Help wanted! Nail course decisions

[Tamla]

Oh great learned ones of Geek land, need your advice.

I am in the process of deciding which courses to take to become a mobile Nail Technician.
What i need to know is where to start. I don't want to make the wrong decisions as it could work out costly.

My confusion is, there does not seem to be a difinitive system on working towards it. First off i decided I liked the Bio Sculpture and so went to them. They told me i had to have a basic nail course under my belt first, as did Calgel when i approached them. Fine so off i go trawling the net for basic nail courses. All of the ones I've found say that i can be quailified in about 5 days. Is this correct. Should i be going to college for some time (A year) first or can i just go on one of these 5 days courses and be qualified?

I've rung creative (thanks to Beauty Guru and Amanda Fontanerossa for your help)and they are going to get back to me with bumf on courses.

Also I've found a place round my way called HHBTA ( Hayden Health & Beauty Academy) anyone ever heard of them.
they are offering a total nail technician, inc manicure courses, this includes parafin wax, gel & acrylic nail systems, tips & overlays, maintenace, infill's & removal. £550 for a 5 day course (no kit) is this a good price or am i being ripped off.
now if went with this course, I'm guessing i would not need the bio course as this one covers gels, or am i wrong on this one. i know Bio is exclusive and i have to train with them if i want to use their stuff.

Which brings me onto kit, what 'kit' am i going to need?


Wow this is turning into quite a long thread, sorry. I did do a search first but kept getting sidetracked.

All answers welcome no matter how small

Tam
x:hug:x

 

[1999judy]

http://www.salongeek.com/training/27430-answer-most-faq-training-should-i-choose.html

 

[Tamla]

http://www.salongeek.com/training/27430-answer-most-faq-training-should-i-choose.html

Ok going by that thread, the course with HHBTA is no go. I can't seem to find a basic nail course in my area. The only things i can find are academy's like HHBTA. Would i better to ring my local council and ask them what colleges do courses?

 

[becki x]

IMO you won't go wrong with Amanda and Cnd hth's

Just to say,again IMO :lol: a "total" nail tech course will take a lot longer than 5 days.

A course of that duration will be the foundation on which you build,enabling you to work safely on the public hth's

 

[honeymummy]

Dont do these fast track courses hunni, they are a waste of money, loads of geeks and myself started out with them.

you probably get a ' college certificate' with them, not a qualification and you will only learn the very small basics.
learn with a nail company like EzFlow Creative etc.

good luck with everything!!

carrie xx

 

[Sals]

All of the ones I've found say that i can be quailified in about 5 days. Is this correct. Should i be going to college for some time (A year) first or can i just go on one of these 5 days courses and be qualified?

5 day induction courses with specific companies (eg. Creative, EzFlow, Pronails, Star Nails, etc.) are usually 5 days but spread over many weeks to enable you to practice and absorb the information you have been taught. Or have I got that wrong? green:

 

[Tamla]

IMO you won't go wrong with Amanda and Cnd hth's

What is sooo different about CND's courses. I've spoken to them on the phone and their courses are also 5 day courses, which in the thread pointed to above, says that's a no no. Is it due to the fact the five days are spread out and, I'm guessing, the others are not ?

 

[becki x]

The five day course is specialising in one system,not three or four(total tech). It is spread out over time

And CND is award winning education using high end (excellent quality)products

 

[tchoklat]

Do you have a number for CND. Or does anyone know of a CND course in or around SE London?

 

[becki x]

Do you have a number for CND. Or does anyone know of a CND course in or around SE London?

http://www.salongeek.com/distributor-sites/61000-cnd-sub-distributors-ambassadors.html

hth's

 

[KattyB]

My advice would be to ring your local collage and find out what part time nail courses they have.. This way you will receive a standard qualification for manicure, pedicure, ext's. This will take you longer to complete than just going straight to a company however at least you will have a general qualification that teaches you all the basics, anatomy and phys etc and is neutral, i.e they are not teaching you a set way and endorsing a product, it is a standard procedure and you will have lots of opportunities to practice on models without having to invest £600 or something rediculous on products that you may not even like!

Once you have this under your belt you can choose which 'Brand' or 'companies' products you would like to work with. You many feel more confident if you under take their personal training scheme also. You may want to order a small quantity of their stock first to see how well it works with your manicure routine. The trade shows are a great place to visit and play with products.

I know its tempting to run out there and book yourself on the fast track option however you will only suffer the effects later. I feel it is better to learn and practice as much as possible before going live. Even if it takes a year...better to know you have done it right than rushed...wasted money and maybe even failed...Don't mean to sound harsh but if you rush the learning process the quality of your work may suffer..quality of product, service, treatment etc are everything in this industry. I also think it is very important to understand the natural nail completely and be competent at manicures before you even consider nail ext's.

 

[Tamla]

My advice would be to ring your local collage and find out what part time nail courses they have.. This way you will receive a standard qualification for manicure, pedicure, ext's. This will take you longer to complete than just going straight to a company however at least you will have a general qualification that teaches you all the basics, anatomy and phys etc and is neutral, i.e they are not teaching you a set way and endorsing a product, it is a standard procedure and you will have lots of opportunities to practice on models without having to invest £600 or something rediculous on products that you may not even like!

Once you have this under your belt you can choose which 'Brand' or 'companies' products you would like to work with. You many feel more confident if you under take their personal training scheme also. You may want to order a small quantity of their stock first to see how well it works with your manicure routine. The trade shows are a great place to visit and play with products.

