Blondie Beckons from the Bowery

Singer Debbie Harry belted out a bevy of her crowd-pleasing hits at the Bowery Ballroom last night, during a salute to the career of her late friend, artist and designer Stephen Sprouse. One-time neighbors, Harry and Sprouse came to know one another during a very different period in New York's history, one in which the word "gentrification" was not on anyone's lips, certainly not anyone living on the Lower East Side. Sprouse, of course, went on to design bags and accessories for retailers from Bergdorf Goodman to Louis Vuitton. And indeed, Vuitton, under the watchful gaze of creative director Marc Jacobs, has unveiled a limited-edition line of new Sprouse-inspired items, several of them emblazoned with Sprouse's trademark graffiti art. And though these pieces will likely sell out fast, to borrow the words of Ms. Harry, many New Yorkers will be determined to get their hands on them "one way or another."

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Paws... for a Cause

The fur was flying at Arena last night, at the ninth annual Paws for Style fashion show, held to benefit the Humane Society of New York. Gotham celebrities and dog-lovers alike gathered on the (ahem) catwalk to showcase an array of matching fashions for canines and humans. Among the designers unleashed for the event were Nanette Lepore, Rebecca Taylor, Tory Burch, Marc Jacobs, Badgley Mischka and Maggie Norris. Assorted canine-loving celebrities included the evening's emcee, the never without his sunglasses style guru Robert Verdi, Hairspray star Nikki Blonsky, actress Alison Becker, Miss Teen USA Hilary Cruz, journalist Jo Piazza, Social Life magazine editor Devorah Rose, WABC reporter Lauren Glassberg, Law & Order SVU's Richard Belzer, animal activist and philanthropist Frances Hayward and socialite and author Cornelia Guest. Lauren Conrad, star of The Hills, made an appearance, but vexingly for many in attendance, bolted before taking her turn on the runway. Not that any of the purebreeds and mutts in attendance took any notice. In fact, they seemed okay with the fact that the starlet had headed for, well, the hills. After all, it was the dogs themselves were the true stars of the night.