Add a circle with the size of 100mm x 100mm to the canvas. Add a second circle to the canvas. This one will be 2.8mm x 2.8mm and needs to be placed in the center of the bigger one. To achieve the perfect placement, simply mark both circles and use the function Align → Horizontal align center followed by Align → Vertical align center. 

This one will be the Christmas tree stand. Make sure to group these 2 circles, so that they stay aligned whenever you have to drag them around.

NOTE: You may have to adjust the 2.8mm circle so that it fits YOUR skewer ;)

Add words of your choice and repeat them a few times. For my stand I used “Merry X-mas *" x5. Move them to a different layer to make the parameter adjusting easier once it is time to do that. 

Use the mouse to hover over your words and grab the bending icon. Bend your words until you have a perfect round shape. Place the ring of words within your base and adjust the size if needed.

Now place a design of your choice in the center. I wanted a snowflake. The design should be on the same layer as your previous placed words.

Before you continue to the next step, get everything aligned. Mark all elements and click on Align → Horizontal align center followed by Align → Vertical align center. Also, group the elements and drag them to the side of the canvas.

Now it is time to add more layers for your Christmas tree. If you plan to use the F1 you want to add 8 more layers as in circles.

Repeat what you did in Step 1, but reduce the size to 95mm x 95mm. Once everything is lined up you could either group the two circles together or make use of the Combine → Substract at overlay function.

Repeat Step 1 again 7 more times and reduce the size by 10mm for every following layer. All your layers should have the size of 100x100, 95x95, 85x85, 75x75, 65x65, 55x55, 45x45, 35x35, 25x25, 15x15 mm.

Every Christmas tree needs a star, right? Luckily, XCS has the shape of a star in its shape library. Simply chose the star and add it to the canvas. If you want, you can also apply a design to the star like I did in my example. Just make sure to move the part that is supposed to be engraved to another layer and align the design and the shape like you previously did with the circles.

Now it is time to change the processing parameters. If you followed my steps, you should have 2 or 3 different layers. 1 layer that includes all the shapes that are supposed to be cut and 1 or 2 layers with designs that are supposed to be engraved.

Simply click on the color of said layer and set the processing parameters to cut (I used 100/3/1) and for engraving to what ever you desire as your perfect engraving (I used 100/200/1).

Place a piece of 3-4mm wood into the F1 and start to cut and engrave all the shapes.

Assembling is very easy. 

Grab the biggest shape with the design for your baseplate and pull it over the skewer. Now add 3 wooden balls on top of it, before you add the next smaller layer. From this point on you add just 1 wooden ball between each layer. 

After you used the smallest layer it is time to add the star. For this you want to use some wood glue or a heat gun to fixate it on top of the tree.

And you're done :)

Tip: If your tree is a bit wobbly, you can simply cut the base another time without engraving it. That way your Christmas tree will be a bit more stable. 

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Happy Holidays!