Peace of Mind Organizing

My perfect Bullet Journal pen

13 March 2024

I have been using a Bullet Journal to keep track of everything in my life since December 2021. I’m on my 13th handwritten journal. (I love B5 size dot grid journals. My current favorite is from Scribbles That Matter 120 GSM Dotted Journal – Pro.)

I like making my Bullet Journals pretty without going overboard. I tend to write with a black pen but use a lot of Zebra Mildliner highlighters (I use both brush and chisel points) and Sharpie S-Note Duo for color when I need it. (Check out this October 2022 post about my bullet journals for more details on how I journal.)

After careful trial and error, I have found what for me is the perfect black pen for bullet journaling. It is the Pilot Frixion Synergy 05 clicker erasable pen with black gel ink. There’s so much to love: It’s an extra-fine point pen that writes smoothly. It’s completely erasable—it uses a special thermosensitive ink that disappears when rubbed with the pen’s “eraser” because of the heat generated by the friction. (There’s no eraser dust!) This pen comes in colors, though I primarily use black. And it’s refillable.

I go through a lot of these pens and on Amazon I buy this set, which comes with refills

Pilot has a variety of Frixion pens, including erasable highlighters. I have some, but I find they don’t erase completely and seem to leave a little bit of a residue. I’ve also enjoyed this set of Pilot Frixion Waai retractable pens from Japan that come in pretty, soft colors. I bought them at JetPens, my favorite purveyor of Japanese stationery supplies.

One thing worthy of note is that since the Frixion ink is thermosensitive it could disappear if exposed to high heat (like in a hot car). The JetPens website says that putting the paper in a freezer will magically bring back the ink. I’m glad to say I have no personal experience with this. I do avoid using this pen to address envelopes.

My quest for the perfect pen for bullet journaling ended when I found this particular Frixion pen (the Synergy 05 clicker), which glides nicely over the page and erases without any dust. I just had to share with other pen-and-paper enthusiasts!

Tagged with: bullet journal, journal writing, office supplies, pens

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