Aesthetic Notes | Hobbies
Byalice
Have you ever wanted to take aesthetic notes like the girls you see on Instagram and Tiktok? So did I, when I started my college career in engineering. My notes were a huge mess, but I turned it around within a year and even started scoring extra credit with the TAs on my homework for having neat work! My GPA skyrocketed, and my classmates even started paying me for my notes! I’m about to let you in on everything you need to take pretty, aesthetic notes are insanely Insta-worthy.
P.S.: I’m also left-handed, so all of the products I use and recommend will not smudge on you!
Everything You Need to Take Aesthetic Notes
Pens & Highlighters
- Tombow Fudenosuke Brush Pens (for page headings)
- These are the brush pens I absolutely recommend for any calligraphy-style writing. In the two-pack, one of the brush pens is firmer than the other, so you can explore which style is better suited for you.
- Pastel highlighters
- I use Zebra Mildliners, Stabilo Swing Cool, and Uni Propus Window
- The Zebra Mildliner and Uni Propus Window highlighters are double-sided, with one end being a fine-tip. It is super handy for underlining and boxing!
- Colored pens
- I use Zebra Sarasa Clip, Muji, and Pilot Juice Up
- I started out using Muji pens, but since they closed most of their stores during the pandemic, they’re a lot less accessible. A fantastic alternative is the Zebra Sarasa Clip. They’re sold at many major retailers and they’re super smooth and reliable!
- Black pens
- I use the Pentel Energel 0.5mm and Muji 0.38mm . The Pentel Energel dries super quickly and is perfect for lefties. It also never smudges when I highlight over it!
- Note: Amazon only sells the “Made in Mexico” Pentel Energel, whereas I had to track down the “Made in Japan” Pentel Energel at a Japanese stationery store. While this isn’t necessary, the body of the Made in Japan pen is noticeably sturdier than the Made in Mexico pen.
- I use the Pentel Energel 0.5mm and Muji 0.38mm . The Pentel Energel dries super quickly and is perfect for lefties. It also never smudges when I highlight over it!
Other Tools
- Clear ruler
- I use this two-pack from Amazon that has a 6-inch and 12-inch!
- Correction tape
- The Tombow Correction Tape and Office Depot Correction Tape are so smooth and friendly for left-handed users
- Dot-Line Lay-flat Notebook (Lay-flat notebooks are also very left-handed user-friendly)
- The dot-line notebook style makes it so easy to create neat lines and boxes without looking too busy
- My absolute favorite is the Kokuyo Campus Notebook. The paper is thick enough so that highlighters won’t bleed through, and smooth enough so the paper doesn’t damage your highlighters and brush pens. The 7mm line spacing is college-ruled, and the A4 size paper is the size of your standard notebook.
- Clear Sticky Notes
- This is a must if you are taking classes with lots of drawings and diagrams. You will hardly be able to tell it’s there, and your markers and pens will not smudge after they dry.
6 Tips to Taking Aesthetic Notes
1. Pick a color scheme
This part is so fun! Pick a highlighter and pen color for this set of notes and stick to it! I like to choose whatever color best corresponds to the topic. I use the highlighter for headings and subheadings, and colored pen for terms. If you have sub-subheadings, go in with a gray highlighter.
In the above picture, I’m using a red and gray Zebra Mildliner Highlighter, and a Zebra Sarasa pen in maroon.
2. Practice calligraphy for headings
This is where your brush pens come in handy! I learned calligraphy by watching Studyquill on Youtube, and I practiced by putting on a Netflix show and just writing whatever the characters were saying. Write slowly and learn how to control the amount of pressure you’re putting down on the page.
Amazon also sells calligraphy practice books for beginners, which offer stencils to help you get used to the shape of calligraphy letters. Eventually you’ll build your own style to your lettering!
3. Practice handwriting
The key to neat, pretty handwriting is writing slowly and on the lines. This seems super obvious but it makes a world of difference. Your favorite study vloggers and Instagrammers all write incredibly slowly, but speed up their videos so you would never know.
There are times in lecture where I’ve had a cheap, $1 notebook to scribble notes in, and I took the time to rewrite them neatly afterwards. It was super extra but it helped reinforce class material and boost my understanding! When we transitioned to online classes, I would just watch lecture recordings and pause every few seconds to take my time writing things out. It is time-consuming but so worth it!
Like anything else, practice is perfect. Similar to calligraphy, put on a TV show and write out the words you hear neatly and slowly!
4. Use a clear ruler
People always ask me how I get such straight lines, and the answer is I use a clear ruler for everything! This Amazon 2-pack comes with a 6-inch and 12-inch ruler. The 6-inch ruler is perfect for packing in pencil cases and using on small spaces. I highlight headings, create graphs/charts, and draw boxes with it. Combined with the dot-line notebooks, your lines will be perfectly spaced and straight.
5. Use transparent sticky notes
If you’re in a class with lots of drawings and diagrams, transparent sticky notes are you best friend. I was skeptical at first, but after trying them I wont go back! They save so much time, make your notes look professional, and mildliners and Pentel Energel pens won’t smudge on them. I use the Office Depot translucent sticky notes; they’re so clear that you’ll hardly be able to tell they’re there.
6. Find inspiration
There are so many creators out there with amazing note-taking aesthetics. I started out looking at @studyquill ‘s work on Instagram and Youtube. I also draw inspiration from different accounts on Tiktok just by searching for “aesthetic notes”. Everybody does headers and coloring differently, so it’s all about finding a style that is true to you!
This post was all about how to take aesthetic, pretty notes.
