Sarasa pen in 10 colors - WOW! - these are great

I like multi-color pen sets for a variety of reasons.

When I’m grading, I can mark various concerns in different colors to help students note patterns. For instance, if a student is starting multiple sentences with words like “and,” “but,” “so,” and “hence,” I can circle those so that these tags stand out. Words spelled wrong can be circled in a different color. The edits don’t all run together.

At home and with my own writings or projects, I use much the same approach. One color can stand for critical grocery items and another color for those that I might buy but only on sale and still another color for items where I have coupons.

Even if I’m not tracking something, it’s simply fun to have various colors. Life should be about more than black and blue ink.

Generally I keep a selection of boxed pens in different colors, but the color selection is usually limited with boxes. Other than blue and black, most pen options are red or perhaps green.

When I saw the Sarasa Gel Retractables with 10 colors, I just had to buy a pack. I wasn’t familiar with the brand and wasn’t sure I’d like the gels (though have tried some gels that were OK), but the set looked nice, so I gave it a try.

I just love these pens. In addition to a great color selection ranging from standard black to burgundy and even lime green, these pens simply write great and are comfortable to use.

The medium points are thin enough to do fine writing but thick enough to see well even in the lighter colored inks. I can write notes even on single spaced pages without having the words look all cramped up. My writing is not always neat, but these glide and make my words easy to read.

The Sarasa pens are a bit thicker than the average pen and also have comfort grips which make them wider at the bottom where I hold on. The cushion is firm enough so that they are easy to hold but with enough “give” to feel great in my hand. This is really important when doing marathon grading sessions. Some pens really wipe me out after a paper or two. These do not.

I’ve never had any problems with these leaking, splotching, or any other typical concerns I’ve had with some pens. I do keep them in the case, because they look nice all lined up and ready to use. I can’t say how they’d do carried in a pocket. I don’t generally wear anything where I’d have pens on me that way. But, they do roll around on the floor when I’m working and never make messes.

One note I would make is that the tip of each pen has a little cover that must be removed before using. The tip is the same color as the ink and can be popped off with your fingernail. That took me a moment to figure out when I pulled out the first pen. So, do check and make sure you remove the safety tip.

I buy and use lots of pens. I teach writing as well as doing a lot of writing myself. Both my boys are in school and use loads of pens. In addition to selecting my own family pens, I have the honor of picking the pens at work. The job guys just aren’t into that, so I am the official pen shopper/tester.

I can say that this is one of my best buys as far as pens. I rotate the colors, and this set is lasting a long time. The next time I order pens, I will also look at the boxed, single-color options. Right now, I’m using these as specialty pens (given the range of colors), but I would be happy with these as everyday pens in standard colors too. The black and blues are terrific as are the more interesting colors.

Sarasa gets a thumbs up in my notebook.