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Sunday, May 24, 2015

Art Supply Review: Feeling Fancy with ZIG Cocoiro

I've been trying my hand at calligraphy for a while now and that includes the craving for cool lettering pens! A recurring tool I've been reading about is the ZIG Kuretake Cocoiro Lettering Pen which is why I decided to give it a try! Read on to see my experience with it!


The ZIG Cocoiro is sold separately as body and cartridge. both of them come in a ton, and I do mean *a ton,* of cool colors! I got myself the Starry Night body with Dark Blue ink!

You simply have to insert the cartridge into the body like so, and the cartridge is going to stick out of the other end. A lot of people find this weird but I think ZIG designed it this way so that users wouldn't get confused with the color of refill they're currently using.

The Cocoiro is able to create extremely thin lines with its tough nib. Even with my heavy hand, it has enough resistance for people like me to create the finest of lines. Bad side is that creating thick lines requires a lot of strength. I can definitely say that this pen is perfect for writing long letters and documents unlike most brush pens which create thick lines and are more for creating posters that require large writing. Otherwise, the Cocoiro provides wonderful control, but the ink flow is a bit inconsistent. Creating a perfect stream of ink requires slower strokes.

It works as a lovely sketch pen as well! I bet using a black refill would make this a great sketching pen.

My amateur calligraphy to celebrate Chinese New Year! Haha! Had a lot of fun doing this, but as you can see, I still need tons of practice!

Overall, the ZIG Cocoiro pen isn't expensive at all, as far as lettering pens go. I got mine for around 200php from Swirls & Strokes which is my go-to online supply store. I think anyone who's interested in calligraphy should pick this up as a first "real" calligraphy tool.

Do you know any cool lettering pens! If so, tell me about your favorites in the comments! :D

26 comments:

  1. Very nice pens! Those sharp ones look so fine. How expensive is the refill ink, though? With practice, you will use up a lot of ink.

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    1. The body is 80php while the cartridge goes for 150php. I guess it isn't really expensive for a lettering pen. Haha! :D

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  2. Your writing is very neat and beautiful!~ Great pen to write arty words!

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  3. Those are nice pens, bro. I only familiar with the tech pens I have used in my drawing class back in college. Seems you have drawing skill. Harness it my friend.

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  4. I also wanna learn calligraphy because of all the posts I see in my timeline everyday! Haha. When I first saw your post, I thought the pen would cost about Php500+. That's very affordable! I'll remember this pen when I'm already good at calligraphy. For now, I'm just using my Mongol pencil for trial and error. Hehe.

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  5. The pen is nice but I think I'm going to freak out when it's dropped. I wish I had your talent - I look forward to seeing more of your work.

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  6. There seem to be a recent trend with bloggers or influencers getting interested with calligraphy! I'm glad you try and attempt it too! It will take some time to practise and get them right! Keep up the good work!

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  7. Yes, truly great for pens with amazing fine point for writing. Lots of brands can be utilized for calligraphy. I''ll try to purchase this brand online.

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  8. I don't buy any special pen. I just pick up a few from the dollar store and I'm ok with that. These look great for those who are into calligraphy though.

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  9. i want this pen.. looks handy and stylish...

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  10. Wow! The price of ZIG Cocoiro pen is pocket-friendly. May I know how much is a cartridge? - KarenT

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    1. The body is 80php while the cartridge goes for 150php :)

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  11. I've been bitten by the typography and calligraphy bug as well, starting out with 0.8 Unipin (which I used to always carry around in college) and a 1.0 Artline Calligraphy pen, both from National Bookstore for less than 200 pesos each. So far they;re perfect for a newbie like me, haven't posted any of my works yet haha, maybe when I gain more confidence.

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  12. It's nice that it can go for different stroke sizes. It can really help you doing your sketches.

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  13. I’ve been searching for a good lettering pen time now. It’s fun to just doodle away on a fresh notebook.

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  14. I love it. I wish I could have of em. Do you have red ones? :D I like how it touches the paper and marks its print. Interesting. Wonder how much it would cost me in Php.

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    1. The body is 80php while the cartridge goes for 150php. Both the body and the ink have tons of colors to choose from including red! :D

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  15. I dunno if my previous comment went through. I am getting some cocoiro in June! I got a Zig Fudebiyori and a scroll and brush. You are right about the thick strokes. -katrina centeno

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  16. I love calligraphy pens even though I haven't studied the art myself. You did a good job on the Lunar Year message... I like it.

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  17. Your are quite an artiste! I love your sketches and that calligraphy too. It's not just the tool I am sure :)

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  18. Your zig pe is actually cheaper than most sellers! Now I want to get one of my own.

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  19. You are truly talented! Love the photographs that you have clicked :)

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  20. Your calligraphy in Chinese is not amateurish at all... you can write quite well ;)
    I love your sketch of the lady profile. Perhaps you might want to consider joining a sketching group online?

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  21. The ZIG Cocoiro pen is quite useful and I like your Chinese calligraphic its neat. Do remember to check

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  22. Did you study Chinese? You Chinese calligraphy is very good! The strokes are all well-placed! Anyhow, I haven't attempted to get into calligraphy yet, but I've always been quite interested. :) I have a Unipin and Artline Calligraphy Pen which I use for linearts and other drawings. XD Maybe I'll try my hands on calligraphy using them first, before moving on to other tools. :D

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