Brand new, a few questions :)

[MrsHarryWinston]

Hi everyone! I'm MrsHarryWinston, this is my first post and I have a few questions. I spent the last couple of days reading a TON of threads and you lot are AMAZING!

Now I am ready for this post to upset some people and their might be pitchforks and torches but i have to ask.

I live in Canada and in most provinces (mine included) you do not have to be licenced to be a nail tech. Heck legally you don't even have to have training, it's completely unregulated. So here is my question.

I REALLY want to start training to become a nail tech but the esthetic schools in my city cost $3-5,000 which I CANNOT afford. I have heard good things about the Gina Wallace study at home program which is about $400 but is still a pretty hefty chink of change in our current financial position for something I may just end up getting bored with in a week.

What I am wondering is. Would it be ok to invest in like a $35 kit on ebay, NOT, I repeat NOT NOT NOT to use on people and be a "pro" etc. But to use as a tester kit on some of those little practice fingers? I want to do this as a way of seeing if it's something I'm even proficient at and think I would enjoy doing.

How I see it is, if I really TRULY suck at it or go ugggggg what was I THINKING this isn't for me (I doubt it though as I've ALWAYS loved esthetics) I won't have wasted tons of money I can't afford. If I really do love it then I will invest in the Gina Wallace program for some real training and I will be using the NSI products. (I did a TON of product research and they seem really lovely and affordable).

So what do you think? Is this one time where a person can order an eBay kit without everyone going "Noooooo! Die! Die!"?

 

[AcidPerm]

Sounds like a plan to me. As you say, you could invest time & money in the training and products and then discover that you don't really enjoy it after all.

However, a note of caution. You do need to be sensible/careful when buying from an auction site. If the products you buy are poor quality, then you are likely to find it immensly difficult to do a half decent job and this will probably put you right off.

TBH, providing you have read lots of threads on here, viewed Youtube videos, experienced decent nails for yourself, have a realistic idea of the pay and conditions of the industry etc. then you are in a good position to make a sensible decision regarding the value of proper training. Gina Wallace is fine. I like her videos.

Essentially, a good nail tech is made not born and it's a matter of practice, practice, practice.

Why are you unsure about taking a leap of faith? Is it a confidence issue or something else? Perhaps someone here can give you further guidance and support?

All the best with whatever you decide to do. :lol:

 

[Crystal colleen]

Hmmmmmm lol well when I wanted to become a nail tech I knew that is what I wanted to do I knew I wanted to do nails make people smile and I knew I wouldn't get bored if you think that you may get board then this isn't the career move for you.doing nails are hard work and you have got to put everything into it your heart body and sole it is testing at times and takes a great deal of practice I would suggest you would definitely need training like we all have needed it. the best of the best geeks on here ie geeg and others have had to work there socks off and for many years to get where they are today.i spent 500 on my training and then 3 extra courses on top of that plus all my kits I'm running into the thousands now and trust me I'm not a patch on the best of the best geeks on here.and haven't been doing it for years.as for eBay lol na I wouldn't personally buy a kit off eBay you need good quality products or ur not going to get good results thus being a waist of time u need good products to produce good nails there is a big difference in the outcome this is just my opinion.surely you would have t have insurance incase things go wrong with a client and to have insurance u need to be qualified just my opinion xx

 

[jacqueline]

Oh this is going to be an interesting one!

Welcome to the forum!

 

[Crystal colleen]

I agree nails is hands on practice practice practice but training is always a good idea weather it is college week courses or days courses as long as it is with a good teacher and good place u learn so so much

 

[clare1894]

hi there and welcome

there is loads of really useful stuff on hear that will give you a good idea what the nail industry is about. and yes a lot of ppl on here say no to ebay kits, the thing is with ebay u dont always no what you are getting so its not always safe to use. as you are only getting it as a taster to see if its something u would like to make a go of then i dont see a problem. I must add tho the stuff you get in the kits are cheap products so u may find it hard to work with them, where as if u got NSI produces you would find it much easier then a cheap brand. any of the high-end brands are so much easier to work with.

I am self when i first started learning got a load of stuff off ebay and some was good but others where really hard to use or just did not work well.

