I was so excited to get this tree... Unfortunately, 1/3 of the lights did not work, many branches were attached on both ends, there were several sharp bits (sliced open my thumb) , and despite spending 2 hours on one section alone failed to get the full tree effect illustrated in the picture and by others. (I own an artificial tree and am adept at 'fluffing' the tree to good effect, so it is not as a result of not knowing how to arrange the branches, etc). On the other hand, the needle tip technology was nice, the tree seemed to be 'solid' and well made. Maybe if the lights had all worked it would have looked better.