This is our version of a holiday tree. If you celebrate Christmas, I wanted to talk about another alternative to a live cut tree or an artificial tree. I love Christmas trees, but since my husband isn’t quite as enthusiastic about them as I am, I was usually left with the task of buying and decorating the tree myself. So I started having a tree delivered to the house as part of a fund raiser for the local high school boys’ tennis team, and that was great for a few years. Until three years ago when they delivered the tree on December 1st, and it was dry and nearly dead by Christmas day.
That’s when I borrowed my neighbor’s “tree sculpture” and have been using it ever since. It lets me have a holiday tree with almost no hassle. I still get to hang some of our favorite ornaments, but I don’t have to drag a tree across our hardwood floor and clean up pine needles afterward or worry about disposing of it after the holiday. It’s also extremely green and frugal. And very Compact-y, since I’m borrowing the tree each year and purchasing nothing new.
These are a few of our favorite ornaments, like this Nutcracker from my husband’s favorite aunt who has since died…
This is one of the beautiful ornaments my friend put on the tree before I borrowed it. He’s from France and has an amazing collection of antique ornaments…
This beautiful bird was a gift from a good friend. It’s a piece of art…
And MLK has a spot at the top of our tree…
This tree was purchased several years ago at a store called Smith & Hawken that has recently gone out of business. But the options are endless as far as materials you could use as a “tree alternative.” One idea would be a tree branch, perhaps spray painted white before you decorate it. That would work well with a bush that grows in California called manzanita. The wood is both sculptural and hard.
Leave a Reply