Newbie lady with lots of questions!!!!

[fiona2367]

Hiya to one and all.......

Am thinking of doing something constructive with my otherwise fairly stale life!!!
I'm currently a housewife and possibly like many of us out there, end up doing some of the DIY jobs round the house while the "main man" is out earning........
well, I know I can paint/decorate (probably better than some that have done paint jobs round our here) and now I would like to get into tiling...
My concerns are:
I am a mother of two, and would like to gain experience "on the job" (after a course) but need to do this during school hours and term time only.....what are the chances of this happening??
I'm unsure of how "reputable" the courses offered are...have no idea but most of the courses seem exceedingly expensive, and you don't appear to have a "proper" qualification at the end of it....I may obviously be very mistaken......
and lastly....do women fit well into this environment, could we enhance the job offers, do people want ladies doing their tiling?????

Right, thats about it....I've been deliberating all these things for a little while and look forward to your views......need to wash the dishes now!!!:juggle:

Thanks
Fi

 

[LJB Tiling]

You're right they are expensive and you don't get a qualification but unless you're planning on working on sites i can't see why 1 would be necessary.

I recently finished a course and i know the centre held courses twice per month at weekends so maybe you could look into that.

Welcome to the forum btw fiona

 

[Olz]

Hiya to one and all.......

Am thinking of doing something constructive with my otherwise fairly stale life!!!
I'm currently a housewife and possibly like many of us out there, end up doing some of the DIY jobs round the house while the "main man" is out earning........
well, I know I can paint/decorate (probably better than some that have done paint jobs round our here) and now I would like to get into tiling...
My concerns are:
I am a mother of two, and would like to gain experience "on the job" (after a course) but need to do this during school hours and term time only.....what are the chances of this happening??
I'm unsure of how "reputable" the courses offered are...have no idea but most of the courses seem exceedingly expensive, and you don't appear to have a "proper" qualification at the end of it....I may obviously be very mistaken......
and lastly....do women fit well into this environment, could we enhance the job offers, do people want ladies doing their tiling?????


Right, thats about it....I've been deliberating all these things for a little while and look forward to your views......need to wash the dishes now!!!:juggle:

Thanks
Fi

Hi Fi, Welcome to the forum,

Plenty of women attend the courses, and there are plenty of female members on the site.

The course feedback section of the site...

Tiling Courses Feedback | Tile Forums

The feedback left in the feedback section is not edited, deleted or steered into providing posetive feedback only, so is about as truer reflection of the quality of the course as your going to get, from those in the best position to give it, those who invested and went on the course.

Although I have a qualification I have never been asked to show it, or anything about it by a customer, although for the small fee it cost to get it, i think it will have been worth it even if one customer asks to see it.

And when you consider that some courses such as net are only £450, even if you go, then never do any tiling apart from tile your own kitchen / bathroom etc, then you've probably made your money back in not having to pay a tiler to come and do that for you.

If you need any advice regarding courses feel free to ask.

Oli

 

[Derry]

Hi Fiona, welcome to the forums.

check out all the course feedback for other people's opinions etc.

you do not get a qualification as such from a course but then you do not neccassarily need it unless possibly you are considering site work

 

[davy583]

hello and welcome

 

[david campbell]

hi there and welcome to the forum,dont see why you would need a qualification if its for doing diy in your own home or even friends,unless you planned to make a career out of it,the only way you would need a qualification as previosly said by others is if you planned on doing site work(which there aint much of the now)best thing is to check course feedbacks and think what is practical for your needs i.e what you want to learn and how much you can afford

 

[LM Ceramics]

welcome to the forums

 

[hillhead]

Welcome Fiona,i know a woman who does a bit too,(tiling that is,lol),
i think there is a market for women tilers,i'm sure there is plenty of people who would prefer a particular sex in their house.But when your a good tiler everyone wants you no matter what sex you are !!
Good luck with your decision Fiona.

 

[DHTiling]

Hello and welcome to tilers forums........most course centres will let you have a look around to see how the work....always check for feedback on a course before doing it..

 

[faithhealer]

Welcome to the forums Fiona, hope you find what you are looking for.
Heres a tip, do the dishes first (like me) and then you don't get interrupted whilst on the forum. lol

 

[brian c]

WELCOME TO THE FORUMS.....have you started the hoovering yet?..lol

 

[faithhealer]

WELCOME TO THE FORUMS.....have you started the hoovering yet?..lol

I'm saying nowt...

