HELP!! Thinking of purchasing an artificial Christmas tree??

[rcpae]

My DH and I are ready to give up the real and possibly look at an artificial tree. This is a big deal for us since we have not only always had two real Christmas trees (living room and family room) but we have always gone to a tree farm and made a day of it and chopped it down.

Our girls are teens now and we are all a little tired of the quest.

We are looking for a mult colored lit tree, about 7.5 feet tall and fairly full (fat). By saying full, I mean we don't really want a skinny tree. Personally, I would prefer white lights, but my DH prefers multi colored so I will defer to him...this time.

Is this a good time to look for a tree for next year? Where should we look...Garden Ridge, Lowes...? Thanks for any help!

I would also love to see any pictures of an artificial tree you love. The different "types" of trees are a little confusing.

 

[kimmar067]

...honestly, good luck with finding a tree NOW....the sales and discounts actually started BEFOE Christmas, so there are going to be bare pickins'....we always put on 2 real trees, but 2 years ago, we had vacation plans to be at WDW during the Christmas holiday, so I bought an artificial one at Lowe's...there weren't many left, and that was almost a week before the 25th....GOOD LUCK! You'll probably have better luck frinding one at a Harrow's (pool/summer BBQ/ patio furniture store) than a Lowe's/Home Depot......

 

[puffkin]

Your best selection will be well before Christmas. Think late October/early November. Most of the ones left now are left for a reason

I know many LOVE their prelit trees but I HATE mine. Absolutely detest it. It comes in two sections that are incredibly heavy. I am no wimp, and I can't put it together by myself! The branches fold down. It takes forever and ever to fluff it out and fill in the gaps. This year two sections are out...about 50 lights each. I have tried to find the bad bulb and can't. Spent hours on it because it bugs me. Another section is on the fritz too, but with some shaking I can get it back on. Next year I am going to have to string the whole tree with additional lights to hide the outages. Kind of defeats the purpose, and this tree is only on its 4th Christmas.

My other artificial is not prelit. It is the kind that comes in a gazillion branches that snap into a central pole. This tree is so much easier to deal with. It packs up much smaller and is much lighter. It does take time to fluff the branches but once I get them snapped into the tree I have very minimal fixing to do. It honestly doesn't take long at all to string the lights on the tree. I used to hate this tree until I got my prelit....now I like it a whole lot more

I also prefer the trees that have a more blueish-green tint. I think they look more "real" than the really green ones. I have had many people mistake my trees for real ones. I need to replace my unlit one soon and am dreading finding one that isn't prelit.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

This is the one we bought this year...Very full. I'm tough on thinking which trees look good & this one is great.
It was higher than our ceilings so we bent down the top few inches......

Multi, white or both. We use multi & both at the same time & it's beautiful.

I will take a photo is you would like

H10845 is the item # on QVC

 

[crz4mm2]

BEST time to buy, right after xmas!
We got a new tree this year at Menard's. It is VERY full! Not prelit, so we bought the new LED colored lights to put on it.
I don't really like colored lights, so after xmas I bought three packages of white LED lights for next year

 

[Christine]

Go online to buy one. Seriously, most stores no longer sell REALLY nice artificial trees anymore. They used to but, a nice one can be pricey, and I don't think many people were buying those from the store. I bought a beautiful one about 17 years ago and we got rid of it about 2 years ago. When I went to replace it, I had a hard time finding one and settled from one from a local store. I've hated that tree ever since. It just doesn't look good.

My coworker was telling me that he ordered one on line. The online place even sent him samples of the needles before he ordered. He spent a little over $300 for the tree and he is very pleased with it. He said he just couldn't find one with nice needles or branches in the stores. Now, I wish I knew the name of where he bought from, but I don't. I bet you could google though and come up with some places.

 

[AristocatFan]

We purchased a new tree this year in late Nov. from Menards and at that time it was already on clearance. While I was upset with DH for talking me into spending $250 on a tree I do love it. It's a GE 7.5ft, pre-lit with LED multi-colored lights. It is very heavy but that's why I have teenage boys to deal with it!

 

[Luv Bunnies]

We bought our tree about 7 years ago and we love it. We bought it a few days after Christmas at a local hardware store. It was originally $150 and we got it at 1/2 price for $75. It has paid for itself many times over since we were paying upwards of $60 for a real 7 foot tree in the past. It was especially nice this year since DH is looking for a job and we didn't have to worry about buying a tree.

If you want to find one now, you'll probably want to spend some time looking at every store you can think of. I saw some pretty nice pre-lit trees at Kmart and Target. You can also try Home Depot and Lowes and any other stores in your area. I'm not sure if I would want to buy one online. I would want to see exactly what it looked like and how it comes apart. Ours doesn't fold up. The trunk comes in 3 pieces and each branch has to be slipped into a little slot. It doesn't take too long to set up and take down since I have it down to a science. I keep each row of branches bundled together and labeled so I know exactly where they go.

 

[LadyZolt]

Go to www .balsamhill. com/

They will send you samples of each type of tree that they have so you can see it, see the color and the type of needles it has. It's great! We ordered our artificial tree from them three years ago and we absolutely love it. Yes, this place costs more than others, but we think it's worth it. The tree has both white and colored lights and a remote control so you can turn on just the white, or just the colored, or both. This is our first pre-lit tree and we've always had artificial trees, so we know that a quality tree will last you many years. Check it out and whatever you decide, I hope you find one that brings you much joy for a many future Christmases!

