The Genesis

Vol. 1, No. 1

October 9, 2021

Firstly, thank you for visiting The Aluminum Forest. Whether you are here for the pretty pictures or all the minutiae about vintage aluminum Christmas trees, we are here for YOU, and to honor the amazing pioneers of the aluminum Christmas tree era. And, well, all things orbiting The Aluminum Christmas Tree Universe.

The Aluminum Forest website is refreshing batch of limoncello extracted from awfully unpalatable lemons, dears. Stirred, not shaken. I was freshly (and thankfully) unfettered from a scrapped partnership for a book, along with my forsaken materials. I spent years on the research, building family trees to track down living descendants of tree manufacturers and developing trusting relationships with them. I conducted dozens of interviews, and scoured the internet for leads, ads, supporting documents, and any information that could be found. I invested time and money in building and promoting the book project. It was not to be.

Although I was relieved about the dissolved partnership, I was sad that the book was a fail.  More impactful than my own disappointment was the sorrowful task of having to call all the people who contributed to the project and tell them that despite their generous donation of time, materials, and family history, the project was over. As the only representative of the book to these fine people, I felt especially disconsolate at having let them down.

I drew inspiration from my friend since 9th grade. He’s a world-class photographer. NatGeo level. It’s just a hobby, as he enjoys many successes in life. He posts his jaw-dropping photographs on his social media, and I asked him once why he did not do something ‘more professional’ with his stunning photos. He had invested lots of money and time. Why just post them online, when you could easily publish a book, or contribute to a national magazine? He said it felt good to not monetize something that he really enjoys doing. That conversation was years ago, and it came back to me in an epiphany.

Why focus on the loss? Why not create a GIVE? It was a seminal moment! This new outlook was a shot in the arm. Starting over with my raw materials, I hired the first web-builder that answered the phone, and TheAluminumForest.com was under construction!

After weeks of hair-pulling efforts and a massive learning curve, I was finally able to call my contacts and tell them we had a bigger and better stage for our work: A living, breathing reference tool available for anyone to access. A constantly evolving repository of information for The Aluminum Christmas Tree Universe. A giveaway, from the heart.

I hope you like it.

Yours always,

Kelly Brennan McClure

Any questions on the blog? Do reach out!