is it relevant to *you*?

for me, anything thats been there for 20 years could use a few years vacation in another space.

If it’s 20 years old, it’s probably not looking its best.

If you are tired of it you can retire it with no guilt.

That's a nice tree. Not all faux trees are created equal, yours looks great. I thinks it's definitely a personal preference. I gave away our trees to someone who wanted them and was very excited to receive them. I now have a faux Fiddle leaf fig tree and I love it. So, don't pitch it if you decide to let it go - I'm sure someone would love to adopt it.

I have a new chair arriving tomorrow for that corner and I’ve already received a new tall floor lamp and a couple of wood & iron decor panels, so the tree may just be moved to another room. That corner is in our bedroom and it’s just time for an update, I think the tree needs to move!

Ashley, it's retirement time.

If you want some greenery in that room , how about a placing low maintenance, potted indoor plant somewhere in the room? Either on a table, plant stand or larger in its place. I’m not a fan of dust collecting artificial plants, “in style “ or not.

I tried to find some two years ago for decorating a wedding event and I couldn't find them anywhere. Interestingly, I have been seeing them again in stores, so perhaps they are "back"? We have a nice one in our living room that we decorate with fairy lights and hearts, peace symbols, birds and other non-Christmas things. Makes me smile every time we turn it on which is why we choose the things we do.

The dust collection K Laurence mentioned can be a problem. Years ago I had a fake ficus tree and would take it outside to hose off. I made sure it was always on a warm day so it would dry quickly. My fake plant days ended long ago.

Ashley it's up to you...if you like it, keep it. I think one issue with fake plants...along with looking fake...is people place them where a real one wouldn't grow. I have a friend who has a fake Japanese maple tree in a dark corner of her living room. Just plain wrong.

If the tree 'crunches' & is stiff and crispy when you touch it, it's time to throw it out. If you got 20 years out of it you got about 4 times more than anyone else. After this amount of time the dirt, dust and allergens it holds just can't be removed.

There are more life like trees out now, but they are no longer $35. Check Overstock, Wayfair, Amazon, & World Market.

It was out when you put it in. Peak was about 1988. And you’ve got 20 years of dust in the crevices. Time to go.

Curb. Today

Sorry but NO fake tree is in style. Living on the other hand is always a plus in a room if it has good light. Fake are just dust collectors and lack life. Don't go there. It's time after 20 years to retire it.

Hi Ashley,

"Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." - William Morris

If you say I’ve been looking at this thing for 20+ years, then I guess you know what to do...

Have a nice day

Mehdia

Chloebud you took the words out of my mouth. I don't know what is worse: fake plants themselves, or the way they are ALWAYS crouching against the wall (or on top of cabinets) in a dark corner ready to pounce on you. If the corner is dark it needs a lamp not a heap of green plastic and polyester. If a real plant wouldn't survive there a fake one definitely doesn't belong.

Enjoy your new chair and your updated look!

Haha. I did not mean a dark dark dark corner. I meant toooooo dark for a living plant to survive. Stop being so up there that you cannot bring yourself to have something like an artificial plant. There I said it. So tired of all the years reading on this site where people go on and on about some really petty things. keep the fluff and not the cold chair in the corner with a lamp and a cold attitude.

winker58 said

Haha. I did not mean a dark dark dark corner. I meant toooooo dark for a living plant to survive. Stop being so up there that you cannot bring yourself to have something like an artificial plant. There I said it. So tired of all the years reading on this site where people go on and on about some really petty things. keep the fluff and not the cold chair in the corner with a lamp and a cold attitude.

It's not a matter of being "up there", it's about making choices that you like for your house. The OP asked for opinions about fake plants. Some dislike fake plants, some love them. If you love fake plants, go for it. But don't accuse people of being "up there" because their decorating opinion is different from yours.

If you don't want to read about decor opinions you shouldn't be on a decorating site.