-Dorothy (LadyZolt)

 

[Disneylover79]

DBF and I bought our artificial tree after Christmas last year we got a 300.00 tree pre lite (white) for 75 bucks.... I was so excited it is 7.5 ft Douglas fir blue.. we got it at Target...it looks great this year...I love it....

 

[1stluvispooh]

Nnnnnooooo don't do it walk away from the light!

 

[TheBigBadWolf]

DH and I finally took the plunge last year and bought an artificial tree. I LOVE real trees and never dreamed I would ever go with an artificial tree, but after having my last real tree die early in the season, I finally broke.

I will say I am VERY picky about my Christmas trees. My tree and ornaments are one of my very favorite things about Christmas. I couldn't find any artificial trees locally that I liked, so I finally went online to TreeClassics.com. They have beautiful trees and will send you samples so you can choose what you like before buying. I went with the Kensington Spruce http://www.treeclassics.com/kensington-spruce-pre-lit-artificial-christmas-trees.aspx , a fat, 7 1/2' tall tree with multicolored lights. I think it has 1500 or 1700 lights, and it is gorgeous!

Tree Classics trees are expensive, and I watched their website for nine or ten months before purchasing my tree. The tree varied in price constantly throughout that time. I finally bought it the last week of October or the first week of November, for $550, and that was the best price I saw it for all year. The tree went up in price about $150 a week after I bought it. It has been well worth the money. Everyone who sees it thinks it's a real tree, but it stays beautiful all season. It has worry free lighting which means if one bulb goes out, the others stay on. The lights are more bright than other lights of their voltage (2.5v, I think?). I did not want the LED lights as I don't like them as well.

I've been thrilled with my artificial tree, after thinking I would never own one. I love the prelit convenience and the ease in which it goes up. No more struggling, trying to get the tree straight in the stand... No more dead, ugly trees before the end of the season. I think you will love having an artificial tree. We even bought a second Alpine tree for the dining room (white lights on it) and we love it too.

 

[donnajon]

Target just went to 75% off today. I bought 2 trees this morning. They both got 5 stars from previous buyers. If you go to Target.com and search Christmas Tree 7 (if you want a 7 or 7.5') you will see two pages come up. Check the ones that say "Find it at your local Target store" and you will know if they are in stock. The Target closest to me only had one that I wanted but the store 30 minutes away had both of them. Worth the trip for what I got! I have gotten trees from Target in the past for kids rooms and have been pleased.

 

[Disney Doll]

I will say that if you want a nice-looking tree you will spend some $$ on it. Don't expect to get a beautiful, very real-looking 7 foot tall tree for $50. Not going to happen.

Ours is 6.5 feet tall (we have a smallish house with 7 foot ceilings), blue spruce, beautiful looking tree with very realistic looking needles. People come into my house and think the tree is real. I forget exactly what we paid for it, but I want to say it was $300-$400. It is pre-lit with white lights and so far the lights are holding up well. This is our 3rd year with it I think.

I have a smaller much cheaper tree in the den that has a section of lights out. It's about 4 or 5 years old I think.

With artificial tress, you get what you pay for.

 

[kimmar067]

Target just went to 75% off today. I bought 2 trees this morning. They both got 5 stars from previous buyers. If you go to Target.com and search Christmas Tree 7 (if you want a 7 or 7.5') you will see two pages come up. Check the ones that say "Find it at your local Target store" and you will know if they are in stock. The Target closest to me only had one that I wanted but the store 30 minutes away had both of them. Worth the trip for what I got! I have gotten trees from Target in the past for kids rooms and have been pleased.

...wow, 75% off!! That's an incredible deal!

 

[Ilivetogo]

If you used to have 2 trees, why not get one white and one multi-colored? That would fit both your tastes!! I just got an artificial tree this past year and I love it. It's beautiful and I don't have to mess with all the needles, watering, disposal, etc.

Here's a couple of nice choices. Some are white some multi.

http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/...mperial-Prelit-Tree-by-Vickerman-Multicolored


http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/...hts-Natural-Series-9Prelit-Noble-Tree-w-Timer

http://www.qvc.com/qic/qvcapp.aspx/...ights-Natural-Series-65-Prelit-BlueSpruceTree

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

I will say that if you want a nice-looking tree you will spend some $$ on it. Don't expect to get a beautiful, very real-looking 7 foot tall tree for $50. Not going to happen.

Ours is 6.5 feet tall (we have a smallish house with 7 foot ceilings), blue spruce, beautiful looking tree with very realistic looking needles. People come into my house and think the tree is real. I forget exactly what we paid for it, but I want to say it was $300-$400. It is pre-lit with white lights and so far the lights are holding up well. This is our 3rd year with it I think.

I have a smaller much cheaper tree in the den that has a section of lights out. It's about 4 or 5 years old I think.

With artificial tress, you get what you pay for.

I have to agree with this...the tree I had to get rid of this year was $800 for 8 feet 12 years ago but it was just beautiful.
After I bought the new one it was after I brought 3 back...they were horrible.
Again if anyone wants to see our new one please let me know before it's packed away~

 

[kimmar067]

I have to agree with this...the tree I had to get rid of this year was $800 for 8 feet 12 years ago but it was just beautiful....

!!!

 

[castleview]

We invested in a nice green multicolored 7-1/2 footer last year. It was before Christmas and ran about $450. Yeah, it was a lot but we're happy with it. It's very hard to find a nice artificial tree that isn't pre-lit nowadays. I absolutely love real trees, but honestly just can't be bothered with them now.

 

[kimmar067]

...any updates??? Didja find that 'perfect tree' yet??