Festival of Trees 2015, AKA, The Best Christmas Tree Ideas To Steal!

Greetings, fellow Christmas decoration addicts! Now that Thanksgiving is over, it's time for my yearly roundup from Orlando's Festival of Trees!

This event always has the newest designer trends, and is fantastic for inspiration. So let's dive in!

 I'm always most interested in tree toppers, and this year top hats were pretty popular. I like the extra berry sprigs around this one; keeps it from looking too boxy up there.

Now this topper was way over the top... literally:

0.o

Ok, so the topper's a bit much, but the theme, "Sweater Weather," was adorable:

 Almost every ornament was made of soft felts and fabric!

This next theme is "Once Upon A Time":

See the little spinning wheel at the base? From that, I'm guessing the wheat stalks on top are an ode to Rumpelstiltskin. 

The ornaments were a mix of keys, crown, fairies, carriages, etc:

I think the peacock theme reached critical mass last year, since this year I only spotted 2 or 3:

I don't care if it's a little overdone; those colors will never stop being gorgeous together. Plus I'm digging that little basket base!

Here's the other peacock theme I photographed, this time on a "pencil tree."

I noticed quite a few of these super skinny trees this year. They're great space-savers, but if you put a fat topper on it (like with the red) they look more like columns than Christmas trees.

I've found most designer toppers now are a big jumbled floral arrangement, without a real focal point:

It took me a minute to realize there IS an angel in there - and that's an interesting idea, setting her down low like that.

Another giant spriggy topper and, uh...

 Peeping Santa topper? Not sure I'd want that staring me down in the middle of the night. o.0

Mini-trees like these are great for kids' rooms, or for getting your geek on:

The Jurassic Park one is a bit crammed, but I like the idea of raiding the toy box for ornaments.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, how 'bout this Haute Couture setup?

I've seen a lot of these tree skirt mannequins around now - they're super fun, in a store-display kind of way. (I'd love to see someone wear one to a convention, though. Christmas fairy? Yes? No?)

 Also digging that red, hot pink, & purple color palette.
(Though the bright pinks all look like red in my pictures.)

I took these pictures the day after the Paris attacks, so John and I spent a few silent moments in front of this one:

 

The Eiffel Tower topper is perfect with the shape of the tree.

 Plus cute owls go with everything.

I know everyone has different ideas on how much is TOO much, but...

I think this may be too much. :)

Don't you just love teal and red together?

 It's almost as pretty as teal and orange. ALMOST.

 Another beautiful theme tree, this time for wine lovers:

That glittery wine bottle topper would be an easy DIY.

 There were also glowing grape lights and mini painted wine glasses. For the garland, I'm really liking that thin curly ribbon. Not to mention vertical garland is so much easier to put on!

Beach themed trees are always popular here in Florida. I guess something about it being 87 degrees right now affects our design choices:

 A starfish star topper? YES.

Here's a pretty display for our armed forces:

I like the patriotic tree! That red-and-white ribbon is lovely.

Check out this cookie-and-candy themed mini tree in a bright red colander! So cute!

 And with the pink flamingo tree, I like how the ribbon is wrapped around the outside of the branches. Gives the tree a soft, cotton candy effect.

 Another over-sized topper:

 The tree was a little four-footer, which made the giant angels seem even more out of scale. On a bigger tree, though, this would be stunning.

Here's one of my favorite toppers of the day:

The sprigs and greenery beside the top hat look like a windblown scarf! GENIUS. So simple, but it really gives it a sense of movement.

I also like the actual scarf garland. You could cut your own from strips of felt; cheap, easy, adorbz.

We interrupt these trees to bring you some festive carolers in the main gallery:

K, now back to trees.

More garland options: I like these glittery grapevine branches on the left:

 I'm less sure about the dried Palmetto leaves on the right, but that was a Florida themed tree, so it fits. (See the little toy alligators on the tree skirt?)

 This next one on the left has wired-together spray sprigs for a garland, which gives it a feathery, waterfall look:

 And for the red-and-gold one, look how far the ribbon comes out from the branches. I've always tucked ribbon garland IN, but that looks super cool!

 And finally, I totally saved the best for last, you guys.

This may be the most beautiful Christmas tree I've ever seen.

I actually shrieked a bit when we turned the corner:

 

 LOOK HOW PRETTY

I couldn't quite fit it all in frame standing in front:

They even had custom citrus paintings on the wall behind it, to go with the theme!

The topper is a custom made sun made from a light ball and gold dowels. At the base are crates of faux oranges and lemons:

 

 The label in back reads "Apopka," which is a city not far from where we live.

More faux citrus inside the tree, including little slices:

 

Did I mention all the trees here are for sale? I think they wanted $4,200 for this one. 

Not gonna lie. I WAS TEMPTED.

 

 [dreamy sigh] So, so gorgeous.

Ok, that does it for my favorite trees this year! Stay tuned for my wreath roundup later, plus a few of the sweetest gingerbread houses I've ever seen. Fun fun!