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Real or fake Christmas tree? Share your opinions with Homebase for a chance to win a £300 Homebase voucher. NOW CLOSED

722 replies

AngelieMumsnet · 10/11/2015 14:53

‘Tis the season once again. With Christmas on its way, Homebase is keen to get Mumsnetters’ views on the pros and cons of getting a real or fake tree.

Here’s what they have to say: “The Christmas tree is at the heart of everyone’s Christmas look but where do you stand on the annual dilemma - real or fake? Are you a fan of the fresh pine scent and traditional feel you only get from a real tree? Or do you go for a versatile artificial tree most years? Let us know if you go as far as ‘lights included’ or if your fake tree came already snow-tipped and adorned with berries and cones. Tell us all about your trees from over the years, whether you decide on authentic or artificial this Christmas and any tips you have on caring for real trees.”

So what do you think? Does the authentic smell of a real tree win you over? Or are smaller artificial trees better suited to your home? Do you get your family's much-loved tree out of the loft each year or is it a Christmas tradition to go together and choose one? Does real or fake really matter to you and your family?

Whatever your opinion, Homebase wants to know.

We’ll enter everyone who posts on this thread into a prize draw to win a £300 Homebase voucher.

Thanks and good luck.
MNHQ

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EcclefechanTart · 14/11/2015 13:39

Real! Would never have a fake one. We have one in a large pot in the garden and we bring it in every year on 22nd and take it back out after Christmas, so it doesn't have to spend too much time inside. We've used it for 5 years in a row and it's still going strong.

caker · 14/11/2015 13:45

Real or nothing! I remember collecting dropped pine needles and trying to make Christmas tree perfume when I was a child. I love bringing the outdoors inside, green and fresh.
We didn't have a tree last year as DH was away and DD was tiny but this year we definitely will.

flamingtoaster · 14/11/2015 15:57

We have an artificial tree - we now have a very large one as my DS complained after a growth spurt that he was now taller than the tree and that was not right. The tree we currently have is a beautiful shape and very bushy and I don't miss the real trees I had as a child (my mother and I used to carry it back from the market as they would never fit on the bus). The tree we now have has kept its appearance wonderfully and we really love getting it out and decorating it each year - using the same set of decorations which we think are perfect.

JulesJules · 14/11/2015 16:42

We always have a real tree. I love the smell of the pine.

We always decorate it on my birthday which is a week before Christmas.

I like the minimalist silver birch twiggy type trees - but I'd have them as well as a real one.

MakeTeaNotWar · 14/11/2015 17:34

Artificial every time - I don't drive so I can't imagine the logistics of getting a real one. Plus they're expensive - we just paid once and the tree is forever, no mess, no fuss.

Minisoksmakehardwork · 14/11/2015 18:29

We had a 7ft real tree on our first Christmas in our new home. It was lovely. A pristine house, reach tree spilling out of the corner. It felt and smelled properly festive. A 9 month old who was into everything kind of out paid to the real tree the following year. Instead we had a big but fake one. This lasted a couple of years. Then we had another baby. And the fake tree got smaller as, well, our house hadn't grown but the amount of stuff we had did.

A couple more years and a couple more babies (twins) has put paid to a real tree for quite some time, the house is no longer pristine and it just doesn't feel the same. But there are other Practical and financial reasons too. And we've learnt to cable tie it to our storage box coffee table. This way it doesn't go flying when one of the twins (now 3) decides they want to make the bells on the tree jingle. I don't think we'd manage that with a real tree. And one of the twins would probably try eating the dropped pine needles.

So for now we fake it. With our lovely, big and bushy artificial tree, and two of the smaller ones which sit on sideboards. I don't worry about branches breaking - I can bend them back into shape. I don't worry about hoovering up pine needles or anyone trying to eat them. But I do miss the smell and nothing comes close to bringing that green Christmas smell into the home.

NotCitrus · 14/11/2015 19:24

Real - for the smell and the ceremony of going to buy it and choosing one, now with two dcs with strong opinions. The long-needled ones that have taken over hold their needles very well, still few falling by Twelfth Night.

