Typo is an Aussie stationery store – to be honest, it’s a bit hit and miss. Their pens are nice and they have some nice notebooks but the rest of the stuff in the shop is a bit of a junky miss-match of things.

They were having a clearance sale on some pens (for just $1) so of course I couldn’t resist picking up a few. Hey, a couple of dollars on pens is cheaper than, well, basically anything else you could get addicted to! That’s how I’m justifying it to my frugal self anyway 🙂

This is not a sponsored post – I just really like pens 🙂 

I got a variety of pens (and a couple of highlighters). First things first – pen testing!

Typo Pens Review

Gel pens

I purchased a few gel pens – mainly the Haven-Scent pens as they were on clearance for 1! (from $3 each). I used to buy scented pens from Smiggle back in the day so got a bit excited when I saw these. While they are scented, the scent isn’t very strong. Maybe because they were on clearance…  I could only find a few colors: blue, pink, purple and black.

The black smudged quite a bit – these pens are rather inky. I don’t think I’d buy them again when there are so many other (better) gel pens to choose from!

Related: Ultimate list of the best planner pen brands and how to choose colors for color coding 

Typo ‘Smooth Gel Operator 1.0mm’ – the color of this pen was deceiving. I was expecting it to be a nice bright aqua color, instead it came out more of a normal blue color. I also have the black version of this pen and both have become a bit inky –  the tip now feels thicker than 1.0mm the more I write with them. I really only use these pens for headings.

Tip: Make sure you check how much ink is in the pens before purchasing – you don’t want to accidentally buy the tester pen!

Ballpoint Pens

I much prefer ballpoint pens to gel pens (with the exception of the Papermate Inkjoy Gel 0.7mm) as they’re less prone to smudging.

The ’Get a Grip’ ballpoint pen writes fine, much the same as any other ballpoint pen. I wouldn’t buy it especially but they do 3 for $5 promotions so if you need another one to get the discount, this could be a good, everyday use pen to add.

The ‘all write’ ballpoint pen was also much the same as any other ballpoint pen.

The ‘push it’ pencil pen (the pen body literally looks like a pencil) wasn’t that great – the color was dull and the pen itself feels like really cheap quality.

Felt Tip Pens

‘I’m so fine’ (Typo like to give their products unusual names) 0.4mm felt tip reminded me of the Stabilo Point 88 0.4mm pens so if you  live in Australia like I do and are having a hard time finding a place that sells them (I’ve only seen them at Officeworks, Eckersleys and Mega Office Supplies (online store), this pen may be a more readily available alternative.

5 in 1 pens

These pens are ideal for traveling so you don’t have to carry multiple pens but you can still do color coding. The colors of this pen were a bit dull, but it did have colors you don’t normally find in multi-pens including purple and aqua.

Markers

I purchased the ‘Make Your Mark’ dual end highlighter. The fat tip reminded me of the Triplus Color 1.0mm markers. This was a really nice dual end marker – if only they came in more colors!

Highlighters

Erasable highlighters

Typo’s erasable highlighters are just as good as the Frixion Erasable. They cost about the same price. Unlike the Frixion ones, these have a white tip on the end so you highlight like normal, then flip it round when you want to erase. There’s less effort and rubbing involved than the Frixion ones and the colors are brighter too! They were a bit inky / leaky though 🙁

I could only find these in pink, orange and yellow.

Related: Review of Frixion Erasable Highlighters by Pilot – are they worth the cost? 

Related: Favorite erasable highlighters for planning

Wax highlighters

These remind me of zooms (twistable crayons) but with a much brighter color. I really like these – I hope the wax means they’ll last longer than a normal highlighter.  I could only find them in 3 colors though: yellow, green and pink

Related: Simple method for organized brain dumping of blog post ideas using a notebook and zooms 

Want more planner reviews?

• Ultimate list of the best planner pen brands and how to choose colors for color coding 
• Custom Erin Condren Planner Cover versus DIY planner cover: which is better?
• MAMBI Mini Happy Planner Review (pros, cons, should you buy it?) 
• Ultimate list of the best planner pen brands and how to choose colors for color coding 
• My all time favorite planner pens: Pilot Frixion Erasable Pens Review
• Mi Goals Planners Haul & Review (Planners made in Australia)

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