I no what u are saying about the cost of training its alot but if u find its something you would like to do once you have played with your kit then you really should try and find the best your money will stretch to. it will pay you back in no time. the more training you put in now the more you will make in return in the long run.

i hope this has helped you hunny, good luck x

 

[An*Gel]

Welcome to the site :hug:

I'm not a big fan of buying Professional products from Ebay, but I won't burn you at the stake for asking a question, I promise

The only thing about doing it that way, is you can give yourself some bad habits without even realising... a bit like driving before you have taken lessons... you think "hey this is actually OK, I can do this" and then you take your first proper lesson with an instructor and he tells you, you need to forget everything you have learned and do it the "proper way".

I know exactly what you mean though, you want to have a little play, so you can see if you have a natural flair for nails.

Have you contacted any Nail Companies?

 

[Emily S]

I haven't used 'cheap' products before, trained in NSi and use CND now, the only thing I'd be concerned about is that some people say cheaper products are harder to work with which may put you off when in actual fact it wouldn't be the torture that you MAY cause yourself?

 

[MrsHarryWinston]

Hi everyone, thanks for the responses.

As to how I should know what I want to do and throw my whole self into it. Well how will I know for sure unless I test it? I'm a passionate person but I have a passion for EVERYTHING. Makeup artistry, interior decorating, jewellery flipping, etc. I'm a try everything type. I'm not one of those people that picked one thing when they were younger and just KNEW that's what they wanted to do. Right now I feel that this could be a good new direction for my life so I want to try it and see. I could be right, I could be wrong, but I will never know if I don't test it out. If it feels right then of course I will throw all of my time energy and passion into it.

As to questionable eBay quality. I read TONS of posts on that here and I am FULLY prepared to take it with a grain of salt as to how I may feel about ease of mixing and application. I was considering grabbing the NSI attraction kit so that i could test with a high quality product, but again right now $125 seemed to high to simply test out the idea.

As to unsure of taking a leap of faith and going ahead with training. I simply DON'T have the money to do full training right now. If I could afford it it would be done. Maybe I wasn't clear though. The cheap kit is basically to test out how I feel about the whole thing. When I'm sitting there practicing day after day do I feel excited about it? Do I feel snippy and want to give up? Do I just feel to lazy to take on such an art (and I DO think of it as art). Even with a cheapo kit am I ANY good at all? Because if I'm decent with a questionable kit I will probably be ok with good supplies. (Same with makeup). If after trying it out and I like it then I will definately go full steam ahead with proper training. I am ALL for some training if I decide to do it (I was just saying that in Canada I don't HAVE to and that wierds me out). And I will be jumping on the NSI products for continued training faster than the speed of light.

I have done tons of book research on this subject
Have tons of YouTube videos archived
And have read through 3 or 4 different nail tech forums

So no worries, I'm not running around totally blind and ignorant

 

[clare1894]

Hi everyone, thanks for the responses.

As to how I should know what I want to do and throw my whole self into it. Well how will I know for sure unless I test it? I'm a passionate person but I have a passion for EVERYTHING. Makeup artistry, interior decorating, jewellery flipping, etc. I'm a try everything type. I'm not one of those people that picked one thing when they were younger and just KNEW that's what they wanted to do. Right now I feel that this could be a good new direction for my life so I want to try it and see. I could be right, I could be wrong, but I will never know if I don't test it out. If it feels right then of course I will throw all of my time energy and passion into it.

As to questionable eBay quality. I read TONS of posts on that here and I am FULLY prepared to take it with a grain of salt as to how I may feel about ease of mixing and application. I was considering grabbing the NSI attraction kit so that i could test with a high quality product, but again right now $125 seemed to high to simply test out the idea.

As to unsure of taking a leap of faith and going ahead with training. I simply DON'T have the money to do full training right now. If I could afford it it would be done. Maybe I wasn't clear though. The cheap kit is basically to test out how I feel about the whole thing. When I'm sitting there practicing day after day do I feel excited about it? Do I feel snippy and want to give up? Do I just feel to lazy to take on such an art (and I DO think of it as art). Even with a cheapo kit am I ANY good at all? Because if I'm decent with a questionable kit I will probably be ok with good supplies. (Same with makeup). If after trying it out and I like it then I will definately go full steam ahead with proper training. I am ALL for some training if I decide to do it (I was just saying that in Canada I don't HAVE to and that wierds me out). And I will be jumping on the NSI products for continued training faster than the speed of light.