We don't need it to be in the playpen this year!

babsmam · 14/11/2015 19:24

Fake all the way with kids and animals. I would love real and we had real as a child but these days I have four trees and can't afford the cash, time to get or mess or time to dispose. I will go back to real at some point but not yet

Quills · 14/11/2015 19:28

We have the best of both worlds. A fake, garishly glitzy fibre optic tree here that the toddler and cat can't destroy, and my parents always get a real tree so I can gaze at it and savour the smell there Grin

SirNiallDementia · 14/11/2015 19:39

We have a massive 8 foot pre-lit twiggy tree. It's beautiful.

Did used to have real ones but they made a huge mess of needles and I don't think it's environmentally friendly to chop a tree down just so it can stand in my living room for a few weeks.

kittyvet · 14/11/2015 20:30

Real in this house. Traditional!

rupert23 · 14/11/2015 20:45

we have had a real tree for the last few years now, it reminds me of when i was a child. i love the smell of a real tree. My children get really excited going to the garden centre or farm to pick one. i just have to make sure i dont let them choose one that is not too big. One christmas we got it delivered and when it arrived it was massive it didnt look that big at the farm shop! I only just got it into the front room! I think a real tree makes our Christmas more special.

musicforthemasses · 14/11/2015 21:14

Back to an artificial one this year I think, although I may get a small real tree so I can plant it in the garden in January.

Mogz · 14/11/2015 22:16

Real and rooted. Although we will be buying a new one this year as our first finally gave up after three house moves and a bladder full of cat wee. Ugh.

Scarydinosaurs · 14/11/2015 23:09

Real. Fake trees are for work places and shopping centres. Real trees have the smell that makes Christmas.

SundayGirl86 · 14/11/2015 23:48

I love the look and smell of a real tree, but falling needles can be a pain and I don't like the thought of a dying tree (haven't ever had a rooted one to plant).
So...we have a fake one and use it year on year. Everyone seems happy with it. It looks great and it was a one off cost.

Forresitters · 15/11/2015 08:59

Have always had an artificial tree so for the first time this year my daughter and I will be shopping for a real one and we are oh so very excited! Just hoping it will actually fit in our flatConfused

BadFam1 · 15/11/2015 09:19

When I was a child we used to have a real tree every year. I love the authenticity of having a real tree but with a cat and a toddler we currently have an artificial one with lights included (although I like lots of lights so add additional ones)
I would love to go back to having a real tree though so will most likely do that when our ds is a bit older

kettlepot · 15/11/2015 12:13

First year as a couple we had a HUGE real tree. It was lovely, if impractical and the first time I'd ever had a real Christmas tree...

Last year, I decided we'd go fake - baby on the way, and I had visions of small children toddling around stuffing pine needles into their faces. So the fake tree will be wheeled out for the foreseeable future. It's just a plain, 6ft Homebase one but does the job with lots of fairy lights, baubles and beads. Instead of picking a tree, we'll be making lots of decorations for it. When it's a bit more practical well revert to a real one again. For now, pine scented candles will have to suffice.

Amandamarie32 · 15/11/2015 12:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Thecatknowsshesboss · 15/11/2015 12:19

We always used to have a fake tree as we had a cat that liked climbing it. However now we've got DD we go for a real one every time, the smell, the tradition of one of us cursing at the tree to try and cut it down a bit and trying to make sure it doesn't look too lopsided. I love the magic of a real tree.

Catsgowoof · 15/11/2015 13:04

real-smells so much nicer, well worth the needles. we make a trip of going to the woods to get one

DaisyDando · 15/11/2015 13:47

Fake, fake, fake! A good one looks authentic, and can bring joy year after year.

And the needles don't escape down our draughty floor boards, never to be seen again.

BettyBitesBums · 15/11/2015 15:26

With a toddler, a dog, a deep carpet in the living room and not big rooms I should have an artificial tree but I always have a real one. Well two actually. I love the smell and the feel and the look of them and I need two so mine can be pristine and the other can be played with! I did consider an artificial for the toddler tree but haven't found one I like enough.

StickChildNumberTwo · 15/11/2015 15:33

Always a real one here - Christmas wouldn't smell right without one.