lights / everything red and gold colour scheme.

[dementedma]

billhaderswife I love that base and am very envious of your vintage decorations.