Christmas Tree Decorating Tips

Holiday Tips & Unique Ideas for Non-Traditional Christmas Trees

Advice Seeker: Dear April,

I don't want to sound like a Scrooge, but I hate Christmas trees! I think they're messy, they smell bad, they take up too much room, and they're ugly. I still enjoy keeping my home festive for the holidays, however. Do you have any ideas for non-traditional "trees?"

Sincerely,

Tree Hater

April Masini's advice:

Dear Tree Hater,

A lot of people feel the same way you do about Christmas trees. Fortunately, there are a lot of things you can do in place of a traditional Christmas tree.

Non-Traditional Trees:

1. Bouganvilla makes a wonderful indoor Christmas tree substitute. Because it's not towering like a tree, it is great for apartments or small rooms.

2. A rose bush doesn't normally do too well indoors, but if only for a week or a night, it might make a lovely, fragrant apartment or small room alternative to a pine tree.

3. Make a tree out of tin cans or some other modern art material. Think Museum of Modern Art. Open your mind. A wild piece of art I saw one year at an outdoor museum was a stack of shopping carts in the shape of a giant Christmas tree, decorated with lights, to represent the shopping and consumer component of the holidays. Open your mind!