FOXY - BOO!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN! What is everyone dressing up as? ME? I'm a Fox, my friend is the Raccoon and her dog is the Skunk!

Let me know what you love to do to celebrate Halloween via Twitter: @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a Cort

Yee-haw: Saddle Up So Cal

Yee-haw! I'm rounding up all Southern California cowboys and girls who want to enjoy a great weekend adventure. If you have almost all day to soak up the great outdoors plus a fun Mexican-food lunch with large margaritas then Sunset Ranch, near Beachwood Canyon, provides a fantastic horse-back-riding tour through the Hollywood Canyons. You and your group will be matched with a horse that fits your experience level. The staff will then help you saddle up on your horse and you will begin to mosey through the canyons, which features an amazing view of the famous Hollywood sign. After an hour-an-a-half ride your group will arrive in Burbank where you will hitch your horse to a post outside of a Mexican food restaurant. There you can relax and munch on lunch and sip on extra large margaritas. After a leisure lunch, make sure you take the peppermint your waiter gives you so your horse can have a treat for being so patient while you lunched, you will head back to the Sunset Ranch camp where you will be satisfied with a great day yet ready to take a hot shower to wash away all the dirt from the dusty canyons. All-in-all I had a memorable day and would highly recommend this activity for locals and tourists!

What are some of your favorite out door activities? Let me know on Twitter: @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a. Cort

Who's Your Water Bottle?

To do my "green" environmentally part I do a few things, not a lot, but a few. One way I feel I can contribute, while also doing good for myself, is how I intake my water. By filling a Brita water filtration's pitcher I can assure that I always have clean drinking water ready at all times. Over the last couple of years a Sigg water bottle has come in handy for my on-the-go source. I fill my Sigg bottle up in the morning and am able to carry it with me all day, easily refilling it when needed. By not using so many plastic bottles and finding an alternate drinking source I am doing my small part for our beautiful Earth. Recently, I came across another water bottle source called WaterWeek. As you can view in the above photo, five reusable bottles can be bought as a unit. You then fill up each bottle, place them in their stand inside your refrigerator and instantly you have your bottles ready to go for the week. This allows you then to wait until the weekend to wash them for the following week. I think it is kind of brilliant!

Let me know what your green tips are on Twitter: @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a. Cort

Taylor's Famous Best Friends To Be Auctioned

Elizabeth Taylor may have been married eight times but it was her “best friends” that made the final cut. The late actress’ magnificent collection of diamonds and jewelry, fit for royalty, will be auctioned December 13 – 14 at Christie’s in New York. Taylor’s jewelry collection is slated as one of the richest in the world, valued at $30 million. “I never thought of my jewelry as trophies”, Taylor wrote in her memoir “My Love Affair With Jewelry”, “…When I die and they go off to auction I hope whoever buys them gives them a really good home.”

The above pieces of jewelry are just three of the several pieces that will be auctioned.

Which piece is your favorite…one from above or something different? Tell me on Twitter @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a. Cort

Freeze Frame

Carli Davidson, internationally recognized photographer, with a background in both commercial and documentary photography obviously has a passion for animals. Her galleries are filled with furry and fur-less friends caught in daily acts that we humans make not glance twice at. By freezing the moments in time with photography, Davidson is able to give her audience a gift which many are very vulnerable, some funny but all touching. I came across her photos randomly on-line and love checking in from time-to-time to see what is new!

Check out her website at: carlidavidson.photoshelter.com

What photos are your favorite? Let me know on Twitter, @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a. Cort

Two-a-Days Triceps If You Please

Exercise 1:

Exercise 2:

Today's at-home exercise, can be accomplished by using fitness bands, will focus on the triceps. The bands that I use can be purchased on-line or at your local sporting store. My favorite brand is SPRI and they come in various colors that serve as the different levels of strength.

There are two different triceps exercises, that I will focus on today, that can be done by using the bands.

Exercise 1:

Stand, with your right foot, on one end of your band. Hold the other end of the band, right under the handle, with your left hand. Wrap the band behind your back. The foot left anchors you. Holding the band straight up in the air, position "A", bend your elbow behind your head, position "B". From position B return to A. Repeat this exercise for one minute then switch to the opposite side. If one minute is too much try 30 seconds on the right side then 30 seconds on the left side.

Exercise 2:

Stand on the band with both feet. Bend your knees slightly and lean forward as if you were going to ski down a mountain. Hold the band's handles in your hands and bend your elbow in an "L" shape so that it can act like a door henge. This is position "A". Straighten your arms backward so that your arms no longer are in the shape of an "L". This is position "B". From position B return to position A. Repeat these positions for one minute.

In no time you will begin to see shapely triceps develop!

Let me know how these triceps exercises helped you on Twitter: @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a Cort

Missoni Madness: September 13

If you love the way the characters on the CW's hit TV show "Gossip Girl" dress and decorate but you just don't have the cash to make it happen, well now is your chance!

Set your smart phone alarm on September 13 because this marks the date that Missoni for Target is released and I have a hunch the items will go in a flash!

The Italian label, famous for its bright colors and zigzag patterns, covered everything from bikes and bras to stationary and skirts to ballet slipper flats and bar accessories in their 400-plus-piece collection.

I think I want one of each please!

Tell me what your favorite item in the collection is on Twitter @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a. Cort

B - M - W easy as 1 - 2 - 3

As times change so do many etiquette "rules". Can you wear white after Labor Day? Why not?!? I love my white jeans all year round, especially in Los Angeles. However, I do think there are many etiquette rules that need to be observed, in fact I own Emily Post's, larger than life, etiquette book - although I have to admit it is currently collecting dust.

One dinner etiquette rule that drives me nuts is when someone does not know which bread plate belongs to them. I have attended countless dinner parties where either my date or the random person sitting next to me steels my bread plate and my bread is left homeless, sitting in my hand, while I try and figure out where to place it. If your "Momma" forgot to teach you a few of the basics I would highly encourage you to learn! I know, I know many of you are thinking, "who cares!" Well, let me tell you I care and believe it or not so do many others. Many corporations now employ a professional etiquette professional to teach their employees so that the employ will not embarrass themselves OR the corporation.

So let's take baby steps. It really is very simple. The next time you find yourself setting a table or at a dinner and you forget where the basics are to be placed just think, "B - M - W", like the car: Bread - Meal - Water! Easy as 1 - 2 - 3! Your Bread plate sits to the left of the Meal plate while your Water sits to the right: Viola B - M - W!

Let me know what etiquette topic you think need to be eliminated, talked about or added in life on Twitter: @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a. Cort

Look Carefully - Vapor

These Vapor Barstools are my newest obsession! I love them so much that I just bought them for my place. Sold at CB2 these molded acrylic chairs seem to appear out of thin air. They are sturdy, comfortable, easy to clean and blend into any environment. What a great find!

Tell me about your great fine on Twitter @CortneyBailey

Cheers!

Cortney a.k.a. Cort