Welcome back, faithful readers! Today we’re talking about bullet journaling supplies. What you should buy, what brands you can trust, and what things you shouldn’t waste your time with. Before we dive in, I need to let you guys know that this post DOES contain affiliate links, but I don’t make any money off of the products I endorse here. Alright, ready? Let’s go!
Journals
I’m going to go ahead and say that I haven’t been bullet journaling for very long (less than a year, actually.) And so I’ve found a couple of brands that I like, and I’ve kind of stuck with them, because they’re such great quality!!
Leuchtturm1917 and ScribblesthatMatter
These two brands are most definitely my go to. Links to both are listed below:
Leuchtturm1917 dotted A5: This link features 23 journal colors, and they’re usually pretty good about keeping each color stocked. (I like the black personally.)
Scribbles that Matter Pro Dotted A5: This link is only for the Navy Blue, because of the holidays they’re out of stock on a lot of their more popular colors.
There are many reasons that I endorse these brands, so I’ll go ahead and get started with naming them:
- High quality 100 gsm paper (so the pens and markers you use won’t bleed onto the next page)
- 200-249 Pre-numbered pages
- 2-3 table of content pages at the beginning
- Both have an option to add a pen loop
- Both have a myriad of colors to choose from (I’m more of a basic black kind of girl.)
- Both cost less than $20 (if you get the A5 size)
- Come in sizes B5-A4+ (I use the A5)
- STM only: pen test page at the end (so you always know what color you’re writing with)
- Leuchtturm1917 only: Each notebook comes with both front and spine labels to use on your journal. I like to keep mine to catalog what was going on at different points in my life.
These journals really are equal in quality. I’m currently using a black Leuchtturm1917 dotted A5 for journaling and an A4+ notebook for recording devotionals and prayers. Both are pictured below for size comparison:
Brush Pens
Brush pens are basically paint brush type pens. They are used for painting, drawing, and I usually use them for hand lettering (like calligraphy.) There’s really one big name company in the brush pen game…. and that’s..
Tombow Dual Brush Pens
Tombow is a Japan based company that manufactures all kinds of office supplies. In the bullet journaling community, they’re known for their dual tip brush pens. Their pens are water based, so they can be washed out of any clothes, and they clean up off of any surface rather easily. They offer around 96 different shades (which is a lot more than I realized.) One of the things that I love about Tombow brush pens is the amount of true color they possess. Their ink is extremely vibrant. I don’t know much of a better way to describe it without showing you. If you look below, there are pictures of both sides of brush pens and how they write:
Tombow Fudenosuke Brush Pens
These are more for…. everyday writing? I use them for hand lettering (in the quote on the picture above, I used a Fudenosuke hard tip brush pen.) These pens come in soft and hard tip, and as of right now, only come in black. They’re better for small writing areas (like titles in your bullet journal.) Here is a link to buy the Fudenosukes.
Sharpie Brush Pens
Okay so, full disclosure, I actually haven’t used these brush pens before (you could say I have unwavering loyalty to my Tombows.) So in preparation for this post, I scoured the internet looking for reviews. Here’s what I found:
- The colors are extremely limited (Sharpie has only 14 shades in comparison to Tombow’s 96+)
- They aren’t dual tip, so there isn’t really any bang for your buck.
- On Amazon, these products boast a 61% 5-star rating (that it doesn’t really look like they deserve) but the criticisms are pretty glaring. People wrote:
- “Dry right out of the package”
- “Hardly any ink”
- “Colors are vibrant, but these pens don’t last.”
I’m not going to tell you NOT to buy these pens, but if you’re serious about good quality products, I would definitely steer clear of these guys.
Highlighters
Now, these are really more of a preference thing. I don’t really use my highlighters for bullet journaling, I use them for when I’m reading and what to make note of important things. So when I go back and read it again, I can focus on the good stuff. I bought a set of Zebra Midliner highlighters and I never looked back. I bought 3 5-pack sets with all different colors. Some colors that you didn’t think would work as highlighters (like red) but somehow, Zebra makes them work. If you prefer to highlight in your bullet journal, I highly recommend this brand. There are also quite a few other brands to choose from, such as:
- BIC
- Sharpie
- PaperMate (just to name a few.)
Drawing pens
So we’ve covered brush pens and highlighters, I’d like to recommend a few brands for the writing and drawing part of bullet journaling. As an educator, I have to be VERY picky about the pens I use (if you’re wondering, my paper gradebook is basically a rainbow because I use different colors for almost every assignment.) If you’re considering using a bullet journal, you’re probably looking for a way to get all your thoughts/events/tasks down in one area so you don’t forget them. Sure, a pencil would work in this scenario. But I’ve found that using different colored pens to draw and write in my bullet journal makes it easier to navigate. For example:
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To do these layouts, I use PaperMate Inkjoy .7 pens. The colors are vibrant, the pens don’t skip, and they’re FANTASTIC grading pens. For any outlining, I use Staedtler Pigment Liners. They really add a “pop” to artwork, and they come in different tip sizes, from 0.05 to 1.0. Definitely a must-have for anyone starting out in bullet journaling!
Washi Tape
Washi tape is purely decorative tape that comes in all kinds of fun shades and prints. In my research for this post, I learned that people use washi tape to mark important pages in their journals and to give boring spreads a little “pizzazz.” They’ve also been used to separate different days, or just because the color scheme just happens to match with the one they’re using for that week. I don’t personally use it all that often, but I’ve seen it used in some really creative ways. Here is a link to find washi tape on Amazon (make your search more specific to find what you’re looking for.) Also, here is a Pinterest search for how to use washi tape in your bullet journal.
Other Products
If you’re like me, rulers are a non-negotiable item (I cannot draw a straight line of my life depended on it. Pencils are also super important (I prefer mechanical, but that’s just me.) I use pencils to draw out my layouts before I solidify them and add color. It helps me see the layout and fix any spacing issues, lines, or anything else that needs fixing.
There are so many possibilities for a bullet journal, and I hope I did a decent job covering at least some of the products you could use to make your bullet journal exactly the way you want it.
STAY TUNED for more awesome blog posts! Here’s what you’re in for with this series:
Part 3: Parts of a bullet journal (Index, Key, and Color Coding.)
Part 4: General Trackers
Part 5: Trackers for Teachers
Part 6: Monthly and weekly spreads
If you have an idea that you would like me to discuss, praise, or criticism, email them to fightprayteach@gmail.com
The ADD Educator 