Realistic Artificial Christmas Tree from King of Christmas Review

Growing up, we always had a real Christmas tree at home – a tradition I carried on when I started decorating a Christmas tree in my own home. But last year, after destroying my hardwood floors with my real tree, I decided that I would treat myself to a beautiful, realistic, artificial Christmas tree from King of Christmas, a company I have followed on social media for years. You can imagine my utter DELIGHT when King of Christmas reached out to me and offered me the tree of my choice. I chose their stunningly realistic Royal Fir Slim Artificial Christmas tree and I’m officially team artificial Christmas tree now – and loving every second of it (as I type this post in early October, by the soft, enveloping glow of my already decorated tree).

Why I Decided to Switch from a Real Christmas Tree to an Artificial Christmas Tree:

I was very sentimental about the concept of a real Christmas tree, given that I grew up with the tradition of chopping one down (or dragging it through the snow from the corner store, haha) and so the wait, the smell, the process – it all stirred up nostalgic memories for me. But as a child I was largely shielded from the mess, the fear of fire, and the looming threat of bugs hatching into the home. After a couple of years of having a real tree, I was getting frustrated because I wanted a taller tree – and I wanted to be able to set it up earlier! It was difficult to share my many, many DIY Christmas tree ornament tutorials with you each year, when I couldn’t set my own tree up until December!

But the biggest reason for my switch is the most embarrassing. There was a part of me that could never fully relax with a real Christmas tree – especially because it was somewhat close to our wood burning fireplace, so I was very concerned about keeping it moist and not letting it dry out. I was so concerned, in fact, that I overwatered it last December and ruined our beautiful hardwood floors. I haven’t confessed this to anyone. I had a brand new, high quality tree stand with a gauge that told me when to water and I even put plastic underneath. But I was just so scared and I watered it when it didn’t need it, then the tree skirt sort of wicked some of the water out of the stand and toward the floor and the floors are now warped and grey. I haven’t had to heart to fix it yet because when I look at what I did I feel so stupid. But it was good motivation to make the switch to a realistic artificial tree because I am so happy!

Don’t Look to Closely! Tree Skirt Hiding the Damage for Now…

9′ Royal Fir Slim Artificial Christmas Tree Review

I am absolutely thrilled with my choice of realistic, artificial Christmas tree, the 9′ Royal Fir Slim Christmas tree from King of Christmas. Here’s what I love about my King of Christmas Royal Fir Slim Artificial Christmas Tree:

Easy Set Up with Minimal Fluffing Required

We removed the three sections of the tree from the two boxes they were shipped in and it was a breeze to set up – I’m talking 10 minutes, tops. The sturdy stand is ready to use, we just had to spread apart the legs to position them, the bottom section was tightened into the stand and then the other two sections were simply set into place. The lights were already connected and ready to go, thanks to a power pole in the trunk – there was no need to connect wires, it literally could not have been easier.

Once it was set up, the branches swung down into position on their own, and I simply had to shift a few around to hide the base of the tree. The branches were easy to position – they don’t bend, more like sort of just slip into different positions to fluff the end of the branches. I have memories of helping my grandmother set up her artificial tree that required a little bit too much bending and fluffing and coaxing and shaping, but this one just sort of… fell into position. It’s so difficult to describe, but the work required from me was minimal.

Perfection Proportions for My Small – But Tall! – Space

One thing I noticed about artificial Christmas trees is that as I sized up for the height I wanted, the width increased too, but I have very little floor space for a Christmas tree. I quickly realized a full 9′ Christmas tree would be too grand for our small living space. Luckily, King of Christmas has a great selection of trees with all different proportions and I loved that with this tree I could get the 9′ height with a small foot print (48″ wide). It’s about the width my real trees have been, but about 3′ taller, which is exactly what I had wanted.

