I’m dreaming of a white Christmas tree…NOT!

A few weeks ago, I blogged about this year’s Christmas tree shortage, which I figured – correctly – was not really impacting New England, since one of our few natural resources is the Christmas tree. (Before it was Vacationland, I believe that Maine was called the Pine Tree State.)

But other areas of the country have been hit, and that has been a real boon for the artificial tree industry.

While I understand their appeal – they’re easier to put up and take down, you don’t need to water them, and they don’t shed needles – I am decidedly not a fan of artificial trees. And within the subcategory of artificial trees I am most decidedly not a fan of artificial white trees.

Too Mad Men, too mid-century modern, too bland, too boring.

On the other hand, if you’re going to have a fake tree, there’s something to be said for going all the way and going for white.

“What could be more faux than having a snow-covered tree in your living room?” says Carrie Chen, brand manager for Treetopia, an online Christmas tree retailer whose sales of white trees are up 44.5% this year. (Source: WSJ)

Similarly, Wayfair which I must admit usually does have just what I need, says that their sale of white trees quadrupled from last year. Home Depot’s selling more, too.

What folks seem to do with these artificial white trees is theme decorating, another aspect of Christmas tree usage I do not approve of.

Christmas trees should hold, IMHO, ornaments that have meaning, and you shouldn’t worry about whether they all match. I like the fact that my tree has ornaments from my parents first Christmas, ornaments from my travels, ornaments commemorating dead pets…

All of my ornaments don’t hold meaning, but most of them do. That Empire State Building reminds me of all the trips my husband and I took to NYC. That brass three-decker – a gift from my cousin Barbara – reminds me of where I grew up.

White trees, at least if I go by what I see in the WSJ article, are impersonal – a decorator touch, devoid of interest, devoid of story. Like this yawner. Sure, it adds a bit of color to a room that completely lacks any. But where’s the personal? Where’s the personality?

I guess it could be worse. Check this one out. Talk about “I’ll have a blue-blue-hoo-hoo Christmas.” But the woman who puts it up sees “’so ugly it’s kind of beautiful.’” And she sees freedom from having to cope with a real tree with real decorations.

Some are attributing the increasing interest in white trees to folks seeing them on Pinterest and Instagram and deciding they like the decorator look and feel. And maybe Melania’s spooky white White House decorations helped. Or at any rate helped with the 35% of folks who actually approve of her husband’s “performance” in office. (And what a performance it is!)

I actually didn’t mind one of the white trees pictured in the article, which is pretty in a decorate-y sense. Not for the real tree you’re going to spread your presents under, mind you. Just not bad as an extra.

But I guess when it comes to Christmas trees, I’m an old-fashioned traditional kind of gal. Here’s this year’s addition. Busy, crowded, imperfect. Nothing to Instagram or Pinterest about. But mine all gloriously mine.

Nope, you’ll never catch me dreaming of a white Christmas tree.

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Thanks to my sister Kath for pointing this article my way. If you look closely, you can probably find a handmade ornament of Emily, Kath’s late, great, and completely dog-like cat somewhere in there.