Table of Contents
Childhood memories
Real tree tradition continues
Faux flocks
Small tree collection
Christmas tree themes
Big and small, Short and tall, I love them all!
Childhood Memories
My fascination with real Christmas trees goes back to my earliest memories of my childhood. As a young girl I would venture out to the woods behind our home, saw in hand, and cut down an evergreen every year. I would then proceed to drag the sparse Charlie Brown type of tree into my bedroom where I would lovingly try to bring it to life with lights and homemade paper ornaments.
During these years, I convinced my dad to drive me to the tree lot to pick out a real tree for our living room. I was persistent and he finally relented. For some reason, my mom and two siblings didn’t want to participate. Thus, picking out the real tree became an annual tradition with my dad and me. I also became the tree lighter and designated decorator!
Real Tree Tradition Continues
This tradition continued until I got married and we moved into our new house. For some reason, we opted to purchase an inexpensive artificial tree for the first few years of newlywed life. I seemed to have forgotten the magic of real trees until we had our first child….
With the arrival of our first child all the nostalgic old feelings of selecting a real tree came flooding back. I desired for our children to experience the thrill of traveling to the tree lot and taking in the sights, sounds, smells and touch of a living evergreen. It helped that at that time we were walking distance from a home selling farmed Christmas trees in their garage. We have fond memories of placing our young boys in a large wagon and pulling them down the road to acquire the tree.
Our three sons are all young adults now, but the tradition of chopping down a real Christmas tree continues. A few years ago, our oldest son constructed a saw using materials around our house. He proudly sawed down the tree for many years. Sadly, this year he wasn’t here to do the cutting, but the tradition remains. My husband did the sawing this year, as he did for so many years in the past.
Last year, we discovered the Siberian Fir tree for the first time. The orange citrus smell is amazing! We decided to buy the same type this year, and it does not disappoint. The crisp, clean, citrusy scent has quickly become a family favorite.
This year my collection of country cottage ornaments and garland made a reappearance on our main real tree in our living room. It is always a delight to bring these out each year, no matter what tree they appear on. These tree decorations hold many memories as they have been gathered over three decades. Finding a home for them each year always brings a smile to my face.
Faux Flocks and Small Trees
While real trees hold a special place in my heart, I have gradually added several artificial trees of varying sizes to our home. These faux firs start coming out a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving in our master bedroom and bathroom. The advantage to having fake trees is of course no pine needles everywhere and I can leave them up through January.
It is very cold and dreary in the upper Midwest in January and the warm glow of the lights through the bitter days offer comfort and beauty. Arranging little trees in different containers throughout our home has become somewhat of a hobby for me. I place these tiny evergreens in materials such as: baskets, boxes, burlap bags, planters, tea tins, and popcorn tins just to name a few.
Tree Themes
Last, but not least, there are the many tree themes I incorporate throughout our home. Variety is the spice of life as they say. This is certainly true when it comes to Christmas tree themes! This year I stuck with the nostalgic homespun country cottage theme in the living room. I carried over the cozy red, green and white colors on our plaid themed tree in our dining room. The porch flocked tree is filled with silver and white ornaments. A small gingerbread tree graces our kitchen each year. Lastly, a somewhat fancier tree with red velvet bows and white ornaments are on my bedroom tree.
Decorating Christmas trees is truly a creative expression, no two ever alike. For me it is a fun way to blend old sentimental pieces with newer touches each year to keep it interesting. 30 years of collecting ornaments a little bit at a time has really added up. Much of my collection has been gifted and thrifted over time with a few bought pieces slowly added each year. What about you? How do you like to decorate your tree?