Just FYI this tree comes in many different heights: 6.5′ / 7.5′ / 9′ / 10′ / 12′

Realistic Needle Tips and Shape

The 9′ Royal Fir Slim Artificial Christmas Tree has a mix of realistic and classic needle tips. At first I was on the fence about the classic needle tips being mixed in, but once the tree is set up the “classic” needle tips are hidden behind the realistic needle tips and once the tree is decorated, you don’t actually see them – they just add some green fullness to the tree. What you do see are realistic looking fir needle tips, which I personally prefer. Sitting on my sofa, a few feet away from this tree, I could really not tell the difference between this and a real tree.

But what’s equally important is the shape of the tree. I love that I no longer have a scraggly tree top with a wonky little branch (something that has bugged me that last couple of years) – this tree is shaped beautifully for that perfect Christmas tree shape, with just a touch of irregularity to keep it looking real. I am honestly so excited because last year I drove myself to distraction pruning and trimming my real tree, even once the ornaments were on. I would sit on the sofa, finding new things to fix. This tree, on the other hand, came out of the box so perfect, and that’s such a welcome change! This year I can focus on whipping up a new batch of ornaments – 3 feet worth, to be exact!

900 Beautifully Warm White LED Lights (with the Option for Multi-Color)

There was an artificial Christmas tree, from another brand, that went viral last year for having an unseemly number of lights but once people set it up, I saw so many complaints that the lights were BRIGHT. So bright that a person could not relax or watch TV anywhere near the tree, because of the blindingly bright lights, lol. I only have one living space where we read, watch TV, warm up by the fire and nap (ahem, relax), so while I appreciate a generous number of lights, I also appreciate a soft glow. It needs to be liveable for me, because I don’t have a room or space that is just for the Christmas tree.

Having a pre-lit tree was such a LUXURY (although this tree does come un-lit, if you prefer) and I love the perfect placement and balance of the lights. The wires are nicely concealed and the whole effect is very elegant and soft. The lights are controlled with a remote or a foot pedal, and there are multiple settings – including an option to turn the white lights multi-color for that nostalgic Christmas vibe.

Fire Resistant

As you now know, Christmas tree fire = big fear of mine, so I was relieved to switch to a tree that isn’t drying out every day of December, and this particular tree is made with fire resistant materials. I’m already feeling more relaxed, although I would still advise: never leave your Christmas tree lights on unsupervised. I even unplug at night, because you can never be too safe.

The Perfect Realistic Artificial Christmas Tree!

I’m thrilled – I’m so thrilled! I will always think a natural, real Christmas tree is beautiful, but I’m sold a realistic artificial Christmas tree as the best of both worlds. As you can see, I’ve changed some things on my Christmas tree theme this year (see last year’s version here and the year before here), and I can’t wait to share more soon! I am “faking” a tree skirt, but planning to make a new white one and I also have so many fun new ornament tutorials to share you with. If you can’t wait to get creative for Christmas, you can find all of my DIY Christmas craft tutorials here.

How to Find the Perfect Christmas Tree

King of Christmas has an online quiz to help you choose the perfect tree (you’ll find a little button on the website), but I think the first thing to decide is the size. Being able to choose the perfect proportions is one of the best things about an artificial Christmas tree, so consider the ideal height and whether you prefer full or slim. From there, you can choose if you prefer flocked/green, lit/un-lit, realistic/classic… But in my opinion, you can’t beat a pre-lit realistic green tree for convenience and coziness. Just look at those realistic branches:

Other Beautiful Realistic Artificial King of Christmas Trees

Here are a few other trees I was considering:

9′ King Flock Slim Artificial Christmas Tree (was sooo tempted by the white flocking for my wintry tree theme).
9′ Alpine Fir Slim Artificial Christmas Tree (the perfect shape for metal tinsel!)
9′ Tribeca Blue Spruce Slim Artificial Christmas Tree (worried it was too cool for my house but I LOVED the color).

King of Christmas Ornaments

P.S. King of Christmas has beautiful Christmas tree ornaments too! I was sent two boxes of the Snowflake 15-Piece Glass ornament set and these ornaments are stunning. They really lend a curated over time vibe because each one is so special and detailed. They are also very generously sized, as you can see on my tree: