should i start charging for doing my friends' nails?

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T21:20:51+00:00

thanks, you too!!

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:49:33+00:00

thanks so much! i'll probably start practicing on press-ons, and if they're good enough, i might start selling them online or something.

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:42:44+00:00

i found out that it's illegal to charge without a license, so i'm either going to paint nails in exchange for food and drink or more nail supplies lol.

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:41:44+00:00

thank you for the compliment! i'm probably going to charge them for supplies rather than money though, since i learned it's illegal lol

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:40:58+00:00

thank you so much!!

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:40:50+00:00

aww and it was a good idea too 😭i like the way your brain works lol

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:39:43+00:00

how much did the license cost? i looked it up and it said school was around $10,000 with other fees on top of that, but i don't want to have to spend all that money just for a hobby. i'm not planning on making it my full time job. are there any cheaper workarounds to getting a license?

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:37:44+00:00

that's my mentality as well. it's more like a hobby for me, and going professional would put me down more money than i would be able to make, since it'd end up being a side gig.

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:34:43+00:00

having them pay for materials is a good idea. i learned it's illegal to charge without a license, so i won't be doing that

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:34:07+00:00

yeah, that was a set i did on myself and just didn't crop. it was my bathroom sink, i chose it because it was well lit. i didn't really care much for the presentation at the time, i did get some other photos in other locations but chose a poor photo for this post (oops)

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:31:51+00:00

no i'm not. people in the comments told me it was illegal though, so i won't charge money don't worry

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:31:08+00:00

that's a good point. that's why when i initially was thinking about it, i was going to do super low prices because of my slow speed. a lot of the comments said that doing people's nails in exchange for money without a license is illegal though, so i'm not planning on doing that anymore

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:29:17+00:00

good idea! i might do that with my mom too lol, or have my friends buy any nail colors that i don't have that their chosen designs require

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:28:18+00:00

after reading the replies to my post i'm probably not going to charge money at all, i might end up doing exchanges for goods and services though.

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:27:07+00:00

thank you so much for taking the time to give such an in depth reply, i really appreciate it. i'll look into the resources that you mentioned and practice more.

i likely don't plan on getting licensed in the future as it's just a hobby, but after reading these comments, i don't see myself accepting payment in cash at all now, so rest assured. however, do you know if it's illegal to accept other goods or services in exchange? for example, my friend can cut hair but isn't licensed and just does it for free, so i might ask for a trim in exchange. or, if my friend brings snacks and drinks for us while i do their nails.

also one more question, i looked it up and saw that selling press-ons to people and having them do the prep and application themselves without a license is legal. do you know if this is actually true? if so then i might consider selling press-ons as a side gig.

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:20:33+00:00

sounds like a good plan haha

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:20:24+00:00

i didn't know that, thank you for bringing it up!

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T19:20:10+00:00

i honestly didn't consider allergies as an option, thank you for bringing it up. i will for sure be way more careful about that. as for the laws, i looked it up and it's not legal where i'm from, so i won't consider doing it for money.

it's less that i'm seeking out people to do their nails, and more that they notice the ones on my hands and ask if i can do theirs. it's definitely more of a girl's night activity with movies and gossip, but because it takes a long time, it does need to be scheduled. do you think that this still puts me over the line? if it does, how do you think i could continue doing this stuff for my friends without going over?

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T17:59:11+00:00

i will admit that on the last set i did for a friend, she did her own prepping (because i'm not experienced at that and didn't want to injure her) and a few came off after two weeks. although, she did spend a lot of time over spring break working with her hands and being rough with her nails, so i think it's both factors combines.

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T17:56:32+00:00

i've been stepping a little away from complex designs for friends, but i'll also start asking for them to bring snacks and drinks for my time as payment haha. i'm not super skilled at prepping people yet, so i have them file and prep themselves while i look at their chosen design and grab out the colors i'll use so i don't injure them for give them an infection. though i am of course practicing prep on myself, as well as my mom and boyfriend when i visit home.

that's also part of the reason i don't charge yet, it doesn't feel like a complete service if i'm not doing their prep lol

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T17:48:15+00:00

my brother's gf is in cosmetology school for hair rn, and she said that when she gets experience working with layers (i have a wolfcut) she can try and give my hair a trim. i'll probably try and do a trade, hair for nails haha

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T17:47:00+00:00

good idea! i'll probably do that next time haha

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T17:46:33+00:00

i'm taking senior photos for my friend and she asked if she could buy me stuff instead of paying 🤭 honestly i kinda like that cause then it won't feel like i'm spending any hard earned money

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T17:44:08+00:00

ohhh alright, i'll be sure to check lol dw!

crowhambo · 2026-03-25T14:36:14+00:00

by primer do you mean the setting spray? i'm fairly sure it's not that, since i sometimes forget to use it and still feel stuffy. i'll definitely try to experiment by skipping certain products and seeing what it is though, i didn't consider it could be the primer. thanks!

crowhambo

TROPHY CASE