Is the Balsam Hill Grandview Fir any good?

[Elle7rose]

Hi,

Just wondered if anyone had bought this specific B.H. tree and whether it's worth the price? (it's in the sale)

Thanks!

I just got the Berkshire Fir on sale and it's beaten the M&S predecessor hands down. My Mum got a different design BS one in the sale and it's also lovely. I don't think you can go wrong with a Balsam Hill tree

I wore the gloves to fluff it out and felt poncetastic!

BS=BH!

Haha (poncetastic!), thanks DreamingofSunshine!

Oh also did you happen to get a 6ft? Just I'd like to know how big the box will be and whether to order a 5ft instead! (taking it to a holiday rental with us).

I've always wanted a BH tree are they worth the price tag. What's the service like? Always worried about buying things like that without seeing it in the flesh first

@GoGoLego & @Elle7rose I have one, it looks exactly like the picture on the BH website. It is a blue spruce and I believe this is the 4th year we have had it.

We store it in the bag that BH provides. There is ample room, easy to get in. The bag is sturdy with handles on both ends and carry handles in the middle making it easy to get into the loft and back out again. The gloves come in a small zippered pouch and we kept all the original packaging for the base to store that in each year. Again, all fits into the bag. Mine is 5 1/2 feet tall as it fits into a bay window so the ceiling is lower in that part.

The first year you have to fluff it like a mad person because it is tightly packed together (see BH YouTube channel for tree fluffing) and there should be no gaps. It honestly should look just like you see on the website.

Mine is unlit so I bring down one layer of branches, me and my two teenage sons fluff the branches and then run a string of lights onto these branches. I mimic the way the lit ones are done by going up and down each branch at least twice from the tips toward the middle but this does mean I use 3 sets of lights so 900 lights on the tree There is a small tinsel branch that I use as the anchor point at the middle of the tree to hook the lights onto before coming back up the branch.

It does bring me immense joy and I feel that as it will last a long time then I will have my monies worth.

Re the size of the box, ring them to ask. I will tell you that I would have struggled to get it back into the box, that thing is tightly packed which is why they provide the storage bag.

@TreeSwayer
Thank you for the response it's really interesting to know. Might have to invest in one for next year.

Is it easy to put up?

We have a pre-lit one

It has transformed the chore of putting up the tree into a fun activity.

I first saw them at work, where there are lots dotted around and they all look very good

After the first year when you have to spend a fair bit of time ‘fluffing ‘ they are very easy to put up , took dh about 10 minutes this year . We have a 7’ slim Fraser fir , prelit . It’s a fabulous tree but not particularly slim .

@GoGoLego very easy to put up but I do separate the layers, I used an old bed sheet cut into 20cm wide strips and then the children hold up a layer of branches and me and Dh tie the strip around it. It just helps when you go to release a layer for fluffing the following year and I put the lights on each layer

It is a lovely family activity, I have 2 sons 16 and 13 who are very willing helpers. Mine comes in 3 sections so not too heavy to manhandle it together.

I would say it was relatively painless, but then I have trained my sons well they are in charge of a set of baubles, so my tree decorations are white, silver and clear. When they come out of storage boxes they are separated by colour on the floor, each person has 1 colour that they put on the tree and they do either a diamond shape, (top, middle at each side, and bottom in line with the top one) triangle (top, middle at each side) or inverted triangle with one set of bauble design. That way you don't end up with the same baubles next to each other.

You move round the tree in this fashion varying the starting height of bauble placement and it is done super quick. Our tree sits on place mats so as not to damage the carpet with the feet from the stand, we can get to the back of the tree easily and when it is finished, push it backwards into position via the place mats.

This came about as I had flu one year and instructed from the sofa when the children were much smaller. I should point out that Dh is putting up other decorations whilst we do this, he isn't sat with his feet up, he loves Christmas too.