I am so excited to share this brand new pen review with you all! I really love teaching lettering and creating custom work, but I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that buying pens and using them for the purposes of “research” is super awesome.
Today, I wanted to share all the details of the Artline Stix brush pens. I got a set of 20 on Amazon for about $25, which for me is a good pen price. There are lots of amazing pens on the market, but I try to keep my purchases fairly reasonable. They do come in smaller sets and with fewer colors if you want to try them first without investing in 20. When shopping, make sure that you get the brush markers – there are just plain pens that will not give you the dynamic hand lettered looks.
So, without further ado, here are some wonderful things – and a few drawbacks – of the ArtLine Stix pens. This may sounds really dumb, but let me tell you why I love the shape of the Stix. They don’t roll away. They don’t roll off the couch when I am working there and they don’t get lost under a piece of paper when I am working at my desk. While the pens look uncomfortable, the part that you hold on to has a nice, rounded, smooth barrel so it doesn’t hurt your hands. They do snap together if you really want them too. Six pens make a circle – just an FYI. I find that they are not the easiest to snap together, but I didn’t buy them to be Legos (there are a lot of those in my house already).
The nibs on the Artline Stix feel similar to a Crayola broad tip pen. They have stability and lots of control. And, when I turn it on its tip, you can write that way too to get a very narrow font. I did find writing that way created some stray fibers on my nibs, but they pulled off really easily without having to use scissors. And, removing the fibers doesn’t have any averse writing effects. The nibs are medium sized and easy to control as both a brush pen and a regular pen.
Because the nibs are secured so well, you do have to use a lot of pressure to get a nice, thick, even line. When you use great pressure, there is a very juicy line that comes out. I am sure you all know what my left-handed self is going to say next. If you are not using an absorbent paper, it will smudge EVERYWHERE. So much ink, in so many places y’all. For me, I really struggled with my Rhodia pad. It seemed to leave ink puddled up for a really long time. And, by a long time, I mean I never made it past 30 seconds before I could stop waiting. I had very few smudging issues with HP Laser Jet Smooth paper and my new Whitesquares notebook.
Once they dry, you can add secondary shadowing with a white or sparkly pen. My typical white ink pen of choice is the Uniball Signo. I also recently acquired a Pentel Milky Pop pen in white that also does an amazing job!
Overall, I think they are a great pen and would highly recommend them! They are great for a letterer who is new or experienced looking for a nice mid-sized pens. Got a question about them? Drop it in the comments below or send me an email at lesley@letteringwithlesley.com
Want more information about pens and paper? Check out my Resource Library to find all kinds of recommendations!
Go get your letter on!
