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These Affordable Drawing Pens Are a Must-Have

An artist tracing over a pencil drawing using a Sakura Pigma Drawing marker.
Tom Nyugen/Sakura

Whether you’re new to drawing or you’re an old pro, the right set of drawing pens makes a huge difference. The good thing is, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to get some.

Why the Right Set of Pens Is Important

Drawing by hand is a process. Most artists start by sketching an idea out with a pencil and making changes with the use of a handy-dandy eraser for mistakes. Once your sketch is ready to become a permanent piece of art, you need something that doesn’t erase or rub off.

What makes the right set of drawing pens important is that, unlike using a permanent marker or colored pencils, you get more precise lines. Using gel pens leaves you with a risk of smearing because of slow dry times, but drawing pens are designed to dry faster.

Another benefit of drawing pens is the array of tip sizes. There are more choices than a ballpoint tip, fine-line marker, and a chunky marker. Much like drawing pencils, drawing pens come in millimeters, brush styles, graphic pens, and other options, including colors.

Pigma Micron Black Artist Pens from Sakura

Pigma Micron Drawing pens

If you scroll through your social media feed and see your artistic friend’s photos of recent art, you just might see Pigma Micron pens in the picture. There are two major reasons these pens are popular with artists—they extremely affordable and they work wonderfully.

They work so great because they use archival PIGMA ink. The amazing benefits of this ink include that it is waterproof, it doesn’t fade, it doesn’t smear, and it’s meant to last for generations.

You can get eight pens in various point sizes for under twenty dollars, including a brush and graphic pen. You can buy brush pens or graphic pens on their own as well as colored pens and calligraphy pens, all with the same high-quality ink.


Inktober is the perfect time to invest in a great set of drawing pens. These Sakura pens are sure to help you with sleek lines and art that pops.

Yvonne Glasgow Yvonne Glasgow
Yvonne Glasgow is a professional writer with two decades of experience. She has written and edited for nutritionists, start-ups, dating companies, SEO firms, newspapers, board game companies, and more. Yvonne is a published poet and short story writer, and she is a life coach. Read Full Bio »
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