Balsam Hill trees, from £69
For those with allergies, worries about fire risks or just over enthusiastic pets and small children, artificial trees for Christmas are a must. And long gone are the days when that meant a clearly-plastic, threadbare monstrosity - modern artificial trees can be so realistic-looking that your guests will insist on stroking the branches to check you aren’t fibbing. And the most realistic we’ve found are those from Balsam Hill. Each tree is designed to be as realistic as possible, down the the design of individual fax-needles, and you can chose from a variety of both types (eg the specific variety of fir or pine) as well as sizes.
Prices for good artificial trees are not cheap, but a quality one can last for 10, 20 years, making it a lot more cost effective in the long run than dragging in a dying, needle-shedding fir every year. They aren’t, of course, the most environmental option as most are made from plastics, but that’s only in the short term: a few years of transporting, using and disposing real ones soon tots up the carbon footprint of the real kind - not to mention all the many trees that are dumped by the side of the road come January.
Balsam Hill’s trees come in a huge variety of sizes and styles - or rather variety of tree types - and can be purchased with or without lights. Those with lights built in have them very well strung throughout the tree, and with light connections inside the trunk, all you have to do is plug in and get on with the mulled wine. If you aren’t sure which variety of the many would best suit your room, you can get a branch sample in the post to examine first. Assembly is easy, though of course you will need to have the space to store it for the other 11 months of the year.
Cheaper options are also available from Tesco (£50) or John Lewis (£45) but be aware that once you get a little closer, the difference in quality is very noticeable.
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