Balsam Hill 6.5ft Unlit Stratford Spruce Premium Artificial Christmas Tree

We bought the 6.5 foot version of Balsam Hill's Stratford Spruce and are very pleased with the tree. Yeah, like so many who *finally* opt for an artificial Christmas tree, we just weren't looking forward to the switchover from a God-made tree to a manmade version. But, we no longer live on forested acreage where getting the annual tree was just a matter of walking out the front door and finding a perfect specimen; we're in semi-rural suburbia now and trees to cut are far away. So, Balsam Hill to the rescue! No, it's not a real tree. But it also doesn't fill a vacuum-bag full of needles post-New Year's Day and it's not as expensive as a "real" tree is bought from a local nursery (or even the Boy Scout tree lot). The appearance (after the required "fluffing") is pretty darn impressive. Tips for the fluffing are to start from the bottom, curve most branches upwards and do *not* make it too regular in angles; leave a few branches poking out at a funny angle to make it look more natural. We specifically chose an unlit tree for a few reasons (and one is not because hubby really enjoys placing each light on each branch and tip for ultimate lighting joy): One, we prefer our incandescent (yes, gasp! the un-PC'ness of it and just imagine our exorbitant electric bill--ha!) twinkling lights by GE which we've carefully stored, fixed and loved for the past decade; and, two, the prelit trees, even by Balsam Hill, seem to develop lighting issues. We figured we'd just avoid all of those "issues" and put up the lights on this beautiful tree year after year. We typically put our Christmas tree "up" on a box or low table to allow more room for gift boxes underneath; keep that in mind when you choose the height of your Balsam Hill tree. Without the box, there's not a lot of height for Christmas gifts under the tree without hitting the lowest branches. Storage: We'd purchased the Balsam Hill Rolling Storage Box to use instead of the thick plastic bag provided with the tree because we wanted a more "box-like" storage for easier shelf placement. That BH product was just a few inches small for the longest section of this tree. We found a perfect solution at a local hardware store with the 38-gallon yellow-topped plastic tote (and enough room remained for a small wreath or two).

I love the way it looks. Looks real to me and was so easy to put up. I also did some research, this tree doesn't let off a lot of toxins like some others. highly recommend.

It was considerably shorter than the 6.5' advertised. The New York Times calls this "The Rolls Royce of Trees." While incredibly made and easy to assemble, it wasn't nearly as lush as shown in the pictures on Amazon or the company's website. It looks in-person like a $100 "Charlie Brown" tree. It looks cheap. I was hoping something would be easy this holiday season - NOPE! I should have just gotten a live tree for all the hassle this as been. I am so disappointed.

Honestly, I was so excited to buy this BH tree. I like that it came with a stand, gloves and a storage bag. However, the quality is disappointing. It looks more plastic than real, which would be better once decorated, but the biggest problem is on the top tier of branches, it is bare in many areas. Too much tree “trunk” showing. Not what I expected.

This tree was easy to assemble for one person. However, you really have to spend time fluffing the needles, but you probably have to do this, no matter which artificial tree you select. The needles on the outer half of the branches look very lifelike. It could use a little more of the “filler” material closer to the center to help fill in the gaps. It comes with great storage bag.