If you’ve been around the site at all, you’ve probably seen I love stationery. I am very specific about what kind of stationery I like or will actually use. While I love some of the kawaii washis or pretty planner covers, I know that I won’t use them continuously, and then they will just sit on my desk or in my drawer. So I’ve been really picky about what I buy.
There were plenty of washis pencils, pencil cases, notebooks, and pens that I nearly bought from Tokyo Disney Resort that were absolutely adorable. But I knew that I loved them because I was in the magic of Disney and not because I was actually going to use them. So I thought I would write a post about my favorite stationery I use daily and my of my absolute must-haves for planning.
Table of Contents
My Favorite Stationery and Planning Supplies
Hobonichi Weeks
The Hobonichi Weeks is a new addition to my collection, but so far, I love it. I love the small, compact size and how it can easily slip into the pocket of my bag. I started using this as a fitness planner/tracker when I trained for the Tokyo Marathon, and I really needed to stay on top of my training and my nutrition.
Read More: Guide to Hobonichi Planners
I decided to use a separate planner to only log my workouts and what I need to eat each day for recovery would be best. Running a marathon is the biggest athletic event I’ve ever attempted, so I wanted to make sure nothing was falling through the cracks and that my personal and work planner wasn’t too crowded that it made it hard to keep track of anything.
However, I really fell in love with the compact size of the Weeks, and in 2022 I started using the Weeks as my daily planner. I’ve bought another Weeks for 2023, which really goes to show how much I love the Weeks because I rarely use the same planner from year to year, preferring to swap styles or brands. But I’ve felt really good about the Weeks over the past year or so and want to continue using it.
Some of the accessories I like with the Weeks is the Pencil Board and Dasenka Cover on Cover.
See prices on Amazon US
Read Also: The Best Japanese Planners
Muji Double Wire Notebook
The great thing about Muji Notebooks is how inexpensive and minimalistic they are. Here in Japan, I bought the notebook for 150Yen. I decided to go with the blank notebook, but they do come in grid and lined. They are a nice A6 size, so they’re small enough to throw in a bag and not add much bulk. I mostly use this for random notes, lists, or ideas while I’m out and about and didn’t bring anything else. This is definitely stationery I would recommend for writers because of the ease of carrying it wherever you are and for the blank layout that allows you to write or draw any idea that comes to mind.
See Prices on Amazon US
Read More: Best Stationery Muji Stationery
Muji Gel Ink Ballpoint Pen
In my Muji Notebook, I almost always write with a Muji Gel Ink Ballpoint Pen. I have it in the .5 size for journaling and making lists, but for my Weeks with the very thin lines, I use the .38. It writes really smooth like a gel pen which I love, but it seems to take less time to dry than other gel pens like the Sakura Gelly Roll. And, in comparison, the Muji pens actually look smaller in size than the Gelly Roll even though they are both .05, so it’s nice if you like a thinner line that still feels nice and smooth to write.
I don’t exclusively write with Muji pens, though. Some of my other favorites are the Pilot Juice Up 03, the Zebra Sarasa .5, and the Kaweco Sport Fountain Pen in Extra Fine.
See current prices on Amazon or Etsy
Read More: Beginner’s Guide to Fountain Pens
Zebra Mildliners
If you look at any stationery favorite post, you’re probably going to find mildliners on there, so I’m not very original in that. But I really do like mildliners. I find they have some really great colors in a muted tone that fits with my taste and, at least here in Japan, are fairly inexpensive.
I love that they come in dual-tip so you can have options when you’re drawing, highlighting, or marking things off. These are actually the only markers/highlighters I use in my planners or notebooks, and I have them in dozens of colors that I’ll switch out when I feel like it to give my pages a different feel.
See options on Amazon US, Stationery Pal, or Etsy.
Uni Kuru Toga Mechanical Pencil
In my adult life, I never really had a use for any pencil, let alone a mechanical pencil, but I’ve gotten really into crosswords lately, and I’m not good enough yet to do them in pen, so I wanted to find a mechanical pencil that would work for me.
