Tutorial / Techniques

White Gel Pen Highlights: How to Make Pages Pop

Add sparkly, clean highlights with a white gel pen: where to place them, how to avoid smearing, and which details look best on marker-colored pages.

Updated February 2, 2026

Wait until the marker ink is dry

Gel pens hate wet marker ink. Let your marker layers dry first, especially if you're using alcohol markers on smoother paper.

Tiny highlights look the most realistic

  • Glossy dots on eyes, buttons, and candy.
  • Edge shines on glass, mugs, and metal.
  • Sparkle stars in cozy 'kawaii' scenes.

If the gel pen skips

Some paper/marker combos get slick. Try a slightly rougher paper next time, or use an acrylic paint marker for opaque highlights.

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