There are plastic Christmas trees, and then there are Christmas trees made of plastics. We’re referring to the latest trend of creating Christmas trees from used or discarded plastics that seems to have take the world by storm.

In Nigeria, the Lagos Waste Management Authority has used discarded PET bottles and tyres to build an “eco-friendly” Christmas tree. The idea was to build a Christmas tree this year that was made from recyclable items, to promote recycling.

In Thailand, a 29-foot-tall Christmas tree adorns the forecourts of two very big, very popular malls. Only, this large, alien-looking structure has been made from opaque plastic bottles. The mall administration is also urging people to drop off their used plastic items at one of its malls in the city of Bangkok. The plastic is reportedly headed for recycling once the holiday season is over.

The Lord Mayor of the city of London, Vincent Keaveny, joined hands with artist Ainne Burke to build a Christmas tree made entirely of trash collected from the city. The whole thing is held together with a mesh, and instead of looking messy or disgusting, it actually stands tall as a beautiful, colourful sculpture, with citizens lining up to get pictures clicked in front of it.

So, who said plastics can’t be pretty?