Harmony Schreiner is a talented jack of all trades, and she's turned her hand to jewellery. She makes pieces inspired by steampunk art, anime and Japanese art. She really pours her soul into everything she does, and here we will get a great insight into who she is and how she does what she does ♥
1. When and did you first start crafting, and why did you decide to start selling it? What other creative things have you done besides making jewellery?
Well, I began as a comic book artist trying to sell my comics at conventions and such, but you can only sell comics to so many people, and eventually everyone who wants one has one, so... I just kept working up and trying to make new and different things every year. I also write short stories and make clothing... I take a lot of photos and do a lot of digital art. I guess you could say I'm a jack of all trades.
2. You don't have to have made a hundred sales to be successful. Do you consider yourself successful?
Definitely. The moment someone NOT related to me purchased one of my items I felt like I was doing pretty well. And of course, once I started making sales to other countries, I was very proud.
3. Where do you do most of your work? Do you prefer a quiet, peaceful and tidy space, or do you usually play music when working and find that there are always scraps of this and scraps of that lying around when you start? Are you an organised worker?
Heh. I try hard to keep a clean work environment, but when you work with a lot of really messy and hazardous chemicals, cleanliness kind of gets shoved onto the back burner. I try to clean my work bench off every few weeks, which is actually my dining room table, by the way. I sit at the table near my back windows with a lovely view into the country side and listen to my Pixies station on Pandora while I work.
4. Have you always had a passion for crafting?
As far as I can remember. Whenever I had the opportunity to choose an elective in school, it was always whatever artistic class I could get my hands on. Probably part of the reason I'm out of shape is because once I got to high school, I could choose art class over P.E. and I thought I'd have to be mental to choose P.E. when I could be doing something I actually enjoy. I've always been the type of person to try to create the answers to problems on my own. If I needed something that I didn't have, I always tried to make it on my own. Sure, it was probably flimsy, but it got the job done.
5. Do you find it difficult to find time to express your creativity while you have a child? Do you try to involve him in it?
Hmm... That's an interesting question. He's actually a pretty self-sufficient little guy. Very independent. He doesn't like holding hands when walking, and he hates riding in the shopping cart at the store. While I'm working, he plays with his toys or watches his TV shows he likes. If he needs something, he usually comes and lets me know. He does like to be involved with what I'm doing, though. A lot of times, he'll just come up and ask me what I'm trying to do and watch me work. He's very interested, and I'm sure once he's old enough, he'll want to help. He's only 2 right now, but he's a born genius. Everyone who meets him thinks he's much older because of how smart he is.
6. What is your favourite piece and why?
Another hard question... At the moment, I'd have to say either my Companion Cube keychain, or my Moustache pin, because I made the models and moulds for those pieces 100% from scratch, unlike most of the things where I just buy the moulds in basic shapes from the hobby store. The moustache and companion cube took such a long and very hard process to create, so I'm very proud of them.
7. Tell us something interesting about yourself.
Interesting, hmm... Well, I weigh a LOT more than I look, and no one believes me when I tell them how much. It's always fun to see their expressions. Other than that, I speak, read and write Japanese. Not quite fluently, but I'm sure if I were in a life or death situation that involved reading Japanese to live, I'd totally live...... Probably.
8. Favourite thing while growing up?
Water. I grew up near water, pretty much my whole life. It's a place I like to go to cool my jets and just relax. We have several beautiful lakes here in the Midwestern U.S. and I like to take little vacations up around there whenever I'm feeling overstressed.
Same went for me as a child. I couldn't live without some kind of lake or river near me. Some things never change, I guess.
9. If you could have one special ability, what would it be? Would it be a superpower? Would it simply be a skill that has eluded you since you first discovered that someone else could do it?
I like to try and solve all my problems in one shot the best I can because I'm tricky like that, so if I had to be limited to one special ability, I suppose I would want the ability to create some special object like a stone or something that could grant any wish I asked, as long as I did something special to it, kind of like how Rapunzel brushes her hair and sings to it in Tangled. Something like that.
So I'd have this ability to create a magic stone which could in turn grant me more abilities. Muahahahahaaa.
And if that doesn't count, then I suppose I'd like to read minds, because I simply cannot stand being lied to and I hate never knowing what someone is thinking about when it's important and they won't tell me.
10. What did you want to be when you grow up? Are you still aspiring to do it or something beyond your crafting? Why?
I sure did want to be a lot of things when I grew up... A writer, a singer... an Artist, a fashion designer... A photographer. And I guess I sort of got my wish. I've become most of those things on my own. Not professionally, of course, but I'm doing well. I'm of the mindset that if you truly want something, you should stop at absolutely nothing to get it, even when other people tell you that you'll never succeed. I got a lot of that from people, but I ignored them, and I feel like I could dangle my success in their faces and laugh if I weren't so darn nice.