 

[Raja]

hola and welcome from Moi

 

[brian c]

where you been hiding Raja?

 

[BDS]

Hi and welcome to the forums.

 

[2Balls]

need to wash the dishes now!!!:juggle: Hi ,welcome to the forum.I use a dish washer. Its nickname is "the instant Wife". Good luck with your plans. :8:2Balls

 

[user123]

Hi Fiona!! :hurray:And welcome to this mad and merry crowd, my second family now, so be warned, this tiling malarky may seriously affect your life!

As to your questions, well just go on a course (like many other women I did the NETT course and loved it) and see how you take to it then, not only to learn how to do things but also to give you an idea of your own aptitude, the tools to invest in if you do want to do your own thing and just to see how the whole idea feels after a bit of training. Then it's on to your own house and some work from friends and contacts who don't mind you taking a bit longer as long as you do a good job and go from there.

I did the course to learn all about different environments to fix my artistic mosaics to, different adhesives etc, entirely inspired by joining this forum and have since openend a trade account at Topps Tiles who were so enthusiastic about a woman tiler that combining both tiling and mosaics I know is the way to go for me. And I just really like tiles! I also got in touch with a local long standing and well liked decorator who passed on to me my first 'official' job (which has just been put back :dizzy2🙂 a kitchen splashback with feature, after which I am planning to get in touch with kitchen fitters. I do think that a lot of women out there would prefer a woman tradesperson IF we're any good, but the idea of gaining work experience with tilers, hmm, I'd be a bit cautious there and really find out who you are dealing with and follow our instincts. If at any time you'd like more info or a girly type chat, just PM me and there is also a women's only forum on here where you would get replies but which is hardly ever used - the guys on here are just too much fun! :lol:

 

[grumpygrouter]

Hi Fiona!! :hurray:And welcome to this mad and merry crowd, my second family now, so be warned, this tiling malarky may seriously affect your life!

As to your questions, well just go on a course (like many other women I did the NETT course and loved it) and see how you take to it then, not only to learn how to do things but also to give you an idea of your own aptitude, the tools to invest in if you do want to do your own thing and just to see how the whole idea feels after a bit of training. Then it's on to your own house and some work from friends and contacts who don't mind you taking a bit longer as long as you do a good job and go from there.

I did the course to learn all about different environments to fix my artistic mosaics to, different adhesives etc, entirely inspired by joining this forum and have since openend a trade account at Topps Tiles who were so enthusiastic about a woman tiler that combining both tiling and mosaics I know is the way to go for me. And I just really like tiles! I also got in touch with a local long standing and well liked decorator who passed on to me my first 'official' job (which has just been put back :dizzy2🙂 a kitchen splashback with feature, after which I am planning to get in touch with kitchen fitters. I do think that a lot of women out there would prefer a woman tradesperson IF we're any good, but the idea of gaining work experience with tilers, hmm, I'd be a bit cautious there and really find out who you are dealing with and follow our instincts. If at any time you'd like more info or a girly type chat, just PM me and there is also a women's only forum on here where you would get replies but which is hardly ever used - the guys on here are just too much fun! :lol:

We try......

 

[user123]

We try......

...and succeed...

 

[A.W.]

Hi Fiona and welcome.

Daydreaming and reality are two different things. you will never get your money back.

best of luck to you. :yes: :yes:

Al

 

[grumpygrouter]

Hi Fiona and welcome.

Daydreaming and reality are two different things. you will never get your money back.

best of luck to you. :yes: :yes:

Al

Why do say that? There are many many people on this site that have gone through the course system and made a go of tiling as a career and more than recouped the money. Even if she went to say, NETT and paid for their short course, the knowledge gained will save many more times that cost when she comes to do her house(s) her self instead of paying a "pro" to come and do it for her.

Interesting to hear your reasons!

 

[doit4u]

Fiona,

If you fancy it give it a go as others have said even if it doesn't go beyond doing your own work and stuff for family and friends.

If you are confident of your decorating skills you might want to take on some work like that and I am sure that most people would understand your limited working hours and may well appreciate not having you under their feet when they are at home, even if the job takes an extra day or two.

