Archive for October, 2010

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Posts from Paris

Thursday, October 14th, 2010

We return exhausted from the streets of Paris, not thanks to shopping for a change, but from an endless display of the newest and most exciting eyewear the world has to offer. 1,000 exhibitors showed off their wares to over 45,000 visitors from all over the world. The show started on September 23rd, kicking off four fun filled days when we saw everything from frame materials using space age technology to a return to traditional wood and horn frames.

As we expected, vintage eyewear was a popular theme, with designers looking to history for fresh updates for the present. Retro shapes that echoed the familiar NHS ranges of the last century were re-worked for a new look that reminded us of the past but with fresh eyes. Luxury detailing such as beautifully worked inlays and carefully crafted sculpting took the place of ostentatious bling this year. It’s all pretty cool and stylish in a subtle way.

The vintage theme was carried through with chunky shapes, matt finishes, and the use of age old materials like wood and horn. The look is also notably unisex, with frames that easily make the transition from boy to girl eyewear. Girls are pretty lucky because anything goes for them this season, boys have to put up with having their look pinched by geeky girls who want some edgy cool!

Plastic, in the form of Acetate, was everywhere, in various degrees of density, going from solid materials to translucent finishes. Metal, fading in popularity over the past couple of years, was not fighting to make a come back, although every collection featured at least a few metals! Metal was used to add decorative features, with technical details like hinges and brow bars providing interest and function.

Then there were the quirky ideas – such as frames with details that glow in the dark – fab to find your friends when clubbing or at Halloween parties! The story was that they store light during the day and release it in the dark to let your eyes truly glow! Then there were frames made of Bamboo, space age alloys and plastics, and even people hula-hooping in specs for charity! We returned exhausted but full of inspiration and ideas for the upcoming months!

Glasses Online

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Sideways Style

Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

The sides or arms of a spectacle frame are two simple bits of plastic or metal that hold the frame behind the ears. Their function is to hold the frame front in a stable orientation to keep the lenses in front of the eyes. To the frame designer the sides are a fantastic opportunity to add style and decoration to the less obvious area of the frame.

Our most common side styles for adults is the hockey end tip that hooks the sides behind the ears, or the chunky library side that hugs the head. There are pluses and minuses to each style. The hockey side provides a stable fit and the slender tips tuck in behind the ears in an unobtrusive manner. They need to be adjusted so that the sides sit close to the skin but don’t dig in. If the sides are metal, a plastic end tip is added, as metal on the skin can cause an allergic reaction.

Library sides are thicker and curve inwards to fit against the head, sitting just above the crook of the ear. They are useful if the frame is heavy as they support the frame weight without the sides sitting on the tender skin behind the ear. They look good in sporty styles too, giving a sleek style that’s usually combined with practicality – Oakley for instance use a special material that sticks to the skin as you get hot, so they always stay in place.

Over the years there have been many ingenious ways of keeping the frames on the face! Metal sides with elastic attached to hold the frame on for children, curled sides with hooks that hang onto the ears. Sides with little elastic inserts that pull out of the frames and lock for sports! Simple is usually best however, so for the moment our hockey ends and Library sides are the way to go. And remember that if you have a problem with the fitting of your specs, changing sides may be the answer!

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Red and Yellow and Pink and Green………

Tuesday, October 12th, 2010

Colour blindness sounds like a pretty scary condition, and for those of us with ‘normal’ colour vision, it’s a concept that’s alien. How can you not see colours? That’s the way the world is, surely?! But for those that suffer from what is essentially a slight disability, it can be at best a nuisance and at worst a real danger.

Colour vision deficiency may be a gentler way of describing the condition, and it refers to the person’s inability to see the differences between some colours in the visible spectrum. Usually genetic, you can be born with it or it can arise in later life due to injury, disease or exposure to certain chemicals. The X chromosome contains genes affecting colour vision, so as the males of our species only have one X chromosome they are more likely to suffer from colour vision defects. 5% of men suffer from the commonest form, where they cannot distinguish red from green.

Our retinas contain light receptors called cones that allow us to see in normal light conditions and rods which work in low light. Usually there are three types of cone cells containing pigments that set to work when light hits them. They all work on different wavelengths of light and therefore colour, so any deficiency in the cones affects our perception of colour.

