November 10, 2005
Upside-down Christmas Trees
Posted at November 10, 2005 6:28 PM
Show me your upside-down menorah and I'll be impressed..
Upside-down Christmas Trees are the New Black
Where do you put the star on the Christmas tree that's turning the holiday on its head?
An upside-down fake fir is one of this year's most unusual festive decorations - and it's expected to be a big seller.
"People like them because they can see the ornaments better, they don't get hidden behind branches," said Cynthia Sayed, the manager of the Heart to Heart store in Brooklyn.
So far, the Bay Ridge shop on Third Ave. near 90th St. is the only store in the city carrying the tree, though it won't start selling them until after Thanksgiving.
"I'm planning to put one in display in the window," she said. "I expect they'll sell really fast."
Manufacturer Roman Inc. already is reporting great sales through online dealers - including Hammacher Schlemmer and Target.
"People seem to love them," a company spokeswoman said of the trees, which either stand upside down on a weighted base or hang from the ceiling.
"They like that they don't take up much space and that their ornaments are more visible," she added.
While the inverted trees are sure to get strange looks - and you won't be seeing one at Rockefeller Center anytime soon - the concept is centuries old.
Upside-down trees originated in Germany in the 12th century in reverence of the teaching of an English monk, who taught the Trinity using the triangular shape of an inverted fir.
And in Victorian times, trees were often too tall to fit in houses. The top would be cut off and hung upside down.
"I have never heard of such a thing," said Patrick Gilmartin of the Lafayette St. store Groovy Holidays.
"It sounds silly at first, but I suppose it's unusual, and people want unusual things."
|