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Elizabeth Adams, the designer behind ExVoto Vintage, describes her whole life as 'one long art class.” Her parents, both artists themselves, instilled a creative spirit in her at an early age. Raised in Montgomery, Alabama, she continued her arts education through a high school magnet program and went on to study architecture and education at Auburn University, taking studio art throughout.
In 2007, Adams' youngest child was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor at the young age of three. After her daughter's death, Adams needed something to do with her hands. She'd always worked on creative projects, like sewing children's clothing or creating custom stationery lines, but then she started painting and creating mixed media collages with broken jewelry pieces. Once she started putting the pieces into a necklace for herself, it was clear that jewelry would be a way to get out of the studio and interact with others.
Drawn to the mystery and spiritual meaning behind lockets, medallions, and other antique pieces, Adams says she is passionate about turning an old and broken item into something new and beautiful. She recalls the handwritten blessings she used to attach to each piece of jewelry when she first started designing. Today, these inspirational messages live on the Blessing Cuff, a special bracelet to wear and pass on to a friend in need.
With stores in Montgomery and Birmingham, Adams says expanding ExVoto Vintage to Nashville was a natural fit. She had hosted trunk shows here for years and built a customer base. When she learned that The Perfect Pair owner Whitney Dunn was moving out of a space in Green Hills, Adams says, 'I had to take the opportunity while it was there. You may not be perfectly ready, but when you are, it might not be there.”
Inside her Bandywood Drive store, Adams features a selection of exclusive pieces designed specifically for her Nashville customer, who she calls 'more risky” than those in other towns, as well as gifts for men and a small lifestyle line that can be found alongside ExVoto necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and rings. And, like her other stores, a portion of the sales will go to The Cure Starts Now Foundation for pediatric brain cancer research.
2209 Bandywood Dr., Ste. G, 615-454-6473; exvotovintage.com