Today we’d like to introduce you to nikki drumm.
Hi nikki, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My name is Nikki Lee Drumm and I am the creative force behind iLit Designs, a brand that merges fashion, jewelry, and craftsmanship. My journey is one of constant evolution, driven by my experiences as a polymath artist, live painter, military veteran, and student of healing modalities, event curator, and Music Producer/DJ.
My military career was cut short due to life-altering traumas and a brain injury, which made me no longer deployable. This shift redirected me back into civilian life, where I unexpectedly ended up working in the film industry on various sets in Louisiana around 2008. I then found myself in Idaho, once again working as an aircraft inspector. It was a strange balancing act between two very different worlds until one day I discovered the power of live painting during music performances. Around the same time, I started exploring alternative plant medicine, which helped me embark on a healing journey. This path eventually led me to Mexico, where I participated in a groundbreaking ibogaine study for PTSD, alongside other veterans, as part of a documentary.
This transformative experience ignited a new chapter in my artistic career. I fully embraced sustainability, art, and design, which became the core of my life’s work. I was fortunate enough to live paint at festivals and fundraisers worldwide, and for several years, I thrived as a full-time artist inter-wined activist. In the pre-COVID era, I also ventured into a new field—to distribute 3D concrete housing printers for creative rapid housing development.
After a major surgery, I had to slow down my nomadic lifestyle and live painting. It was then that I started a creative business, upcycling broken sunglasses and creating unique jackets, hats, and crowns. Eventually, I expanded into designing face jewelry. During the pandemic, my designs, especially my insect-inspired eyewear, gained popularity. I began incorporating wire-wrapped crystals and modular face jewelry into my collections, which became a modern jewelry trend. In 2019, my nose bridge face chains made their runway debut at Denver Fashion Week, and shortly after, I was featured in Nue Magazine as a recognized fashion designer.
Despite my successes, I’ve faced significant health challenges and several other conditions after leaving the military, including PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and autoimmune disorders. There were times I felt like giving up, especially after the hardships I faced following the Maui fires. But just when I thought I had lost my footing, I was contacted by Artistar Jewels to represent the United States at Milan Fashion Week 2024—an opportunity I never imagined.
Now, despite everything, I’m preparing for my first trip to Italy and getting ready to showcase my work on a global stage. Alongside my jewelry, I’ve also pursued music production, composing five electronic tracks this year, and performing as a DJ at festivals across the country. It’s been a challenging yet rewarding journey, and I’m excited to see what’s next.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
At the age of 16, I signed up for the military. I went off to boot camp with the Air Force and eventually found myself stationed at a special operations base in Florida, working on aircraft as an inspector until 2008. Despite the belief that I would never ‘make it’ as an Artist, I managed to forge a lot of creativity back into my life to walk away from my last 9-5 job in 2011.
The road hasn’t been easy. Over the years, I’ve been diagnosed with Degenerative Disk Disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Fibromyalgia, PTSD, late adult ADHD, and POT Syndrome. Juggling these health challenges alongside my business and personal life has been overwhelming at times, leading to burnout phases. But through every struggle, I’ve found ways to channel my experiences into more art. These diagnoses have taught me about perseverance and the importance of self-compassion.
Despite the bumps along the way, I continue to push forward—exploring new artistic mediums and studying healing modalities to incorporate deeper meaning into my work and for self healing. My jewelry and paintings are a reflection of my journey: bold, resilient, and full of intention. Each piece I create is a symbol of overcoming and evolving, a tangible expression of the strength we all carry within. I have also take many of my dispositions and have used my story to inspire and ignite passions in others to keep pushing for their dreams.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
iLit Designs is known for its unique fusion of industrial and mystical elements, with signature pieces like my wing face chains, with optional features of modular heart earrings, and light up pendants featuring natural stones like citrine, Amethyst or Black Tourmaline.
I’m most proud of the originality in my work. From the start, I’ve been a pioneer, creating designs that have been reproduced by flattery, but my pieces always maintain an authenticity that comes from my personal connection to each creation. What sets me apart is the multi-disciplinary approach I bring to my art—I don’t just create jewelry, I integrate my experiences as a live painter, DJ, and healer into everything I design into form with functionality. My work is a reflection of my journey and the environments I’ve performed and created in, giving my art a unique energy and depth.
I was First most known for as a self taught live painter and excelled in making a descent living off painting all around the world at events and murals. I explored mediums such as as spray painting walls to, classical oil painting to mostly fast drying acrylic paint.
My most recent exciting endeavors in the music scene as a live performance Dj & music producer have led to a trip to Guatemala in 2022 to receive a hand crafted one of a kind worlds first small electric Seashell Violin that I have now incorporated into live sets and recorded studio mixes.
What were you like growing up?
I was born and raised in Charleston, South Carolina, as the oldest sibling in a household where I naturally took on a leadership role. There was a significant age gap between my younger siblings and me, so I often found myself helping to care for them. My creativity blossomed early—I would spend summers creating lesson plans, swimming games, and art curriculums for my siblings, especially during a challenging time when my mother was navigating life as a single parent after a divorce. I’ve always been resourceful, making the most of out of hand-me-downs from my more affluent cousins; and when I was gifted a sewing machine by my grandmother at age 13, I felt like I had unlocked a new world of creative potential.
That sewing machine was the beginning of a journey. I knew that one day I wanted to share my creative expressions with others, and even back then, I envisioned upcycling as a fashionable trend—long before sustainability became mainstream. My friends would usually say I have a soft but bold personality and very easy to talk to and ground out with. Life is not boring and full of synchronicity–lots of forward thinking and curosity around plants and alchemical processes.. I am the biggest nerd at heart.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.ilitdesigns.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_novalisounds/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/novalee3327/
- soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/leedrumm
Image Credits
@amysticartist Jackson K Thomas Photography – main first photo Brian Pollett DIgital Artwork Portrait
