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If we go fake... do we do green? white? silver?

Okay, ATers, care to jump into our current Christmas tree debate?

Growing up, we cut our own from a pine tree farm in the mountains outside of Mexico City. We brought it home and decked it in white lights before hanging our collection of handcrafted ornaments.

Paul (a.k.a. the live-in father of the resident toddler) grew up in Ireland, where his family pulled out a silver artificial tree each year and hung it with colored lights and colored balls.

So... which way to go now that we have a family of our own?

I understand the convenience of the artificial tree: no sweeping up pine needles for the weeks leading up to Christmas, no sagging ornaments as the tree "wilts." But I can't imagine *not* having the scent of Christmas and have always found colored lights, well, just a bit tacky.

Hmmm....

What did other ATers grow up with? What associations do you have about artificial trees vs. natural ones? White vs. silver? What color should the lights on a Christmas tree be?

White lights, white lights! and popcorn, and cranberries, and other homemade things as appropriate! When I was growing up we decorated a Christmas-tree-looking plant that we had - it was about four feet tall, so it worked. But what do I know? I'm Jewish.

No Christmas decorations EVER!!! It offends my design esthetic!!

so i've asked this one before, but never heard figured i'd try again. i'm trying to find out where i can find lightbulbs like the ones in the foyer of the mercer kitchen. they are 'clear' light bulbs where you can see the filaments. the filaments appear to burn orange and are a lot softer. it was the neatest thing i've seen in a long time.

Mama Chilanga--
I'm in the same predicament, grew up with an artificial tree while boyfriend grew up with all-natural trees. I think it's easier to get used to sweeping up needles than it is to give up the nice christmasy smells. Another issue to consider is whether the toddler would muck with the natural tree.

That being said, we've never bought a tree as a couple, as we each go to our respective out-of-town families (different towns) at xmas.

And I'm all for all-white (or all-yellow) lights myself. None of this red, blue or green nonsense!

Hey, zzzap.
I don't remember what the lights look like at Mercer Kitchen, but you can probably find similar lightbulbs at a lighting store on 14th street between 5th and 6th avenues. I can't remember the name of it, but it's on the north side of the street. It's got every kind of lightbulb & lighting you can think of. Oh, and there's also another great lighting store on Canal Street close to where the plastics store is...again I can't remember the name.
Good luck!

Mama,
Compromise. Use an artificial tree this year and get a natural wreath to provide the scent. Use either white lights or one colored light (Green perhaps) and mix the ornaments. Next year get a real tree and use several colored lights and keep mixing the ornaments.
We are not children anymore and it's time to create our own traditions. And you know, what makes this time of year special is being happy together, not what color the lights are.

Should? I'm not sure that applies to Christmas trees. You do what you like, or what you can work out, or what you can stand. I grew up with the big colored lights, and have tried all different kinds since, including the bubbling pretend plastic candles. It's not a moral issue, and probably not a design issue, either--it's only temporary. Not like recovering a couch.

I grew up with fresh trees decked with multi-colored lights (preferably twinkling) and a variety of sentimental & hand-made ornaments as well as cheap dimestore glass ones. The scent was intoxicating even though both my mother and I suffered allergic sniffles the whole season. Still since many trees in the city are cut too far ahead of the holidays and dry out too quickly, I now prefer an artificial one for safety and clean up. Since I only have a studio apartment that means a small table top tree and even that is a problem to store. I couldn't fit a "full-size" tree of either variety in my current apartment.

A design aesthetic that precludes Christmas decorations seems kinda sad to me.

When it comes to a Christmas tree, imo the noisier (visually), the better.

Blinking lights, colors, grade school and homemade ornaments, and candy canes!

zzzap

The lighting shop is called Just Bulbs, 5 East 16th street, 212.228.7820. They should definitley have them - they have everything.

zzzap - Just remembered another great place is www.rejuvenation.com, click on lighting accessories for tons of great clear bulbs. good luck!

