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T8rthot t1_j1zpadp wrote

We have a second hand Christmas tree that’s over 30 years old and I realized this year that thing is looking RAGGED. I think it’s the past 15 years of our cats climbing in it and making it shed faster than the years it spent with myhusband’s family.

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stealthgerbil t1_j201qjd wrote

Cats are the reason we can't own anything nice.

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brisk0 t1_j20a2ur wrote

My cats taught my toddler how to break branches and now the tree has seen its last Christmas

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jotadeo t1_j25uqww wrote

🎶
Last Christmas...it's breaking my heart
But the very next year, new tree brings us cheer

This tree cannot make us grieve
It's people that make it special
🎶

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pauldeanbumgarner t1_j201fdj wrote

The tree looks great. Amazing what happens when you take care of things properly. And Congratulations to your parents on 40 years!

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j21yisu wrote

Thanks! I mean, it doesn't look full and fluffy like new ones do, but it has a lot of sentimental value to us!!

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pauldeanbumgarner t1_j21yvae wrote

Looks great to me. And with some time and energy you can take each branch and straighten out the needles and even weave new ones to make it thicker. I did that to ours and it looks great. Cheers!

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j22bu9g wrote

Ooohh, I hadn't thought of that! I'll try it next year! Thanks for sharing :)

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mcfarmer72 t1_j20aw93 wrote

My parents used a tumble weed their first Christmas.

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mocheesiest1234 t1_j20ul2w wrote

We got a really nice artificial tree this year from a friend, and we plan to have it for decades.

Side note, putting your tree on a pedestal is fucking brilliant

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j21ypfx wrote

Lol, it's on a pedestal because the base sort of failed and i had to rescue my mom from under it. No moms were harmed and we laughed so much that day.

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garysaidiebbandflow t1_j204krj wrote

Love all the pine cones! I wish my parents' original tree had been preserved (for me!). It was small, ensconced in a pretty, glittery white container, and was set up on an even prettier little white table (long gone). But I do have a few precious photos (c. 1964-ish).

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RichTE t1_j213arq wrote

Who would have thought that something plastic would have lasted this long. 😏

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jw48335 t1_j21kgs3 wrote

FYI - it is almost certainly shedding lead contaminated dust. Near every artificial tree is a toxic waste hazard. The only exception are trees made of polyethylene. The reason manufacturers don't use polyethylene is it's approximately twice as expensive and harder to work with. Purchasing a non-toxic tree for our household cost us $1300 last year. We tried using natural trees for two years in a row after finding out our old artificial tree was heavily lead contaminated, but the natural tree experience did not go well. The Only source of polyethylene trees of an affordable nature is IKEA they are like Charlie brown skinny trees though..

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Sharpfeaturedman t1_j1zrt87 wrote

"Kaaaa-ren! I got the most expensive tree they had!!"

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j21yw4p wrote

Considering how broke my parents were when they got married, I seriously doubt it. But they've taken good care of it ;)

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Electrical-Pie-8192 t1_j218zh1 wrote

My sister has our grandparents fake tree. Not sure exactly how old it is, but mom says at the very least 46 years. It looks great too. Grandpa always put it back in the original box. Sister got a new, nicer box for it 9 years ago.

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j22c9id wrote

That's amazing! I'm definitely going to ask about the stat of the box and will probably send them a new one before my mom puts it away.

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rspydir t1_j21aduj wrote

Got married in the 70s. Bought our tree from Odd Lots / Big Lots in the 80s. ( Have to ask wife what year we got married and not ready for that discussion ). So that's 40ish for both tree and marriage.

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j22rqkd wrote

Haha, time to dig out your marriage certificate or old photos!

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elepuddnlily t1_j225lv6 wrote

That tree needs more bulbs on it. At least twice.. maybe three times as many to be sure.

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stocks-mostly-lower t1_j20d80d wrote

It’s very pretty - I love the color scheme.

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j21yzjd wrote

Thanks! My mom likes to go with the colorful approach instead of the pinterest white nonsense ;)

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boothjop t1_j21gelz wrote

Congratulations to them. We've had our tree for over 20 years now. We got it in a post Christmas sale for £10 at a DIY store. It's going to be with us forever.

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bhez t1_j21tfi9 wrote

That is a very slow growing tree!

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MathCrank t1_j22a5fp wrote

How much take is on the box?

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MademoiselleWhy OP t1_j22c3ln wrote

I'll ask my mom to text me a photo when she puts it back in it! Last time I saw it it was holding up but had a ton of ductape all over!

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HAC522 t1_j22gtog wrote

In fairness, I think it's kind of hard to "kill" an artificial tree. My grandparents had there's for like 30 years, and then gave it away to my aunt Because it was getting too large for them.

The tree my parents had was the same for at least 15 years. Maybe more. Idk what happened to it after we moved out of my childhood home.

The tree I have? It's prelit, so I don't imagine the lights will work for nearly that long, but you cut out the topical lights and wires and you still got a tree. Actually, I bought an identical tree 2 years ago and this year it only had like 25% of it working. The company I bought it from had a 3 year warranty so I got a new one this year free of charge, and donated the old one to my mom with the lights cut off.

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effluviastical t1_j23p4ym wrote

I can’t believe that’s not a real tree!

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chrispyshreddedchick t1_j1zujv0 wrote

Maybe get one that fits next time.

−37

schwarzeKatzen t1_j20g6k9 wrote

I’m sure 40 years ago they knew it wouldn’t fit into their 2022 home and purchased it specifically to annoy you when their child posted a photo to Reddit. 🙄

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chrispyshreddedchick t1_j23d32v wrote

Am not annoyed? I only made an observation. I could have a tree for life but I’d rather upgrade and have one that doesn’t look daft (as 99% of people would to).

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