Should I buy a Balsam Hill tree?

[aureliacecilia]

These seem to be much hyped. Are they worth it? I've got a hand me down artificial tree which looks a bit lost in our new home so I've moved it into our kitchen. Last year we bought a real tree for the lounge but I wondered whether we ought to invest in a good quality artifical one this year to avoid the crowds picking out a real one (I'll be nearing my 3rd trimester at Christmas and have been advised to be particularly attentive to social distancing).

I am hooked into the hype so following this for recommendations of cheaper but just as good alternatives (hopefully!)

Both my sister and I have bought one in their recent sale.

Haven’t got it up yet, but from what I can see, the branches are very full and have a nice mix of realistic needles but also the old style green stuff that gives it more volume.

I’m glad I got it but I absolutely wouldn’t pay full price, so their Black Friday event is a good deal!

My friends has one in her very large Georgian house, it must be about 10 ft!

But I thought it was real, it certainly looks it.

If you can afford it I would. I just purchased one from John Lewis because my last one was very cheap off Amazon and it kept falling over all the time.🎄

Lots of positive comments then! I'm tempted during the Black Friday sales - probably a basic, unlit one rather than one of the crazily expensive ones! Thank you.

Ooo I've been browsing one of the pre lit ones myself. I have heard that with some pre lit trees stop working after the first year but I have high hopes that this brand won't do that.

Has anyone got a prelit one?

Yes buy one, and yes buy pre-lit. Putting the tree up without untangling lights and faffing to get them even is worth every penny.

I was looking at them but chickened out just because they are so expensive. We just bought this one and I'm really happy with it.

I'm going to buck the trend and say no. My parents ordered one last year and sent it straight back. It was very fake looking, and not very full, and the lights were much more sparse than they expected.

@Oysterbabe - you'rs looks lovely! Is it prelit? Where is it from?

We bought it here in the end as it was the cheapest place we could find it. I first saw it on Amazon.

www.dawndirect.com/grandis-fir-christmas-tree-1-5m.html

It isn't prelit.

They still look clearly fake, no getting around it. Personally I think it's an absurd amount to pay for a plastic tree but I guess if it lasts a long time it's better for the environment at least.

I wish I hadn’t got one last year. I bought it as it was hard to find a tall one locally, but we all missed having a real tree. This year we will relegate the Balsam Hill one to the kitchen and get a real one for the sitting room. Even if it looks a bit wonky, it will still have more charm. Mind you, I don’t like fake flowers (too much like taxidermy), so I don’t know why I thought I would love a perfect fake tree.

I would. X

Have a look at Christmas Tree World
Quality and realism at least as good as BH, but considerably cheaper. We have the 8ft Woodland Pine, and DS liked it so much he bought one too.

Everlands are lovely : much cheaper than BH much nicer than B&Q or supermarket stuff.

We bought a BH tree in their summer sale and I can’t wait to put it up! I did put it together when it arrived months ago just to check all the lights work.

The pre-lit ones are absolutely stunning (in my opinion). Beautiful warm white lights, much nicer than any other pre-lit tree we’ve had. Plus it saves the hassle of untangling lights every year.

I have one and I’d say no.

I have one. Fourth year this Christmas and still looks great! I love it.

We have 2 BH trees , both prelit , a 7’ Fraser fir and a 4’6” Alpine , both are beautiful , particularly the large one , and it is definitely better than any I’ve seen in garden centres / John Lewis etc . My dh was very sceptical when we bought the first one (7’) but even he is a convert now . In the sales the prices are comparable with gardens centres if not cheaper .

Absolutely love ours. Have had it a few years now and still no issues with the lights. Putting on the lights was my worst nightmare every year, how it's just one plug and ta-daa! We bought in the Black Friday sale years ago and it was well worth it. I can't have a real tree in the room as I'm quite allergic. Plus it works out cheaper overall. Do it!

I had one of their garlands and found it a royal pain to wrestle with so gave it away. My friend loves it. Doesn't look real though.

We bought one last year to replace our 25 year old tinselly tree (we only replaced it because it was stored in a shed, got damp and smelled horribly musty.) The Balsam Hill one is OK, but very expensive for what it is, really. We won't be putting it in the shed (!) and hopefully it'll last at least 25 years.

We have one and I love it. Super expensive but it’s definitely worth it in my opinion. We have very tall ceilings so we needed a tree that would hold it’s own! This is from last year - it’s not up yet this year!

I bought one in the sake at the beginning of December last year. It's beautiful.