“When you are forced to kind of pause everything in your life… it gave me a lot of time to just reflect on what I was doing with my life and where my priorities were.”

- Mélissa Lehoux

My guest for this episode, Mélissa Lehoux, has one of the most incredible calligraphy stories I’ve ever heard — and her story is proof that calligraphy is for absolutely everyone.

In the summer of 2018, Mélissa was diagnosed with aggressive Multiple Sclerosis, a disease that causes her immune system to attack her central nervous system, leading to nerve damage, numbness, tremors, and loss of motor control.

She picked up her first calligraphy pen in March of 2020… and launched her calligraphy business just 3 months later.

And let me tell you — she is making it WORK. And giving back while she does it.

Through her business, Chronic Letters, Mélissa offers clients her own style of beautiful calligraphy… and every purchase supports the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada.

In this interview, Mélissa shares some inspiring insights into the power of calligraphy to spark creativity, how she created business-savvy connections with other creatives in her city, and how discovering her love for calligraphy has helped her with her diagnosis.

Tune into this episode of The Shinah Show to find out:

• How to put yourself out there and carve out a space for your own unique calligraphy style  
• Mélissa’s business tips for new creative entrepreneurs who are ready to take the plunge
• How calligraphy can actually be medically beneficial when it comes to certain conditions (yes, really!)

About Mélissa Lehoux: Mélissa is an artist, calligrapher, and mom from Ottawa, Canada, trying to maneuver life’s multiple facets… with a chronic illness tagging along. She was diagnosed with aggressive Multiple Sclerosis in 2018 and her journey to acceptance led her to her passion for calligraphy.

Highlights:‌ ‌

00:33  Intro

02:18  Meet Mélissa from Chronic Letters!

03:32  Her MS diagnosis

05:18  Embracing the shake

06:53  Medical benefits

08:52  The invisible, uncertain disease

10:14  Learning to go for it

12:47  Chronic Letters

15:27  Creative entrepreneur advice

17:46  Putting yourself out there (& distinguishing yourself)

20:00  Is the market too saturated?

20:51  Networking with your local connections

23:04  What’s next for Chronic Letters?

24:30  How Mélissa learned so quickly!

27:15  Final takeaways & find Mélissa

30:15  Recap

 ‌

Links:‌ ‌

Chronic Letters: lifewithasideofchronic.com 

Instagram: @chronicletters 

Free resource for anyone looking to start their calligraphy business: chronicletters.com/chronic-letters-business 

Learn calligraphy with me: www.freecalligraphyworkshop.com

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Instagram: @crookedcalligraphy

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