Most creative desks have a cup overflowing with pens, markers, and tools, even though you reach for the same few every day. There is the Muji gel pen for sketches, a couple of render markers you trust, and then about 15 other things you keep just in case. The Pareto Principle says 80 percent of your output comes from 20 percent of your stationery, which feels accurate once you notice how often you dig past everything else.
Luxury diaries and planners are no longer mere tools for organization, but an opportunity to note the small details that define a life well lived. But how to select one that will see you through the new year? How to choose the perfect luxury planner or diary 1. Define its role Before anything else, consider how your planner will serve you. Are you a devoted note-taker or a meticulous scheduler? Whether it's destined for appointments, ambitions or introspection, clarity of purpose will quickly narrow the field.
Level up your writing supplies with these pastel highlighters. Each of the eight soft hues comes with a blocky shape that's easy to grip as well as a chiseled tip. "The best highlighters for planners! These don't bleed through pages and have smooth lines. They are great quality and the colors are perfect for planners because they're not too dark, so you can still see your writing,"
A pair of the *iconic* Kaco pens (known for their adorable heart tops) in your choice of Pantone color. They have every Color of the Year going back to 2000, so you can pick a year with sentimental value...like 2025, the year you discovered your new fave pen. Promising review: "Love the way this pen writes!! It's so cute, too!" - Isabel Get them from Amazon for $13.99 (available in 17 colors).
As bottom lines and frayed nerves tighten around the end of the year, it truly is the thought that counts. Those you love will know you care, with or without the thing that goes with it. For those who'd like to sweeten the deal, though, Design Milk has scoured the web and filtered through the holiday noise to bring you 10 modern gifts all under $25. There's something for everyone, with gift ideas ranging from playful and fun to thoughtful and practical.
The best gifts are the ones that are weird in the most genius ways. These Amazon finds quickly cross from "what is that?" to "I need that," and these clever gadgets don't even cost more than $25. These items turn ordinary tasks into fun experiences, spark delight with unexpected functions, or bring a lightning bolt of personality into someone's everyday routine. The gift ideas on this list can spark laughter while making people pause and realize that they actually do need something this weird.
Please, give me any excuse at all to test out inky new pens, peel apart a stack of sticky notes, or crease open a fresh notebook. Thankfully, online stationery brand Papier has answered my pleas in a way even more gorgeous than I could have imagined: the 24 Days of Desk Delights Advent Calendar. I tested the advent calendar for myself, and I am pleased to report this treasure trove of stationery is downright dreamy.
Niimura created a place where one can do just that. Chinatown's Paper Plant Co. is her stationery outpost, made of two small storefronts that share a space with Thank You Coffee and boast outdoor seating. A communal destination since 2020, the shop has earned a reputation for specializing in notebooks, stickers and pens from Japan. Or, as Niimura describes Paper Plant's aesthetic: "cute."
For the past four decades, a massive event older than Dreamforce and TechCrunch Disrupt combined has been drawing crowds of thousands from all over the world to airport-adjacent hotel ballrooms south of the city. Held during the last weekend of August, the gathering is the second largest of its kind in the country and a decidedly big deal for anyone in the know. It's the San Francisco International Pen Show.
The AFMAT Electric Pencil Sharpener is shaped like a robot and looks pretty much like a toy, yet it is a fully functional automatic pencil sharpener with a fun and colorful design. It's easy to use: simply drop the pencil in, and once it's sharpened to the level you choose, it will automatically eject the pencil.
Field Notes' one-day-only film festival celebrates the intentionality behind their quarterly notebooks, showcasing short films that reflect their ethos of creativity and tangible tools.
