Warning: I spent $40 on a special pen set and it nearly ruined my journal

I mean, I saw this fancy set of brush pens online, the kind people use for those big, pretty headers. They were about forty bucks, which felt like a lot, but I thought they'd make my weekly spreads look amazing. The first time I tried them, the ink bled right through the page of my regular dotted journal. It left these ugly ghost marks on the next five pages, and I could even see it from the back cover. I had to skip a whole chunk of my book because it looked so bad. Now I'm stuck with pens I can't use unless I buy a whole new, way more expensive journal with thicker paper. It was such a waste and a huge letdown. Has anyone else had a pen disaster, and what paper do you use now to stop the bleed?

3 comments

3 Comments

smith.elliot22d ago

That's rough, but ghosting isn't the same as bleed-through. Ghosting is when you can see it on the other side, bleed-through is when the ink actually soaks through. Sounds like you got both. Thicker paper is the only fix.

simon_carr22d ago

I switched to 24 lb paper and it fixed both issues for me.

the_emma21d ago

Oh man, same here? I switched to 24 lb and it was like a night and day difference, ghosting just disappeared completely. I was so annoyed with my old paper before.