THE TREE

Our 5ft Eco Elf Nordmann fir hasn’t been officially named by the children yet, although I don’t think it will be long. There’s something more personal about welcoming a live tree into the house; we have to look after it, watering it each day and not letting it get too hot, and of course there can be no spraying it with fake snow or glitter. It’s definitely not a cheaper alternative, but given a cut tree takes seven years to grow, during which time it requires around 4,000 litres of water, it offers peace of mind. Other Christmas tree hire companies include rentalclaus.com, loveachristmastree.co.uk, winstonesicecream.co.uk and greeniestrees.com.