History
Gel pens were perfected by Sakura and introduced to Japan in the mid 80’s. After extensive research and development, Sakura became the first company to successfully create a gel-based ink. The engineers at Sakura discovered how to put the gel ink into a pen to create a smooth, consistent writing tool. Gel pens were introduced to the United States in the late 80’s by Sakura of America with the pen known as the Gelly Roll®.
Since then, the Gelly Roll has become a staple for many crafters. It traveled from Japan to the U.S. after many trials and has survived through the ups and downs of the pen industry. Numerous colors and styles have been introduced since the original black, blue and red pens with more continually being introduced to the craft world.
Why Gel Pens?
Quality gel pens allow for smooth writing as opposed to felt-tip pens which can drag as you write. With gel pens, you can control the ink flow with the roller type tip as you write for consistent quality. Felt-tip pens, on the other hand, wear-down at the tip over time so they do not flow as smoothly and provide less accuracy in writing. True quality gel pens, like the Gelly Roll, are designed to last longer than some of the mass-market quality pens.
Types
You can find gel pens in an assortment of styles. The Gelly Roll itself comes in 65 colors in both transparent and opaque inks. Here are some of the most popular Gelly Roll pens and the paper they work best on:
• Regular Gel Pens: With 11 ink colors and white, these transparent inks work well on regular white bond paper and are available in medium and fine-point tips.
• Metallic: These sparkly, opaque gel inks write on both light and dark papers as well as glossy and matte surfaces and come in a choice of 14 ink colors.
• Moonlight®: Available in 10 ink colors, these bright, opaque inks illuminate on white or black paper, will not bleed through on vellum and “glow” under black light.
• Silver Shadow®: Metallic silver inks that create a colored border as you write and works best on more fibrous paper. Available in 5 border colors.
• Stardust® Glitter Pens: Glittery ink recommended for light papers with 24 ink colors to choose from. The glitter effect shows best in sunlight.
Proper Storage
Gel pens are also easy to maintain. They do not require being stored vertically or horizontally as do other pens. One thing to keep in mind when putting your gel pens away is to keep the cap on when not in use and if you keep them in pen cups, try not to drop it into the cup. This can cause shock to the gel inside by disturbing the pen’s vacuum and is commonly known as “ink drop”. If you do store your gel pens in a cup just make sure to place it in gently and you will be able to use the pens even longer.
Sakura, the leader in gel pen manufacturer, has invested years of research and technology to provide scrapbookers, paper crafters and artists with superior gel pens in every color you can imagine. Remember, when you choose a gel pen, it is quality that matters not simply quantity or a low price. The world of gel pens is alive and well with only more excitement to come.
Contributing author: Peter Ouyang of Sakura of America
