Holiday window gazing

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It’s that time of year again, when retailers pull out all the holiday decorating stops. I was in Las Vegas over the weekend, and I snapped a photo of this Ted Baker-does-Marilyn Monroe window at the Forum Shops. The best part? The skirt actually moves from side to side.

For her holiday windows, Tory Burch got creative with the beloved 1970s-era Hasbro toy Lite Brite. She collaborated with New York-based artist Timothy Paul Myers to transform a photo of a reindeer into a colorful, Pop Art design (at right) for the windows of all her boutiques nationwide. There are 46 installations in all, which took 4,900 hours and 2,025,000 pegs to create.

When it came to flipping the switch, that honor went to representatives from the organization Dress for Success, who were also treated to $500 shopping sprees. (Dress for Success is a nonprofit group dedicated to improving the lives of women by providing professional clothing, employment retention programs and other assistance.)

The Barneys New York holiday windows pay tribute to celebrity chefs, as part of the season’s Have A Foodie Holiday theme, in partnership with Food Network, Cooking Channel and Illy Caffe.

As you can imagine, the store’s creative director Simon Doonan indulges his wildest Warholian fantasies with coffee cans and caricatures of Mario Batali, Bobby Flay, Jamie Oliver, Rachel Ray, Martha Stewart and Paula Deen (below).

Barneys has also assembled some fun foodie-themed products, including this hilarious Armand Diradourian ‘fruitcake’ pillow.

I can think of about half a dozen friends and family members I would like to bestow that gift upon, and the holiday season hasn’t even officially started yet!

-- Booth Moore

Top photo: Ted Baker holiday window. Credit: Booth Moore / Los Angeles Times

2nd photo: Tory Burch window. Credit: Tory Burch

3rd photo photo: Barneys New York’s Have a Foodie Holiday window display. Credit: Peter Serling/Barneys New York.