Female painter and decorator AIBU to just go for it?

[paintingismygame]

I've done my own house up from top to bottom, painted and decorated it. Helped a few friends and family out with their houses over the past few years, I really like it and think I'm good at it. I have no formal training in painting though, AIBU to just go for it and start my own business? Any female painters here?

I can cook beans on toast but wouldn't call myself a chef, slapping paint about is easy and anyone can do it, being a professional painter and decorator takes years to learn and master, loads of people buy brushes and a van and steal work from real tradesmen then we have to put the work right eventually,
I did a 3yr apprenticeship when I left school.... 20 years later I'm still learning and mastering my trade,
I'd advise you to work for someone else first for afew years to learn the job properly, learn the right coat systems, learn your products and materials and learn from your mistakes with someone who knows what they are doing to put you right
I know afew female painters that are time served, really good and as good as any male painter, there is definately a call for female tradies but no call for substandard untrained cowboys/girls

Stop being so bloody mean spirited.

Fuck me, no wonder we struggle to get women into construction with all the nastiness on this thread.

I thought majority had been encouraging but had said learn your trade feeling

I’m pro female p&d and purposely chose one so I’m all for it but I still don’t want a favour for friends level job

I don't understand why your gender has any influence on your decision?

Oh well

There were other factors - price reviews but she was excellent so I used her again

Males in her team were good too

DP is a self employed P&D of 20 years +

He has qualifications, experience, exemplary references and most importantly regular and repeat customers (schools, businesses and large residential properties).

It's taken him many years to get a good client base.

He does a mixture of day work and priced work, he will get in other trades if he needs to (he isn't a plasterer or a tiler for example), he is careful with his pricing and quotations in the beginning he under priced himself quite a bit and would work at a loss he has a portfolio of his work and is in the process of getting a website on the go BUT it's taken a lot of time and effort to get to this point.

It is a pretty lean trade when the economy isn't great.

Do it!! We have a female painter and decorator she is fantastic. Neat clean so considerate and brilliant at her job. We need more women in these jobs.

@Mummyoftwo91

I would 100% hire you!

Why? On what basis?

*Stop being so bloody mean spirited.

Fuck me, no wonder we struggle to get women into construction with all the nastiness on this thread*

I’m a bit confused by this statement. I’m not getting a negative sense from this thread and certainly not a nasty one. The general theme seems to be ‘go for it but consider some of the possible trip hazards’, that seems a lot more supportive than says ‘yay, go for it, anyone who is remotely cautious is just a Debbie Downer’. Or have I missed something?

Stop being so bloody mean spirited.

Telling someone that doing a bit of DIY is nothing like properly training/qualifying for a trade/profession isn't mean spirited - it's common sense advice.

Taking on any tradesperson just because they're a woman, with no reference to previous experience, qualifications, etc is crazy.

Nobody is being mean spirited or nasty, we are just being realistic.

Op can you paint, wallpaper, prep, plaster...do you know when to use stain block, what type of emulsion is best for which surface. What's your glossing like, can you make it smooth like glass, can you wallpaper with no joints visible.....do you know what materials you will need, can you do the exterior of houses......and so on and so on. there is so much more to being a p and d ......you will need public liability insurance also.

Like crunchymum says it can be a lean trade in the quiet season, it's not like it used to be hence a lot of p and d's have had to branch out into general building also to keep busy.

Theres a lady near us advertises with a big pink advert in our local magazine. She advertises clearly that she is a FEMALE painter and decorator and her name is something like pink panther painting etc and she does a roaring trade so I'm told because shes good and a lot of loan women etc especially older clients feel nervous having Male trades people in the house - rightly or wrongly its personal choice isnt it?

Anyway my point is its not "illegal" and go for it!

Nobody, but nobody, would say the same to a man wanting to become a P&D.

They would post links to the nearest college/apprenticeship scheme.

And they wouldn't call him a potential 'substandard untrained cowboy'.

I would hire a woman over a man. However, the last woman I tried to hire for some decorating had an aversion to heights and wouldn’t do the high bit over the stairs. So pointless really. How would you handle something like that? In a very big house?

A substandard untrained cowboy is a substandard untrained cowboy regardless of whether they have the Y chromosome AlternativeTentacle. I can think of a few trades people I could apply this label to (who happen to be men). I really don’t understand how suggesting training first to avoid pitfalls could possibly be an issue of gender? Surely the same applies to a competent male DIYer asking the same question - get training and consider the potential trip hazards first. As a business owner myself it seems sensible advice.

That poster said cowboy / cowgirl didn’t she, not scrolling. So both.