Faux fir or faux pas? We tested Balsam Hills realistic Christmas trees to find out

Is it beginning to look a lot like Christmas?I grew up measuring Christmas by the tree.Cut-your-own, grocery-lot deals, even in my young adult years, Manhattan bodega carry-aways à la “When Harry Met Sally.” I take the tree very seriously.No tree meant the season hadn’t really started.Now I have surpassed Billy Crystal in age in said holiday classic, plus I travel more, host more and share the living room with a couple curious dogs.The charm of remembering to water regularly and making sure someone is on needle duty has worn off.

I’m officially ready for the look without the mess.That makes for a much easier transition to something like Balsam Hill Christmas trees.I was never anti-artificial so much as pro-authentic.

However, once I did the merry math on time, needles, water and disposal, the resulting answer was to try out the brobdingnagian brand I kept hearing about.If an artificial tree was going to convert me, it needed to look real enough to fool my blurry-eyed nieces on Christmas morning (and maybe even their blurrier-eyed parents on Christmas Eve) and hold up through years of unpacking, packing up, decorating and decorticating.If you had told me, even just a few years ago, I’d be trading in a fragrant, freshly cut tree for a flipping fake one, I’d have said you were out of your mind.Yet, here we are.I chose the 7.5-inch BH Balsam Fir Flip Tree.

That’s right – if I’m going artificial, I’m going to do it right.I want something that not only looks incredibly real but is really easy, too.

Outside branches use the brand’s True Needle foliage for texture and color variation.Classic Needles sit deeper in the tree to add fullness.

I also found this to be the case with another major artificial Christmas tree I reviewed from the King of Christmas premium collection.The mix is what sells the illusion.Pros:Cons:Navigating the options can be overwhelming, but Balsam Hill breaks its catalog into three distinct categories based on your budget a...