I’ll admit it’s been quite a while since I thought about any writing implement other than fountain pens. I mean sure there are other freebie pens rolling about the house, but at my desk, it’s the fountain pens I reach for the most.
I’ve dalliances with gel pens in the past. I’ve always loved Sakura Gelly Roll pens. And I even reviewed a package of PaperMate Ink Joy Gels once upon a time. But in my day-to-day life I just don’t use them much.
What I haven’t done in at least 10 years is walk into a big box office supply store and come away with new pens. But a few weeks ago I went to Staples looking for some oversize printing. The kind lady behind the counter told me my print job would be done in 20 minutes and I should wander around and shop while I waited. And to my surprise, I did.
I came across a few 5-packs of Pilot G2 pens called Colors of Creativity ($9.99). The Purples collection came home with me! This set of G2’s features fine point nibs, 0.7mm in 5 shades of purple: Iris Blue, Grape, Purple, Metallic Purple and Pastel Purple. The last two came with little wax nib caps as seals.
I’ll be honest, I’ve probably written with a Pilot G2 before and haven’t noticed. What I noticed this time was that they were fun, and smooth writers. The thing I LOVE about gel pens is that they don’t do any skipping or messy blob situations that you sometimes have with ballpoint pens. For this reason, I find it infinitely preferable to use gel pens any time I have the choice.
I also just love the COLORS! When I was in school it was pretty much blue and black ink, with the occasional red or green mixed in. Now I can have pinks, purples, oranges… any colors I want. (and I may have a massive collection of purples from JetPens headed my way as we speak!)
I have mixed feelings about picking up gel pens at this point. On one hand, I hate buying disposable single-use plastic pens that I know will end up in a landfill somewhere, particularly when I have better options right on my desk. On the other hand, we all know that all paper isn’t created equal, and I mentioned that my Yarn Journal doesn’t do so well with fountain pen ink.
So while I test out a variety of different gel pens I can say they’re fun if you want to add color, a low entry free, and perfect for all kinds of papers and situations when fountain pens just aren’t practical! Stay tuned for more…
Yes, I do love the G2 too, but I love them in broad and at that in their navy blue, which is very hard to find, but I have been able to find them. Those colors you’re showing today are really nice. I may have to get the smaller point size because they’re so nice. Years back they would blob ink which is why I didn’t buy them for many years. They’ve also had other colors like pastel type in various points through the years. They’ve definitely improved through the years. I also use a lot of the Levenger True Writer rollerball pens and they take the G2 refills which is a huge savings versus buying roller ball refills for seven or eight dollars a piece or more. Thanks for the great list.
I believe that you can get refills for these gel pens although color choices might be limited. Also, for folks still writing checks, gel pens are one of the only ways to avoid check fraud as it’s almost impossible to wash away the ink.