Well, I began as a comic book artist trying to sell my comics at conventions and such, but you can only sell comics to so many people, and eventually everyone who wants one has one, so... I just kept working up and trying to make new and different things every year. I also write short stories and make clothing... I take a lot of photos and do a lot of digital art. I guess you could say I'm a jack of all trades.
2. You don't have to have made a hundred sales to be successful. Do you consider yourself successful?
Definitely. The moment someone NOT related to me purchased one of my items I felt like I was doing pretty well. And of course, once I started making sales to other countries, I was very proud.
3. Where do you do most of your work? Do you prefer a quiet, peaceful and tidy space, or do you usually play music when working and find that there are always scraps of this and scraps of that lying around when you start? Are you an organised worker?
Heh. I try hard to keep a clean work environment, but when you work with a lot of really messy and hazardous chemicals, cleanliness kind of gets shoved onto the back burner. I try to clean my work bench off every few weeks, which is actually my dining room table, by the way. I sit at the table near my back windows with a lovely view into the country side and listen to my Pixies station on Pandora while I work.
4. Have you always had a passion for crafting?
As far as I can remember. Whenever I had the opportunity to choose an elective in school, it was always whatever artistic class I could get my hands on. Probably part of the reason I'm out of shape is because once I got to high school, I could choose art class over P.E. and I thought I'd have to be mental to choose P.E. when I could be doing something I actually enjoy. I've always been the type of person to try to create the answers to problems on my own. If I needed something that I didn't have, I always tried to make it on my own. Sure, it was probably flimsy, but it got the job done.
5. Do you find it difficult to find time to express your creativity while you have a child? Do you try to involve him in it?
Hmm... That's an interesting question. He's actually a pretty self-sufficient little guy. Very independent. He doesn't like holding hands when walking, and he hates riding in the shopping cart at the store. While I'm working, he plays with his toys or watches his TV shows he likes. If he needs something, he usually comes and lets me know. He does like to be involved with what I'm doing, though. A lot of times, he'll just come up and ask me what I'm trying to do and watch me work. He's very interested, and I'm sure once he's old enough, he'll want to help. He's only 2 right now, but he's a born genius. Everyone who meets him thinks he's much older because of how smart he is.
6. What is your favourite piece and why?
Another hard question... At the moment, I'd have to say either my Companion Cube keychain, or my Moustache pin, because I made the models and moulds for those pieces 100% from scratch, unlike most of the things where I just buy the moulds in basic shapes from the hobby store. The moustache and companion cube took such a long and very hard process to create, so I'm very proud of them.
7. Tell us something interesting about yourself.
Interesting, hmm... Well, I weigh a LOT more than I look, and no one believes me when I tell them how much. It's always fun to see their expressions. Other than that, I speak, read and write Japanese. Not quite fluently, but I'm sure if I were in a life or death situation that involved reading Japanese to live, I'd totally live...... Probably.
8. Favourite thing while growing up?
Water. I grew up near water, pretty much my whole life. It's a place I like to go to cool my jets and just relax. We have several beautiful lakes here in the Midwestern U.S. and I like to take little vacations up around there whenever I'm feeling overstressed.
Same went for me as a child. I couldn't live without some kind of lake or river near me. Some things never change, I guess.
9. If you could have one special ability, what would it be? Would it be a superpower? Would it simply be a skill that has eluded you since you first discovered that someone else could do it?
I like to try and solve all my problems in one shot the best I can because I'm tricky like that, so if I had to be limited to one special ability, I suppose I would want the ability to create some special object like a stone or something that could grant any wish I asked, as long as I did something special to it, kind of like how Rapunzel brushes her hair and sings to it in Tangled. Something like that.
So I'd have this ability to create a magic stone which could in turn grant me more abilities. Muahahahahaaa.
And if that doesn't count, then I suppose I'd like to read minds, because I simply cannot stand being lied to and I hate never knowing what someone is thinking about when it's important and they won't tell me.
10. What did you want to be when you grow up? Are you still aspiring to do it or something beyond your crafting? Why?
I sure did want to be a lot of things when I grew up... A writer, a singer... an Artist, a fashion designer... A photographer. And I guess I sort of got my wish. I've become most of those things on my own. Not professionally, of course, but I'm doing well. I'm of the mindset that if you truly want something, you should stop at absolutely nothing to get it, even when other people tell you that you'll never succeed. I got a lot of that from people, but I ignored them, and I feel like I could dangle my success in their faces and laugh if I weren't so darn nice.
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