The Kuru Toga pencil is a little fancier than your average mechanical pencil because it has an internal mechanism that will rotate the lead, so you always have a pointy surface to write with. It seems like such a small thing that I never knew was even needed, but I do notice that the tip stays thin and pointy no matter how long I’ve been writing, so if you can find the Kuru Toga and you use pencils a lot I would highly recommend it.
See prices on Amazon US
Hobonichi Techo
The Hobonichi is probably the most well-known Japanese planner. I bought my Jibun Techo before this Hobonichi, but I got really inspired by some stationery YouTubers, so start a daily journal in a Hobonichi. I’ve been an on-and-off journaler for years. It’s something I think every writer needs to do, but I have never been consistent with it.
So I had this idea that a small A6 daily planner would be perfect because there’s not too much space that I feel like I can’t quickly journal something, but it has dedicated pages that push me to write every day because I don’t like having blank pages. So this was the planner I went with. So far I love it. I love the Tomoe River paper that everyone raves about, and I love the size and how creative I can be in it.
See options on Amazon or on Etsy
Personalized Library Book Stamp
This is another Etsy purchase, but this time, it’s a personalized book stamp. I love this stamp so much, and I’m slowly working my way through my book collection, adding this to the front page. I have always written in my books, either where I bought it or who gave it to me, and the date, but I thought this stamp was a great addition and would be something I would like to look at in the future.
Date Stamp
This date stamp just makes me think of the library. It has to make me look old when I can remember going to the library, picking out a book, and having them actually stamp the card inside with this type of stamp. Now, it’s all digital, and I honestly don’t even know when that transition happened, but I love the look of this stamp. I use it in my journal or notebook just to add something a little different and give me the feeling I used to have when checking a new book out of the library.
Tombow Mono 2Way Eraser
I love products that have dual uses. This 2Way Eraser has a larger Tombow eraser that works well without ruining your page, and it also has white-out tape to cover up your pen mistakes. I keep this in my pen pouch just in case.
See it on Amazon
Lihit Lab Hinemo Pencil Case
I’ve been using this pencil case for a while now. It’s a great size, able to fit a lot of markers, pens, and anything else I want to bring with me daily. Even stuffed to the brim like mine is, it remains relatively flat so it can fit in most of my bags. I usually carry a few mildliners, a highlighter, scissors, my Mono 2Way, ruler, some pens, and more. It comes in a variety of colors like navy, black, beige, and red, but I love this mustard yellow and its clean look.
Buy now on Amazon Japan
Kokuyo Dotliner
The Kokuyo Dotliner is great for adding things to my planner or crafting or for the kids. I love that it holds tight which needing to use tape or glue. It’s super easy to use, really strong, and lasts. It doesn’t crinkle or bulk up the thin paper of Hobonichi planners. You can also find refills to cut down on waste and price.
Kokuyo Me Portable Scissors
Theses are the scissors I carry with me all the time in my pencil case. They’re compact, sharp, and convenient. There are a lot of varieties out there of similar thin “stick” style scissors but these are my favorite. They have an aesthetic look that I really love with a matte finish on the body and gold metal for the blades. They come in other colors like white, blue, green, purple, and pink. If you are looking for a similar style available on amazon US, check out these stickyle scissors.
Buy now on Amazon Japan
Muji Ruler
For a cheap, classic-looking ruler, the Muji ruler is perfect. Now, if you live in the U.S. and actually need to measure things with your ruler (as opposed to using it as a straight-edge) this option might not be the best one as it’s in centimeters. But, if you use centimeters, or don’t mind not measuring in inches, this is for you. It’s a strudy metal with etched lines and numbers. It’s short so it fits in my pencil case and is thin enough to not add bulk.
EMOTT Fineliners
I love the EMOTT range from Uni. They’re minimalist, come in great colors, and write well. I have the colors above (5 Color set Number 10: colors 14, 29, 62, 72, 45) as well as some other sets and single colors. EMOTT also has colored mechanical pencils which are amazing for coloring.
These colored markers are super thin and layerable. The colors, at least the ones I have, are pretty muted at first but can easily be made darker. I use them mostly for my planner to highlight certain items so they stick out.
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Like anything you use daily, your favorite stationery could change from week to week. But, for now, here are the stationery items I use basically every day and can’t live without. Are there any items you use every day? I’d love to hear about them below to help give me some ideas.
