# Another Christmas Tree question - what's on top of yours? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 7, 2013, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774 "2013-12-07T21:54:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/1 "2013-12-07T21:54:51Z")
What do you put on the top of your tree? I’m a traditionalist, so I always go with a star, but my parents’ tree usually had either a Santa or a ribbon. ---
**Author:** ![Rhiannon8404](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rhiannon8404/32/17929_2.png) [@Rhiannon8404](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhiannon8404)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/2 "2013-12-07T22:05:23Z")
Tinkerbell ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/3 "2013-12-07T22:27:59Z")
Alternates between a star, a deep aquamarine peacock and a fat red cardinal. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/4 "2013-12-07T22:46:29Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > What do you put on the top of your tree? I’m a traditionalist, so I always go with a star, but my parents’ tree usually had either a Santa or a ribbon. Did you not vote in your own poll? Because it looks like all angels from where I’m sitting. We have an over-the-top, lit-candles-in-both-fists, Victorian-gown-wearing angel, because my younger daughter fell in love with the thing when she was ten. Before that, we had a fairly simple star. Then again, there were a number of years when we didn’t have a tree at all, because when we tried, we ended up with a fat-ass tabby cat up there briefly (before the whole thing came down). ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2013, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/5 "2013-12-07T22:53:22Z")
Star. Growing up it was an angel. I still have her, but she’s too decrepit to go on the tree now. I’d really, Really like the Flying Spaghetti Monster tree topper but he’s a little pricey so I settled for the FSM hanging ornament. ---
**Author:** ![Streetsinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/0ea827/32.png) [@Streetsinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Streetsinger)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/6 "2013-12-08T00:04:10Z")
My tree topper makes me insanely happy. It is a wire structure that slips over the branch, shaped like the Empire State Building. And I have a koala bear clinging to the spire on top. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/7 "2013-12-08T00:09:27Z")
We have a 5 pointed star, but I prefer to think of it as a pentacle. Halloween until Christmas is a bountiful time of year for Pagan decorations in mainstream stores. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/prof.pepperwinkle/32/13627_2.png) [@Prof.Pepperwinkle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Prof.Pepperwinkle)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/8 "2013-12-08T00:11:23Z")
An Angel. My Dad named her Maud for some reason some 50+ years ago, and she’s been with me ever since. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/9 "2013-12-08T00:13:20Z")
Nothing now. Growing up it varied between several spire-shaped sparkly things. Santa was having a bad year. The elves were all on strike for higher wages, half the reindeer had the trots while the other have were down with the mange, Mrs. Claus was PMSing like crazy and the NSA wanted his naughty/nice list. Into the middle of all this chaos floated an angel with a tree. “Hey Santa! I got your Christmas tree. Where should I stick it?” And that, children, is why there is an angel atop the Christmas tree. ---
**Author:** ![Hockey\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a183cd/32.png) [@Hockey\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hockey_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/10 "2013-12-08T01:18:31Z")
It’s a spire with Mickey Mouse dressed in a Santa outfit hanging on and swinging a lantern. It plugs in and lights up and moves. ---
**Author:** ![ENugent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/4af34b/32.png) [@ENugent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ENugent)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/11 "2013-12-08T01:22:39Z")
I have a stuffed monkey puppet. ---
**Author:** ![jrsone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jrsone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrsone)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/12 "2013-12-08T01:24:09Z")
Star now but it can vary. ---
**Author:** ![Hedda\_Rosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hedda_rosa/32/1204_2.png) [@Hedda\_Rosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hedda_Rosa)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/13 "2013-12-08T03:19:48Z")
We have 2 trees every year. Angel goes on the big tree, star goes on the smaller, “kids’ tree” so I voted Angel. ---
**Author:** ![nonacetone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonacetone/32/2819_2.png) [@nonacetone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nonacetone)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/14 "2013-12-08T03:40:48Z")
This year, the topper on the big tree in the dining room, is a 10", stuffed Darth Vader, and he’s wearing a Santa hat. On the smaller tree in the living room, there is a Father Christmas on top. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 4:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/15 "2013-12-08T04:16:51Z")
I voted Angel, but ours is a big ribbon bow with a Victorian angel set into it, I guess it could have counted for either. Growing up, we had a star, so in my mind, “star” is the most correct answer. However, my childhood star is too fragile to put on the tree these days, so it’s like I can’t replace it with another star (because it wouldn’t be the same) … so our angel is like the sad second place finisher. I have zero emotional attachment to the angel, despite the fact that it’s been our tree topper for more than 10 years now. ---
**Author:** ![kjbrasda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/74df32/32.png) [@kjbrasda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kjbrasda)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/16 "2013-12-08T04:33:48Z")
Angel, but it’s not actually on top since our (fake) tree is a tad too tall so we sort of tie it near the top. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/17 "2013-12-08T05:16:39Z")
I’ve got an 8-inch white semi-translucent butterfly that clips on. Perfect for the top of the tree. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/18 "2013-12-08T07:27:07Z")
There wasn’t a category for “nothing”, so I voted for “whatever was on the pre-lit tree when I bought it” (since my artificial tree happens to have built-in lights). Is “nothing” supposed to fall under “something else”? ---
**Author:** ![Chicken\_Fingers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Chicken\_Fingers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chicken_Fingers)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/19 "2013-12-08T09:02:18Z")
For a while it was a disembodied Barbie head, but due to protests of “creepiness” it got changed to a star. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2013, 10:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774/20 "2013-12-08T10:42:22Z")
> [@Chicken\_Fingers](#): > > For a while it was a disembodied Barbie head, but due to protests of “creepiness” it got changed to a star. Yes, I imagine that a sensitivity to accusations of “creepiness” would deeply trouble a poster called [Psycho music] **Chicken Fingers** [/Psycho music]. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-christmas-tree-question-whats-on-top-of-yours/675774.md?page=2)