Holiday Sparkle: Holiday Tree Alternatives with Modern Design Oopmh
If your ideas for decking the halls lean more toward Knoll, Eames and Adelman than red, gold and pine, you’ll be happy to see that these non-traditional trees embody the winter holiday spirit with modern style. See what we’ve rounded up for you ahead!
First up? A mid-century classic: the vintage aluminum tinsel tree. Many of these old trees utilized a rotating color wheel which projected colored light up through the branches from the floor. Ebay is a good resource, and a bit of a search could turn up some great sparkly retro finds.
A forest of rainbow colors at Treetopia.
For more contemporary faux flora–including the do-it-yourself kind–ideas abound from around the world. Treetopia is your one-stop shopping resource for cool-looking artificial trees in lollipop colors. Black, white and silver (some even come pre-lit) are available in a wide range of shapes and sizes for understated elegance, but if visions of bubblegum pink, lipstick red, purple, blue, striped, ombre or rainbow trees are dancing in your head, they’ve got you covered. For tiny spaces, they even offer half-a-tree (only in basic green).
Infinite Tree Sculpture from Areaware
As much tactile sculpture as holiday decor, you can configure these Infinite Trees from Areaware in a variety of interesting ways, and colors include an elegant black-and-white, stripy shades of green and unfinished wood. They’re small, so they’re perfect for petite apartments (also available at Urban Outfitters).
This tree poster from Atypyk comes in two styles, neither of which take up any space in your room.
If you’re really serious about saving space, this pixelated tree poster from Atypyk gets the point across without even venturing into the third dimension. Buy a stack and make a holiday wall covering!
Modern tinsel tree from West Elm.
Wooden cutout trees from West Elm.
From West Elm, a more abstract, minimalist take on the tinsel tree is available in two sizes. Also at West Elm, these wooden cutout trees in a variety of styles will dress desktops and tabletops handsomely.
Alpine Tree from Cardboard Safari
The Alpine Tree from Cardboard Safari gives the cutout version a contemporary profile (also available online at Urban Outfitters).
Acrylic tree from The Modern Christmas Tree (l); PossibiliTree wooden trees (r) come in three sizes and three colors.
These sharp acrylic trees come in black and clear and in a variety of sizes from The Modern Christmas Tree. They’re reasonably priced, too, starting at £14 (about $22) not including shipping from the UK. If you’re a woodworking purist, PossibiliTree crafts these tabletop-sized or taller suspended-from-the-ceiling trees in three different woods to be a lasting, modern alternative to a throwaway tree. They’re environmentally friendly and they come rolled up in a tidy bundle.
Super Star Tree, available at Modernica
Super Star trees from California modern mecca Modernica are the perfect mix of retro and contemporary. Six-point stars make up the tree’s “branches,” and they come in natural wood or a bright lime green in two sizes.
Little black cardboard tabletop Christmas tree from cardboardchristmas on Etsy.
Keep it simple with a few of these cute ‘lil guys in recycled cardboard, available in basic colors from Cardboardchristmas on Etsy.
DIY stick-on photo wall tree; image: frichic.
DIY modern trees: Euro and, more specifically, Scandinavian style always inspires when it comes to clean, modern decor. These DIY holiday wall creations are both attention-getting and understated, combining the familiar icon with the fun of an advent calendar. From Bulgaria comes this stylish, polaroid-esque black and white stick-on version.
DIY calendar tree. Image: Weekdaycarnival
From Finnish blog Weekday Carnival, this DIY Xmas “calendar” idea is an eyeful of graphic fun.
Washi (decorative masking) tape tree. Image: Bettina Holst.
This astoundingly simple tree outline in washi (masking) tape comes from Danish blogger Bettina Holst.
Instructions for this DIY tree include a video at Homemade Modern.
Even Home Depot gets into the DIY modern tree action with this plywood-based creation in collaboration with Homemade Modern that requires a few hours and some serious tools. The finished product is a versatile conversation piece that could be part of your modern tree tradition for years to come.
Got a favorite modern tree resource? Share it with us!
