Best Artificial Indoor Trees and Tips to Make Them Look Real

Every corner is happier with a tree! That’s my philosophy anyway because I use indoor trees all over our house and in room makeovers we do for friends.

As much as I would love to grow real indoor trees, I haven’t quite gotten the knack of it (maybe one day when I don’t have to also focus on feeding and watering these kids running around here). So I’ve searched around over the years to find the best artificial indoor trees and discovered some tricks to make them look real.

Health Benefits of Having Indoor Plants

If you ever find yourself staring at a room feeling like “something is missing”. I can almost bet it’s because it’s missing a planter of leafy green branches .

But if you really want to add some drama and life, an indoor tree can wake up a room in seconds.

Studies have been linked to plants for:

· Improving our cognition

· Making us more productive

· Improving our well-being

But if you struggle with keeping real ones alive and prefer to go the artificial indoor tree route instead, our brains can still perceive them the same as real trees to receive similar mental health benefits. (Real trees are better for benefits like purifying the air, but artificial trees can still boost your mood.)

How to Make a Fake Indoor Tree Look Real

I’ve learned a few tricks over the years while styling our room makeovers to make a fake indoor tree look as realistic as possible.

1. Place Plastic Bases in Larger Planters

A lot of faux indoor trees are set in concrete in a small, plastic planter at the base, but a real tree of substantial height would need a large planter with room for roots and growth. So place your fake tree’s small base inside of a large planter to make it look realistic and add some extra drama.

If you tree is a little too short, you can even add old books or boxes underneath to act as a riser and give it height. Place craft moss on top to conceal the plastic planter so that it looks like the real thing.

2. Separate Branches

When you buy fake trees, the leaves are usually squashed and the branches are usually pressed together in shipping.

So take a few minutes to pull apart each stem for some separation to create a full, natural look. Try to smooth out any leaves that have been crushed so they look realistic.

Do you have any indoor trees in your home? Are you a "real tree" person or a "fake tree" person? Perhaps one day you'll muster the courage to give growing a real tree another try.