Depending on the type of cone cells lacking, there are different problems with colour perception. If two or three of the cone pigments are absent then you won’t be able to distinguish any colours at all. Any degree of colour deficiency may lead to problems with your chosen career – it’s not ideal for an electrician to have trouble with colours for instance! So have your children’s colour vision checked at an early age and seek advice from your optician if you have any concerns. The test involves picking out coloured patterns from specially devised charts, so it’s painless and quick!

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Road Test – Plastic Frames

Monday, October 11th, 2010

I’ve worn glasses for about five years, and going into glasses as an adult I always felt very self-conscious in them. I’ve chosen rimless glasses in the past, but I’m always sitting on them or putting things down on them! So for my latest prescription I’ve chosen a much sturdier and bolder plastic frame.

When the specs arrived I put them on ready for work, and realised I’d need to re-think my look! I didn’t need to wear as much eye make up, as my eyes seemed very defined by the frame anyway. I did experiment with some lipstick to balance the solid colour of my new burgundy red glasses.

I thought the glasses would feel heavy but they absolutely didn’t, without the spindly nose pads from my rimless they fitted all around my nose and felt very ‘at home’ on my face to start with. I could see the rims when I looked at them, but when I got on with driving etc I didn’t think about them any more. Examining the frame, there are far fewer screws and bits and bobs, so they not only look sturdier, I know they’ll be hard wearing. My rimless were always dropping to bits, even when I was being really careful with them, but there doesn’t seem to be much to go wrong with the plastics!

After a couple of weeks wear I was still really pleased with the comfort and how quickly I’ve got used to them. There were odd reflections around the edges of the rimless specs, which did annoy me under bright lights and in the sun. That’s all gone, plus I’m pleased that my frame edge covers the lenses, so I won’t chip them like I did my old pair.

All around me absolutely everyone has commented on my new specs! I’m happy to report that all the remarks were favourable! The girls were jealous and wanted to know where‘d got them from, the boys all seemed to think they’re really sexy! One said it was that typical male fantasy of the sexy secretarial type – phew! I wish I’d chosen them years ago!

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Recipes to Safeguard your Sight

Sunday, October 10th, 2010

Good nutrition is as essential for eye health as well as for general health. The leading cause of impaired sight in our society is Age Related Macular Degeneration, a disease that leads to loss of central vision. The macular is an area of the retina, the light sensitive layer of cells that lines our eyeballs. This is where we get our detailed vision from, and when the macula degenerates this impacts daily life by making it hard to see faces and anything in our central vision, and glasses won’t restore your sight. Eating the right foods now will help to give the retina essential nutrients to protect it.

Green Smoothie

  • Bag of Salad Spinach
  • 4 Carrots
  • 1 Green Pepper
  • A large handful of Kale
  • 3 Apples
  • A handful of fresh parsley

Choose vegetables which are as fresh as possible. Wash thoroughly and peel the apples. Chop everything into even chunks and then blend or juice into a smoothie. You can store this in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Variations – Add chopped ginger or add different herbs to your taste.

green smoothie

Blueberry Fruit Salad

Use fruits which are in season, in a mixture of colours – raspberries, blackberries, and the largest portion of blueberries. Keep all fruit as fresh as possible.

Traffic Light Salad

Bag of salad leaves – including a high proportion of spinach

Tomatoes

Carrots

1 red  & 1 green pepper

1 red onion, peeled

Handful of chopped parsley

Dressing

125ml good Olive Oil

2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar

1 Clove of garlic, chopped

1 Tablespoon of chopped herbs – basil or chives

½ teaspoon of sugar

Mix together all the dressing ingredients, cover, and leave in the fridge for at least an hour before you need it. Prepare the salad just before serving.

Finely slice the peppers, tomatoes, and onions. Use a potato peeler to shred the carrot into thin strips. Lay the salad leaves on a large platter and scatter the green peppers over them. Then lay the red salad ingredients over the top, interspersed with carrot strips. Finish with a scattering of herbs. Stir the dressing well and drizzle over.

