Two beauty salons pulled out all of the stops to be crowned the champions of this year's Christmas Window Competition.

Beauty Within on Antelope Walk was awarded the top prize in Dorchester, with Pure Hair & Beauty on St Mary Street winning the Weymouth contest.

To celebrate the amazing creativity of businesses in our area the Dorset Echo teamed up with Wessex FM, Dorchester Chamber for Business, Dorchester BID, Weymouth BID and the Weymouth and Portland Chamber of Commerce to award prizes to the best dressed commercial Christmas windows around.

This year there were two prizes of £100 up for grabs, with one festive competition for Dorchester and another for Weymouth and Portland.

Sophie Halford, manager of Beauty Within, said: "I had done the window before I had even heard of the competition and then someone saw the window and told me I should enter. It probably only took me an afternoon.

"I love Christmas and I love doing the window every year for the shop. The kids all love it as well and I like watching them come up to the window to look at it all.

"I cried [when I found out I had won] I was so excited and everyone likes the window, our customers like seeing it all lit up."

Theresa Pearce, owner of Pure Hair & Beauty, said: "It's something we just love doing a Christmas window and our staff and customers love it.

"All the staff love it, it's something we really enjoy.

"We have had so many compliments from people walking past and people taking photos, even the people coming off the cruise ships.

"When I found out we were winners I was jumping up and down. We have been doing it for a little bit and it's so nice to be appreciated.

"We have been doing this for four years, every year we have been open and we will be doing it for a fifth time next year."

Numerous businesses entered their Christmas window displays into the competition, and the winners were picked by an independent panel of judges from all entries received.