For generations, the choice was simple:
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Strap a Christmas tree to the roof of your car, wrestle it into a stand at home and hope it wouldn’t fall over.
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Put up an artificial tree that was unmistakably fake.
Fortunately, the options have expanded, from realistic fake trees prelit with softly glowing LED lights to environmentally friendly abstract “trees” made from shipping pallets. Options for a real tree include “white glove” service that includes delivery and set-up.
Three interior designers share options and advice on stylishly decorating.
• EXQUISITELY ARTIFICIAL: Designer Brian Patrick Flynn said he loves the look and scent of real trees, but he is “hands-down, 100 percent on Team Artificial,” thanks to the convenience and range of today’s fakes.
White fake trees are “excellent for more elegant, sophisticated spaces,” Flynn said. He layers on ornaments in shades of white and metallics “for a less-is-more, tone-on-tone look.”
Designer Lee Kleinhelter agreed. She uses a high-quality, fake white tree in her home, because “it feels a little modern and is a clean slate where I can use interesting objects to accessorize.”
If you can’t imagine your handmade or hand-me-down ornaments on a sleek, white tree, consider getting a real tree for keepsake ornaments and putting a white tree in another location and decked out in monochromatic ornaments. Sarah Fishburne, director of trend and design for The Home Depot, said many Americans now have one fake tree and one real one.
If white isn’t your style, Flynn recommends realistic green fake trees with a woodsy, rustic look or green fake trees coated with fake white snow.
These “flocked trees add amazing texture and can really tone down the overall greenness of an artificial tree, making it a little softer,” he said.
He has created flat, abstract “trees” out of plywood, covering them with fabric secured with brass nail heads. And he has two “trees” made from shipping pallets.
“To make them,” he said, “the pallets were dismantled, painted dark green, then assembled with screws. It’s a more sculptural approach, and it doesn’t require any decorating.”
• REALLY EASY: This year, The Home Depot is making it simpler to bring home a full-size real tree with delivery service, Fishburne said. Choose a tree online, and the company will bring it to your home and set it up in the stand.
Another way to make real trees more manageable is to buy several small potted trees in varying sizes, rather than one large one.
“Groupings of trees really make an impact in any space,” Flynn said.
• SIMPLE AND SAFE: Prelit LED trees save the time and effort of stringing lights. Some models also resolve arguments over whether to use white or colored lights, Fishburne said. Some LED-lit trees let you switch between them.
LED lights also don’t burn as hot as traditional bulbs, so they may be a safer option, especially for rooms where children play and might touch the tree.
• BEST LOCATIONS: “The size and scale of your house can dictate a tall skinny tree by a staircase or a more round, robust tree in a sunroom visible to the street,” Kleinhelter said.
Rather than tucking the tree in a corner, she suggests finding a spot “where you can enjoy the tree on all sides.”
If you have a large “showstopper of a front window” that faces the street, Fishburne suggests placing the tree there.
“There’s something really lovely about coming home to that big tree in the window,” she said.
It’s easy to put tree lights on a timer, so they glow on schedule each evening.
• NON-CHRISTMAS TREES: All three designers agree on using undecorated trees or branches to celebrate the season, whether or not you celebrate Christmas.
“It’s more about the warmth of gathering with friends and family during the colder months,” Flynn said.
