The Ex Files

Feng Shui Magic

"I feel so pampered!" Mrs. Mastandrea gushed. "You girls did a great job, and it was such fun to have you in the house. The cleaning lady I had before wore a perpetual scowl. I tolerated her because she was an old friend of my late husband's, and she needed the money. Her husband left her with a pile of debts and no life insurance. It was such a relief when she told me that she was going to live with her son in Calgary."

Belle finished writing up the invoice and pushed it across the table with a friendly smile. "Two people, three hours, $40 an hour each, plus GST."

Mrs. Mastandrea gave the document a cursory glance and picked up her phone. "One e-transfer coming up."

"Would you like to book a return appointment?" Belle asked.

"Actually, now that I've met you and seen the quality of your work, I have something more in mind. I want to sell the house and get one of those chic downtown condos. You've seen how cluttered the place is. Some of those boxes have never been opened since Charlie and I bought the place fourteen years ago. Could you go through everything and help me decide what I really need to keep? I'd like to donate anything usable to Goodwill, and the rest can go to the dump. If you need to rent a truck, I'll be happy to pay for it."

"It would probably be cheaper and simpler to call the Jiffy Relocation guys," Belle said. "They're strong and efficient and recycle and re-home everything they can. All we have to do it point at what you don't want, and they will make it disappear."

"Perfect!" Mrs. Mastandrea said. "Once something is gone, I won't be able to second-guess myself. That's always been my problem before. I'd pack boxes to donate, and then start taking things out again."

"Since you're planning to sell," Belle said, "Would you like us to stage the house? That's like a fashion make-over to make the property more attractive to potential buyers. If they are soaked in a welcoming atmosphere, they will be willing to pay more to make your house their home."

Mrs. Mastandrea nodded. "The real estate agent I was talking to recommended a staging service. Deep clean, declutter, and the temporary use of some high-end bits and pieces to create an air of comfortable affluence. He said I would have to have a consultant visit for a quote, but he ballparked $3500."

Belle smiled and patted her client's hand. "I think we could manage to hold it down to $3000 without cutting any corners."

Kelly sat very quietly during the conversation, trying to remember not to hold her breath. Three thousand dollars for a single contract! She hated the way Mrs. Mastandrea referred to them as "girls" rather than recognizing that they were grown-up business women, but for that kind of money, she could tolerate being patronized for a few days.

Belle's unexpected talents had transformed Kelly's business. Her cleaning skills were still less than perfect, but her business acumen was superb. She had designed and printed official-looking stationary and business cards, and persuaded Kelly that it would be profitable to raise their hourly rate and reward their customers with gift cards that they could use or pass on to their friends.

FENG SHUI MAGIC AT YOUR SERVICE.

We transform your house into a home

Renew – deep cleaning with organic aromatherapy oils

Restore – decluttering and re-organizing

Recreate — complete home make-over

Marcail Harper and Mitsuki Amamiya, home upgrade specialists

Kelly had objected to the use of her middle name, which she had always found an embarrassment, but Belle convinced her that the clients would love a touch of the exotic. "Marcail means pearl, and you are one."

Kelly had been skeptical, especially about the aromatherapy oils, but had agreed to try Belle's business plan for three months, on condition that the rate increase would not be passed on to her established clients. Belle's swift decisiveness intimidated her, but at the same time, it was inspiring. Kelly had often missed out on taking advantage of opportunities because she spent too much time considering everything that could possibly go wrong. When Belle had an idea that looked promising, she ran with it and adjusted her trajectory as needed.

Mrs. Mastandrea was a referral from Belle's mother, who had promised that there would be more to come. Every spare inch of Mrs. Mastandrea's four-bedroom split-level house was crammed with costly artwork and accessories. Each one was gorgeous, but the combination was too much of a good thing. Sorting, discarding, and re-organizing would be a monumental task. As for the storage boxes – Kelly could only guess what was in them and how much effort it would take to separate the trash from the treasures.

Belle was mesmerizing Mrs. Mastandrea with tales of her experiences in Paris and Tokyo, and the home decoration trends she had recently observed on the Internet. "You have so many lovely things that I am sure we can find everything we need to stage your home. Would you like me to bring an appraiser in for some of your better pieces? You might want to consider consigning them for auction rather than donating them."

"I never thought of doing that!" Mrs. Mastandrea exclaimed. "Yes, do that. A little extra cash wouldn't hurt at all. I'm going on a three-week cruise in January."

When Kelly and Belle left the house, they had booked two full days for preliminary sorting and tidying, as well as house-sitting during Mrs. Mastandrea's cruise. Belle had promised to bring her interior decoration portfolio for an in-depth staging consultation.

"Why are you making her wait for four days?" Kelly asked. "We could have fit in a couple of hours tomorrow."

"It's good business to appear more busy than you really are. Besides, I have to dig out my portfolio and try to make it look chic and up-to-date."

"Do we really have to collect GST?"

"We do if we earn more than $75,000 a year. I've applied for a number."

Belle's white van was sitting at the curb, stocked with cleaning supplies and paint and fabric samples. Belle's mother had showed up in Belle's car one day, with the ownership and insurance transferred to her name. Belle had promptly traded it for the van, and arranged for a paint job and custom detailing advertising their new business. Kelly had worried that Belle was taking too much for granted, but now that they had landed their first big contract, she felt much more hopeful. She was currently on leave of absence at the hospital, using up her banked days off. She still hadn't decided definitively whether to quit her job, but it seemed more feasible than ever before. She had even recruited two of her co-workers to assist her on a casual basis after regular work hours.

Perhaps Belle would never be a grand master of the domestic arts, but she was well on her way to becoming a successful home renovator who could afford to hire someone to clean and cook for her. If anyone could pull a business that paid over $75,000 annually out of thin air, Belinda Mitsuki Amamiya was the one. She had obviously inherited her parents' entrepreneurial genes.