People are often confused when it comes to choosing spex, bewildered by the vast choice of frames, lenses, and coatings on offer. When we choose clothes or shoes we’ve often seen something we like in a magazine or an a friend, but with specs the subtleties of colour and design are often not that noticeable, until that is you come to choose yours, and such tiny details can make it hard for you to come to a decision. To help in your choice, let’s take a look at the most important factors in choosing a frame that will look perfect on you and do its job.

One of the biggest issues is in how the frame looks on your face, where it should sit and how the frame should fit you. There are three aspects to this question – the current trend for frame size, your proportions, and the lens power that you need. In the Seventies, all frames were huge, and it was very difficult to find anything that wasn’t big. Today the situation is less cut and dried, and there are frames in every size available.

For a frame to look in proportion to you, your eyes should sit in the centre of the lens. If the frame is too narrow your eyes will be at the outside edges of the lens, too wide and there’ll be lots of spare lens either side of your eyes! This adds thickness to your prescription lenses, increases edge distortion, and will make you look a bit shifty as your eyes will appear very close together! The frame should not sit on your cheeks, it will drive you mad as it moves up and down when you eat or laugh. The top edge should sit below your eye brows, and follow the shape of the brows – for example curved brows need a curved top frame.

If you are very short sighted it will benefit you to choose a small frame, as the lenses will then be thinner. So within the boundaries of fashion and looks, go as small as you can. Long sighted patients benefit from smaller frames too; we can have the lens manufactured from scratch to suit your frame, which again reduces thickness.

The frame sides must not dig into the side of your temples. This will give you a headache and strain the frame! There should be a gap between your head and the frame until the sides curve behind the ears, where they should sit closely to your head. The nose pads are only a resting area for the frame; don’t pinch them in until you can’t breathe!

Finding a frame that suits your face and your proportions will help you to feel happy wearing your glasses, as they become a part of you. Ask a friend, try before you buy – there’s a frame for every face, you just have to find your perfect fit!