Black Christmas Trees

Since 2005, black Christmas trees have been big business. This is down to the nation’s obsession with interior design; minimalism and bold, striking colours are in vogue and, to some, the traditional green Christmas tree just does not fit into the modern living space – hence the success of the black Christmas tree.

Black Christmas Tree

There is no doubt that the black Christmas tree looks classy yet contemporary when teamed with white lights and decorations. These uniform colours go so well together and also with the neutral colours that are used to decorate homes today, creating a striking yet understated focal point. Like the minimalist living space, the black Christmas tree requires very little decoration to look classy and elegant – perhaps just a few carefully placed baubles and lights. In such a setting, a heavily decorated green Christmas tree may appear to some too garish or out-of –date.

In 2005, many retailers paid testament to the popularity of the black Christmas tree, stating how they were selling more of these than the traditional green, white and gold trees. Every year since then, black trees have flown off the shelves– proving that many families place more importance on fashion rather than tradition. Black Christmas trees look striking when dressed in white, but look just as stunning when teamed with other contemporary colours such as silver or cream.

In some respects, the popularity of the black Christmas tree is surprising. Christmas is such a happy time, yet black is traditionally associated with sadness, mourning and death. This does not seem to put buyers off, as they view the colour only in terms of its fashion value. In 2005, many retailers admitted they thought that the black Christmas tree was simply another short-lived trend, but many years later, the black tree is in bigger demand than ever.

There are many black artificial Christmas trees on the market, in all sizes, types and designs, but what about those who like a real tree? As Roger Hay of the Christmas Tree Growers Association points out, many families ‘like to see and smell a real tree in the house’. All real Christmas trees are green in colour, so Mr Hay suggests using a little spray paint if you want a real tree that is black in colour.  Make no mistake, the phenomenon of the black Christmas tree is no passing fad; it looks like it’s going to be around for a long time yet!