Today we’d like to introduce you to Maria Crain.
Hi Maria, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I never thought I would be a business owner or an entrepreneur that was just not something I ever thought about… the pandemic however changed things. Before I became a nail tech, I was a mechanic at Boeing for almost 2 years. When the pandemic hit, people were getting let go and overworked and it made me realize that no matter how hard you work if you are a worker ant, no one really cares about you. I loved my job and was good at it and even though I was going to be kept, I wanted to take one of the biggest leaps ever and quit my job during the middle of a pandemic to attend nail school. I figured I could make as much or more being my own boss. I begun learning nails and taking clients in my free time. I just saw so many women trying to do their own nails at home while salons were closed. and I thought to myself oh I can do that! So, I turned to YouTube and dug in, spending all my free time outside of work dedicated to mastering nails. After 6 months I decided to quit my good-paying job and started cosmetology school for their nail program. I wasn’t sure how I was gonna make enough money as a full-time student but I did my best having 12-hour days taking clients after school and on the weekends. I was beyond exhausted but I pushed through the 5-month program and got my license. Luckily 3 weeks into school I was blessed with a location as I started to gain more clients which allowed me to have a professional place to work. Shortly after graduating, I found a great little studio which is where I take my clients today. I’m currently booked out 2 months because of how busy I am, but I’m loving it! I specialize in hand-painted art which attracts a lot of my clients. I used to paint canvases all the time so I had art background when I started to do nails which I think helped a lot ‘cause it is a huge advantage in this industry. I continue to work hard and continue to learn new things and think outside the box creatively.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The real only struggle I’ve had was during school. it was full time and it was hard to make enough money to support myself. I would work door dash right after school for the first month but I pushed myself to use social media to gain enough clients. I found a shared space I rented out to be able to take new clients and that’s where things started to drastically improve, as I was making more money. Still, it was physically draining and I was pretty burnt out having to be at school at 8:30 am and not coming home from work ‘til 10:30 most nights
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I consider myself a nail artist. I am self-taught yet licensed and I specialize in sculpted nails, acrylic art, and hand-painted art. I’m mostly known for my hand-painted art because it’s what attracts all my clients. I do very detailed artwork. I’ve painted dragons, cartoon characters, realistic marble, and gems it’s the best part of my job which drives my passion. my attention to detail definitely sets me apart. whether art or how I do nails. For my acrylic sets, I do a technique called “sculpting” which was done before tips were used. I use forms which are stickers placed under the nail and I build the nail using only the acrylic. Not many techs do it locally and it is a better-quality service compared to tips. it takes longer to master because we are building the nail starting from scratch. it definitely is an art of its own. I am most proud of how fast I’ve progressed with my artwork, acrylic work and how fast I’ve built a successful clientele. I hit the ground running when I started and I throw myself into everything I set my mind too but I’m still so shocked that it’s happened so quickly. I started doing nails July of 2020 and I’m very proud of how much I’ve amounted to in my first year
Is there anything else you’d like to share with our readers?
I just started offering one-on-one hand-painted art classes for nail techs looking to improve their art! I also do custom persons that are reusable.
Contact Info:
- Email: trueartistnails.maria@gmail.com
- Website: https://www.vagaro.com/trueartistnails
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/trueartistnails/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/True-Artist-Nails-107992201468342/
Image Credits
Maria Crain
