I bought this tree to see the eyes of my grandchildren light up when they entered our home...and they did. ;-) I've also had many real Fraser Fir Christmas trees in the past, so I know exactly what this tree is supposed to look like. I've got to admit that Balsam Hill hit this one out of the park. Not only does the tree look realistic, it is absolutely stunningly gorgeous.

The tree limbs are greatly compressed right out of the box. This is one reason why some complain in these reviews, however I strongly suggest that all who buy a Balsam Hill tree search the internet (YouTube) using the phrase "How To Fluff and Shape an Artificial Christmas Tree" by Balsam Hill, view the video at that link and then follow the demonstrated procedure. (This review is not allowed to contain links to webpages.) Performing the proper shaping results in an absolutely stunningly beautiful tree. My family is extremely satisfied with the beauty of this tree and the ease of assembly, and I write this as someone with arthritis in my hands.

One reason the gloves are provided for shaping branches is likely because of the slightly slimy chemical on the polyethylene...this chemical is used to coat the mold that is used for casting the polyethylene branch ends and allows the polyethylene to easily separate from the mold, thereby providing a beautiful product.

I know that this sounds like a commercial, but I'm extremely pleased with this purchase, I read several negative comments concerning the "chemical" and the "appearance", and I wanted to address those negative comments with some explanations. I hope you find this useful.

Would I buy this tree again? Oh absolutely emphatically yes!!!

I just received this tree today and was so excited to unbox it and put it up. I spent about 2.5 hours fluffing the branches and it doesn't even come close to being anywhere near as full as the photo on the website. You can see straight through to the trunk the entire height of the tree. Additionally, there are some branches that have been installed on the tree completely sideways and not in the same pattern at the rest of the branches (with some maneuvering you can make them look less weird, but not perfect). Also, the branches at the top of the tree (which should be naturally shorter so that the tree properly staggers back) are awkwardly long and it's impossible to get them to stay pushed down - so the tree basically has these weird long branches at the top that just stick straight out giving the tree a "table top" appearance. The lack of thickness is really what disappoints me the most - I will try to fill the gaps in with ornaments, but this is blatant and false advertising. For the price of this tree it should look exactly like the photo (what you think you are buying). I own another one of these Fraser Firs I purchased from BH five years ago and the quality far surpasses this one. The quality of the branches is more rubbery/plastic looking and just overall contributes to this tree falling short of its over $1K price tag. Save your money and go to a big box store and get one - you'll save four figures and get comparable product.

After having live trees for 35 years my wife and I decided to purchase an artificial one.
We searched online and made several trips to local stores, we decided on a Balsam Hill Fraser fir because they look the most realistic.
I called customer service because I had a few questions, the woman I spoke to was very helpful and we placed the order on Monday November 4th.
The tree was delivered on Thursday November 7th.
I was impressed with how Balsam Hill includes extras like a storage bag, 2 pairs of gloves and extra bulbs with tool for replacing them.
I knew that we would need to spend time fluffing the tree to get it looking nice, however I wasn't prepared for the time It actually takes, there are several videos which show you how it's done, which was helpful.
We purchased a tree with the lights already installed,
I noticed that the wiring for the lights is strung tight which sometimes prohibits you from putting the branches where you want them, also, a few of the small branch tips actually broke off during the fluffing process which is concerning for a tree costing over $500. I have concerns about this continuing to happen during the packing up and unpacking and setting up process over the years.
The tree is beautiful once you take the time to get it shaped, I hope 5 years from now it will still look the same.

We purchased the fraser fir partly because that's what we've always had as a cut tree. I like the tree, it was easy to put together, no part too heavy for us in our 70s. I wish I could have gotten an 8 footer but only some trees come in 8 feet for some reason. After "fluffing" everything looked good and the tree is decorated. Although it's not a deal breaker, I think the company should note that on the most realistic trees they use the more papery kind of boughs on the interior to fill in around the trunk and to move around so you can't see thru the tree. It's filler, I get it. I was just surprised to see it. The outer boughs can be spread and bent to a certain extent. I feel like the tree isn't as wide as stated. Again, not a problem where we have it but we were concerned and therefore eliminated a couple trees that were 5.5 wide - just thought they seemed too wide and we probably could have worked with the 5.5 in the end. Also, the photos online show the tree as being really solidly thick. I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to get all my ornaments on. It's not quite as think as the photo although I'm sure you could work at it. If you've never had an artificial tree, I thought it was harder to hang ornaments. Because the needles don't give like a real tree, I had to really get that little hanger down between the needles. Took more time. The lights are enough and they are not that awful led blue.
Everything was well packed. Nice bag to store in. Little separate bag for the stand. Clear how to put the pieces together. I ordered the sample kit prior to purchase. I think that's worth it. I paid extra for 2 day shipping so I could decide and get the tree in the time frame I wanted but they didn't even ship it for two days so I wasn't happy with that.