6 must-have pens for Journalling (that are not fountain pens)

We all love a good fountain pen to write with but there is a whole world of other fabulous writing tools out there which can make your daily journalling fun. Here are our 6 recommendations to add to your journal pen pouch. 

 

1. Large brush pens

Our favourites are the Tombow ABT dual brush markers which are dual tipped, with a brush end and a fine tip end. These are so versatile, you can use the brush tip for large bold page titles, or big headers and use the fine tip for outlines, just like a marker. These come in an amazing range of 108 colours in themed sets, so you will surely find one to suit your mood for the day. These are great for blending too, you can use these to colour in stamped images. A separate neutral blending brush is also available to help with blending easily. Check our collection of Tombow ABT here. 

Zebra Mildliner brush pens are another great dual tipped option with a milder colour palette and a medium brush size, perfect for some lettering on page headers. 

2. Small brush pens

Tombow Fudenosuke brush pens are perfect for hand lettering those small titles or creating shadows or even for sketching in black ink. These are very popular option for beginner level calligraphy and are available in hard and soft tip variants. 

If you prefer colour, Pentel Sign pens are a great alternative for lettering too too. Available in multi-pack in 12 colours. 

3. Gel pens

While fountain pens are great for daily writing, they require gentle handling and can be hard to travel with, so when in the mood for some carefree writing in your journal, try out gel pens, specifically, the Zebra Sarasa Clip Vintage colour series which come in muted, classy colours, ideal for writing notes in your journal. These are great for super smooth, skip free long form writing and the colours are well suited for a sophisticated journal. 

 

4. Fineliners 

An absolute must have in your journalling kit with for those crispy black outlines or shadows, fineliners come in various tip sizes and can even be used for quick writing. We recommend the Uniball UniPin series of fineliners which have a water and fade proof pigment ink. Our favourites are the 0.2, 0.3, 0.5 versions for a variety of line width. 

5. Felt tip markers 

Not just any, but Zebra Clickart retractable markers which can be used for lettering sub-headers, outlining, colouring or just doodling in your journal. They come in 4 different colour sets and have a very satisfying click as a side benefit. These do not dry out easily and the 48 colours range from dark to pale.

6. Highlighters

The most popular of them all, highlighters, specifically Zebra Mildliners which are also dual tipped. The colour palette is perfectly mild and yet very wide. Great for highlighting , creating sections or just adding a few pops of colour to your page. 

You can mix and match these tools to have a fun journalling session or stick to a few and create themed spreads, the possibilities are endless and all of these pens are super versatile, with many different ways to use.