Lisa, that's a very sensitive design aesthetic.

zzzap, the restaurant "Fanny" in Williamsburg has the same ones as Mercer. I complimented the owner who designed and built the interior himself, and he complained that those light bulbs are very expensive and delicate, he said they often break when he puts a new one in. That being said, if you want them and can't find them, I'm sure he would help you. I highly recommend that restaurant!

How funny, I grew up in dublin with a fake tree too!! Its kind of nice to pull out the same tree year on year, though 25 years on, its getting a bit thread bare!!

Living on the 5th fl in nyc I am definitely in favour of a fake tree, the real wreath is a nice idea, and lots of places have 'christmas' scented candles that could help give you that seasonal buzz.

From an environmental perspective, I wonder which one is better? most trees come from sustainable forest (ie the land immediately replanted for following years) so is the fabric/chemicals/processing involved in a fake tree actually worse for the environment?

we grew up with a real tree until I was a teenager, at which point the fam switched to a fake. something about cutting down on cutting down...
but, now that I live in the land of xmas tree farms and many farmers supplement their income by selling xmas trees, I don't feel bad at all about cutting down a tree for xmas. I've decorated with real wreaths, which bring that longed-for pine smell, and other xmas decorations with no tree.
now we get a real tree, and vacuum up the needles. however, I'm not sure how feasible this is with your toddler, and now that our household has 2 dogs. good luck!

Mama Chilanga,
If you go fake, I say go fake all the way - not green to look like a real tree, but glitzy.

By the way, there was an article, probably in the Times, last year or the year before about a huge new interest in fake trees, which I think had seen a downturn for a while, but now are in keeping with the whole Mid-C feeling. Some people in the upper midwest (WI? MN?) bought up all the old fake trees from one of the few or the only old stock of such vintage trees and were selling them for beaucoup bucks. Anyone remember this?

I grew up in northern wisconsin - surrounded by pine trees. Every winter about one week before christmas some random night after work dad would drag us out into the dark and cold (as in -30) to cut down a tree from our woods. I know it sounds very Norman Rockwell - but that is what we did. By the time I got into high school all our trees had grown too large .. so we would buy them at a local lot. The prices were great - $5-10 for a 10 foot tree. (ahh christmas tree land)

My parents have retired to the southeastern seaboard - and have an awful artificial tree that they are very happy with.

Since I moved into the city ten years ago, I haven't gotten my own tree. I am usually out of town for the holiday - so I worry about the tree drying out and starting a fire.

Every year, I buy greens from a neighborhood tree lot (add some magnolia leaves from a neighbor's trimming) and fill ceramic vases and bowls with the greenery. I usually throw in some pretty glass balls to make it festive. But don't forget the paperwhites - which smell just as much like christmas as the tree.

If only it would snow in Washingotn - I would feel like Christmas.

I grew up in Northern Wisconsin - surrounded by evergreens. Every winter, about one week before christmas dad would come home from work and drag us out into the dark and cold to cut down a tree from our woods. (as I remember it, we were so very excited to help - but after about 10 minutes of plodding through the snow in the dark we tired out and he had to drag us the rest of the way on the sled) I know it sounds very Norman Rockwell - but we didn't know that at the time. By the time I got into high school all our trees had grown too large .. so we would buy them at a local lot. The prices were great - $5-10 for a 10 foot tree. (ahh christmas tree land)

My parents have retired to the southeastern seaboard - and have an awful artificial tree that they are very happy with.

Since I moved into the city ten years ago, I haven't gotten my own tree. I am usually out of town for the holiday - so I worry about the tree drying out and starting a fire.

Every year, I buy greens from a neighborhood tree lot (add some magnolia leaves from a neighbor's trimming) and fill ceramic vases and bowls with the greenery. I usually throw in some pretty glass balls to make it festive. But don't forget the paperwhites - which smell just as much like christmas as the tree.

If only it would snow in Washingotn - I would feel like Christmas.