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Scratch the Surface

Saturday, October 9th, 2010

Nowadays plastic is our material of choice for lenses, for strength, durability, and of course excellent vision! More than 80% of lenses sold across the US and European market are plastic, as glass is heavier and doesn’t have the impact resistance of plastic. The market for plastic is still growing, and the most popular form used today actually came about by accident during the Second World War.

During the war raw materials became scarce, and research began to focus on alternatives. Polystyrene resins and nylon had already been used since the 1930s, and industry began to explore the possibilities of other forms man-made materials. A company called PPG industries created a new compound in 1940, which they called 39 – the 39th attempt at this particular clear resin! During the War it was used in the Aviation industry for fuel tanks and clear fuel lines, but when peace arrived the company were left with about 38,000 pounds of excess product in liquid resin form. They began to experiment with uses for the material, and various companies took an interest due to its useful properties of high impact resistance and clarity. Lens manufacturers Essilor, Armorlite and Sola started making CR39 plastic lenses, and from the 1960s onwards  popularity has grown.

CR39 plastic is cast in a mould and then cured. The entire range of lens powers can be worked on CR39, and to make it completely user-friendly it’s mostly treated with a scratch resistant coating. Treat your plastic lenses with care and they’ll give you many years of service. Don’t lay them curve side down on any flat surfaces, wash them with warm soapy water before you polish them. Don’t put anything abrasive in the case with them! Next time you put your specs on and they give you crystal clear vision, take a moment to appreciate the history of a remarkable product that makes our lives so much better and safer today.

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Tailor Made Prescription Sunglasses

Friday, October 8th, 2010

As prices have come down and the wonders of Internet shopping have made glasses more freely available, people are realising its feasible and economical to have prescription sunglasses. Rather than struggling on with a single pair of clear glasses, or dangerously driving in tints with no power, you can now have the best of both worlds and order a bespoke, one off pair of specs made just for you.

For you sunnies you can re-use an old frame, choose any ordinary prescription frame, or have your prescription glazed into a standard sunspec. So what should you choose and what are the pit-falls?

If you re-use an old frame, check with the optician that it will withstand re-glazing. It’s a false economy to end up with specs that won’t last long or that split while the lenses are being fitted. Other than that, choose a tint colour that suits your frame, and make sure it’s big enough to give good coverage of the eye, to keep the sun out.

Choosing a standard frame means that you know it is good quality and will do the job, and will be customised for your needs with your choice of lens colour. You may want to size up from non-prescription specs, so it looks more like a normal sunnie, and as we said above, to keep the sun out. This is your chance to go for a bolder, chunkier, brighter frame than you would have with clear lenses, it will be robust and look funky on the beach!

If you choose a sunspec and want lenses fitting into it, there are some points to be aware of. Not every frame can be re-used, so check when you buy it. You also need to make sure it’s not too curved – your prescription lenses have their own curve which is governed by power, so not every lens will fit into every frame. Shields, large wrap styles and rimless sunglass are rarely suitable for re-use.

Once you’ve taken these points on board, have a browse and think about your sunnie style – classic, sporty, chic or cool. Then get ordering and pray for the weather to actually try them out!

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Road Test – Anti-Reflection Coating

Thursday, October 7th, 2010

I came to order my second ever pair of glasses last month, and after discussion of my symptoms with the optician he suggested that I try an anti-reflection layer on my lenses. This was all new to me as I’d had a very cheap and cheerful pair of glasses just for driving first time around. So here’s my summary of how I’ve got on with this exciting new product!

When I got my first glasses I thought I’d only want them now and again for in the car, as I’m only a bit short-sighted. Now it’s been two years and I find I need them for TV, driving all the time, and more importantly, shopping! I don’t like driving at night because I find that headlights dazzle me. The Optician said that the anti-reflection layer is the only thing that would help. The good news is that he said it would make my eyes more comfortable at the computer and under our office lights too.

When my glasses arrived I was curious as to what they would look like. They’re amazingly sparkly and clear, when you look at them they don’t appear to have any lenses in. My husband’s comment was that my eyes look really bright through them. When I examined the glasses I could see they have a weird green reflection on the back under bright light, but on my face they’re super invisible!

