Zebra Mildliners are one of the most versatile tools in your stationery stash. With soft, dreamy colours, a double-ended design (hello chisel and fine tip), and the ability to make everything look instantly more aesthetic, they’re a go-to whether you’re bullet journalling, studying, planning your week, or annotating a book.

If you’ve got a pack (or five) of Mildliners and you're wondering how to get the most out of them, here’s your all-in-one guide for using them across different areas of your life.

15 Ways to Use Mildliners

For Journalling/Planning

Whether you’re writing your thoughts, documenting your days, or setting up creative spreads, Mildliners add the perfect soft pop of colour.

(Via @lexiesdesk)

1. Headings and Subheadings

Use the chisel tip to highlight behind your headers or create banners. Layer with black pen for contrast and a clean aesthetic.

2. Mood Tracking

Assign different colours to different moods and fill in a daily grid or circle tracker. Watching it evolve over the month is both satisfying and insightful.

3. Highlighting Key Thoughts

Draw attention to quotes, reflections, or important to-do lists by highlighting or framing sections with your Mildliner pens. Mildliners are subtle enough not to overpower the writing.

4. Borders and Dividers

Use the fine tip to add underlines, frames, or page dividers. Try layering two complementary colours for extra flair.

5. Doodle Accents

Draw hearts, stars, washi tape, or mini icons that reflect your day or mood to decorate your journal.

(Via @candis.has.a.plan)

6. Colour-Code Your Week

Create a colour code for your different weekly activities so that you can see at a glance what you have on and also notice patterns in your week to week plans. 

7. Make To-Do Lists

Make to-do lists that are aesthetic and easy to read with Mildliner checklist boxes.

(Via @mylifeplanned)

8. Habit Tracking

Mildliners make habit tracking not only easy to fill-in but also easy to read at a glance! 

For Study

Mildliners were practically made for studying. Their gentle tones are easy on the eyes—perfect for long note-taking sessions and exam prep. It’s been shown that adding colour helps improve memory retention—your notes just became 20% prettier and smarter.

9. Colour-Coded Notes

Pick 3–5 colours and assign them categories: definitions or facts, concepts or theories, exam tips or "must-remember" points, data, stats or graphs, and points to review in more depth. Keep it consistent across subjects for clarity. Put a tiny colour key at the top of your page or inside the book cover. 

(Via @studyniice )

10. Diagram Labelling

Use the fine tip for writing neatly around diagrams, and the chisel tip to highlight or group related parts.

11. Graphs and Pie Charts

Draw the most aesthetic graphs and charts with ease! Collate your data and compare results and findings with graphs and charts, using your Mildliners to colour-code or colour block sections. 

12. Highlighting Questions & Prompts

Draw attention to practice questions or prompts you want to return to later by boxing them out or using a signature colour.

For Reading & Book Annotation

Mildliners are gentle on the page—making them great for physical books and study texts.

(Via @kittycatsandpanicattacks)

13. Soft Highlighting in Books

Highlight quotes, themes or literary devices without making your book look like a neon war zone.

14. Underline with Precision

Use the fine tip for underlining key lines or terms, especially when you want to keep things tidy and minimal.

15. Margin Notes & Symbols

Create a system of symbols or short annotations in the margins, and use Mildliners to make them pop—like colour-coded stars for favourite lines.

(Via @sparklefishuk and @zebrapen_uk)

Final Thoughts

Zebra Mildliners are so much more than just pretty highlighters—they’re creative tools that make studying, journalling, and reading more enjoyable, organised, and personal.

Whether you're layering soft colours in your bullet journal, building a pastel study system, or tracking every twist in your latest read, there's a Mildliner way to do it. 💖

Do you have a favourite Mildliner colour or journalling tip? Let us know in the comments—or tag your journal pics online. We’d love to see how you use yours!

Shop Zebra Mildliners here!