Shelly Kim of Letters by Shells got her start as many of us do working on a side hustle passion while balancing a day job. Shelly’s adventure began because she wanted to decorate her cubicle with positive affirmations. Almost 300,000 Instagram followers and a new book called Digital Hand Lettering and Modern Calligraphy later, it’s safe to say she is doing something more than just lettering right
Listen in to my entire conversation with Shelly Kim on the Creative Queso Podcast Episode #28 on

Letters by Shells
Lettering is definitely having a moment in the handmade space and Shelly Kim is the perfect person to talk to about how to make it into a full time career. In this episode of Creative Queso Shelly talks about why branding matters, the importance of supporting yourself and others, fear of digital downloads, burn out and trusting the journey. Shell’s journey involves day jobs, pit stops at graduate school and a trip around the world.
Find Out Even More About Shelly Kim and Letters by Shells here…

Digital Hand Lettering and Modern Calligraphy: Essential Techniques Plus Step-by-Step Tutorials for Scanning, Editing and Creating on a Tablet.
This August Shelly Kim releases her first book – Digital Hand Lettering and Modern Calligraphy. Pop over to Amazon and order a copy OR win a copy. Yup, until August August 22nd if you take a screenshot of the episode and share it in your Instagram stories tagging both @creativequeso and @lettersbyshells you could win a free copy!
More books and kits from Shelly Kim
- Digital Hand Lettering and Modern Calligraphy
- Learn to Create Art Deco Lettering
- Learn to Create Modern Calligraphy Lettering

Throw Yourself Out There
As Shelly Kim says: “Don’t ever doubt your own talents and abilities. By throwing yourself out there, you never know what could actually come out of it. Try something new everyday and only focus on yourself during this process.”
What do you think about giving hand lettering a try?

Shelly Kim has such a great energy and all of her positive vibes come through in this episode.
If you loved this episode of the Creative Queso Podcast be sure to also check out these interviews…
- Amy Tangerine – Scrapbooker, product designer and lettering artist.
- Jennifer Lyn – Whimsical doodler and self help podcaster.
- Alisa Burke – Mixed media artist with over 100 online class offerings.
This episode is brought to you by Sticker You.