For driving they felt fantastic. With my new prescription and the coating everything was really sharp and clear, with no distracting shadows and reflections in the lens. At night they are wonderful, especially compared to my old glasses. I used to see really bright and dazzling reflections in the back of my glasses, even my eyelashes were visible on the back of the lens! That’s all gone now and my sight is brilliant.

At work I don’t seem to get as tired through the day, my screen seems much more comfortable to work at for long periods. I find I clean the specs more, because smudges show up more clearly. It’s a 100% improvement on my original specs and I’m pleased I went for it.

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Pick up Some Plastic!

Wednesday, October 6th, 2010

With all the publicity about plastic re-cycling and waste carrier bags, plastic is getting a raw deal at the moment. We in the Optical industry love our plastic, for use in frames and lenses – so what can it do for you?

The biggest shift in use of plastic within our industry is for lenses, where the market has swung round to almost exclusive use of plastic rather than glass. For you as the consumer, this has given you lighter weight, safer specs, with vision that’s just as good as in traditional glass. Plastic light reacting and thin lenses have taken a few years to catch up to the original glass versions, but today there is a plastic option of nearly every type of glass lens. They are used for safety lenses, sports goggles and visors, and most importantly for children, where impact resistance is of the highest importance. Ready readers and sun clips could not be made cheaply and in high quality without plastic components.

In spectacle frame manufacture plastic is used both as a sole material and as a face saving addition to metal frames. We wouldn’t be able to wear metal without the plastic end tips and nose pads that contribute to our daily comfort. Even barely there rimless frames need plastic on the points that touch the skin to prevent reactions and allow adjustability. Highly complex and tough rimless are made by sinking the frame components into the high-density plastic of the lenses, marrying technology with style and durability.

Entire frames made of plastic make up a huge proportion of our sales across the industry, giving clients strong, adjustable frames that can be totally fashion forward or traditional. They suit Chris Evans just as well as they always suited Ronnie Barker! Plastic frames are strong, impact resistant, and completely hypo-allergenic. They camouflage higher power lenses as they have a thicker edge, and they give a vast amount of choice due to the range of colour effects that we create with them. They are also highly versatile in terms of finish and inlaid decoration.

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A Question of Colour for Prescription Glasses

Tuesday, October 5th, 2010

Spectacle frame design is big business nowadays, with ever wilder and wackier styles hitting our web pages and the shelves. Choosing specs has never been easier, or for some, harder, as the choice can be bewildering if you’re nervous about what to pick. Let’s go back to basics and look at the first aspect of making that fashion decision, colour that suits you and your style needs.

Like changing your hair colour, changing your specs boils down to taking a long hard look at your skin tone and eye colour. There are two distinct looks to think about – do you want to wear the specs, or want them to wear you? If you want the glasses to blend with you and become part of your overall look, then you’ll need to examine your colouring and find a frame that complements you. If however the specs are a statement, they need to stand out and override your natural colouring.

For subtle blending in, match the frame to your eye colour, or your hair – making sure that’s the right tone to start with of course! If the frame matches you, it won’t matter what you wear, or what the occasion is, the glasses are as much a part of you as the freckles over your nose! Going a shade darker is useful if you want to enhance eye colour – a blue frame will make the most of grey blue eyes for instance. When trying on frames wear a neutral shade next to the face, look at yourself with minimal make up and in broad daylight, and really take the time to see what the frame colour does to your eyes and skin. Do you look brighter? Happy? Or ill and a bit hung over? Colour really can do that much to alter people’s perception of your mood and state of mind!

If you want a contrast and a statement, you need bold colours, and probably those that match the clothes you feel most confident in. What do you wear that makes you feel daring and in control? Bright red, dramatic black, hot pink or bold blue? Then find a frame that does the same, giving you a mask of the personality you want to project. Again, study the tone of the colour and look at what it does to your face. Does it make your eyes sparkle and your complexion come alive?

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Use our try before you buy scheme to make sure you have the right colour and then the right shade within that palette. Try it with the key pieces from your wardrobe, ask a trusted friend and think about how the colour makes you feel. Then go forth with the perfect accessory that makes your life that bit more colourful!

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