Learn the tools.Build the business.Never do it alone.
The Female Tradie Training Academy takes Australian women from picking up a tool to running a business that's theirs — with Penny, 30+ years on the tools, at every step. Wherever you're at, there's a way in.
The money's the engine. The life is the point.
Build the life you love, doing what you love — and never do it alone. It comes down to three things. The third one pays for the first two.
A life that fits around you
Not the other way around. You pick the hours. You pick the jobs. Home by three on a Tuesday — because you decided it, not because someone signed it off.
Something that's yours
Your name on the van. A business you own and build — an asset, not just a wage. Something you could grow, hand on, or one day sell.
A real income
Paying yourself first — properly, not whatever's left at month's end. The income that turns the first two from a nice idea into your actual week.
a month, paying yourself first, by the end of year one. Not the destination — the engine that buys back your time.
Wherever you're at, there's a way in.
From picking up your first tool to running a business that's yours — a way in for every stage, with me on every one.
Get Handy Workshops
A Saturday, a real tool in your hand, and me showing you how. The easiest way in.
In person · 5.0★ from 100+
Capable Community
The bit between workshops where most people quit. One skill a week, women who get it.
Online · learn anytime
The Handywoman Business Program
Twelve months with me — handy to a real business, building toward $10K+ a month by year one.
12 months · 10 spots · July 2026
VIP Mentoring
When you don't need a room, you need me. Private, one-to-one, on your actual numbers.
Private · 1:1 with Penny
Ready to turn handy into a business?
This is the deep end — twelve months with Penny to go from skilled to self-employed and paid properly. Here's what stops most women, and how the program fixes it.
Every job, run past the room before you start.
The weekly Job Clarity Calls: bring your real jobs and sort them — what to do, what to charge — before you pick up a tool. It's the part that changes everything. See how the program works →
Twelve months, month by month.
Get paid first, get found second, lock it in third — then close the year knowing exactly what's next. See your full year →
Foundations
ABN, insurance, licence — the setup everything stands on.
First paid job
Your first proper invoice, done right. (1:1 with me.)
Work coming in
Enquiries arriving on their own — a week that books itself.
Arrived
Your name on the van — building toward $10K+/mo.
"Building my own world, without waiting for anyone's permission, changed my life."Penny Petridis · Founder, Female Tradie · 30+ years on the tools
The program is new. Penny's track record isn't.
5.0 from 100+ reviews for Penny's Get Handy Workshops — where most women meet her first.
"Fabulous teaching skills combined with obvious professional experience. Keeps it simple and focused on actions."
"I came away a lot more confident and ready to tackle jobs I'd been putting off. Group size of ten was perfect."
"Now I have a new business and I'm moving forward every single day. Penny will challenge you to achieve your potential."
"Extensive knowledge of the trade and a calming nature. I learnt so much in one day."
"Fabulous teaching skills combined with obvious professional experience. Keeps it simple and focused on actions."
"I came away a lot more confident and ready to tackle jobs I'd been putting off. Group size of ten was perfect."
"Now I have a new business and I'm moving forward every single day. Penny will challenge you to achieve your potential."
"Extensive knowledge of the trade and a calming nature. I learnt so much in one day."
You've been dreaming about this long enough.
A short application, then a real chat with Penny — who reads every one herself. No pressure.
Not ready for the full year? Start with a workshop — or take the 2-minute check-in to find your way in.