Manhattan Christmas Window Tour

Manhattan Christmas Window Tour 

Its that time of the year again ,when city stores deck out their windows in all the latest holiday splendor .A good place to start is on the  East Side of Manhattan with Bloomingdale's and then work your way slowly towards Fifth Avenue.

Bloomingdale's is on  59th Street and Lexington Avenue.. This years holiday windows feature : Vintage shopping bags — from 1981, 1983, 1990, 2001. Bllomingdale's even offers some  interactive displays . You can stand on a snowflake, and press a star-shaped button and your photo will be snapped and uploaded to Bloomingdale's Facebook page.By the way the  Celebrity-designed ornaments including ones by Heidi Klum and Al Roker are on sale and proceeds go to the Child Mind Institute, a children's mental health organization.

Barneys is located on 660 Madison Ave. near 61st Street.: Barneys is know for the Avant-garde window displays and is the perennial envelope pusher of the group when it comes to holiday window displays. This year Barney's features Lady Gaga and they convert their fifth floor into a Gaga workshop and the windows into a pop-art fun house. One window gives a glimpse into the pop star's boudoir, crafted entirely from hair. Items for sale include an $85 box of cookies shaped like her famous outfits and Gaga-inspired hair bows.Proceeds from sales of all Gaga-related items will go to her new nonprofit, the Born This Way Foundation, dedicated to empowering youth and fighting bullying.

Bergdorf Goodman located on  754 Fifth Avenue near 57th Street and offers crème de la crème of holiday window displays. Bergdorf's holiday windows, "Carnival of the Animals," are a study in good story-telling. These exquisite, finely detailed dioramas feature haunting creatures and scenes like a shimmery aquatic scene, a metallic tropical rain forest, and an arctic garden party. Go across the street to see the men's store windows, featuring a menagerie of animals dressed in Bergdorf frocks. My favorite was a confident lion with a beautiful mane seated in a pinstripe suit.

Henri Bendel located at  712 Fifth Ave. near 56th Street. Feature  windows that celebrtate the Radio City Rockettes and New York City. It's worth the stop just to see the Lady Liberty mannequin dressed in a robe made of 3,000 jelly beans. Bendel's was also the first Manhattan department store to unveil their windows, on Nov. 10.

The Cartier Building located on  651 Fifth Ave. near 52nd Street is one of the last remaining mansions on Fifth Avenue, this six- story marble and granite building is elegantly wrapped to look like a giant present, with a twinkling, lit-up red ribbon.In 1917 French jeweler Pierre Cartier bought this mansion from Morton Plant for $100 and a pearl necklace worth a million dollars.

Saks Fifth Avenue  611 Fifth Ave. at 50th Street.This year the facade of the building becomes a canvas for a 3-D bubble and snowflake show. The windows are based on the children's book "Who Makes the Snow," and will be its largest display in recent years.The retailer commissioned various fashion houses such as Alexander McQueen, Nina Ricci, Proenza Schouler and Stella McCartney to create one-of-a-kind holiday-themed dresses to be featured in the windows.

Lord & Taylor on: 424 Fifth Ave. near 38th Street. "What is Christmas made of?" is the question. This year Lord & Taylor asked kids from local schools and shelters to submit drawings answering the question.  The series of windows are inspired by these drawings and feature moving dolls that depict classic holiday scenes — ice skating in Central Park, baking at home and waiting for Santa Claus to arrive. At the unveiling on Nov. 15, the Young People's Chorus of NYC sang an original song, "What is Christmas Made Of." Their answer: "Everything you give and the love that's in you."

Macy's at 151 W. 34th St. near Sixth Avenue.Blending old with the new, these windows tell a story of what happens to our wishes. Our hopes and dreams board a rocket ship, get mixed and transformed in a steam-punk factory, and turn into unique ornaments.The display features  cutting-edge 3-D visuals that do not require glasses and at the end of the display, visitors can create their own virtual ornament and upload it to their Facebook page.Proceeds from their celebrity-designed ornament collection will go to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.