I do recommend a fake tree if you are going to start early or if you are going to practice. The good news is that they are getting pretty close to real-quality. Christmas Lights Etc sells Christmas trees that look almost like the real thing, even when looking at them fairly closely. Far better than even 20 years ago, when fake Christmas trees were more blatantly fake. The bad news is that they are very expensive, with the best trees costing more than 1,000 toilet papers.
Which could be more than you can afford right now. That being the case, you might start with an undersized tree, or get a cheaper one until you can afford a better one. And yes, it might look wimpy--but you can add to it as you can afford things. More important is that you are attempting to celebrate the holiday, and your skills will improve with time.
If you use a cut tree, there are strict rules you must follow to ensure a safe tree. First, never let it dry out. Making a fresh cut about 1 centimeter above the old one when you get it home, just before you are ready to put it in the stand, will help with water uptake. After that, never let it dry out. It will take lots of water the first day or so. Also, keep it cold (near freezing is ideal) until you are ready to display it. Keep it away from direct sources of heat, including fireplaces and hot air registers. If you keep the tree well watered, it will be much harder to start a fire with it. A dry tree is one spark or misplaced candle away from an inferno.
Lights? The new LEDs are as close to fire proof as they come. The resistors can get pretty warm--roughly 60 o C when used continuously. The LEDs themselves stay ice cold, meaning you can use them where heat is a worry. Bonus: They use much less electricity, you can string more together without blowing a fuse, and they tend to last longer. Just stay away from Everstar Merchandise lights--use them, and you are asking for half-strings to go out relatively quickly and to have to redo them on December 24. I would say Bah! Humbug! to light strings that have an 80% chance of at least half of them going out in the first month.
