The Best Bullet Journal Supplies for Beginners: 2019

By A Mystery Man Writer

Last updated 23 May 2024

The Best Bullet Journal Supplies for Beginners: 2019

To find the best bullet journal supplies for beginners — including the best bullet journal notebooks, best pens for bullet journaling, and best bullet journal accessories, we spoke with 5 bullet journal enthusiasts.
The standard notebook for the bullet journal community is a Leuchtturm1917 — specifically a medium A5 dotted journal. That’s in large part because Bullet Journal creator Carroll collaborated with the German brand to create the official Bullet Journal back in 2014, through a Kickstarter campaign. “I partnered with them because I appreciated the care they put into their products long before we worked together,” he explained in an email, adding, “I could go on about the quality and attention to detail, but in truth, the reason I loved their notebooks is because they put up with me. I never had to worry about these, they just did their job better than any other I had used.”
Though there was a clear consensus on the type of notebook that was best, every single one of the bullet journalers I spoke with preferred a different type of pen — but according to Carroll, that’s perfectly fine. “It’s important to me that people figure out what works best for them,” he said, admitting that for years, he used a simple Bic Cristal pen because he didn’t have to worry about losing them.
“I love these pens! I started bullet journaling and wanted nice pens to motivate me to use them every day. I love the variety of colors and that they don’t bleed through the paper. I’ve made postcards with them and love how they turn out. I’m happy every time I unroll the case and see the multitude of colors. These would be a great gift for a young artist, students to color-code notes, and people who enjoy crafts and/or calligraphy.”
Three of the bullet journalists, including Carroll, recommend keeping a ruler on hand for creating borders or grids to track behavior. Carroll uses a triangular ruler when designing things, “small enough to fit into the back pocket of my notebook.” And though this ruler isn’t the same one Carroll has, it’s small enough to fit in an A5-sized notebook.
MT is the premier maker of Japanese washi paper tape (a strong but thin masking tape) that can be used in so many crafty ways.