Crystal Tree... At the Car Show

While at the car show in Manhattan this weekend I came across this Crystal Tree:

At first I thought it was artificial - the branches had the form of Manzanita, but Manzanita doesn't grow like this. Manzanita Branches don't all emanate from a central point, but rather start branching out near the base, and the branches coming off the main stem are usually spaced farther apart. 

A closer look revealed that these were indeed Manzanita Branches, but instead of just being one, or a few long branches, were more than a dozen relatively short branches screwed onto a large trunk. 

Most Crystal Trees are created by using a few (2-3) relatively long branches clustered together. This is an interesting and different technique that I think we might have to try replicating using Grapewood for the central trunk and a bunch of seconds for the branches. 

P.S. - After the car show we headed to the Oyster Bar in Grand Central Terminal where I took a picture of what's probably the world's largest "Crystal Tree," hanging from the ceiling chandelier style in the Lexington Avenue entrance.