Blue and Green Should Never be Seen! (Or so Mother says) by Colette Kebell

Release Date: 12.25.2014

Synopsis:

GiGi is a woman with a mission: to help people improve the way they look, increase their self-esteem, and eventually, make them happier people. Being a personal shopper is a dark art, with few tangible rewards. Spread by word of mouth, her clients would never admit they needed her assistance. Let us be honest, who would admit to being in need of a style consultant?

The first step is to admit you need help with your wardrobe. When you have recognised that, you are on the path to recovery, and GiGi’s services will help you, despite her mother nagging that she is not doing a “real” job.

So, is it just a matter of going around and helping people buy clothes and shoes?

Not quite so. Money is tight; GiGi has to work with wealthy and eccentric people, who often do not have any idea about what they want. She and her business partner Ritchie are in a constant struggle to keep the business afloat, but as they say in Dragon’s Den, she is very investable. But, with success comes the difficulties, the Battersea Fashion Center is going to open soon, and they claim they will be fierce competitors.

With the constant struggle to keep her business afloat; a powerful enemy lining up ready to make a meal out of her, knowing well that GiGi’s approach, eventually, will make her successful. The business expands, and they take onboard new partners, making them one of the most influential fashion consultancy firms in London. But, with a very demanding job, hours spent working, will she be able to balance her career and her private life?

Review:

Colette Kebell made an amazing job with this novel,the writing was flowing and effortless to read I've devoured it in a couple of work days. I can't wait to read more of her works.

The heroine of this chick-lit is incredible,I envy her strength and her perseverance. 

Gigi doesn't let bad news take away her joy for fashion and the pleasure her advices bring to her clients.

The work of a fashion consultant in London is not easy but with a great work ethic and a bunch of good friends (old and new) you can survive every hardships and succeed.

I strongly recommend this story because I've enjoyed it a lot and being a business woman I could relate with our heroine struggles and satisfactions.

P.S. half point added for the american/italian chef whose name was not mangled xD

Excerpt:

“Come with me,” she whispered, with a sadistic grin on her face and heading upstairs. We started putting some of the old clothes in a bag and slowly we brought them downstairs to the kitchen, by the back door. She opened a cupboard and got out a couple of pairs of oversized dungarees, far too big for either of us but which we wore nonetheless, and two pairs of wellies. With a torch in her hand she started searching in the vast garden until she was satisfied and then said, “You stay here.” It was dark and I could barely see her walking in the general direction of the shed; a few thumping noises followed and then she reappeared with a pair of shovels and working gloves. She tossed a shovel to me. “Start digging the grave; I’ll be back in a minute,” she said, giggling like a teenager. I was flabbergasted; I’d thought she meant she’d bury her clothes in a figurative way, like at the bottom of the wardrobe. This was beyond belief! I pondered the situation for a moment and then I kicked the shovel in the ground; if we were going to make a mess, I’d better get started. The earth was soft from the previous days of rain and I could work quickly. I wondered for a moment if someone would see us, here in the garden, digging like a pair of tomb raiders, and would call the police.

“Ah good, you’ve started already,” she said, depositing the bags nearby.

“Natalie, I’m not digging a six-footer here!” I complained; that would have taken the whole night.

“Not to worry, sweetheart: just deep enough to let all this stuff rot with the worms.”

She started quarrying as well and after an hour we had to stop, because we were both quite tired but also because every few minutes we looked at each other and, without a word, we’d burst out laughing at what we were doing. I made a comment about the neighbours, and that also made her laugh out loud. “I’m going to put the kettle on,” she said eventually. “Take a break.”

I sat on the edge of the grave and let my legs float into the empty space; it was now almost a metre deep and perhaps it would have sufficed for the clothes. Natalie came back after a couple of minutes with the brews and we admired our work in silence. Eventually she was satisfied with the result and she tossed the lot in. Covering it up didn’t take too long.

“I’d pay to see the face of your gardener when he discovers this.”

Natalie burst out laughing again, and I had to sit down holding my belly at the thought of it. ---“