I have a back problem - I find it difficult to get it off the mattress in the mornings - but I find that a lot of people are happy not to have you around in the mornings when they are trying to get themselves and or the kids out of the house. If they are working and out for the day I arrange to get there just before they leave, or after the kids/partner have gone to work. I find after they have met you a lot of people are happy to give you a key to let yourself in. Some customers have said that they prefer me starting later as I know some tradesmen like an early start and want to be on the job by 8 or earlier.

As for being only to work term time you can just schedule your work accordingly, you might loose the odd job during the longer summer holiday but most people wouldn't expect to be able to start immediately, in fact I find if you are to immediately available people are suspicious they think you can't be much good if iothers aren't using you.

I have a mate who is a plumber he is a widower with a daughter in her early teens, he drops her off at school and someone looks after her for a few hours after. He doesn't do any work in the main school holidays or else he would just be forking out for child care, he takes the opportunity to spend time with his daughter take her on holiday and visit distant family. When you think about nobody does any work for the two weeks around Christmas, people don't usually want you around over the bank holiday weekends and if take 2/3 weeks holiday in the summer there aren't that many weeks left when you wouldn't be working.

As for the women bit, I have three daughters and all were encouraged to help with jobs around the house and picked up enough basic skills/confidence to turn there hands to a lot of DIY jobs with a little Daddy back-up.

Also there is a girl in the village who did shop & office work until she started in the office of a local electrical & plumbing company. When they were really busy she would go out on the weekend to lend a hand, initially just as a goffer and footing the ladder. She showed aptitude and gradually did more and more so now she is out of the office and started an apprenticeship as a spark - she absolutely loves it and gets a very warm if slightly suprised reaction when she turns up on a job.

 

[Uheat]

hi and welcome to the forums.

I am running a training session on Underfloor heating in Bradford on 18th March.

Have a look at http://www.tilersforums.com/electric-underfloor-heating/18013-ufh-training.html

and

http://www.tilersforums.com/electric-underfloor-heating/18288-training-date-confirmed.html

there are spaces available at the moment but wont be for long so be quick if you are interested

 

[david campbell]

WELCOME TO THE FORUMS.....have you started the hoovering yet?..lol

never mind started,why is not finished lol!

 

[faithhealer]

Hi Fiona and welcome.

Daydreaming and reality are two different things. you will never get your money back.

best of luck to you. :yes: :yes:

Al

Have to disagree a bit there Al, A Nett courses can get you your money back in a couple of splashbacks, I don't think Fiona is looking at full time employment, just another string to her bow. I say good luck to her but I do think she will stuggle to find just 'evening and week end' work.

 

[Leatherface]

Hi Fiona
why not ask the direct question & ask any of the tilers on this site in your area if they would be prepared to let you come along and labour for them FOC at times to suit you both.
Would prob learn a lot on the job & also get the feel if you want to pursue it as a career. Tiling is something that you can do whenever you can fit it in as you only take on the jobs you have time for. Some courses are expensive, but if you pick the right course and apply what you have learned it will pay dividends. You can start off with the bare minmum of equipment to get going
Regards and good luck

 

[A.W.]

:yes::yes:

you guys can disagree with me until the cows come home,as long as Fiona stays home.

I am not against tiling schools. at the moment fully fledged tilers finding it diff to find enough work. so what about a newbie with hardly any knowledge at all.
considering all the circumstances Fiona please do stay home :yes::yes:

Al

 

[Leatherface]

:yes::yes:

you guys can disagree with me until the cows come home,as long as Fiona stays home.

I am not against tiling schools. at the moment fully fledged tilers finding it diff to find enough work. so what about a newbie with hardly any knowledge at all.
considering all the circumstances Fiona please do stay home :yes::yes:

Al

Try and be positive mate !
Life is about opportunities and the ones that you get & the ones that you make for yourself. I have only been tiling for 4 years and went on a course. I have more work than many tilers I know who have been doing it for far longer

 

[DHTiling]

:yes::yes:

you guys can disagree with me until the cows come home,as long as Fiona stays home.

I am not against tiling schools. at the moment fully fledged tilers finding it diff to find enough work. so what about a newbie with hardly any knowledge at all.
considering all the circumstances Fiona please do stay home :yes::yes:

Al

Nobody disagreeing with you BUT this forum is for trade and DIY aswell...all advice is open to both....

 

[A.W.]

look at all the smilies I put in my post, positive and happy are my middle names.
Fiona please take a look at post number 26. thats the one you should consider.

Al :yes::yes:

 

[recksy]

one newbee to another welcome to the forum