ok, this is going to sound odd, for a number of years before we broke down and got a new artificial tree, I would pay for a guy to come in and put lights on the tree,
it was a 12 footer and she wanted the lights carefully woven into the branches - not just strung around
and it was a source of meltdowns when the lights didn't work - I mean we both dreaded the experience, so it was money well spent (and was only $75 - $125 a year ...went up a bit each year)
we went with a 10 foot pre-lit "flip tree" last year and it's been great ...a bit more manageable than the 12 foot and since it's new - no problems with lights not working.
I would have absolutely paid $100 for someone to do lights for a twelve foot tree with that kind of detail. Thankfully we never had a tree that big back when we had natural trees. Now we have a pre-lit tree and it’s small - nine feet tall but only three feet across at the base.
So I know this is a little bit of a tangent to the post (BTW, yes I would pay for someone to light my house because me and ladders don't mix), but our cat destroyed our artificial tree last year. He thought it was a cat tree and climbed and climbed and broke it. This year my wife lays the law down saying we are not getting another tree just so he can do it again. I wasn't happy and so I went to the dollar store and bought a tree that is a foot tall and put it up in the corner just to make a point. She relents and says lets go get a cheap tree.
At this point I should mention we have 24 foot ceilings and the idea of having some dinky, six foot tree in the corner was not going to happen on my watch. We get to the store and I observe her as she looks through the 4 to 6 foot offerings. I slowly started corralling her further down the aisle to the bigger ones. "Look at this 8 foot one!! Look this one is pre-lit." Ultimately, I get her to the area where I wanted to end up at--The 12-15 foot models. I shoot for the stars and really, really push for this 15 foot one--knowing I won't get it because it was over a thousand dollars. So as a compromise, we agree on a 12 foot one, not pre-lit. Right before we pull the trigger, I show her the one I really wanted all along--the 12 foot flocked, pre-lit, amazing beauty of a tree and she relents. It took three people to load it as it weighed in at just under 200 pounds, but I am proud to say we somehow fit it in the back of my Hyundai Veloster.
There is probably some Christmas lesson here or something, but I am not sure what it is.