I have done tons of book research on this subject
Have tons of YouTube videos archived
And have read through 3 or 4 different nail tech forums

So no worries, I'm not running around totally blind and ignorant

you have put a lot of thought into this i can see that, i really dont see the harm in getting a kit to play with and see if you like it.

you go for it hun and once you start you will never look back, you can also buy nsi off ebay ( just a thought) :wink2:

good luck x

 

[MrsHarryWinston]

Thanks for the vote of confidence! I have definitely been prepping myself. Also, you can get NSI on eBay????? Must. Check. NOW!

 

[clare1894]

Thanks for the vote of confidence! I have definitely been prepping myself. Also, you can get NSI on eBay????? Must. Check. NOW!

yeah sorry i took so long to get back to you, went for a bath lol.

anywhooo, yeah u can get nsi off ebay. i got some off there. just make sure they have good feedback and that will tell you all you need to no (if its really cheap stuff instead of nsi). if there is loads of bad feedback dont bother.

clare x

 

[MrsHarryWinston]

Oh ya, the only stores I've been looking at are the topsellers with over 3k feedback and 99.7%< rating

 

[geeg]

Call me silly but I have a few questions?

How can you test anything or have any chance of finding out if you like anything if you don't have a clue how to use it?

If you don't have the money to invest in quality training, then why bother wasting any money at all on a useless kit of products that you don't know how to use?

You can go to a local pharmacy and buy a kit of liquid & powder without going to eBay and paying their stupid prices ... In fact, if your nail industry in Canada is completely unregulated, what's to stop you going to your local wholesale supplier and buying the real deal from them?

I think every really successful nail technician will tell you that they knew as soon as the saw someone doing nails, that they would be good at it themselves and had no doubts about the fact that they would love doing nails.

This question to me sounds like a 'jerk on the professionals,chain' to get a reaction, rather than any kind of well-thought-out course of action. To my way of thinking, you would be wasting your money. These are hard times, and if money is short, I'd keep it in my pocket.

 

[Victoriabar]

MrsHarryWinston, i have been 'doing' nails for fun for 25yrs, since i was 14 ok so it was only false nails and nail art but i did it on myself, friends and family and as i and they grew i carried on doing it on my children as they hit their teens and their friends and families too.. i just loved making people happy about their nails.
last year i had a weird thought of why haven't i taken this further, why haven't i got real training.. so i looked into it, too late to join into a year long course with the colleges so i bought some liqued and powder sets to play with on myself and nail wheels. yes the stuff i bought was cheap and yes it was harder to use than i imagined but i persevered and thoroughly enjoyed the play time knowing that i really did want to take my fun into something much more - if i hadn't enjoyed it i would have carried on witht he false nails and nail art on folk as i had been doing.
i am 5 weeks into my course and yes its much harder on the brain than i would have ever imagined but man its totally fab and i can't wait to learn more as the weeks go on.

i would say go for the fun of playing and practising, as long as its not on others i can see no harm.
trial and error is a way of life, you gotta try it to know you like it

 

[MrsHarryWinston]

Hahaha oh my. Alright, to me there is a differemce.
Yes I LOVE doing nails. Even when I was a teenager I got a manicure set for Christmas with an electric file in it with a bunch of bits. But until I try I don't know if there is a difference for me with doing nails off an on and doing nails a career. I can do hair extensions and I love it. I am good at it. With no formal training. People paid me to do thair hair and I had quite a nice regular client base. Doesn't mean I actually want to be a career hairdresser.

As too, having the cheap stuff being a waste of money and going expensive. ummm there is a HUGE difference between investing $50 and tanking and $500 and tanking. I don't need to "keep it in my pocket" because money is tight.I have decided that this is the amount of money that I am willing to allot to one of my craxy whims. I have a LOT of whims, so I make sure that I have a bit of "crazy whim funds" available.

