Best Pens and Markers for Art Journaling You’ll Absolutely Love

In my experience, finding the best pens for art journaling sometimes felt more like a job than a fulfilling hobby. I spent hours and hours searching for that perfect pen, that could help me make art journal pages and not worry about some details like ruining a page, smearing the pen, or clogging it.

Today, I’ll try to answer 9 burning questions about art journaling pens (and markers, too) based on my experience with different brands.

Disclaimer: Some links in this post may be affiliate links. This means that if you purchase something through that link, I get a small commission, at no extra cost to you.

Take magazine paper, it’s mostly glossy, right? And it’s very thin. So, when I do art journal collage pages, I usually turn to my Uni Pin fine liners, white Posca paint pen, or Pilot Pintor markers.

You can use black fine liners to doodle on the magazine pages, outline facial features, or draw anything.

Whichever pen you use on magazine paper, just leave it to dry longer than you would do for regular paper. And then wait a bit more.

If you combine the Posca pen and a fine liner, you can also get amazing results. I use fine liners to frame the whole page with lines.

Black markers are also a good choice, and I mostly use Edding markers for this.

Again, I’d choose Posca white pens. I haven’t tried other Posca colors, but the white one is so great for this purpose that you just can’t resist but love it. It’s opaque, and it flows smoothly on the acrylic paint.

I wouldn’t use fine line tip pens on acrylic paint because they always seem to clog and stop working. I’ve ruined so many good pens this way, and I’m not making the same mistakes again.

For this purpose, I’ve found that the Signo uni-ball white pen works fine, too. The ink just flows, no pressure is needed.

White Pilot Pintor markers also work great on acrylic paint although they are not as opaque as Posca pens.

I also tried the gold Edding marker, and I have no problems with them on acrylic paint.

The last one is Pilot’s Choose 07 gold pen. I love this one so much because it makes thin lines and it looks really nice and elegant.

You can use them to draw before you start painting with watercolor, or use them after the watercolor is completely dry (but really dry).

Another choice would be the Platinum carbon ink fountain pen, It’s also waterproof and it looks great with watercolor, similar to fine liners.

They are also lovely for writing with them. Especially because holding it in your hand makes drawing even more special. I love how some art supplies inspire us to make art and feel good about ourselves. (Or is it just me?)

The only one I wouldn’t use like this is the fine liner. Any fine liner. They might write well in the beginning, but they usually quit soon and then they won’t write on regular paper either.

At least, that’s what’s happened to me many times so far.

But if you want fine, thin lines, you can use fountain pens, just figure out which ones work for you. This Platinum fountain pen is amazing. I highly recommend it. However, I’d be careful with textured backgrounds and the fountain pen’s fine nibs. It can’t work on all textured backgrounds, especially heavy textured ones.

Here, I used it on one layer of acrylic paint, and that’s my limit for this pen. I wouldn’t use it on more texture than this. I tried it, and it was obvious I was going to ruin the nib.

The Edding marker 780 creative is so good here! The marker is for glass, metal, and plastic but I use it where other pens can’t deliver. It’s so smooth and the ink flows perfectly.

Also, Posca paint pens work well on textured backgrounds, although I haven’t tried them on this particular one. But, it works fine unless you press it too hard (but this rule goes for any pen, right)?

If you have different pens and markers, sort them all by color.

Also, if you want to make DIY pen holders, search for toilet paper pen holders on Youtube or Pinterest. You’ll find many creative ideas for pen holders.

I got frustrated many times over this and had many funerals for my ruined pens. However I love discovering new pens and markers and trying them out in my art journals. And by researching and experimenting, I’ve figured out which pens work for me and give me the best results.

If I had to pick one of these pens or markers and take it with my art journal on a deserted island, I’d take the uni pin black fine liners. They’re just awesome. With their fine points and thin lines, non-smudginess, and being waterproof, what’s not to love there?

Finally, remember how the pen behaves also depends on the type of paper you’re using, as well as on what kind of background you’re working on. There’s not one ultimate pen to use for all the things you want. Just do your research and experiment.

So, all of these suggestions or ideas I’ve presented come from my experience in art journaling. If you discover something new in the post, I’m happy to be a part of it. I encourage you to explore and experiment, and you’ll soon have your own favorite stash.