I don't have a problem with faux items in general, but they need to be of the newer quality that look more life like and they need to be an up to date style. Ficus is not up to date IMO. I would get rid of it, it looks very dated to me.

Say goodbye and either get a real one or forget it.

I don’t think it was ever in style. Say adios to it and list it on CL where the other thousand fake ficuses live.

The 80s called. It wants its ficus back.

Seriously, tho -- I have several fake orchids in my house, and sometimes even they make me cringe a bit. I disliked fake ficus even when I had one in my living room back in the 80s, but bought it to fill a space. Now I find beauty in the blank spaces, especially because they're so much easier to dust.

Hey ficus? Buh-bye.

Yes, I can say with absolutely no sense of shame that I am too up there to have anything artificial in my house. Real plants, real food, real people only around here thank you very much.

Of course that means I have a lot of purchases that were from second hand stores, and a lot of DIY solutions, and a lot of compromises that mean I get my second or third choice instead of my dream. So maybe that's not so up there after all?

I am almost 50 years old and I remember when my mother's friend showed off her brand new fake ficus tree to us.

I have a couple of very nice looking fake plants and dozens of real ones. You wanna guess which I get compliments on most often? Yup....people have to literally touch them because they don't believe me when I say they are fake. They are showered at least once a season & are in beautiful pots, not cheap looking out of shape baskets.

Maybe the faux ficus trees they're producing these days look a little better than they used to, but the OP's 20-year-old doesn't look at all like the real thing:

My original answer about ficus trees being old is somewhat disingenuous. The bottom line is, ficus trees were a fad in the early 80s. Apparently these fake trees looked much better than previous iterations of fake trees. And it's fine to indulge in fads in home decor- but fads have a sell-by date- and the ficus tree fad's is long gone.

Of course our family friend could have showed us a beautiful new coffee table in 1982 that would still look good today.

When we were model home shopping last weekend.... Fiddle Leaf Fig trees were in every home. I saw them placed in large baskets and covered with moss. Google : fiddle leaf fig tree 6 foot. Nearly Natural is the maker of the tree below. My google search showed various prices. NOTE: If you want a taller tree, put in in a basket & on a stand.

If you want it taller than 6 ft, put it on a stand.

I have mixed feelings about fake plants in general. It does seem like there are some beautiful high quality ones out there that really bring life to a space in pictures, I am also not excited about having anything fake in my own home. That said, unless your fake ficus brings you joy, I'd get rid of it. It seems like they were very popular in dreary offices in the 90s and I'm afraid that's what they look like to me. If you want to switch to a very "in" fake tree, I agree with DK Haas that the fake fiddle leaf fig tree is all the rage right now.

I eyeball the fake orchids once in a while when I’m out looking at decor things, but can’t bring myself to buy one. I agree it would look nice in a photo, but IRL it’s not quite the same as having a real plant. That said, I kept an orchid I bought last year, and it just bloomed again, but the durned thing is only about 6 inches tall, lol. Cute, though, has two flowers.

On second thought, here is a model home with (what I think is) a FICUS!

https://tours.stevenjamescollins.com/public/vtour/display/209717

There are fake 'anything green' that I would never look at twice then there are good quality greens that deserve my attention simply based on the fact that anyone who knows me irl knows I kill plants. I have fake greens in my home that took me searching high and low (ordering online) to achieve the 'bringing life to the room' look. I for one am grateful for FAKE plants. FAKE & PROUD of it. :D

Just keep them out of the corners, iheartsix ;)

I’ve never had one, but there was a real one at a place where I worked, and it dripped sap all over the floor.

Do you need any more opinions to make your decision? Ha! I say let that one go because he's dated. But faux is IN right now!

Emily, no way!!! That tree has found a temporary home in the garage and will be headed to donation this weekend! Thanks to all!!!

I have one i just put in the shower. I took it out of the HUGE DARK WICKER basket. When it's dry-I will put it on my apartment balcony for privacy!

It’s 2024. Instagram will have you thinking it’s the “in” thing.