I know its tempting to run out there and book yourself on the fast track option however you will only suffer the effects later. I feel it is better to learn and practice as much as possible before going live. Even if it takes a year...better to know you have done it right than rushed...wasted money and maybe even failed...Don't mean to sound harsh but if you rush the learning process the quality of your work may suffer..quality of product, service, treatment etc are everything in this industry. I also think it is very important to understand the natural nail completely and be competent at manicures before you even consider nail ext's.

Thank you, that's the answer i wanted :hug: And don't worry about being harsh, after 12 years driving a lorry, I've skin like a Rhino, it takes a helluva lot of upset me:green:

 

[becki x]

Thank you, that's the answer i wanted :hug: And don't worry about being harsh, after 12 years driving a lorry, I've skin like a Rhino, it takes a helluva lot of upset me:green:

Sorry but i have to disagree

I did exactly as Kattyb describes and converted. What a waste of time and money,college courses aren't free.

Not all but many do not compare in the education stakes,missing out extremely important information

You will also find large classes,some of whom are not even bothered about the course.

From my experience,if i could turn back time i would have done the CND foundation,and possibly the NVQ alongside it at the Creative Nail Academy

Jmho

Judy's link is very helpful

 

[Vetty]

My advice would be to ring your local collage and find out what part time nail courses they have.. This way you will receive a standard qualification for manicure, pedicure, ext's. This will take you longer to complete than just going straight to a company however at least you will have a general qualification that teaches you all the basics, anatomy and phys etc and is neutral, i.e they are not teaching you a set way and endorsing a product, it is a standard procedure and you will have lots of opportunities to practice on models without having to invest £600 or something rediculous on products that you may not even like!

Once you have this under your belt you can choose which 'Brand' or 'companies' products you would like to work with. You many feel more confident if you under take their personal training scheme also. You may want to order a small quantity of their stock first to see how well it works with your manicure routine. The trade shows are a great place to visit and play with products.

I know its tempting to run out there and book yourself on the fast track option however you will only suffer the effects later. I feel it is better to learn and practice as much as possible before going live. Even if it takes a year...better to know you have done it right than rushed...wasted money and maybe even failed...Don't mean to sound harsh but if you rush the learning process the quality of your work may suffer..quality of product, service, treatment etc are everything in this industry. I also think it is very important to understand the natural nail completely and be competent at manicures before you even consider nail ext's.

The trouble with this is the standard of college education varies so much depending on your tutor. We see examples every day on this site of people who have come away from college having 'passed' their course but feeling sadly lacking in knowledge. There are also geeks at the moment having to use factually incorrect information to pass their college course......

At least with Creative you are getting education of a standard, taught in a standardised way and don't come out of their Foundation course feeling that you need to take another course straight away...... What's wrong with endorsing a product? Surely someone who knows the product inside out will be able to teach you better than someone who is less familiar with the intricacies of it? At trade shows you have that brand expert to show you how it works - what's the difference?

If you go with a well-known brand rather than some independant academy you will get decent education. How people learn is an individual thing.

 

[becki x]

Vetty put it much better than me

 

[Vetty]

Vetty put it much better than me

Nah, yours is shorter!

 

[Chameleon]

The trouble with this is the standard of college education varies so much depending on your tutor. We see examples every day on this site of people who have come away from college having 'passed' their course but feeling sadly lacking in knowledge. There are also geeks at the moment having to use factually incorrect information to pass their college course......

At least with Creative you are getting education of a standard, taught in a standardised way and don't come out of their Foundation course feeling that you need to take another course straight away...... What's wrong with endorsing a product? Surely someone who knows the product inside out will be able to teach you better than someone who is less familiar with the intricacies of it? At trade shows you have that brand expert to show you how it works - what's the difference?

If you go with a well-known brand rather than some independant academy you will get decent education. How people learn is an individual thing.

I definately agree with your last sentence Vetty,and although i did the nvq route first in manicures and pedicures...it really was such bad education.

I think the consensus lies with a well known reputable brand Tammy:green:

If you decide on the foundation from CND,the structure and physiology will be taught on the course,and theres no forseeable problem to take the spa manicure and pedicure at a later date...but i would advise on this as alot of clients just dont want enhancements all the time,and it will be another string to your bow.hth:hug:

 

[Tamla]

Where is the confused smiley when you need it.

So from the info above i can go to CND and they will take me to a level of competence that is acceptable. with recongnised qualifications? yes? no? yeah-but--not-but--yeah-but :green:

 

[becki x]

Yeah,you then build on it.

The foundation course is the first stepping stone into the mindfeild we affectionatley call "our industry" :wink2:

 

[Deena]

From my limited experience so far, here's what I've learnt. I was very lucky to fall into a CND foundation course by default. I didn't know much about training and they happened to have an academy very near to where I live. At the time, this was as good a reason as any I knew of to go to them and I'm so glad I did. I am having ongoing training with them and am very pleased with it. I also discovered this site and it's been a mine of very helpful information.

Prior to this, I attended a one day course at an independent academy and was taught by someone who teaches NVQ at a college. Amongst other things, she taught us to blend using acetone, which I now understand isn't the way to go. :irked: The NVQ is a government recognised qualification, however, and so it's obviously a good thing to have, even though they don't necessarily teach you the most commercially viable and best ways to go about things, as I understand it, through my experience and hearing of those of others ie on this site.

Choose one of the most reputable companies to train with and stick with them. Don't waste your money on lesser brands and generic training. Good luck!