@geeg - what makes you think that "I don't have a clue" how to use it? There really is no need for eye rolling. You assume you know much more about my knowledge than you actually know. You have no idea what type of research I've done. ANYONE can pick up a book and research this like how to identify different fungi, they simply need to have the inclination and motivation to learn on their own what they want and need to know. The information is out there. The classroom is not the only place where one can learn.
Like I said, I'm not going into this blind.
Natural nail - clip, file,scour surface,cleanse, dehydrate
Tip- size, affix,clip, adjust length, shape slightly
Natural nail - prime
actrylic liquid in dappen dish, moisten pen, touch to powder lightly and softly drag to create ball
etc etc. and thats just sitting here off the top of my head. I am a VERY fast learner. When it comes time to adjust my methods to a new specific product that's fine as I'm incredibly adaptable. And I don't mind working with low quality product for practice whichmay be harder because life isn't easy and I'm willing to put in the work with rough product if need be *shrug*.
What I am looking for is HANDS ON experience. Also nothing is stopping me from going to my local wholesaler. I've already looked into it and I know which one I will most likely eventually be using.

If it turns out to be super garbage, if the $50 goes up in flames, oh well. It's an experience. And to me true experiences even when they are firey crash and burns are never a waste. But right now I can't justify a $500 whim.

Maybe it sounds like a "jerk your chain" question because as nail professionals you have had to start defening your career a lot, especially against those that don't consider it a true profession. But I'm not one of those people, I simply tend to try to approach things from seldom used angles. I got some great ideas and info today and a lot to think about.
And yes, my idea is actually quite well thought out. But if I tried to provide every last bit of info and direction I had this post would be a novel.

@Victoriabar You seem to have a much better understanding of what I'm talking about. Thank you.

 

[geeg]

My thought is, mrshw, that if you are such a quick learner, and so clever at everything you try, then why even ask your original question? After many paragraphs, it boils down to one very simple question ... Should you buy a 35£ kit off eBay?

You said you were prepared for negative answers and then you spend an entire page defending your decision that was already made anyway before you asked the question? You want to do it, you have already made up your mind you are going to do it, so why ask the question?

Good luck with that 'scouring the nail' thing you mentioned. And folks wonder why I At what I read? :biggrin:

 

[MrsHarryWinston]

Siiiiigh, i wrote that post at midnight after a VERY long day. By "scouring the nail" I just meant buffing up the surface so it wasn't completely smooth allowing for the adhesive to have a better grip. It's 3:30 am here so how about you ease up hmmm?

Yes I was prepared for some negative comments, kind of like yours. But a few of the posts before yours actually convinced me to grab some NSI off of eBay to try. So NO. a cheap kit wasn't set in stone.
Also who said I was clever at EVERYTHING? If I was I wouldnt be worried about throwing out the $500 now would I?
I accept that my original post wasnt presented very concisely. Like I said it's been a long day, sue me. But I have taken everyones opinion into consideration and made my choice. I don't know what your deal is or why you feel the need to be so abrasive but this is getting beyond pointless.

 

[geeg]

I accept that my original post wasnt presented very concisely. Like I said it's been a long day, sue me. But I have taken everyones opinion into consideration and made my choice. I don't know what your deal is or why you feel the need to be so abrasive but this is getting beyond pointless.

My 'deal' is that this thread started with a question that was already pointless (if we are going to talk about pointless). You tell us you do hair extensions with no training which also means no insurance. It shows a trend in your thinking so I assume with things as they are in Canada regarding nails and lack of qualifications that your nail experience will be similar.

Would love to hear what my friend Victoria from Toronto has to say about this one. !! lol

I'm not abrasive ... just say it like it is. I am a professional of 27 years standing pretty much at the top of the nail industry. I pride myself on my knowledge and expertise and reputation, and I suppose you could say I 'do not suffer fools gladly'.

 

[AcidPerm]

There was nothing untoward with the original post as it related to a query by someone interested in becoming a professional, so why was it moved to the consumer section?

Anything to do with mentioning the dreaded word 'ebay' perhaps???

Perhaps the forum should be renamed CND/Shellac/S2 lovers only and a ban on using the word ebay in any non-consumer post?

Feel the lurve...